Extended Deadline: November 15, 2020
BreakBread Magazine is a magazine for all young creatives between the ages of 13 and 25. We are always looking for vivid, timely poetry, nonfiction, short stories, comics and visual arts (photography, illustrated narratives, and hybrid work) that explore new directions in arts and letters. Submissions are always free. Visit breakbreadproject.submittable.com/submit to send us your work. Check out our website for more information: www.breakbreadproject.org.
Nonfiction
Contest :: CUTTHROAT 2020 Fiction, Nonfiction, & Poetry Prizes
Deadline: November 15, 2020
CUTTHROAT’s 2020 Joy Harjo Poetry Prize, Rick DeMarinis Short Story Prize, and Barry Lopez Nonfiction Prize are accepting submissions. First prize: $1,200; second prize $250. Final judges are Kimberly Blaeser, Amina Gautier, and Fenton Johnson. Submit 3 poems, a short story, or nonfiction of any topic and style. $23 reading fee. Winners announced by December 31. All prize winners and honorable mentions will be published. www.cutthroatmag.com/contest.html
Weekly Roundup for Calls & Contests :: October 16, 2020
How is October half over with already? As always, check out theses submission opportunities that were featured or posted to NewPages this week. Don’t forget you can get early access to calls, contests, programs, and events by subscribing to our weekly newsletter.
Calls for Submissions
View all calls for submissions in our online Classifieds. Have a young writer? Check out our Young Writers Guide to Publications to help them find a market for their work, too.
November Submission Deadlines
Light and Dark. Issue 18. Fiction. $3 fee ($5 for expedited response). Payment: $15. Deadline: November 15.
Pensive: A Global Journal of Spirituality & the Arts. Black Lives Matter Feature Section. Poetry, fiction, nonfiction, cross-genre, translations, photography, art. No fee. Deadline: November 15.
The Pinch Literary Journal seeks poetry written in or regarding Variety Englishes for a featured highlight in its Spring 2021 Issue (41.1). Poems in Singlish, Konglish, Spanglish, AAVE, and other English-derived emerging linguistic forms will be considered for publication. No submission fee, accepted pieces will be awarded $150 for publication. Deadline November 15th, 2020. For inquiries, visit www.pinchjournal.com/glish or contact editor@pinchjournal.com.
Sou’wester is now reading fiction and creative nonfiction for our annual print issue, forthcoming in spring 2021. We are committed to investing in and encouraging the words/stories/voices of all writers, prioritizing those belonging to marginalized communities. We want to read stories from writers belonging to the black diaspora, indigenous communities, Asian communities, Latin(x) communities, neurodivergent communities, those with disabilities, and LGBTQIA+. We seek fiction that allows us to transcend the everyday, haunts our dreams, and feels fresh. We’re looking for work that will move, stun, and awe our readers. Submission is free through Submittable. Deadline: November 15.
Waymark Literary Magazine is an online and physical literary magazine dedicated to publishing the works of an individual’s waymark; their footpath in life. Anyone can submit as long as they have a story to tell. We are looking for nonfiction, fiction, poetry, and art submissions to be published in our biannual publication. Deadline: November 20. [Read more…] about Weekly Roundup for Calls & Contests :: October 16, 2020
Call :: Pensive Open to Submissions on Black Lives Matter for Spring 2021 Special Feature
Deadline: November 15, 2020
New online publication based at Center for Spirituality, Dialogue, and Service (CSDS) at Northeastern University in Boston. Seeking work that deepens the inward life; expresses range of religious/spiritual/humanist experiences and perspectives; envisions a more just, peaceful, and sustainable world; advances dialogue across difference; and challenges structural oppression in all its forms. Seeking work for feature section on Black Lives Matter to be published in the Spring 2021 issue. Send unpublished poetry, prose, visual art, and translations. Especially interested in work from international and historically unrepresented communities. No fee; currently non-paying. Submit 3-5 pieces via Submittable or pensivejournal@gmail.com. Questions? Contact Alexander Levering Kern, co-editor or visit pensivejournal.com. The first issue will have a special online launch event on Wednesday, October 21, 2020. Mark your calendars to learn more.
Call :: Utopia Science Fiction Underrepresented Protagonists
We’re looking for enthralling, upbeat stories set in futures we might want to live in. In contrast to growing dystopian stories and darker themes that seem so abundant in today’s literature. We invite you instead to share in our vision of a better tomorrow. Of a future filled with wonder and hope. We publish stories that transport us to another world, a bright future, one we want to believe in, one we’ll fight to see realized. The theme of our next issue is ‘underrepresented protagonists.’ www.utopiasciencefiction.com
“It’s Not About the Burqa”
Guest Post by Reem Ali
I genuinely don’t think I can recommend Mariam Khan’s It’s Not About the Burqa enough. Wow, just wow. I’m not much of a nonfiction gal, however, this was the exception. As a Muslim woman living in a western country, I’ve accepted that descriptive representation requires decades more of advocacy and activism. However, what I don’t accept is the blatant islamophobia and racism portrayed by the media that’s being fueled by white supremacists (and the like) commanding elected positions. This collection of essays not only expands upon this issue, but many others as well.
The authors are all successful women in their respective careers, breaking down stereotypes of Muslim women ingrained into western society. There have been so many cultural, moral, and systemic issues that I have pondered and struggled with, but these essays articulate and address them in such a succinct and thoughtful manner. I sincerely believe that this is a definite must-read. With the wave of people aiming to educate themselves on BLM issues, I suggest picking this up as well.
It’s Not About the Burqa by Mariam Khan. Pan Macmillan, February 2020.
Reviewer bio: Reem Ali is a third-year law student, and a born-and-raised Texan. She loves spending her free time reading, traveling (pre-coronavirus) and playing backgammon. She enjoys engaging with tough readings and sharing her perspectives. For more book reviews: @reemsreads.
Buy this book from our affiliate Bookshop.org.
October eLitPak :: MFA in Creative Writing at UNCG
Find Your Story Here
Application Deadline: January 1. One of the first creative writing programs in the country, UNC Greensboro’s MFA is a two-year residency program offering fully funded assistantships with stipends and health insurance. Students work closely with faculty in one-on-one tutorials, take courses in poetry, fiction, publishing, and creative nonfiction, and pursue opportunities in college teaching or editorial work for The Greensboro Review. More at mfagreensboro.org.
October eLitPak :: Last Call! Missouri Review 30th Annual Editors’ Prize
There’s still time to enter the 30th Annual Jeffrey E. Smith Editors’ Prize from the Missouri Review. Winners in each category receive $5000, publication, promotion, and a virtual event to be determined. Submit one piece of fiction or nonfiction up to 8,500 words or up to 10 pages of poems. Enter online or by mail. All entries considered for publication. Deadline: October 15.
Call :: great weather for MEDIA 2021 Anthology
great weather for MEDIA seeks poetry, flash fiction, short stories, dramatic monologues, and creative nonfiction for our annual print anthology. Our focus is on the fearless, the unpredictable, and the experimental. Please visit our website for guidelines. Deadline: January 15, 2021.
Call :: Essential Voices: A COVID-19 Anthology
While the pandemic has ravaged our world, certain populations have been impacted more deeply than others. Essential Voices strives to give voice to those who have been silenced. Send us your poems, stories, recipes, or works of art that reflect upon the experience of COVID and COVID related issues in your life. This anthology will be published by West Virginia University Press. Visit us at our website for guidelines before submitting to essentialanthology@gmail.com. Deadline: December 31.
Call :: Awakenings Review Seeks Submissions Year-round
Established in 2000, The Awakenings Review is an annual lit mag committed to publishing poetry, short story, nonfiction, photography, and art by writers, poets and artists who have a relationship with mental illness: either self, family member, or friend. Our striking hardcopy publication is one of the nation’s leading journals of this genre. Creative endeavors and mental illness have long had a close association. The Awakenings Review publishes works derived from artists’, writers’, and poets’ experiences with mental illness, though mental illness need not be the subject of your work. Visit www.AwakeningsProject.org for submission guidelines.