Alchemical is a new online journal focused on publishing speculative works with literary merit, or as they put it “Our mission is to broaden the horizon of literary fiction, raise the bar for speculative fiction, and curate stories that open our minds to great possibilities while striking the human chord at its most resonant. There is something wondrous that lies at the intersection of the literary and the speculative, and that’s precisely where we want to be.”
You can see their masthead here. Several of their editors, including their founding editor appear to use pen names, but do have editorial experience. Their website is well organized, and easy to navigate. They are not a paying market but they nominate for the Pushcart Prize, Best of the Net, and The American Science Fiction and Fantasy series.
They ask that all authors abide by their content restrictions which they go into here.
Their inaugural issue will be published in Spring 2027, so there are no past issues to read for guidance in terms of what they plan to publish. However their submission guidelines are very detail orientated. They are currently seeking:
short fiction (1,000 to 5,000 words.)
essays (on the craft of writing, the magic of writing, and so on.)
one-shot graphic narratives (6-pages, sequential panel art, complete story.)
cover art (illustration, photography, mixed media, digital art.)
They have additional specific guidelines for all these categories. Please read the specific guidelines that go with your category before submitting. The details they share here are particularly important because you can’t read previous issues.
They have a detailed publishing rights page, which is a mostly standard, with one exception. They ask for First North American Serial Rights and the author has to wait 180 days to publish it elsewhere. The exception is that they say, “The Publisher may reprint the Work one additional time in a collection or anthology produced by or on behalf of Alchemical, provided that the Author receives appropriate attribution.”
I don’t think this is a major issue, just one should know before submitting.
To learn more and potentially submit, go here.
Emily Harstone is the author of many popular books, including The Authors Publish Guide to Manuscript Submissions, Submit, Publish, Repeat, and The 2026 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.
