Authors Publish was founded in the United States, but has since moved to Canada. Our subscribers are based all over the world, with a majority based in the United States. A lot of the journals and publishers we cover are still based in the United States for two reasons.
- Most publishers and literary journals are based in the United States.
- These presses and journals are also more likely to be open to direct submissions from writers regardless of their geographic location. Presses and journals from other countries, in particular Canada and the Australia, are more likely to get funding from the government, which can lead to limits on how many (if any) international writers they can publish.
Some of the journals on this list are not open to international submissions or are only open to international submissions during certain periods of the year. If that is the case, we try to make it clear in this article.
If we missed any of your favourite Canadian journals, please send me an email at support@authorspublish.com. I do really like The Walrus, but they are not on this list because I know some authors struggle to receive payment from them.
The Fiddlehead
Published by the University of New Brunswick, The Fiddlehead is the oldest literary journal in Canada that is still in circulation. It is a print journal with issues published four times a year. Contributors are paid, get a free subscription and two contributor copies. They have two online submission periods per year, one is open to international submissions, the other is not. They’re open to mailed submissions year-round.
The Ex-Puritan
This established paying market is open to a wide range of submissions. They have submission caps on fee free submissions.
ARC Poetry Magazine
This established paying market produces a beautiful print journal and is only open to poetry submissions. They are only sometimes open to international submissions, and sometimes charge for international submissions. Check their guidelines for details.
The Malahat Review
This established and respected journal publishes poetry, short fiction, and creative nonfiction, as well as translated work in any of these three genres, by new and established writers from Canada and abroad. They are always open to submissions from Canadians, and have limited windows for international writers.
Prairie Fire
This print journal only allows postal submissions from most authors. They have additional details with exceptions to this on their website. They are a paying market, but generally only respond to submissions if they are interested in publishing the work.
The Literary Review of Canada
An established and respected publication, they are open to pitches of reviews, essays, and during certain periods, poetry. They rarely accept already completed work.
Broken Pencil
They publish short fiction, articles, and reviews around Zine culture and the independent arts. They are a print and digital magazine and they offer free digital samples.
Room
Canada’s oldest feminist print literary journal is a paying market that features fiction, poetry, creative nonfiction, and art by emerging and established women and genderqueer writers and artists. Submissions are restricted to “folks of marginalized genders, including but not limited to women (cisgender and transgender), transgender men, Two-Spirit and nonbinary people.”
Geez
They describe themselves as a “seasonal, non-profit, ad-free, print magazine about social justice, art, and activism for people at the fringes of faith in both Canada and the US.” They only consider articles based on pitches but are open to poetry and art submissions. If you haven’t heard back from them in eight weeks, assume rejection.
Augur Magazine
This is a wonderful speculative fiction magazine. They primarily publish Canadian authors and Indigenous creators, and have demographic restrictions sometimes.
Toronto Journal
They publish short stories from around the world, and nonfiction that is set in Toronto or the region or explores local history. They are a paying market. The journal has a print and audio version.
Emily Harstone is the author of many popular books, including The Authors Publish Guide to Manuscript Submissions, Submit, Publish, Repeat, and The 2024 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.
