These 40 magazines publish fiction (literary and genre), nonfiction, and poetry, and they all began publishing during or after 2020. Most, not all, of these are open for submissions now; some have themed calls. Many of them pay writers. The magazines are listed in no particular order.
Uncharted
They will debut in August 2021, and are reading crime, mystery, science fiction, fantasy, horror, and thriller short stories, of 1,000-5,000 words. Their website says, “Uncharted Magazine is the newest platform from the team behind The Masters Review, CRAFT Literary, Fractured Lit, and The Voyage Journal. Using the skills and expertise we developed to bring those magazines to life, we hope to uplift writers of the stories that we always fall back upon when we seek a thrilling escape, a surprising new world, or a brain-twisting mystery.” They plan to read stories throughout the year. They pay $200. Details here and here.
Library Love Letter
They want fiction, nonfiction, essay, poetry, visual art, or other formats – of anything “that has to do with libraries, archives, museums, knowledge in general, reading, writing, literature, information (its use, access, and understanding), and many other tangential topics.” They also have a blog. The deadline for their first issue is 31 August 2021. Details here.
Air/Light
This Los Angeles-based journal wants new and innovative works of literary arts across all mediums and genres. They’re particularly interested in work from female-identifying, BIPOC, and LGBTQ creators. They publish nonfiction — personal essays, critical essays, memoir, reviews, reportage, travel, interviews, collaborative essays, and fiction — all genres and styles, of up to 4000 words; poetry up to 10 pages, traditional and non-traditional; as well as cross-genre work, visual art (including comics), music, video, digital, multimedia, and interactive pieces. Details here.
The Antihumanist
Their tagline is ‘Flash Fiction and Philosophy’. They publish fiction – weird, speculative, horror, and literary – and essays on the antihuman theme, which challenges human-centered themes, and also commission artwork. Send up to 1,000 words for fiction, 750-1,500 words for essays, up to 350 words for letters. Pay is $0.05/word for prose, and $150 for cover art. They are reading submissions for their second issue until 1 September 2021. Details here (deadline details) here (fiction guidelines) and here (essay guidelines).
Welkin: A Magazine of the Fantastic
Their website says this is a “magazine of fantastic literature, a journal devoted to the obscure and the outré, to narrowing the gap between realist literary fiction and more traditional and fantastic modes of narrative. We specifically look for submissions in the magical realist, fabulist, fairy tale, fantasy, gothic, metafictional, slipstream, fantastic, weird, surrealist, and experimental genres. We seek a movement away from plotless, quotidian tales in favor of the imaginative, the gripping, and the plot-driven.” They do not specify word count, but their quarterly magazine is 80 pages, so submissions have to be shorter than that. Flash stories of up to 1,500 words, published in their online magazine ‘The Book of Idle Tales’, are unpaid, while Welkin pays $0.01/word. Submissions for Welkin are open until 31 July 2021; their reading periods are March, July, October, and January. Submissions for ‘The Book of Idle Tales’ are considered year-round. Details here.
Openwork
Their website says, “Our interests include, but are not limited to, short stories, poems, personal essays, nonfiction, flash fiction, photography, visual art, graphic design, diary entries, confessionals, to-do lists, big artistic revelations, pictures of brunch, horoscope predictions”. They published their first work in March 2021, and are open through the year. Details here and here.
khōréō
This is a magazine of speculative fiction and migration which accepts work only from those who identify as an immigrant or member of a Diaspora. They accept fiction, nonfiction, and art, and are reading submissions on the Food theme – their Tweet says they want “Stories/essays exploring food (and drink) in all its forms, through any lens of migration/identity.” They pay $0.08/word. The deadline for fiction and nonfiction is 31 July 2021; they read submissions in January, April, July, and October. Art is accepted year-round. Details here.
First Frost
This is a print journal of haiku and senryu – send up to five pieces. Each issue carries 44 poems. Their guidelines say, “We have a broad, contemporary view of what constitutes haiku and senryu. We are not hostile to 5/7/5, but anticipate publishing more poems with fewer syllables. We are open to 1, 2, & 3 lines (and other configurations.) We do not publish poems that include the phrase ‘first frost’.” In each issue, they feature a “best of issue” poem which wins the author free copies of the issue and a free one-year subscription. The deadline is 15 August 2021 for the Fall 2021 issue. Details here.
Orion’s Belt
They publish literary speculative flash fiction, of up to 1,200 words; all stories must contain significant speculative elements. They publish one story a month. They have extensive guidelines, and also have a section on hard sells, and the kind of stories they see too often. Also, their website says, “While we focus on science-fiction and fantasy, we’re open to slipstream, horror, magic realism, myth retellings, surrealism, superhero stories, and all other fantastical genres and subgenres.
The “literary” qualifier simply means we like stories focusing on internal and interpersonal conflicts.” Pay is $0.08/word. Details here.
Starship Sloane Publishing Company: Three journals
This publishing company has started three projects in 2021, and have other projects under development. At the time of writing, only The Flying Saucer Poetry Review was open for submissions.
— The Flying Saucer Poetry Review: This is a quarterly, online literary journal devoted exclusively to poetry and art about the UFO phenomenon; send up to five poems. “We are looking for intriguing writing that attempts to describe and process the seemingly inexplicable and leaves you unsure of what just happened, much like the UFO phenomenon itself.” There is no style or word limit, but they do not want poetry on the scale of an epic. A print version is in development. See the dropdown menu under ‘The Flying Saucer Poetry Review’ on the top for guidelines and portals of each genre. Details here.
— The Space Cadet Science Fiction Review: This is a quarterly, online literary journal of science fiction poetry, flash fiction, short stories, essays, interviews, book reviews and artwork. See the dropdown menu under ‘The Space Cadet Science Fiction Review’ on the top right for guidelines and portals of each genre. A print version of the journal is under development. Details here.
— The Starlight SciFaiku Review: This is a quarterly, online literary journal of science fiction haiku and minimalist line art in black & white. See the dropdown menu under ‘The Starlight SciFaiku Review’ on the top right for guidelines and portals of each genre. Details here.
The Deadlands
This is a monthly speculative fiction magazine, and they are interested in work about death. They will publish work “about the other realms, of the ends we face here, and the beginnings we find elsewhere.” In addition to fiction and poetry, they will feature nonfiction essays and reviews of death-related media. Pay is $0.10/word for fiction (up to 5,000 words), $50/poem (any length), and $100/nonfiction piece (any length). Details here and here.
Gleam: Journal of the Cadralor
Gleam is a journal wholly devoted to the new poetic form, the cadralor, which is a poem of 5, unrelated, numbered stanzaic images; each stanza is image-based, showing rather than telling – see guidelines under ‘What are we looking for?’ for details. Send up to three pieces. The deadline is 31 July 2021. Details here.
The Literary Cauldron
They publish poetry, visual art, and multimedia; send up to three pieces. They like “all things mysterious, magickal, witchy, entheogenic, metaphysical, haunted, ghostly, tarot, divination, spooky, eerie, goose-bumpy.” And about poetry preferences, they say, “Our likes: free verse, experimental poetry, black outs, cut-ups, remixes. Our dislikes: rhyming poetry.” Details here.
Mermaids Monthly
This magazine publishes work on mermaids – fiction, nonfiction, poetry, art, and comics, and they occasionally run themed issues. They pay $0.10/word for fiction and nonfiction, and $50-100 for poems. They’re closed for submissions for 2021, and announce open reading periods on their website. Details here.
Moist Poetry
This is a place for a place for “moist poems, for gendered and queer language, for language play that might not “be a good fit” for other journals. You can read whole articles against the word “moist,” if you desire, but the editor is reminded of Anne Carson’s essay “The Gender of Sound,” and how Plutarch’s metaphor of a leaky water jar is connected to gendered sound and more … In addition to loving Anne Carson, it also happens that the editor of Moist genuinely loves watery poems: rain, fog, sea, humidity, mist, snow. So feel free to send water poems to Moist, and also feel invited to send us lush, juicy, and fresh poems, poems that are metaphorically, metaphysically, or sonically moist.” They publish a single (and sometimes a double) poem three times weekly. They will reopen for submissions in the Fall. Details here.
Cicada’s Lament
They want Southern Gothic/horror fiction and poetry. They will accept work only from marginalized creators all over the world, particularly Disabled and/or LGBTQIA+ folx – especially Disabled or LGBTQIA+ people of color. They are reading work for their first issue, and the theme is (re)birth – “we want your births, your baptisms, your beginnings”. Also, “We’re looking for horror that has its roots in the South. Hanging moss, blue porch ceilings, kudzu, cicadas, muddy river water, mountains, hollers, deer that are not quite deer: these are all examples of the kind of things we want to see in your horror. Go wild, though know that these are not hard and fast rules. We’re always looking for work that subverts expectations and reverses clichés, work that challenges and takes apart the various -isms traditionally present in the Gothic/horror genre.” Send fiction or poetry of up to 5,000 words. Pay is $5. The deadline is 1 October 2021. Details here.
Quartet
They publish poems by women aged 50 years and over. Send up to three poems. They nominate work for Best New Poets, Best of the Net, and the Pushcart Prize. The deadline is 8 August 2021; their next submission period opens in October. Details here.
MetaStellar
This magazine publishes flash fiction submissions of fantasy, horror, and science fiction (up to 1,000 words), and pay $0.08/word; the next submission cycle is in Fall 2021. They also accept unpaid submissions and pitches all year round — in the form of reviews, essays, excerpts, and reprints. Details here (fiction – closed now) and here (other submissions).
Poetic Sun
They publish poetry and creative nonfiction; they “like poems with concrete imagery and strong emotions; We like poems that surprise us and make us weep like soft children; We like beautiful music flowing in your lines.” Send up to three poems, in English or Chinese, and one creative nonfiction piece of up to 1,000 words. Details here.
The Expanse Magazine
This magazine is accepting new and diverse speculative fiction and all sub-genres (up to 4,000 words), nonfiction (up to 1,000 words), and art. Stories should be written for audio, as they will be recorded, and be accessible to neuro-diverse people. Also, “We are currently unable to guarantee payment of any kind for the first issue.” The deadline is 30 August 2021. Details here.
Fat Coyote Literary Arts
This literary magazine showcases the work of neurodivergent artists; writers have to be neurodivergent to contribute. They accept fiction, nonfiction, poetry, comics, as well as art and photography. They accept up to 6,000 words for prose, and up to three poems. Pay is $0.03/word, up to $120, for prose; $1/line, up to $70, for poetry; up to $120 for comics. Watch for their next reading period. Details here.
eucalyptus & rose
They publish heartwarming and thoughtful fiction and creative non-fiction of up to 1,000 words, and poetry that does not exceed 20 lines. They especially want “unsent love letters, bite-size memoirs, poetry revolving around landscapes and colors, and short fiction that makes us feel fuzzy on the inside.” Details here.
Moonflake Press
They are reading fiction, nonfiction (micro-essays, personal essays, memoirs, travel writing, diary entries, anecdotes and your own literary take on true, factual stories), and poetry for their online issue, and the theme is ‘Lush’ – “prose that’s gorgeous and your deep details; stories we can sink into and words that will bite back”; the deadline for that is 1 August 2021. They also want fiction, nonfiction, and poetry for their print issue, on the ‘Escapism’ theme. “This can be escaping worlds, cities, identities or however else you interpret it.” Pay is £25 for submissions on ‘Escapism’, and the deadline is 1 September 2021. Details here.
Stone
They are reading poetry for their inaugural issue – “ranging from the visceral to the cerebral across a full scope of human experience and awareness. Stone prefers to publish poems that present a diversity of contemporary perspectives and are well-crafted, artistic explorations of language, subject, and image.” Also, this is not a venue for concrete or overtly avant-garde poetry. Subtly-metered verse may be acceptable, depending, but not rhyming. Send up to five poems. The deadline is 31 October 2021. Details here.
The Worlds Within
They publish fantasy and science fiction, of 10,000 words or fewer. This is “a place of exploration, a place to delve into what it is to be human via worlds of magic and myth.” Details here.
Constelación Magazine
Constelación is a speculative fiction bilingual magazine, and they accept and publish stories in both Spanish and English. Fifty percent of the stories they publish in every issue are from authors from the Caribbean, Latin America, and their Diaspora. They run themed submission calls, and pay $0.08/word for fiction of up to 6,400 words. They’re reading submissions for their fourth issue, on the theme ‘Love Needs No Translation’ until 1 August 2021. Details here.
the other side of hope: journeys in refugee and immigrant literature
This is a UK-based literary magazine edited by refugees and immigrants. Their website says, “We exist to serve, via words, the refugee and immigrant communities worldwide.” The print issue is annual, and they also publish online periodically. They accept fiction and poetry submissions from refugees, asylum seekers, and immigrants only; work does not have to relate to the refugee or immigrant experience. Nonfiction (short essays, creative ethnography, memoir, criticism, reportage, and travelogue), book reviews, and author interviews are open to everyone, so long as the subject matter sheds light on refugee and immigrant life. Send 1,000-8,000 words for fiction; up to four poems; and 2,000-5,000 words for nonfiction. Pay is £100 per published author in the print issue, and £50 per published author in the online issue; asylum seekers will receive a £100/£50 online gift card. The deadline is 31 July 2021. Details here.
Mulberry Literary
They want all genres of work—prose (1,200- 6,500 words), flash, poetry (up to 30 lines), script, comics, film, and visual art. Cross-genre, experimental, and hybrid work are always welcome, as well as excerpts of longer pieces, although they must be self-contained. International submissions and submissions of translated work are welcome as well. They are reading work for their second issue, and the deadline is 1 September 2021. Details here.
If There’s Anyone Left
This is a speculative and science fiction magazine, and they only accept submissions from people of color, the LGBTQ+ community, members of marginalized genders, and disabled people. Send fiction of up to 1,000 words. They pay $0.08/word. The deadline is 31 July 2021. Details here.
Reservoir Road Literary Review
They want “Stories that examine the truth in the bitterness, in the anti-heroes. Heavy stories full of grit and discomfort that shed sympathetic light on the questionable, the unfavorable. Stories that ask difficult questions, that provide difficult answers. We seek short stories that are literary fiction, lyrical creative non-fiction, poetry, and photography. We are generally disinterested in pandemic stories. We also do not generally take coming-of-age stories, pieces that center on YA age groups, or historical pieces.” They do not have a word limit for short stories, but anything beyond 10,000 words may become unwieldy; nonfiction is up to 1,000 words. Issues come out on the last Tuesday of February, April, June, August, October, and December. Submissions open at the beginning of each alternate month, closing at the end or when the submission cap is reached. They pay $5. Though the deadline is 31 July 2021, submissions may close earlier in some categories. Details here.
The Jupiter Review
They accept submissions in English and Spanish – of poetry (up to three poems), prose (up to 2,200 words), visual art, and spoken word. They accept submissions from anyone aged 13 years and above. Submissions for their third issue will open on 30 July, 2021. Details here and here.
Brink
Their website says, “Brink is an in-print literary journal dedicated to publishing hybrid, cross-genre work of both emerging and established creatives who often reside outside traditional artistic disciplines. By providing space primed to instigate new ideas, Brink fosters dialogue and collaborative community across disciplines and cultural divides.” They publish fiction, nonfiction, poetry, translations, and hybrid work (see their ‘Evocations’ category in Submittable). They pay $25 to $100, and are reading submissions on the ‘Currency’ theme until 31 August 2021. Details here (general guidelines, pay rates, open submission periods) and here (theme details; Submittable).
Dark Matter Magazine
This magazine was started during the COVID-19 lockdown of 2020. They publish dark science fiction, poetry, comics, and art. They have extensive guidelines, and aim “to bring you stories that explore the shadow side of reality.” The sub-genres they accept are Afrofuturism, Alternate Universe, Apocalyptic, Cyberpunk, Dark Humor or Satire, Dying Earth, Dystopia, Hard Boiled, Hard SF, Near Future, Pulp, Occult SF, SF Fantasy, SF Horror, Slipstream, Space Opera, Theological, and Weird SF. They want memorable characters, and the science element can be slight, but it must be present, and be vital to the story. Stories must be read well on the screen, and also be effective for an audio format. They accept 1,000-5,000 words for fiction, and up to 10 pages for comics. Pay is $0.08/word for fiction, $30 for poetry, and $50/page for short comics. They plan to open in Q3 2021; art is accepted on an ongoing basis. Details here.
Meetinghouse
This is a literary journal from Dartmouth College. They publish prose (up to 7,500 words), poetry, and translations. They can accept up to two pieces of prose and up to five poems. Pay is $40 for digital content and $100 for work published in the print magazine. Details here.
The Voyage Journal
This is a magazine of inclusive Young Adult writing, for both fiction and creative non-fiction, of up to 6,000 words. Their website says, “YA is an ever expanding category of literature that constantly pushes boundaries. While the intended audience of YA is teenagers, almost half of YA readers are adults and Voyage is happy to be at the intersection of both groups. We are not interested in publishing a specific genre of YA, but we are interested in quality work by writers from a variety of backgrounds, especially #ownvoices.” They pay $200, and are open throughout the year. Details here (guidelines) and here (FAQ).
The Vanishing Point
This is “a literary magazine for works that bend reality. Horror, Sci-fi, Dark Fantasy, and all things speculative are welcome here.” They accept fiction (1,500-6,000 words), nonfiction (articles related to publication, horror/sci-fi/fantasy in popular media – query first), and art. They pay $25 for fiction and nonfiction. Their first issue will be released in Fall 2021, both in print and online. Details here and here.
Flash Frog
This magazine publishes flash fiction, of up to 1,000 words; their tagline is ‘Small. Brightly colored. Deadly to the touch.’ They’re reading for Flash Frogtober, which means they want ghost stories, both traditional and unconventional. They pay $25. The deadline is 15 August 2021, after which they’ll resume reading unthemed submissions; they read through the year. Details here.
Pigeon Review
They publish fiction micro, flash, and short fiction, up to 3,000 words) and art. For fiction, their guidelines say, “We find that agents, publishers, and presses look for stories that are “dynamic,” “plot-driven,” and “emotionally impactful.” … But it’s not often that our lives have big twists and awe-inspiring fireworks. Sometimes the moments that impact us the most are the quiet ones. The ones we didn’t realize were happening and didn’t know had ended. These are the stories we want. Stories that meander through city alleyways and country lanes. We want to see a snapshot of life, even something that blends the line between fiction and reality.” Submissions are open from the 16th to the final day of the same month. 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.
