Call for Submissions

Jerboa Lit Contest

On Friday, June 27th, we will choose a prompt consisting of a genre, item, and a short phrase. Writers will then have 48 hours to craft a 500-word story that incorporates all elements of the prompt. Registration is $25, and there's a $1,000 prize for first place, with prize money being paid out through fifth place. Learn more at the Jerboa Lit website.

In addition to being a fun exercise with the chance to win prize money, each short story will also receive editorial feedback, and authors retain all rights to their work (so they can submit their story elsewhere after the contest if they choose).

 

Midwest Weird

Want to Get Weird? Midwest Weird is an audio literary magazine featuring weird fiction and nonfiction by Midwestern writers.

What is Weird? It could be the style. The content. The genre. It could be you. Check out our past episodes to get a sense of the weird we like. And read our "New Lit on the Block" profile on New Pages. If you think it’s weird, your work may fit with us.

​Who are we looking for? We’re looking for weird work from writers based in the Midwest. We’re especially looking for work from writers who are women or nonbinary, part of the LGBTQ, BIPOC, and disabled communities, and/or other underrepresented writers.

We’re also looking for writers who are excited about creating audio versions of their work. Midwest Weird is expanding the notion of a literary magazine, and what creators of today can do.

​How will this work? If your work becomes part of Midwest Weird, your story can be read and produced by our team, or you can take the lead. We may also interview you for a special bonus episode.

Your work can be original, or it can be previously published. Work should be between 1,000 to 4,000 words. A little more or less is fine. You will retain all rights to your story. In the future, we'll also offer honorariums for accepted work.

​Long story short If you think we might like your work, send it our way. And stay weird. Submit now! Send us a word or pdf doc with your fiction or nonfiction. Include a short bio, including your membership in any underrepresented groups. Don't sweat if you haven't published much in the past; we're eager for new voices! Have any audio or podcast experience? Let us know!

 

Spires Intercollegiate Arts & Literary Magazine

Spires Intercollegiate Arts & Literary Magazine at Washington University in St. Louis is currently accepting submissions of poetry, prose, and artwork for our Spring 2025 issue. On behalf of the Spires staff, we encourage you to submit your creative work to our publication. Spires has printed the work of talented undergraduates twice a year since 1995, and we continue to enjoy showcasing the efforts of creative students from across the country. Here's a link to our previous issues: https://issuu.com/spiresmagazinewustl.

Our submission deadline for the Spring 2025 issue is Friday, February 28th at 11:59 PM Central. If you would like to submit, please take note of the guidelines at sites.wustl.edu/spires.

 

Blacklight Magazine

Blacklight Magazine is a student arts collective showcasing work from queer and/or BIPOC creative. Come exist with us. Blacklight Magazine is accepting submissions for our 2025 issue "Wax & Wane". We want to know about your cycles, phases, and shifting expressions. What parts of yourself are expanding? What parts are eroding? Any medium (poetry, prose, visual art, etc.) are welcome. Submissions are open until Jan 30th. To see the full submission call or to submit to the magazine use the form below. Questions can be directed to blacklightuchicago@gmail.com.
https://forms.gle/Ak7MMvBUEm6Mn6Mp6 

The Albion Review

The Albion Review is a national literary journal based out of Albion College in Albion, Michigan. Published annually since 2004, The Review features works of short fiction, poetry, creative nonfiction, and visual art. The Albion Review strives to showcase the work of emerging undergraduate talents. If chosen for publication, all contributors will appear in the print and online edition; contributors from the United States will receive two print copies of the journal. Submissions for our 2025 issue are open until November 29th.

Copper Nickel

Copper Nickel is the national literary journal housed at the University of Colorado Denver. We publish a broad range of poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and writing in translation, with a particular—but by no means exclusive—interest in work that considers sociohistorical context. Work published in Copper Nickel has been reprinted in the Best American Poetry, Best American Short Stories, Best Small Fictions, Best Literary Translations, and Pushcart Prize anthologies. Please consider submitting your original, unpublished work between August 15–December 15.

Equinox

Equinox is a journal of contemporary literature at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. For more than 50 years, we have been publishing creative writing from the Arkansas region and beyond. We are now an online journal. We accept work from any undergraduate student in the United States. We are looking for fiction, poetry, hybrid writing, short screenplays, and visual art. Each writer may submit up to 20 pages for fiction or screenplays, or 10 pages for poetry or hybrid writing. Each year, Equinox awards the David Jauss Fiction Prize and the Jo McDougall Poetry Prize to best work. We are currently accepting submissions! Submit your work as an attachment (.docx, or pdf) to equinox@ualr.edu. The current reading period will close October 15, 2024.

ZAUM 

Zaum is a student-run print and web literary magazine out of the English Department at Sonoma State University, publishing dynamic and innovative works by emerging student writers from across the country and beyond. We are always looking to highlight student voices from around the world and are looking for submissions for our 29th edition to be released in Spring of 2025. We accept work from any students of any institution from any place. Submit 1-3 poems or flash pieces, prose up to 7,500 words, and/or visual work by October 15, 2024! 

 

BRIO

BRIO, NYU’s undergraduate comparative literature journal, invites undergraduate students from across the nation to submit short stories, poems, articles, academic writing, translations, visual images, screenplays, stage plays, sheet music, lyrics, and other interdisciplinary works to be considered for the Spring 2024 evil issue of the journal.

The submission deadline is Sunday, April 7th, 2024. All undergraduates, regardless of their field of study, may submit materials of an intertextual, intercultural, inter-disciplinary focus in any language. Creative as well as academic submissions are equally welcome, providing they fit the criteria for submissions. Prose, whether the submission is an academic essay or multiple short stories, must be under or around 1,000 words. 5 poems are the limit for poetry submissions. All text documents should be in an editable .doc or .docx format. All submissions and further questions should be sent to briojournal at nyu.edu.

 

The Foundationalist

The Foundationalist accepts literary essays, poetry, fiction, and creative non-fiction pieces from current undergraduate students. We would also be happy to accept anything that had been written for class. There are no page limits or themes. We simply want students to submit their best work! The deadline is March 10th, 2024 at midnight in your timezone. More information can be found on www.thefoundationalist.com.

Sliced Bread

Deadline: Rolling. Sliced Bread, an undergraduate literary and arts publication, wants your art, photography, poetry, and short prose! Check out our website and Instagram, and submit using this form. We're excited to hear from you!

Euphony

Deadline: Rolling. Euphony welcomes submissions of unpublished poetry, fiction, essays, reviews, creative nonfiction, plays, and translations. Nearly all of our writing comes from outside the University of Chicago community, by first-time and professional authors from around the country and the world—and everything in between.

Memoryhouse Magazine

Deadline: Rolling. Memoryhouse Magazine is a semi-annual publication that seeks to curate personal narratives through creative nonfiction and visual art, with special emphasis on stories and art from Chicagoland-based writers and artists. The editorial board is a diverse collection of students at the University of Chicago who share a love of the written word and the city of Chicago.

Seabirds Writing Conference: Call for Participants

Deadline: Rolling. The Seabirds Writing Conference (SWC) is an intercollegiate organization dedicated to helping writers at all levels from across the US improve their writing. We host weekly writer's workshops, special themed events, and help each other find opportunities to publish their work.

The Taborian

Deadline: Rolling. The Taborian an online literary publication that will launch in January 2024.  The Taborian’s mission is sharing written works from all walks of life.  We are seeking submissions on a year-round basis for essays, short stories, and poems.  Writers belonging to historically underrepresented racial or ethnic groups are especially encouraged to submit. You can find submission information at https://thetaborian.com/submission.  

The Alcott Youth Magazine

Deadline: Rolling. Submissions to The Alcott Youth Magazine are strongly encouraged. Our contributors are primarily young women from ages thirteen to twenty-two, as we feel it is important to provide a platform for their unique and often unheard voices. However, we accept submissions from everyone who would like to be featured in our publication. We are open to publishing articles, essays, short stories, illustrations, cartoons, photographs, or any other works. If you have a unique idea for The Alcott Youth Magazine, please contact us before submission. We particularly love to accept journalistic pieces. Send submissions to thealcottmagazine@gmail.com. Instructions for submission are here.

Bending Genres

Deadline: Rolling. Bending Genres is committed to publishing the best fiction, poetry, creative non-fiction, and microreviews from dedicated writers. We are open for submissions year-round. Our writer’s work has been included in Best Small Fictions, Best Microfictions, Best Poetry, and has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize. To learn how you can send your work, please visit us here on Submittable.

The Bibliopunk

Deadline: Rolling. The Biblipunk Lit Zine is looking for English language work of any genre from authors ages 13-24, from any and every background, experience, and voice. What we don’t want: hatred of any kind, plagiarism, or gratuitous sex, violence, or profanity. That’s it. We accept never been published authors and many times published authors. You can find guidelines for submissions here and send them to thebibliopunk@protonmail.com.

Blue Marble Review

Deadline: Rolling. Blue Marble Review welcomes submissions from students ages 13-22. It is published four times a year and accepts submissions of poetry, fiction, nonfiction, essays, opinion pieces, travel writing, photography, and art on a rolling basis. We are looking for new work that hasn’t been published anywhere else either online or in print. Contributors published online in Blue Marble Review will receive $30 per published piece and $75 for cover art. Submit here.

Cathartic Youth Literary Magazine

Deadline: Rolling. Cathartic Youth Literary Magazine is currently accepting submissions from youth authors ages 12-22 from anywhere in the world! We accept submissions on a rolling basis and update the online magazine with new works daily to weekly. This is an open space to express yourself, be creative, deal with emotion, and be read! We are looking for unique works for a young adult audience, with an emphasis on mental health - any writing used as catharsis or reflection, or used to draw attention to societal issues, is particularly welcomed. We are also open to stories about the teenage experience, mental health articles, and more. If in doubt, send it in; we are very open to any type of writing. Guidelines for submissions can be found here and writing sent to catharticlitmagazine@gmail.com.

Coexist Literary Magazine

Deadline: Rolling. Coexist Literary Magazine is an international, youth-led publication dedicated to exploring identity, emphasizing diversity, and encouraging activism. We do this by publishing and amplifying youth and marginalized voices. We accept poetry, art, photography, personal essays, opinion editorials, short stories, and videography. You may apply for a blog feature at any time here.

Diet Water Magazine

Deadline: Rolling. Here at Diet Water, we wish to provide a creative space for America’s young emerging writers and artists. We strive for authenticity and for work that is equally raw, personal, and representative of each artist. We want your favorite work that describes, relates to, or symbolizes life in America, offering critique or insight into American culture. You can find the submission guidelines here and submit your poetry, prose, or visual art and photography work to dietwatermag@gmail.com.

Glass Mountain Literary Journal

Deadline: Rolling. Glass Mountain, the undergraduate literary journal at the University of Houston, is run by undergraduate students for undergraduate students, with the wants, needs, and curiosities of the emerging artist in mind. Forward-thinking and -moving, Glass Mountain is aimed at inspiring creativity, and encouraging growth within a craft. Regardless of genre, style, or even language, Glass Mountain invites all undergraduates to join in our celebration of the spirit of community. You can find submission guidelines and submit your fiction, poetry, nonfiction, or art here.

Green Blotter Literary Magazine

Deadline: Rolling. Green Blotter is published annually by the Green Blotter Literary Society of Lebanon Valley College in Annville, PA, and features poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, and art submitted by undergraduate student writers everywhere. Our mission is to provide a much-needed platform for undergraduate creative writers and artists and to foster outstanding work in each of the genres we publish. You can learn more about how to submit your fiction, poetry, nonfiction, or art here. Email your work to gb-submissions@lvc.edu.  

Hot Knife Magazine

Deadline: Rolling. Hot Knife is a new digital literary magazine focused entirely on music. We seek to publish work at the intersections of creative nonfiction and music criticism—the more experimental and genre-exploding, the better. We are currently open to submissions from all undergrad and graduate students everywhere. We are run entirely by undergraduate students at the University of Pennsylvania. To submit your work click here.

The Incandescent Review

Deadline: Rolling. The Incandescent Review is a nonprofit magazine & blog dedicated to illuminating youth voices. It is run by an interdisciplinary team based on collaboration between different specializations, including filmography, visual art, creative writing, journalism, marketing, and more. We are looking for work that expresses honest opinions and emotional responses to timely and relevant personal or world issues.  You can find the submission guidelines here and submit your poetry, art, or prose work to submissions.incandescentreview@gmail.com. 

Parakeet Magazine

Deadline: Rolling. At Parakeet, a magazine for animal lovers between 7-17 years old, we look for fiction that is real, nonfiction that is honest, poetry that sings, and artwork that dances. We, much like our sister magazine, Honeyguide, publish issues that celebrate, examine, portray and wonder about humans’ relationship with animals, how we are similar, and the ways we affect each others’ lives. You can learn more about how to submit your fiction, poetry, nonfiction, or art here. Email your work to parakeet.honeyguidemag@gmail.com . 

 

 

New Voices Series

Deadline: Deadlines are announced via our listservs. Click here to subscribe to the Creative Writing listserv.

Eligibility: Any UChicago undergraduate student.

The New Voices series brings in three emerging writers—in the genres of fiction, poetry, and nonfiction respectively—each year. We administer a call for submissions from students in the College, who must submit 3–5 pages of their original work in an anonymous document. The visiting writer selects a winner and that student reads alongside them, and joins the faculty and writer for a celebratory dinner following the event. The New Voices Series fosters excitement and support among the students and provides a moment for our faculty to celebrate their students' work.

Offen Poetry Prize

Deadline: Deadlines are announced via our listservs. Click here to subscribe to the Creative Writing listserv.

Eligibility: Any UChicago undergraduate or graduate student.

Established in memory of poet and editor Ron Offen, the Offen Poetry Prize brings one Chicago poet to campus annually for a public reading. Like the New Voices series, we administer a call for submissions from students, who must submit 3–5 pages of their original work in an anonymous document. The visiting writer selects a winner and that student reads alongside them, and joins the faculty and writer for a celebratory dinner following the event. The winning student will be awarded a prize of $300.