Literary magazines seem to be flooding the markets. From independently published lit mags to those published by colleges and universities, these publications offer writers a chance to get their work seen in a respectable publication.

Unfortunately, not many literary magazines pay writers. Most of these nonpaying magazines are “labors of love” or the work of a team of students getting hands-on experience working on staff for a magazine.

Fortunately, there are some literary magazines that do pay writers, and pay well. It is up to the writer to decide which kind of pay scale they are open to.

There are several literary magazines published by the writing departments of universities. While some of them do pay well, all of them have submission time periods. The literary magazines included in this article accept submissions year-round, but it is a good idea to check submission guidelines all the same to make sure they are open to submissions. None of the markets included below require fees.

The links below go directly to each publication’s writer’s guidelines.

 The Atlantic

From their website: “The Atlantic is always interested in great nonfiction, fiction, and poetry. A general familiarity with what we have published in the past is the best guide to what we’re looking for. All manuscripts should be submitted as a Word document or PDF.” Pays $3000.

The Drift

“The Drift is a magazine of culture and politics.” They accept essays, short stories, poems and “mentions.” Writers interested in pitching are encouraged to read their guide, linked to on their site. Samples available on their site. Pays $2000.

McSweeney’s

They publish humor stories. Samples can be found on their website. They prefer submissions of 1000 words, with a maximum of 1200 words. Submissions must be sent in the body of the email, no attachments, and they prefer complete manuscripts. No reprints. Pays $400.

Willow Review

This magazine is published by College Lake County in Illinois and they accept submissions from everyone everywhere. They accept poetry, fiction and creative nonfiction of up to 7000 words. No reprints and they only accept submissions through regular mail. Pays $100-$400 depending on the accepted piece.

Mascara Literary Review

They accept fiction and nonfiction of up to 3000 words, poetry of three poems on one page, and reviews of 1200-1500 words. Pays US writers only. Pays $100 for accepted poems and $200 for essays, fiction and reviews. No reprints.

Rivanna Review

They are a literary magazine based in Virginia that accepts submissions nationwide. They publish fiction, essays and book reviews. Pays $100 on publication. No reprints.

Paranoid Tree

They accept fiction, nonfiction and prose poetry up to 400 words. No reprints. Pays $50 for each accepted piece, in addition to five copies.

Twenty-two Twenty-eight

From their website: “Twenty-two Twenty-eight accepts submissions of poetry, fiction, non-fiction essays, visual art, music, and videos. Response times are usually one to three months. All submissions must be in English and must be previously unpublished except for videos and music.” Fiction: 500-2000 words. Poetry: 5-7 poems, unless they are long. Pays $30 for fiction and all selected poems.

For the writers still enrolled in college or just starting out, literary magazines are good markets to submit to. Many accept a variety of works and some of them provide editorial feedback.

If your goal is to get your work published in a paying literary magazine, there are many to be found. The ones listed in this article are a good place to start, and getting published in any one of them can open doors to many other publication opportunities.

RELATED

• 3 Paying Australian Literary Magazines That Work with Non-Aussies! – by Julie Guirgis
• 10 Obscure Paying Markets for Writers that Pay $50 to $1,000 By Emmanuel Olaleye – 05 2023
• Magazines That Pay Writers $1 to $2 Per Word By Biljana Tadic – 05 2023

MORE PAYING LITERARY MARKET MAGAZINES:

• Neon Literary Magazine
• The Savage Kick Literary Magazine

Dawn Colclasure is a writer who lives in Eugene, Oregon, with her husband and teen son. She writes poetry, essays, articles, short stories and books. She is the author and co-author of several books. She is also a book reviewer and columnist. Her stories have appeared in magazines, newspapers, websites and anthologies. She publishes the free newsletter for writers, the SPARREW Newsletter, each month. Her websites are https://dawnsbooks.com/ and https://www.dmcwriter.com/. Her Twitter: @dawnwilson325 and Instagram: dawn10325.

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