AWP Submission Masterpost

by Alex Carrigan

A few weeks ago, I got the chance to go to the Association of  Writers and Writing Programs (AWP) annual conference in Seattle. It was a great experience. Not only did I get the chance to promote Poictesme at a table, I got to visit interesting panels, collect great literature, and see many interesting people. While I perused the hundreds of tables, I grabbed many flyers calling for submissions to literary publications and journals from all over America. I went through the flyers and compiled a list of the various organizations that I could feasibly submit to, but I felt that this is such a valuable list that I feel it’s important to share with as many people as I can.

Below, you will see a list of the many organizations that are open for submissions. Here is what is included:

  • The name of the organization, with a link to their website for more information.
  • What kind of work they are looking for. Most of these places want prose and poetry, but some are very specific about what they want. Some are also looking for art submissions, so artists should follow up for more information. Some publications are very specific about what they want, and if there’s any particular details about what they’re looking for, I’ll list them. Otherwise, check the links for more information.
  • The deadline for submissions. This list is will be organized with the upcoming deadlines first, then later deadlines after. The ones that have no deadlines will be listed at the very bottom. There are also some organizations that have passed their deadlines since I originally compiled this list, so I will still leave the link to the organization in case anyone would like to have the information for the group.
  • If you have to pay to submit. Some places do want a reading fee for any work, which averages between $10-$15. Some of these groups use Submittable, a website for collecting submissions. Those that use that cost $3 per submission. Some will only charge if you submit online, while others will only take mail submissions, meaning you will probably have to only pay for postage. Lastly, there are groups that do not charge for submission, so don’t worry. Generally, the more work they want from you, the more you’ll have to pay, unless they use Submittable.

Here’s the list, ordered from closest deadline to latest:

SET DEADLINES (firm deadlines, non negotiable)

  • Sun & Sandstone: Short Fiction, Creative Nonfiction, Poetry, One Act Plays. Deadline April 15th. Free (Only for college undergraduate students).
  • Spokane Prize for Short Fiction: Fiction Manuscript at least 98 pages long and containing three stories. Deadline May 15th. $27.50
  • American Short Fiction: Short Story Contest of less than 6,500 words. Deadline June 1st. $20
  • Ropewalk Press: Chapbook contest, up to 45 pages of work. Deadline June 15th. $20 per manuscript.
  • Pilgrimage (Silence and Sound edition): Creative Nonfiction, poetry, and prose relating to a theme. Deadline June 15th. Free.
  • Two Sylvias Press: Chapbook contest, between 17-24 pages of poetry. Deadline June 16th. $15.
  • Cutthroat, A Journal of the Arts: Poetry and Short Story Contests, up to three poems or one short story (5,000 word max). Deadline October 15th. $18, preference for online submissions.
  • Pilgrimage (Sleep edition): Creative nonfiction, poetry, and prose relating to a theme. Deadline October 15th. Free

SUBMISSION PERIODS (these places have set times throughout the year that they will accept and review work. Miss these deadlines and they won’t look at it.)

  •  Ping Pong: Writing of all kinds, art, photography. Reading period from January to June (no set dates). Free.
  • Harpur Palate (Summer issue): Poetry and Prose. Reading period from January 1st to April 15th. Mail submissions only.
  • Sugar House Review: Poetry. Reading period from January 31st to October 15th. Free.
  • Green Tower Press w/ The Laurel Review: Chapbook Contest of 25-35 pages. Reading period from March 1st to June 1st. $10
  • No Tokens: All writings and art. Reading period from April 1st to April 15th. Free.
  • Post Road (Spring Issue): All writings, visual art. Reading period from June 1st to August 1st. $3
  • Batcat Press: All writings. Reading period from June 1st to August 31st. Free.
  • Reed Magazine: All writings and all art. Reading period from June 1st to November 1st. It’s unknown if you need to pay to submit.
  • Ploughshares: All writings. Reading period from June 1st to January 15th. $3 for online submissions, free for mail submissions.
  • Ellipsis: Literature and Art (Writing Submissions): All writings. Reading period from August 1st to November 1st. Mail submissions only.
  • Ellipsis: Literature and Art (Art Submissions): All art. Submission period from August 1st to February 9th. Mail submissions only
  • The Minnesota Review (Submission Period 2): Creative writing and critical writing. Reading period from August 1st to November 1st. Free
  • Ghost Town: All writings and all art. Reading period from August 1st to April 1st. Free
  • New Delta Review: All writings and all arts. Reading period from August 15th to March 31st. $3 per online submission, free by mail.
  • Harpur Palate (Winter issue): Poetry and Prose. Reading period from September 1st to November 15th. Mail submissions only.
  • upstreet: All writings. Reading period from September 1st to March 1st. Free.
  • The Southern Review: Unsolicited fiction and nonfiction. Reading period from September 1st to December 1st. Free.
  • The Southern Review: Poetry. Reading period from September 1st to February 1st. Free.
  • The Gettysburg Review: All writings and all arts. Reading period from September 1st to May 31st. Mail submissions only.
  • Rose Metal Press: Chapbook contest, 25-40 page manuscript of short stories less than 1,000 words. Reading period from November 1st to December 1st. $10 reading fee.

ROLLING SUBMISSIONS (these places accept year round.)

POST DEADLINE (the deadline to submit is past, but these are places to be aware of)

Definitely check these out and click the links for more information. Some of these places will pay you if they publish your work, so you should read their websites to see if they do that.

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