These outlets publish book reviews, and accept queries or applications from potential reviewers, or submissions of reviews of books, in a variety of genres. Most of them also accept writing in other genres, like fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. About half of them pay writers. They’re open for submissions, barring one, which opens for a brief period at the beginning of each month.
Another Chicago Magazine
Submissions are currently open for drama, translations, The Loop (the combination of art and text in several genres, including review-essays), audio-visual, art, interviews, and book (and other) reviews. They publish work online on Tuesdays and Thursdays; you can read some of the magazine’s history and focus here. They accept queries and submissions of prose and poetry books. Their guidelines say, “We publish reviews and review-essays of books that are of interest to curious generalists (not academic specialists): fiction, poetry, creative nonfiction, history, politics, sociology, art, biography, and more. We also publish reviews of other arts. We encourage creativity in reviews. They can be in almost any format: list, personal essay, collage, etc. … Just about all of the books we review are published by small presses. We rarely review books published by large commercial presses.” They are also looking to fill some volunteer positions, at the time of writing. Details here.
Booklist
They are a part of the American Library Association and their reviews serve a specific purpose: guiding school and public library workers in purchasing and suggesting books. They seek reviewers who are familiar with both books and libraries, and writers have to apply via a form on their website to become reviewers. A library degree is not required. They have extensive guidelines, including a one-hour recorded webinar. Their reviews pay $15. Also see guidelines about writing for their sister publication, Book Links, and regular feature categories assigned to freelancers. Details here.
Consequence Forum
This forum addresses the human consequences and realities of war and geopolitical violence. Apart from reviews, they publish other nonfiction (interviews, essays, narrative nonfiction), fiction, poetry, translations, and visual art (including artwork, graphic narratives, video essays, and photo essays). They no longer charge a submission fee. Pay is $50 for online reviews; for other sections, pay is $25-100. The deadline is 1 May 2021. Details here.
Bone Bouquet
This magazine only publishes work by female and nonbinary writers. They accept poetry, poetry reviews, and poetics statements. Currently, they are only open to reviews of books by women and non-binary poets published in the last four years (query for older books). At the time of writing, they are also seeking Black poetry editors. Details here.
Midnight & Indigo
They publish work by Black women writers – fiction and nonfiction. They want reviews (up to 1,000 words) of books written by Black women authors, and those focused on books within the literary fiction genre will have a better chance of getting published. Reviews are unpaid, and are accepted year-round. For other genres, pay is $50-125, and the deadline is 2 May 2021. Details here.
Bridge Eight
This literary publisher produces “works that move the eyes and soul. For us, that means publishing accessible fiction and poetry that speaks directly to the world our readers live in today.” They’re only open to book reviews and translations currently. “Bridge Eight is happy to read and publish well-written book reviews, whether they be for smaller independent presses or those with a much larger reach. If you are passionate about the work, then we’re the home for you.” Their guidelines also say, “We are interested in prose and poetry alike – especially those books we may not have heard of before, or those you think are underrepresented in the literary media.” Please don’t send reviews of self-published books. Details here.
Gumshoe Review
They publish mystery fiction and nonfiction, and they’re particularly looking for reviewers in the mystery genre, and are asking people to apply with a written sample (see guidelines). Reviews are unpaid, other sections pay $0.05/word, up to $50. They are open now for submissions. Details here.
Coal Hill Review
They’re currently open for book reviews (1,000 words; open to queries about other lengths). They only publish reviews of books published by independent and university presses. Also, special consideration is given to reviews written about books by emerging authors, debut authors, authors and publishers with local ties to Pittsburgh and Southwestern Pennsylvania in addition to books that have received little press coverage or overlooked by other review outlets. They seek “critically balanced reviews that go beyond simple commendations or criticism and might address how the writer is navigating some challenges of writing contemporary fiction, poetry, and nonfiction.” They have some books listed, that they want reviews on. Details here.
The Threepenny Review
Apart from fiction and memoir, they also publish critical articles that deal with books, films, theater performances, art exhibits, etc, of 1,200-2,500 words. Their guidelines say, “Remember that The Threepenny Review is quarterly and national (and in some respects international); therefore each “review” should actually be an essay, broader than the specific event it covers and of interest to people who cannot see the event.” Pay is $400 for fiction and nonfiction, and $200 for a ‘Table Talk’ piece. The deadline is 30 April 2021. Details here.
Barrelhouse
They publish prose and poetry in print and online, for which they pay writers. However, they are now only open for review submissions, which are unpaid. They prefer reviews that focus on recent (last two years) small press titles—especially debuts—or upcoming titles.
They are interested in full-length or chapbook-length collections of poetry and prose (memoirs, story or essay collections, academic works). They are open to non-standard reviewing forms, as long as it doesn’t distract from the book in question. Details here.
Cosmic Roots and Eldritch Shores
This speculative fiction magazine publishes fiction (science fiction, fantasy, myth, legend, fairy tales, and eldritch), fact-based articles on these topics (including reviews), poetry, and artwork. They also accept reprints of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. They read submissions for two days at the beginning of every month. Pay for new fact-based work is $0.02-0.06/word. They also pay for fiction and poetry. They read work on the 1st and 2nd of each month; their next reading period is 1-2 May 2021. Details here.
Tor.com
This is a science fiction and fantasy publisher and they accept pitches for essays, think pieces, list posts, reaction pieces, and reviews in the 1,000-2,500 word range for their blog. Their guidelines say, “Please note the distinction between reviews and other types of articles/essays: a review (of a book, movie, or television episode) entails a strict deadline; pitches must be made and accepted in advance of the pub/release date, and advanced copies/screeners will be provided if possible.” They also accept pitches about older works, including books. They have occasional calls for novels and novellas on their website (currently they’re reading short speculative fiction for Africa Risen, an anthology by African writers, which pays $0.08/word, and the deadline for which is 14 May 2021). Blog submissions are accepted on an ongoing basis, and are paid. Details here.
*apo-press
Apart from reviews and essays, they accept submissions of poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, critical theory, articles, rituals, spells, visual art, music, video, photography, translations, collaborations, performances, novellas, and hybrid work for their blog. They will also publish their second issue in November 2021, titled ‘re-homing’, and any submissions for their blog will be first considered for their this issue. Details here.
Briarpatch Magazine
This magazine publishes writing and artwork on a wide range of topics, including current events, grassroots activism, electoral politics, economic justice, ecology, labour, food security, gender equity, Indigenous struggles, international solidarity, and other issues of political importance. “We publish short (300-1,000 word) reviews of recent books, music, films, and other forms of political media. Your review should give readers a clear sense of what to expect from the work and provide a brief critical appraisal of its merits.” They prioritize reviews of recently published material, small or independent publishers, and/or Canadian publications. They welcome unsolicited reviews, as well as pitches. They’re reading for a Labour-themed issue (pitch deadline: 1 July 2021) as well as unthemed issues. Pay for reviews is $100 (Canadian), and for other departments/features it is $100-200. Details here.
The Cortland Review
This is a triannual poetry journal – you can read a little of their history and the kind of work they publish here. They accept submissions of poetry, translations, and queries for reviews. Their reviews “tend to be between 800-1200 words and contain in-depth critical and literary analysis. If this is not the author’s first book, reviewers will be expected to place this new work, however briefly, into the context of previous work.” Details here.
Contemporary Verse 2
This quarterly literary journal publishes poetry (in English and French, as well as translations from French to English and vice-versa) and critical writing about poetry, including interviews, articles, essays, and reviews. Reviews should be 600-1,000 words, and pay $50-80. For other sections, pay is $30-150. Unsolicited overseas contributors from outside of Canada and the US whose fee is $40 or less (one poem or review) will be paid in contributor copies. The deadline is 31 May 2021. Details here.
The Georgia Review
This respected literary magazine publishes book reviews, apart from fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. While most reviews are solicited by editors, they also accept submissions from outside reviewers, though they request for these not to be simultaneous submissions. Their guidelines say, “We publish standard reviews (typically 1400-1600 words), which focus on only one book, and essay-reviews (typically 4000-6000 words), each of which develops a strong thesis through an engagement with multiple books in order to comment on literature and/or culture beyond the texts at hand.” They charge a $3 fee to non-subscribers wanting to submit online, but there is no fee for mailed submissions. Pay is $150 for book reviews, $50/page for prose, and $4/line of poetry. The deadline is 15 May 2021. Details here.
Women in Higher Education Newsletter
Their website says, “Women in Higher Education (WiHE) is a monthly practitioner’s newsletter, designed to help smart women on campus get wise about how gender affects their being successful in the men-dominated world of higher education.” They have extensive guidelines about the kind of work they publish. Departments include Moveable type, which is a synopsis of a useful book, of 800-1100 words. They also publish essays, features and interviews, and pay $150 for solicited guest contributions. Details here.
Kaleidoscope
They publish work on disability, and accept work from writers with and without disabilities. For reviews their guidelines say, “Reviews that are substantive, timely, powerful works about publications in the field of disability and/or the arts. The writer’s opinion of the work being reviewed should be clear. The review should be literary work in its own right – 5,000 words maximum each/two reviews maximum.” They also publish poetry, fiction, articles, and visual art. Pay is $10-100. Details here.
Newfound
This literary magazine accepts fiction, nonfiction, reviews, review queries, translations, and art. Their guidelines say, “Newfound publishes reviews of books, film, television, music, art, and more that are both timely and relevant to our audience. We like reviews that are critical, complex, creative, and culturally-minded.
Reviews should consider at least one object of culture that has been recently published (within the last year) or is forthcoming. Please send work that is 500-5000 words in length, and includes a short author bio.” Reviews and translations are open year-round; for other genres, general submissions close on 15 May 2021. They’re also reading for a themed issue titled ‘Communities of Care’. Certain sections have a monthly submission cap. Pay is $25. Details here.
Drizzle
This is a book review website. They publish short and long form book reviews, interviews, and essays that promote the work of marginalized authors from across the globe – their reviews cover work by authors who are: Black, Indigenous, people of color, LGBTQIA+, women, disabled, chronically ill, rural and economically disenfranchised. They especially want to uplift works in translation and books by Native authors, trans and non-binary authors, and authors with disabilities. They accept submissions of micro-reviews (150-300 words, which will be published as part of a bimonthly round-up of books), and experimental long-form reviews (500-1200 words). They accept pitches for essays and interviews. Details here.
OutLook by the Bay
This is a magazine for the active Chesapeake Bay senior. The reader is typically over 50, retired or a part-timer. They publish book reviews of interest to seniors. They also publish articles on lifestyle, finances, health, nutrition and housing. Articles need to be upbeat, motivational, conversational, entertaining and informative. Their guidelines have several topics potential contributors can consider, including mastering the computer for the late beginner, container gardening, and educational opportunities for seniors. Payment is upon publication, and they accept reprints. Details here.
Bio: S. Kalekar is the pseudonym of a regular contributor to this magazine. She is the author of 182 Short Fiction Publishers. She can be reached here.
