Last Updated on April 21, 2022 by Nathaniel Tower
If you write short fiction or poetry, your best bet for publication is a literary magazine. While it’s difficult to earn a lot of money as a short story writer or poet, you can definitely accomplish a lot by getting published in a literary magazine. There are thousands of active literary magazines accepting submissions right now, and many of them will pay you for your work.
Before you send out any literary magazine submissions, it’s important to understand exactly what a literary magazine is and what type of work they publish.
What is a literary magazine?
A literary magazine, also called a lit mag, is an online or print publication that focuses on publishing literature. Most literary magazines focus on short stories and poetry, while some accept creative non-fiction, photography, and artwork.
Literary magazines may publish daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, or sporadically. With no shortage of work available these days, literary magazines can be highly selective about what they accept. Many literary magazines will only accept a very small percentage of the work submitted each month.
There’s a huge variety in the style of work published by literary magazines. Most literary magazines have clearly stated submission guidelines giving you an idea of what to send. This may include:
- Length of work or word count
- Preferred genres (or a list of things they don’t want to see)
- Method of submission
The best way to figure out what to send to any particular literary magazine is to read a few examples of what they’ve published in the past.
How do you find literary magazines to submit to?
Finding literary magazines for submissions is a lot easier than it used to be. In the old days, you had to buy a massive book that listed all of the various magazines along with their mail addresses. Today, there are plenty of websites that detail every open literary magazine. Some of my favorites are:
- Duotrope (requires paid subscription)
- Submission Grinder
- Poets & Writers
- Newpages
- Other various websites
If you can’t find a literary magazine to submit your work to, then you aren’t trying hard enough! No matter what type of fiction or poetry you write, there is a literary magazine out there for you. Seriously. I’ve been able to find quality homes for some pretty wild stories. If you write any of these short story ideas, I promise you can find a venue to publish all of them.
How do you send out literary magazine submissions?
Fortunately, most literary magazine submissions are done online these days. When I first started submitting to literary magazines about 15 years ago, it was very common to mail out your submissions. If you wanted to guarantee a response, you would have to include a SASE (self-addressed stamped envelope). Otherwise, a publication wasn’t going to take the time (or money) to contact you regarding the fate of your work.
Today’s literary magazines typically accept submissions through one of the following methods:
- A submissions manager such as Submittable
- Contact form on their website
Note that some literary magazines charge fees for submissions. Before you submit your work, you’ll need to decide if it’s worth it to pay a small fee to have a magazine read your work.
When submitting to a literary magazine, it’s important to follow these best practices:
- Read at least one issue or a few examples of stories/poems they’ve published
- Read the submission guidelines thoroughly
- Choose a piece of writing that fits their aesthetic and their submission guidelines
- Follow each aspect of the submission guidelines
- Send your work in the appropriate format with a brief cover letter
- Track the date, method, and venue of each submission (here’s a free template you can use)
- Wait for a response
It can take weeks or even months to get a response to a literary magazine submission, so please be patient. Very few submissions get lost or misplaced, and most literary magazines do (eventually) respond to every submission they receive. Remember, they may receive hundreds of submissions per day, so it’s going to take time for them to get back to you.
Literary magazine submission mistakes
Here are some things you definitely shouldn’t do when submitting to literary magazines:
- Send your work without reading what they publish
- Send a mass email to a bunch of literary magazines at once
- Ignore their formatting requirements
- Send a cocky cover letter
- Send frequent messages asking about the status of your submission
- Send another piece of work immediately after receiving a rejection (it’s polite to wait a bit, even if they ask for another one)
- Send a snarky or angry response if they choose not to publish your work\
- Post an angry rant on social media about a literary magazine
Even if you follow the submission guidelines exactly and abide by all the submission dos and don’ts above, you still have less than a 10% chance of getting an acceptance. That isn’t reflective of your writing ability. There are simply too many writers and too many submissions for the number of literary magazines that exist. Fortunately, if you keep trying, you will get published in a literary magazine.
Also, make sure you have a Submittable account before you start submitting to literary magazines. It’s the most widely used platform, so it will save you a lot of time.
Have you sent out any literary magazine submissions? Share your tips and experiences in the comments. And don’t forget to share this post on all your favorite channels.
Literary magazine submissions FAQs
How do you get published in a literary magazine?
In order to get published in a literary magazine, you should read some examples of what they published, follow their submission guidelines, and send a piece of work that seems like a good fit.
How do you write a submission letter to a magazine?
Your submission letter to a magazine should generally be short and professional. Indicate who you are and what you are sending, and then let your work speak for itself. Since popular magazines receive thousands of submissions per week, the submission letter often gets overlooked.
What are the best literary magazines?
With thousands of literary magazines publishing work today, it can be difficult to pick the best ones. There are certainly some universally regarded publications like The New Yorker, Glimmer Train, Tin House, and the Missouri Review that almost every writer aspires to be published in. However, there are hundreds of other great literary magazines that accept submissions. The best literary magazines depend on the genre and style of work you’re looking to read.
Do literary magazines charge for submissions?
While many literary magazines accept submissions for free, others require a small fee before you can submit. Fees for literary magazine submissions can range anywhere from $1 to $10 and may include the promise of personalized feedback. Some magazines give you the option for a free or paid submission, with the paid submission serving as a donation or an opportunity to receive quicker feedback.
