The following is a list of literary journals and magazines that publish writing by children and teenagers.
Some of them accept submissions from adults – and all of them accept submissions from youth of various ages.
Compared to most of our lists, more of these markets are closed, because these journals have more limited submission windows.
Just Children
Stone Soup
This magazine by and for children has been around since 1973. They publish work by and for 8-13 year olds. They publish stories and poems. Their website contains a lot of helpful tips about what they are specifically looking to publish. Submissions to a few categories are free, but some have fees attached. Learn more here.
Magic Dragon
They publish stories, essays, poems, and art by young people. They don’t have strict age limits that I could find, but most work seemed to be by children under the age of 13. Learn more here.
Whispering Woods
This journal publishes stories for and by children. They have two age ranges for their stories 6-10, and 10-12. Learn more here.
Teens and Children
Paper Lanterns
A literary journal for anyone who is 19 or under the age of 19. Writers under 16 receive a book voucher as payment. Anyone older than 16 receives payment. Learn more here.
Press Pause Press
This literary journal publishes work by adults and by those 18 and younger. If you are younger than 18, they do have special guidelines you must follow. You can learn more here.
Highlights
A very established children’s magazine, they allow general submissions from those 16 and up, but younger children are encouraged to submit poetry and art here.
Fingers Comma Toes
This journal focuses on publishing work by youth, and while they don’t have a strict age range in the past they’ve published work written by people between the ages of 4 and 26. They are not currently open to submissions. To learn more, go here.
The Louisville Review: Cornerstone
They accept submissions of previously unpublished poetry from students in grades K-12 but need parental permission to publish. They are not currently open to submissions. Learn more here.
HaluHalo Journal
They are open to submissions from anyone, between the ages of 12-25, but they “give preference to submissions from writers and artists of Southeast Asian decent”. What sets them apart is they promise that “every submission will receive feedback from our editors”. Learn more here.
Teens (and sometimes up)
Bridge: The Bluffton University Literary Journal
This magazine of arts and letters is compiled by Bluffton University’s Department of English and Writing Program. They only publish artists and writers ages 14-24. Learn more here.
the borderline
An international online literary magazine publishing poetry, prose, photography, and visual art from youth creatives aged 13–26. They are currently open for submissions to their fifth volume. You can learn more here.
Cast of Wonders
Cast of Wonders is a young adult short fiction market, open to stories up to 6,000 words in length, that they publish in a podcast format. They have detailed submission guidelines but are particularly open to work by young writers. They also have a special submission window every year for for writers ages 19 and under and you can see their schedule here. Learn more here.
BALLOONS Literary Journal
An online journal that publishes poetry, fiction, and art that is primarily aimed at young readers aged around 12-16, but is unconventional. They accept submissions from adults and teens. Learn more here.
Adroit Journal
Adroit Journal was founded by a high school student over a decade ago now, and it is currently partially run by by high school and college students. Adroit publishes poetry, fiction, flash fiction, art/photography, and cross-genre works by adults and teens. They have a section focused on tips for young writers, as well as a number of opportunities available to young writers, the most notable being the Summer Mentorship Program.
One Teen Story
This magazine publishes three stories a year. Stories are written by teenagers and have to be submitted as part of their yearly contest. Entry is free, the winners are paid, and the next contest opens up in Fall 2023 (we hope! At the time of writing, the dates on the website are still focused on 2022). Learn more here.
Élan
They accept original fiction, poetry, creative nonfiction, screen writing, plays and visual art from students ages 14 to 18. They publish two online and one print issue a year. You can learn more here.
Teen Ink
A print magazine and a website that publishes work by teenagers intended to be read by teenagers. They have extensive submission guidelines and require registration but they are open to a wide variety (and lengths) of writing. Learn more here.
Polyphony Lit
This international literary journal run by and for teens is only open to submissions from high-schoolers. They have excellent covers. You can learn more here.
Levitate
Once a year, the Chicago High School for the Arts publishes their literary magazine Levitate. They are currently closed to submissions. Learn more here.
The Bibliopunk
Run by and for young adults, this journal accepts work from authors between the ages of 13-24 for a range of creative work. They are currently closed to submissions. Learn more here.
The Milking Cat
An online teen comedy magazine that was started by a senior in high school. They publish comedy of all kind by teenagers. You can learn more here. You can see their submission guidelines here.
The Alcott Youth Magazine
Primarily publishes women writers between the ages of 13-22. Learn more here.
antinarrative
A journal made by and for POC youth creatives, they accept submissions only from writers of color between the ages of 13 and 23. They are currently closed to submissions. Learn more here.
Blue Marble Review
A literary journal open to students ages 13-22. Learn more here.
And Galleons
Submissions for the first issue of this by and for, youth run magazine close June 9th. Writers must be between the ages of 13-22. Learn more here.
Emily Harstone is the author of many popular books, including The Authors Publish Guide to Manuscript Submissions, Submit, Publish, Repeat, and The 2022 Guide to Manuscript Publishers.
She regularly teaches three acclaimed courses on writing and publishing at The Writer’s Workshop at Authors Publish. You can follow her on Facebook here.
