12 Literary Magazines for New & Unpublished Writers

Providing news and helpful information for emerging writers was one of the major motivations for starting the Aerogramme Writers’ Studio website. One of the most popular articles we’ve posted to date has been 9 Literary Magazines for New and Unpublished Writers. So, by popular demand, here are 12 more publication opportunities for writers at the start of their careers to consider.

If you haven’t submitted your work for publication before, or if you would just like some tips from the experts, be sure to read How to Submit Your Writing to Literary Magazines, a great article with lots of useful advice from the editors of Neon Literary Magazine.

1. Sixpenny
is a new digital magazine of illustrated short stories. Each issue has six stories that take six minutes to read: three by widely published authors, and three by unpublished authors. Each writer is paid $100 for their work. The editors are seeking literary fiction that ‘keeps a reader engaged and excited from the first word to the last.’

2. The Wrong Quarterly
is a London-based literary magazine showcasing prose from both British and international writers. Its aim is to provide an inclusive platform for emerging writers worldwide. The Wrong Quarterly accepts fiction up to 6000 words and non-fiction up to 5000 words.

3. Quiddity Literary Journal 
is part of a multimedia arts program produced by Benedictine University in partnership with NPR member station WUIS Illinois. The journal, published semi-annually, features prose, poetry and artwork. International submissions from emerging as well as established writers are encouraged.

4. Neon Literary Magazine
is published three times a year in print and online, and welcomes submissions from new and never before published writers. The magazine’s tastes tend towards the dark and the surreal. Writers are asked to include a short biography and cover letter with their submissions and poets should send several poems at once (rather than just one). Neon’s website also has a number of helpful links and resources for both emerging and established writers.

5. Bodega Magazine
describes itself as ‘your literary corner store’, giving readers a handful of essential pieces they can digest in one sitting. Bodega releases digital issues on the first Monday of every month, featuring poetry, prose, and occasional interviews by both emerging and established writers.

6. Duende
is the literary journal of the BFA in Writing program at Goddard College. Duende accepts submissions of  prose, poetry, translations, visual art and hybrid work. The editors are especially interested in collaborations between two or more writers, or between writers and visual artists. The magazine is committed to having a majority of the writers and artists in the journal come from groups that are underrepresented in today’s literary ecosystem (queer, of color, differently abled, immigrant, working class, youth, elder, and /or otherwise from communities that are too often overlooked by literary gatekeepers).

7. Antigonish Review
is a quarterly literary journal of creative writing, reviews, essays and translations. It was founded in 1970 and is based in Nova Scotia, Canada. The chief criteria for selection is quality and the editors welcome submissions from new and young writers. In addition, they will respond to rejected submissions with suggestions when they can, particularly if asked to do so by emerging writers.

8. Kill Your Darlings
is one of Australia’s most exciting literary publications. It is run by Rebecca Starford (former deputy editor of Australian Book Review) and Hannah Kent (author of Burial Rites, shortlisted for the Baileys Women’s Fiction Prize). KYD publishes essays, commentary, interviews, fiction, reviews, opinion pieces and columns and its contributors include established literary identities as well as the newest emerging talent. Submissions are accepted in March, June, September and December.

9. Fields Magazine
is a Texas-based print publication designed to spotlight writers, musicians, poets, painters, illustrators, and creative types of all stripes, with an emphasis on the up and coming and the unsung. The editors are currently accepting fiction, poetry and visual arts submissions for the magazine’s third issue. There are no style, length, or genre restrictions, and writers may submit more than one piece for consideration.

10. Thrice Fiction Magazine
is published three times a year and is available as a free eBook and in a beautifully presented print edition. Of the works the magazine publishes, 99% are 100% unsolicited. As the editors explain “consequently this assures you that every story we get, we read. Everything gets a fair shot.” Thrice will consider pieces up to 20,000 words, though pieces under 7000 words are preferred.

11. AGNI
is proud to be known as a magazine that publishes important new writers early in their careers. AGNI considers poetry, short fiction, and essays and most of the work it publishes is unsolicited. Submissions may be accepted for publication in AGNI or (with the writer’s permission) AGNI Online.

12. Word Riot
first began in 2002 as the literary section of a now defunct on-line music magazine, Communication Breakdown. Its mission is to publish up-and-coming writers and poets, with an emphasis on work that is edgy, challenging and unique. Word Riot publishes fiction up to 6500 words, as well poetry, reviews, interviews and novel extracts.

To find more literary magazines that welcome submissions from emerging writers read our most recent Opportunities for Writers post and follow Aerogramme Writers’ Studio on Facebook and Twitter.