Which Short Story Magazines Are Known For Literary Fiction?

Reading fees. Ugh. Some magazines, especially for contests, charge a small reading fee ($3-$5). This is a hot-button issue. Proponents say it helps fund the magazine and pay their editors. Critics say it creates a pay-to-play barrier. My personal rule: I'll occasionally pay a fee for a contest with a substantial prize or a magazine I truly, deeply admire and want to support. For general submissions, I prioritize the many, many excellent magazines that don't charge. It's a personal calculation. Don't feel like you have to pay to play, but also recognize that for some small presses, that fee is what keeps the lights on.

What about contests? Many literary magazine contests have long submission windows, like 3-4 months, and often include a subscription and consideration for the non-contest issue. It's a way to support the magazine and get your work read, even if you don't win. Just watch out for high entry fees with vague promises.

Payment structures create weird incentives. If a magazine pays a flat rate per story (say, $100), they financially 'prefer' longer stories because they get more words for their money. If they pay per word (8 cents), they financially prefer shorter stories. Most try to balance this, but it's a lurking factor in the background. An editor might love a long story but have to reject it because paying $800 for it would consume their entire budget for the issue.

Flash fiction markets are a great way to start. 'Microfiction Monday Magazine' publishes stories under 100 words. The constraint forces incredible creativity. While the pay is token, it's a fun challenge and a quick publication credit. There's also '50-Word Stories', which is exactly what it sounds like. These ultra-short forms teach you precision. Getting a few of these published can boost your confidence and help you build a writing habit. They often have quick turnaround times, so you get the satisfaction of completion and publication faster than with longer pieces. It's a good training ground.

Erotica shorts have their own dedicated magazines and sites, with very clear sub-genre focuses: BDSM, historical, paranormal, contemporary, LGBTQ+ specific, etc. The focus is on audience expectation and fantasy fulfillment, often with strict guidelines about consent and happy endings. It's a massive, often overlooked part of the short fiction ecosystem because it lives on its own platforms. The writing can range from purely functional to quite literary, but the genre conventions are strong. Readers know what they want, and the magazines deliver that specific thing with very little deviation. It's a pure genre-service model.

I get a little giddy talking about submissions—there’s something about polishing a piece and sending it out that feels like mailing a tiny, hopeful letter into the world. My process starts with research: I read recent issues of magazines I like (I keep a little stack of print issues and a folder of PDFs) so I know their tone, length preferences, and whether they publish the kind of weird/quiet/hard-boiled things I write. Then I check the submission guidelines on their website or Submittable page—this is sacred. If they want double-spaced 12pt Times New Roman, that’s what they get; if they want single-spaced or a particular file type, I follow that exactly. When it comes to formatting, I treat the manuscript like a professional artifact: title centered on the first page, word count at the top or in the file name if requested, no name on the manuscript if they ask for blind submissions, and I usually upload a .docx unless they say otherwise. My cover letter is short—two to four lines. I say hello, give the title and word count, mention a relevant previous credit if I have one, and thank them for considering it. If a journal uses email, I paste the story into the body only if they explicitly ask; otherwise I attach. I always declare if it’s a simultaneous submission and withdraw promptly if it’s accepted elsewhere. Practical tools keep me sane: I track submissions in a spreadsheet (title, date sent, response time, simultaneous allowed?), and I use Duotrope or The Submission Grinder to find markets and estimate response times. Rejections burn for a second and then I revise or send elsewhere. After a few rounds you learn to match story to journal better, which feels like leveling up. It’s a marathon, not a sprint, but every accept is the best kind of caffeine.

Co-writing and payment splits are something I've encountered with a friend. We sold a story we wrote together. The magazine paid the standard rate, and we had to figure out how to split it. We decided 50/50, but it's something to discuss upfront with a collaborator. The contract should have both names on it, and the payment method needs to accommodate two people. Some magazines will split a payment into two transactions if you provide separate payment info, but others will just cut one check. It gets messy. Have a written agreement with your co-author before you even submit to avoid friendship-ending disputes later.

Reading for a magazine, even a small one, was the most educational experience for my own submissions. You see the sheer volume of stories that come in, the common mistakes, and what makes a piece instantly stand out—usually a unique, confident voice from the very first sentence. It also teaches you empathy for the editors. They're not rejecting you; they're sifting through a mountain of material to find the handful of pieces that fit their specific vision for that issue.