The Practicing Writer 2.0: April 2024
Support for poets, fictionists, and writers of creative nonfiction: 50+ fee-free opportunities that pay for winning/published work, success stories, & more.
Welcome, new readers, and welcome back to the regulars.
For updates and additional opportunities between newsletters, please check the “Practicing Writing” blog and follow me on Twitter (yes, I’m still calling it that, and for reasons I don’t entirely understand, I’m still there), Facebook, and/or Substack.
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IN THIS ISSUE:
Editor’s Note
Success Stories
Featured Resource
Contests, Competitions, and Other Opportunities (NO FEES TO ENTER/APPLY; PAYING OPPORTUNITIES ONLY; NOTHING THAT’S LIMITED TO WRITERS IN A SINGLE CITY/STATE/PROVINCE)
Submission Alerts (NO SUBMISSION/READING FEES; PAYING CALLS ONLY; NOTHING THAT’S LIMITED TO WRITERS IN A SINGLE CITY/STATE/PROVINCE)
Blog Notes
Newsletter Matters
1. EDITOR’S NOTE
Greetings, practicing writers,
I’d like to begin with a heartfelt “thank-you” to the many practicing writers among you who sent me a veritable tsunami of messages after my recent mid-month note. With blessedly few exceptions, you wrote generously, kindly, and compassionately.1 And I am grateful.
Since then, I’ve found myself continuing to be engaged with much of the same subject. (Note, for example, an update that I included in this Practicing Writing blog post.)
I’ve also found myself—or my name, at least—popping up in a few places. Since I was interviewed for this article about Holocaust literature, I expected that Google alert to ping eventually. But I didn’t know that my own writing would be mentioned alongside that of Molly Antopol, Julie Orringer, and Daniel Mendelsohn (that was a gratifying surprise) in another, related piece.
With all best wishes,
ERIKA
P.S. Reminder: I am grateful when you share this newsletter, in its entirety, with your networks. But if you choose to share only certain listings, please respect my work of research and curation and credit your source—ideally, with a link back to this newsletter. Thank you so much.
P.S. #2 Wishing a good Easter holiday to those who may be observing it. And a Happy National Poetry Month for those of us living where April is, in fact, that month!
2. SUCCESS STORIES
From Frank J. Albert:
My poem “The Final” has been accepted by Teach.Write and will be published in the next issue. This is my first acceptance of 2024. I submitted the poem after seeing the call for submissions posted in your newsletter. Many thanks for the work you do for writers.
From Jonathan Cohen:
Through you, I learned about Minyan Magazine, which has published my poem “Do Not Recede.” Many thanks!
From Delia Lloyd:
I wanted to share a success story! In January, you posted a listing for Invisible City, the literary magazine at the University of San Francisco. I sent them a piece about what swimming taught me about making friends in adulthood...and it was accepted! Many thanks for sharing this opportunity...and all that you do!
From Jane R. Snyder:
It won’t be published until May, but Tower Magazine, which you recently mentioned [on the Practicing Writing blog], has accepted my poem “From The Depths.” It will be included in their next issue with the theme of FAMILY. Since the poem is about my late father who died in March of 1994, I'm especially pleased. Keep up the great work you are doing to benefit all of us!
And from Banchiwosen Woldeyesus:
I read the lists of lit mags in your monthly newsletter, every month. And send stories to lit mags every month. Finally, this week, I received my first acceptance for publication for a short story, “After Our River Vanished” from The /tƐmz/ Review. To say thank you is not enough. Still…I want to say thank you, Erika, for the time and energy you spend in curating.
Reminder: Please share news from your writing practice that may be connected with this newsletter, or my blogs/other resources. I love to celebrate and amplify in this space!
3. FEATURED RESOURCE: “HOW TO KEEP WRITING WHEN THE WORLD WANTS SO MUCH OF YOUR ATTENTION ELSEWHERE”
In a recent post for her
Substack, shared thoughts that I think will speak to writers in all genres.Titled “Is the Pilot Light Out on Your Poetry?”, Marcum’s post immediately alleviated (some of) my guilt over my failure—especially over the past several months, when to borrow from William Wordsworth, the world has indeed been very much with me—to follow what Marcum deems the “trite” advice “to just commit to writing and then build good habits.” (Original emphasis.)
But what can we do to keep writing when the world wants so much of our attention elsewhere? Marcum’s post offers some suggestions. Check them out.
4. CONTESTS, COMPETITIONS, AND OTHER OPPORTUNITIES
ASSOCIATION OF WRITERS AND WRITING PROGRAMS (AWP) HBCU FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM
Applications: April 1-30. “To invite strong HBCU participation at the conference and to nurture and encourage new generations of Black writers within the AWP community, we award faculty and student fellowships to attend and participate in every annual AWP Conference & Bookfair. Current fellowships will send fellows to the 2025 AWP Conference & Bookfair,” which is scheduled for March 2025 in Los Angeles.URSULA K. LE GUIN PRIZE FOR FICTION
Nominations: April 1-30. “The Ursula K. Le Guin Prize for Fiction is an annual $25,000 cash prize given to a writer for a single work of imaginative fiction. This award is intended to recognize those writers Ursula spoke of in her 2014 National Book Awards speech—realists of a larger reality, who can imagine real grounds for hope and see alternatives to how we live now….Readers, authors, booksellers, publishers, librarians and anyone else can nominate work they believe fits” the criteria outlined on the website.CREATIVE CAPITAL AWARDS
Deadline: April 4 (for first-round Letters of Inquiry). “For our 25th Anniversary, Creative Capital welcomes innovative and original new project proposals in visual arts, performing arts, film/moving image, technology, literature, multidisciplinary, and socially engaged forms. The Creative Capital Award provides unrestricted project grants which can be drawn down over a multi-year period, bespoke professional development services, and community-building opportunities. Grants are awarded via a democratic, national, open call, external review process. Our goal is to fund individual artists creating conceptually, aesthetically, and formally challenging, risk-taking, and never-before-seen projects.”BORDERS TRADITIONS RESIDENCY
for leading me to this one.)
Deadline: April 5. From the Hugo Burge Foundation, which “offers both funded and independently funded Residencies throughout the year at our dedicated studios in the spectacular Scottish Borders.” This residency is intended “for an artist or creator of any medium who has an interest in looking to history, legend, and local culture as a source of creative inspiration and who would help us capture a tradition, place, or story that is significant to the Scottish Borders.” NB: “This residency will take place from June 12th to July 10th. This is a fully funded residency that includes exclusive studio space, accommodation…and a weekly stipend of £350.” (Thanks toBETHANY ARTS COMMUNITY FALL MULTIDISCIPLINARY RESIDENCY
Deadline: April 10. “The Fall Multidisciplinary Residency runs for two sessions, September 23 to October 7 and October 18 to November 4, each with its own cohort. Artists are provided room & board, a private studio conducive to artists’ medium and/or project, 3 basic meals a day, and a $225 stipend per week upon completion of the residency. Artist is responsible for transportation to and from BAC [located in Ossining, New York] and any supplies or materials needed for their practice. We ask that you only apply if you can stay for the entire length of this residency.”BETTY L. YU AND JIN C. YU CREATIVE WRITING PRIZES
Deadline: April 13. “TaiwaneseAmerican.org is pleased to announce the 2024 Betty L. Yu and Jin C. Yu Creative Writing Prizes. Created in 2021 in collaboration with Taiwanese American author Charles Yu, the Prizes are intended to encourage and recognize creative literary work by Taiwanese American students, and to foster discussion and community around such work. In 2022, the prize expanded to include a separate middle school category for 6th-8th grade applicants, judged by Alvina Ling. In 2023, we added an additional category for adults in all stages of life beyond college. Submissions may be in any literary genre including fiction, poetry, personal essays or other creative non-fiction” and “must be from writers of Taiwanese heritage (or writers with other significant connections to Taiwan), or have subject matter otherwise relevant to the Taiwanese or Taiwanese American experience.” Cash prizes (one $500 Grand Prize per age category; three $200 finalist prizes per age category; $75 honorable mentions “at judge’s discretion per age category”). “In addition, each of the winners and finalists will have their submitted work published online by TaiwaneseAmerican.org and considered for publication in a future edition of Chrysanthemum: Voices of the Taiwanese Diaspora, and offered the opportunity to participate in a virtual group session with the judges.”DODGE POETRY FESTIVAL
Deadline: April 15. “We are excited to announce that the submissions application for the 2024 Dodge Poetry Festival, held from October 17 to 19, 2024, is now open. We invite all poets, which encompasses artists who practice spoken word, slam, performance poetry and avant-garde, who use their poetry to challenge and reframe existing narratives and norms, to apply….Approximately 10-15 poets will be selected from this process to participate in readings and conversations, in person in Newark, NJ, over the three-day Festival. Timing and frequency of poet participation will be determined based on the schedule of events, but we expect poets will participate in one to two live events. Poets will receive an honorarium of $350 per day, and travel and lodging will be covered.”F. SEAN HODGE PRIZE FOR POETRY IN MEDICINE
Deadline: April 15. “Sean Hodge, MD, a graduate of SUNY Upstate Medical University who went on to establish a thriving otolaryngology practice, died an untimely death in 2017. A physician who loved the humanities, he read and wrote poetry and played music as complements to a busy physician’s life.” In his honor, the prize encourages “physicians and physicians-in-training to write poetry as one way of reflecting on and communicating their experiences.” A $250 prize is given in two categories, one for current medical students, residents, and fellows; the other for physicians who have completed post-graduate training. Winning poems are also published in The Healing Muse.SCHLOSS WIEPERSDORF INDIVIDUAL AND COLLABORATIVE FELLOWSHIPS
Deadline: April 15. “The Cultural Foundation Schloss Wiepersdorf awards residency fellowships to artists and writers in Schloss Wiepersdorf.” Open to applicants “from Germany and abroad”; “German or English proficiency is required of all applicants. Basic German language skills would be helpful for a successful residence.” The three-month residency awards also confer “a monthly cash stipend of €1200 and a one-time grant of €480 to cover material expenses. (If the stay is shortened, the material cost grant is reduced by €160 per month.)”2024 ANONYMOUS WAS A WOMAN ENVIRONMENTAL ART GRANTS
Deadline: April 16. “Provides up to $20,000 to support environmental art projects led by women-identifying artists in the United States and U.S. Territories.”WHITING CREATIVE NONFICTION GRANT
Deadline: April 23. Grants of $40,000 “will be awarded to as many as ten writers in the process of completing a book-length work of deeply researched and imaginatively composed nonfiction for a general readership.” Note that projects “must be under contract with a publisher in Canada, the UK, or the US by April 23 to be eligible. Contracts with self-publishing companies are not eligible.”HARPER-WOOD CREATIVE WRITING & TRAVEL AWARD FOR ENGLISH POETRY AND LITERATURE
Deadline: April 24. “Held for one year, the award is intended primarily for creative writers in the initial stages of their careers. Applications are encouraged from those whose work has not yet achieved book-length publication, such as a novel, book of short stories, poetry collection or play. The candidate must be a graduate of any university in the UK, Ireland, the Commonwealth or the USA when they take up the post in October 2024.” NB: “All or part of the year of tenure should be spent in a country outside the United Kingdom. The award-holder is expected to engage in a course of study or research, not necessarily attached to a university or other institution, leading to the production of original fiction, poetry or drama. The successful candidate’s tenureship will begin on 1 October 2024. They will be admitted to membership of St John’s (Cambridge University) and be invited to visit the College at the end of their award year, to give one or more talks about their experience. Funding will be determined by the College Council in light of the successful candidate’s qualifications and financial circumstances, up to a maximum of £18,600, to cover accommodation and other living expenses. Additional financial assistance is also available for the successful candidate to meet travel costs.”NATAN NOTABLE BOOKS
Deadline: April 26. “Natan Notable Books is a twice-yearly award for nonfiction books on Jewish themes. Natan Notable Books highlights vital books and authors, and brings innovative and important ideas to the attention of diverse audiences. Around Passover and the Jewish High Holidays, Natan selects a ‘Natan Notable Book,’ a recently-published or about-to-be published non-fiction title that will catalyze conversations aligned with the themes of Natan’s grantmaking: reinventing Jewish life and community for the twenty-first century, shifting notions of individual and collective Jewish identity, the history and future of Israel, and the evolving relationship between Israel and world Jewry. Natan Notable Book winners receive a Natan Notable Book seal and $5,000 for the author, marketing/distribution coaching and promotion from Jewish Book Council and Natan, and customized support designed to bring the book and/or the author to new audiences.” Eligible this cycle: books with a publication date between September 1, 2023 and October 31, 2024.PROUD TO BE: WRITING BY AMERICAN WARRIORS CONTEST
Deadline: April 26. Awards $250 first prize and publication in each of these categories: short fiction, poetry, essay, and photography. Open to writing by “veterans, military-service personnel, or their families.”AIR – ARTIST IN RESIDENCE LOWER AUSTRIA
Deadline: April 30. Austrian program offers “living and working opportunities of at least one month in Krems an der Donau for artists from the fields of building culture, visual arts, digital art, literature and music.” Awards a studio and accommodation. “In addition, the scholarship holders receive a monthly stipend of €1,300.” NB: “Austrian artists and artists residing in Austria are not eligible to apply.”CORNERSTONE WRITER-IN-RESIDENCE PROGRAM
Deadline: April 30. “Wilton Library (Conn.) announces the inaugural year of The Cornerstone Writer-in-Residence Program. The program supports an emerging or mid-career writer with a $30,000 stipend, generously provided by the Wilton Library Endowment Fund, and provides office space for 12 months as they complete one manuscript with the intent to publish. In addition to completing their manuscript, the Writer-in-Residence will facilitate a series of library programs for all ages and offer outreach visits to Wilton schools within the 12 months of their residency.” NB: Housing is not included. “You do not need to be a resident of Wilton or CT. We welcome applicants from any location. However you will be expected to spend time in-person at the library on a regular basis.”ERBACCE-PRIZE FOR POETRY
Deadline: April 30. Winner receives a publishing contract with erbacce press (20% royalties). “Two runners-up will also be considered and they will win either a perfect bound book or a high quality chap-book under similar terms to the winner.” Additional (nonpaying) recognition for selected others. NB: “ALL submissions to the erbacce-prize may be used in future erbacce poetry journals, previously published or not and by sending a submission you agree to that (we will of course send every poet we publish a copy of the Journal, gratis, though for those outside the UK, due to astronomical postage charges, we may send a downloadable copy).” Also note: “We tend to publish poetry which is radical in form and/or content; keep that in mind.”ELIZABETH KOSTOVA FOUNDATION WOMEN IN THE MOUNTAINS RESIDENCY
Deadline: April 30. “The Women in the Mountains Residency offers ten full days of uninterrupted creative exploration amidst the inspiring embrace of the mountains. Ten women writers from Bulgaria and Europe, chosen by an international jury, will work on their ongoing projects or explore new ideas. The competition welcomes women writers of fiction, creative non-fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and drama in Bulgarian or other languages. Ten participants will be selected from Bulgaria and Europe, with two reserved spots specifically for women writers living in conditions of war or refugee writers who may be based outside of Europe.” NB: “The residency is open to women aged 18 and above from Bulgaria and across Europe, as well as to refugees from countries experiencing active armed conflicts. While publication isn’t mandatory, applicants must have a background in creative writing and submit original material. Proficiency in English isn’t mandatory, but conversational-level English is recommended for active engagement. Preference will be given to those without prior experience in a creative residency.”MIAMI BOOK FAIR EMERGING WRITER FELLOWSHIPS
Deadline: April 30. This program “supports developing writers who demonstrate exceptional talent and promise by providing them with time, space, and an intellectually and culturally rich artistic community. The program’s goal is to actively support these writers – who are working to complete a book-length project within a year – and help them launch their literary careers. Emerging Writer fellows are granted professional experience in arts administration, teaching creative writing, and other opportunities; a $50,000 stipend; and strong literary community support to allow for 12 glorious months of uninterrupted time to craft their works.”WALLACE STEGNER GRANT FOR THE ARTS
Deadline: April 30. For published writers with Canadian citizenship. Award includes a $500 grant and one month’s free residency at the Wallace Stegner House in Eastend, Saskatchewan.TORONTO BOOK AWARDS
Deadline: April 30. “Established by Toronto City Council in 1974, the Toronto Book Awards honour books of literary merit that are inspired by the city. The annual awards offer $15,000 in prize money with shortlisted authors receiving $1,000 each and the winner taking home $10,000. There are no separate categories: novels, short story collections, books of poetry, books on history, politics and social issues, biographies, books about sports, children’s and young adult books, graphic novels and photographic collections are judged together.” NB: “Submission must contain some clear Toronto content (this may be reflected in the themes, settings, subjects, etc.), but authors do not necessarily have to reside in Toronto.” For the current cycle, books “must be published between May 1, 2023, and May 31, 2024.” Note also: “The work should be accessible to a general reading audience (i.e., not written for a specialized or academic audience).”CINTAS FOUNDATION FELLOWSHIP IN CREATIVE WRITING
Deadline: May 1. “CINTAS Fellowships acknowledge creative accomplishments and encourage excellence in architecture & design, creative writing, music composition and the visual arts. Eligibility is limited to artists of Cuban citizenship or direct descent.” Fellowship amount is $25,000.RABBI SACKS BOOK PRIZE
Deadline: May 1. For an author of “a recently published or about to be published work of Jewish ideas deeply sourced in Jewish texts, with broad appeal within and beyond the Jewish community. The author of the winning work will receive a $10,000 prize, and two finalists will receive $2500 each, generously funded by the Rohr Family.” Note that “the manuscript should be publication ready and hold a 2024 copyright.” For this award, which “recognizes the creative contributions and scholarship of Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks in responding to major trends and issues of the day through the lens of Jewish values and Jewish texts,” memoirs “are only eligible if they present Jewish values and incorporate Jewish texts. Anthologies are eligible; the Prize will be given to the editor(s).” Note also that “all entries are to be nominated and submitted by a recognized publishing house.”WATERSTON DESERT WRITING PRIZE
Deadline: May 1. “Inspired by author and poet Ellen Waterston’s love of the High Desert, a region that has been her muse for more than 40 years,” this prize “provides financial and other support to writers whose work reflects a similar connection to the desert, recognizing the vital role deserts play worldwide in the ecosystem and the human narrative.” Award “supports literary nonfiction writers who are completing, proposing, or considering the creation of a book-length manuscript.” Confers a $3,000 cash award and a reading and reception at the High Desert Museum in Bend, Oregon.
REMINDER: Some competitions listed in last month’s newsletter remain open into April; make sure that you haven’t missed them!
5. SUBMISSION ALERTS
Recently re-opened for submissions: THE JOURNAL OF COMPRESSED CREATIVE ARTS, “a non-profit publisher of compressed creative arts, such as micro fiction, flash fiction, prose poetry, & visual arts, and whatever other forms compression might take.” (Hat tip: @Duotrope.)
Scheduled to open its Submittable gates on April 1 (and remaining open for the month): Canada-based BRICK, which “prides itself on publishing the best literary non-fiction in the world.” NB: “We routinely reach our Submittable-imposed cap of free submissions well before the submission period ends. We do, however, leave our submit-and-subscribe and submit-and-buy-an-issue options open throughout the submission period, in case you’re interested in acquainting yourself with the magazine at the same time as submitting work to it. If this presents a barrier to you, please do get in touch, and do aim to send your work at the start of the open submission period.”
At THE MALAHAT REVIEW, “submissions from Canadian writers are accepted for consideration all year. Because we receive so many submissions, those from international (including US) writers are accepted only during certain months, depending on the genre.” In April (and continuing through May), fiction submissions will be welcome.
Per their Submittable page, POET LORE is scheduled re-open for submissions April 1 (remaining open through May).
TEXAS REVIEW PRESS, which “publishes poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and scholarly works,” is open for submissions during the month of April; submissions are capped at 300. (Note that during April, the Press is also open for submissions for its Sabine Series in Literature, which “highlights work by authors born in or working in Eastern Texas and/or Louisiana. There are no thematic restrictions; Texas Review Press seeks the best writing possible by authors from this unique region of the American South.”)
Through a partnership between Terrain.org and the Spring Creek Project, the CLIMATE STORIES IN ACTION “will expand our vision of climate activism and help people imagine meaningful ways to be involved. We are inviting storytellers to submit poetry, nonfiction, fiction, art and multimedia pieces that showcase climate activism in professional, civic and community life. We are interested in stories that help shift our cultural mindset from despair to creative possibility and from isolation to collective purpose.” Deadline: April 8.
In a recent opportunities-focused newsletter, MSLEXIA (“the magazine for women who write”) shared the following about its own “The World’s Wife” feature: “Fancy being printed in the pages of Mslexia and getting paid for it? We’re looking for a 500-word fictional prose monologue in the voice of the wife, mistress, sister, daughter, or mother of a famous real or fictional person. We’re inviting strong voice pieces suitable for both page or performance.” Deadline for their next issue: April 8. (See their guidelines, published separately, for pay info.) (ED note: My own submission for this feature has, alas, been declined. If there are any editors reading this who may want to consider a piece that gives voice to Madame Bovary’s daughter, please be in touch!)
BERLIN LIT, “an international online journal for new poetry in English,” remains open for submissions until April 10. (Hat tip: @Duotrope.)
From THE THREEPENNY REVIEW: “This year submissions will close on April 15, and not on April 30 as in earlier years.” No simultaneous submissions.
Attention, Canadian writers! Here’s one with an April 21 deadline: SUPER CANUCKS, “an anthology of small-town Canadian heroes,” a project of Latitude 46 Publishing, seeks “stories from across Canada that push the usual superhero tropes while shining a spotlight on unique corners of Canada. We want stories set in and around the nation’s more often overlooked locales—isolated small towns, remote reservations, bedroom communities, and other underrepresented areas of Canada. Give us rural superheroes, backwater supervillains, and tales of characters/communities at a crossroads.How does place impact your character? Are they unable to reconcile their superpowers with their residence or is it the people who pose the problem? Does your hero struggle to maintain a secret identity where everyone knows everyone or do they find that familiarity weirdly comforting given the challenges of being superpowered?” (Hat tip: WOW! Women on Writing Markets Newsletter.)
AFTER HAPPY HOUR is open for submissions for its summer issue until April 30. “We’re not limited to any particular genre, and publish poetry, fiction, creative non-fiction, visual art, and hybrids of any of the above.” Note: “We’re headquartered in Pittsburgh, and love to get work from folks who have a connection to the region, but the journal is not exclusive to Pittsburgh-based writers and artists--we've published stories, poems, and artwork from all over the world.”
HARBOR REVIEW is receiving poetry and art submissions for its summer issue until April 30. “The theme for this issue is ‘Wondrous & Miraculous.’ You may interpret this theme however you like.”
MAD CREEK BOOKS, “the literary trade imprint of The Ohio State University Press,” remains open for manuscripts for consideration for its 21st-Century Essays series until April 30.
NONBINARY REVIEW is open until April 30, for speculative-writing submissions in poetry and prose, and visual art, for an issue with the theme of “Heredity”; note that there’s a submission cap for each issue, so they may close early.
Also open until April 30: THE /TEMZ/ REVIEW, for submissions in poetry and prose.
BRIGHT WALL/DARK ROOM, “an online film journal devoted to exploring the relationship between movies and the business of being alive,” is planning an issue devoted to Spike Lee and will pay for $100 for selected essays. Deadline: May 1.
At THE CHRISTIAN CENTURY, they’re welcoming “first-person narratives (under 1,000 words)” on the theme of “Seed” until May 1.
Submissions are now open for the third issue of SEVEN STORY HOTEL, “a schizo-philosophical / countercultural journal series presented by Subtle Body Press…7SH explores the weird, esoteric, and outsider fringes of contemporary culture, art, and technology through an eclectic mix of interviews, essays, stories, poems, and artwork. We’re looking for original, provocative, and boundary-pushing pieces. You can check out a previous issue for the best sense of what we’re looking for. But by way of example, maybe you have a critical essay on technology as modern magick, a sociological commentary on the religiosity of UFOs, an anti-/pro-issue political treatise, a Jungian analysis of a niche internet subculture, a piece of speculative fiction on the implications of transhumanism or artificial intelligence, an exposé on some conspiracy, or an investigative piece on a new and exciting movement. In short, we seek disruptions and heresies to conventional wisdom and/or the dominant narratives of a culture.” NB: “Submissions are open until we have what we need. That means we could close in days or weeks, but regardless, all selections will be made by May 1, 2024. Submit sooner rather than later if you don’t want to miss out.”
Also presented by Subtle Body Press, BODY SHOTS “is exclusively a journal for fiction. We will consider stories of all types, from Carver-esque to Lynchian, Hemingway-esque to Burroughsian, traditional to postmodern, realist to magical realist, genre to non-genre, and anything and everything in between. In keeping with the publishing traditions of Subtle Body Press, we are, of course, open to transgressive or countercultural material of thematic merit, body horror, and bizarro, but that is not exclusively or even mainly the focus of the project, so don't limit yourself to any of that or pass on submitting just because your story doesn't fit in those boxes.” No deadline is indicated: “Submissions are open until we have what we need. That means we could close in days or weeks, or you could have a few months, but don’t bet on it and risk missing out. Submit sooner rather than later.” (Hat tip: @Duotrope.)
As announced on Instagram, AFTER DINNER CONVERSATION “is delighted to announce a new call for submissions. We’re looking for short fiction that asks interesting ethical/philosophical questions.” No deadline indicated.
CENTAUR “is an online journal publishing hybrid stories. That means experimental writing that pushes beyond genre definitions—a story on top and a prose poem underneath; half memoir and half tale; a fable connected to a memory.” NB: “With four seasonal issues a year, and up to eight pieces in each, there’s only room for your best 400 words or fewer.” (Hat tip: FlashFictionFlash)
CULT, “as the name suggests, wants the weird, the risk-taking: the stuff that gets tucked away because someone thinks no one would ever publish that. We want art that challenges and confronts; not coddles and reaffirms.” Note: “In hopes of building a community and making real connections with our artists, we plan to call each person we choose to publish so, please, alongside your name, genre (poetry, fiction, photography, etc.), the title of your work, as well as a brief description of yourself, please include your phone number.”
TWENTY-TWO TWENTY-EIGHT, “for people who watch the world,” considers submissions of poetry, fiction, non-fiction essays, visual art, music, and videos. (Hat tip: AuthorsPublish.)
Reminder: RIDDLEBIRD, which features “literary fiction and personal essays,” has “decided to try a rolling submission system. We will be open year round, but capped at 50 a month.”
Reminder: Make it a habit to check the CHICKEN SOUP FOR THE SOUL website, where titles in development are posted. Note: “If this is your first time, please visit our Story Guidelines page.”
Reminder: ROUGH CUT PRESS seeks “experimental work of all genres by writers and allies of the LGBTQIA community. To get a sense of what we publish please read some of our former issues. We don’t know what we like until we see it. Each month we announce a different theme, but don’t worry if the work you submit doesn’t quite fit: we often build issues around work that takes us by surprise.”
Reminder: There’s a rolling deadline (the 25th of each month) for OFF TOPIC PUBLISHING’s Poetry Box, which supplies subscribers with a poem “printed postcard-style” along with tea and chocolate. Poems should be no longer than 15 lines (“including blank lines”).
Also:
, which aims to “revive the art of the short story, support artists, and produce something wonderful,” selects one story for publication each month and considers reprints.
REMEMBER: Multiple venues listed in last month’s newsletter remain open for submissions, too. And please keep reading the “Blog Notes” below for an important reminder about additional opportunity listings!
6. BLOG NOTES
The newsletter is published just once each month, but there’s always something new on the Practicing Writing blog:
(Monday) Markets and Jobs for Writers (including fee-free/paying opportunities that don’t make it into the monthly newsletter)
(Friday) Finds for Writers
#SundaySentence
Occasional Notes from a Practicing Writer
Please visit, comment, and subscribe.
Interested in matters of specifically Jewish literary and cultural interest? Please also visit the My Machberet blog (“machberet” is the Hebrew word for “notebook”). And be sure to consult our collection of Jewish Writing Resources.
7. NEWSLETTER MATTERS
Information contained in The Practicing Writer is researched carefully but readers should always verify information. Any necessary corrections, when discovered, are added post-publication within each archived issue. The Practicing Writer and its editor disclaim any liability for the use of information contained within. Thank you for following/reading.
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About the editor: Erika Dreifus is a writer, teacher, and literary consultant whose books include Birthright: Poems and Quiet Americans: Stories. A Fellow in the Sami Rohr Jewish Literary Institute and an adjunct associate professor at Baruch College/CUNY, she lives in New York. Please visit ErikaDreifus.com to learn more about her work and follow her right here on Substack, on Facebook, and/or on Twitter, where she tweets (mostly) “on matters bookish and/or Jewish.”
In fact, the responses were such that I identified quite a lot with this recent post from
.