Where to Submit Poetry for Beginner Poets: 10 Literary Journals
Literary Journals for New and Emerging Poets!
(Art by Francisco Fonseca)
About: I write a weekly-ish poem of joy and lyricism at my newsletter Lanterns in the Dark. Craft Talks is where I discuss the art and craft of poetry and lift up other poets.
I have spent hours tracking down literary journals that either have a track record of publishing new poets, explicitly call for submissions from new/emerging poets, or are new to the scene so more likely to be less competitive and willing to take new work! I hope you enjoy and find this useful! And as always, drop any recommendations you have in the comments!
ONEArt. Could it be? Is it she? Yes - a literary magazine that publishes every two weeks!! This is a GREAT journal for new/emerging poets. (Also, I recommend submitting several times in case you don’t get in the first time, since they have such a quick response time/publishing schedule)
Sunlight Press - Sunlight Press is for “new and established voices” and especially likes nature pieces. This is a great fit for the topics and styles I see a lot of beginner poets writing in.
Shoegazeliterary - a completely new literary journal, they’ve published their first issue and subs for second issue open in the fall. Keep an eye out! They say “we aim to support and uplift emerging writers through our digital venue by curating a third space for dreamy, distorted alternate realities.”
Wild Peach Magazine - They publish “work by unpublished and emerging creators” and I was drawn in by their unique mission statement/vibes: “in pursuit of a world that is fairer, more fun, and a lot less exhausting for everyone” and “Wild peaches represent a world of idealism – a chance escape into a romantic, provincial past.”
Dishsoapquarterly - Dishsoap actively seeks poets who have never published before, they respond quickly, and they publish every Tuesday, so may be worth checking out!
Fish Barrel Review - FBR is somewhat known for being welcoming to newer poets, and encourages submissions of “works with empathy” and from “dedicated, enthusiastic writers new or old”.
earworms - Submissions for volume 2 of this new magazine open in July! A fun premise - “earworms magazine publishes pieces inspired by earworms, songs you just can't get out of your head. Each submission period, our editors put together a playlist. Let the songs inspire your work, or use your own current earworms and just let us know what you chose when you submit your work!”
Rawlit - often publishes new writers, and says “We want writing that helps to process emotions.” Submission call just opened June 1st and will be open until they hit their submission cap.
Tableware is a very new journal published by Big Table Press: subs for their first issue have closed but keep an eye for the sub call for their second issue!
PUBLISHEDbyJake - describes itself as the anti-literary journal, PUBLISHEDbyJake has casual, welcoming vibes and aims to be less offputting and terrifying to beginner poets. Note it’s pretty popular with beginner poets so the same advice applies: submit several times!
Also check out: West Coast Review, which is new and has only published one issue but is run out of San Diego State so is likely to be somewhat more competitive than many of the above.
Editor’s note: I have a personal policy against literary journals that are explicitly political in their submission calls, or are discriminatory towards free speech, so there’s a handful of journals I may come across that I won’t include in these guides. (What I mean by discriminatory towards free speech is something like “if we find that you have behaved or spoken in a way that goes against these guidelines, your work may be subject to removal.” Tracie Adams has a great thread here. It’s not the place of a lit journal to be the moral arbiter of someone’s personal life or gatekeep their speech, so I avoid those journals).
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