FICTION seeks the best new writing available, leaning toward the unconventional. It prides itself on publishing established writers along with new, emerging voices. You can order our current issue or peruse excerpts from previous issues online. You can also read our Editor Mark Jay Mirsky’s article To Reach the Literary Editor.

We publish literary and experimental fiction and translations of works previously unpublished in English. We favor stories of under 7,500 words. Although FICTION publishes a variety of stories, please understand that we do not accept unsolicited artwork, graphic stories, novel excerpts, or interviews.

We do NOT accept the following:

• Short fiction under 1,000 words

• Long fiction over 20,000 words or full-length novels

• Genre fiction such as science fiction, romance, erotica, detective fiction, or young adult fiction

• Non-prose fiction such as plays, poetry, non-fiction, or hybrid work that is a heavy mix of any of these elements

We regret that we cannot accept unsolicited submissions directly by email or postal service.

To submit electronically please read the guidelines below.

• Our reading period runs from October 15 through January 31

• You can upload your piece on our Submissions Manager: submissions.fictioninc.com.

• We accept .doc, .docx, .pdf, .rtf, .txt 

• Under “comments” please include publications with major literary magazines or presses, literary awards, or past contributions to FICTION

🙟Can I submit more than one story at a time?
Please only submit one story at a time. Our Submissions Manager will prevent you from submitting a second story until after the first has been responded to by our staff. Do not include multiple stories in the same document when uploading to our Submissions Manager. Any submissions that we receive which exceed these limitations will regretfully be declined.

🙟Can I submit a story to FICTION and another magazine at the same time?
Simultaneous submissions are encouraged. However, if your piece has been accepted elsewhere, we ask that you immediately withdraw it using our Submissions Manager. Failure to withdraw your piece only causes an increase in our response time.

🙟When will I hear back about my submission?
As you might imagine FICTION is comprised of a small staff of dedicated readers and we therefore operate on a rolling submission basis. While we try our best to respond within 3-6 months, please be aware that response times may vary as we do not maintain office hours in January or during summer months. Your patience is appreciated.

🙟Do you pay your contributors?
Due to our funding changing from year to year, the amount of payment is determined upon publication. Published authors receive two contributor copies and a two issue subscription.