Fiction markets paying $50-$1,000
– S. Kalekar
These markets pay $50 to $1,000, and many also accept other genres, like non-fiction and poetry. Deadlines are approaching quickly for some magazines.
Fireside Magazine
They are currently open for short fiction and poetry submissions, in any genre.
Deadline: 11 July 2021
Length: Up to 3,000 words for fiction, one poem
Pay: 12.5c/word for fiction, $100 for poetry
Details here.
(Please see their recent note on new management following an incident of auditory blackface, and the Writer Beware warning after cancelled book contracts at Fireside Press in 2019.)
Inclusive Future Magazine: Visions from a Gender Inclusive Future
They want submissions from trans, non-binary, and gender-queer writers for their first issue; writers do not have to be out, and they will publish work under a pseudonym. This is “an anthology of speculative prose, poetry, and art in the guise of a pop culture magazine from the future.
IMAGINE: It’s the year 2068, and we’ve achieved gender equality in the broadest sense. Not only are genders outside the binary widely acknowledged and accepted, but people of all genders are paid equally for equal work, have equal opportunity, are included in scientific studies, and are marketed to equally. … What does this gender-inclusive future look like? What language do we use around gender? In what ways have our societies been reshaped in order to include people of all genders? How might inclusion look different in different cultures and systems (including religious ones)? How might advancements in science and technology change our perceptions of gender? What challenges might trans, non-binary, and genderqueer people still face and be fighting to overcome?” They also accept reprints of both prose and poetry.
Deadline: 15 July 2021
Length: Up to 3,000 words for prose (including fictional non-fiction), up to 5 poems, or 250 lines
Pay: $0.08/word for prose, $1/line for poetry
Details here.
(Also see details of Apex Magazine’s Indigenous Futurists issue; they want speculative fiction submissions from indigenous writers, pay $0.08/word for stories up to 7,500 words, and the deadline is 15 July 2021.)
Scare Street: Night Terrors
They want short horror stories with a focus on ghosts, the supernatural, paranormal, monsters, and dark tales for their Night Terrors anthology. They want work that is dark and literary.
Deadline: 30 July 2021
Length: 3,000-7,000 words
Pay: “$10 per 1,000 words” ($0.01/word)
Details here.
(Another horror anthology open for submissions is Stories We Tell After Midnight, by Crone Girls Press. They pay $0.02/word for stories of 500-25,000 words, and the deadline is 17 July 2021.)
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. Non-fiction (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.
Deadline: 31 July 2021
Length: 1,000-8,000 words for fiction; up to 4 poems; 2,000-5,000 words for nonfiction
Pay: £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
Details here.
Mythic
This is a quarterly speculative fiction magazine seeking diverse sci-fi and fantasy fiction. They also accept reprints.
Deadline: 31 July 2021
Length: 2,000-6,000 words
Pay: $0.04/word
Details here.
Virginia Quarterly Review
This prestigious literary magazine publishes literary fiction, nonfiction, including reviews, and poetry. They are not interested in genre fiction. For nonfiction, they want literary, art, and cultural criticism, reportage, historical and political analysis, and travel essays. They publish few author interviews or memoirs. “In general, we are looking for nonfiction that looks out on the world, rather than within the self.”
Deadline: 31 July 2021
Length: 3,500-8,000 words for fiction; 3,500-9,000 words for nonfiction; 2,000-2,400 words for book reviews
Pay: $1,000 and up for fiction; about $0.25/word for nonfiction (higher for investigative reporting – see guidelines); $200/poem, up to $1,000; $500 for book reviews; $100-200 for online content
Details here.
Escape Artists: PodCastle
PodCastle publishes fantasy short fiction on their website, and in an audio format. They are open to all sub-genres of fantasy, from magical realism to urban fantasy to slipstream to high fantasy. Fantastical or non-real content should be meaningful to the story. They also accept reprints.
Deadline: 31 July 2021 (see schedule)
Length: Up to 6,000 words
Pay: $0.08/word
Details here.
34 Orchard
This is a magazine of fiction and poetry. Their guidelines say, “we like dark, intense pieces that speak to a deeper truth. We’re not genre-specific; we just like scary, disturbing, unsettling, and sad. We like things we can’t put down and things that make us go “wow” when we’ve finished. But our main goal here at 34 Orchard is to publish the stuff we like to read, and you’re not in our heads. So don’t over think it. Just submit.”
Deadline: 31 July 2021
Length: 1,000-7,500 words for fiction; up to three poems
Pay: $50
Details here.
The First Line
They want stories that begin with a pre-set first line, and they are open to all genres. They also sometimes publish poetry, and these too have to begin with the first lines provided. For non-fiction, they want critical essays about your favorite first line from a literary work. For the Fall, the first line is: “What should we do with the body?”
Deadline: 1 August 2021
Length: 300-5,000 words for fiction; 500-800 words for nonfiction
Pay: $25-50 for fiction, $25 for nonfiction, $5-10 for poetry
Details here (first lines) and here (guidelines).
Meetinghouse
This is a new literary journal by Dartmouth College. They publish prose, poetry, and translations. They opened for submissions on 20th June 2021 for both, digital content and issue no. 2, and at the time of writing, had no submission deadline listed.
Deadline: Unspeficied
Length: Up to 7,500 words; can accept up to two pieces of prose and up to five poems
Pay: $40 for digital content and $100 for work published in the print magazine
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.
