Submitting strange short fiction.

April 9, 2005 1:40 PM

So I've written a short story*, and I'd like to try to get it published. Alas, I have no idea what publication would be a good place to submit to. It's inspired by equal parts Piers Plowman, Saikaku, and 14th century Buddhist devotional tales.

Apologies for the pretension of the last sentence of the intro, but it's pretty much true. It's a faux Christian devotional tale written in the style of a Buddhist one and set in an indeterminately medieval England. I honestly don't know where to even start looking for a place to submit it.

*I've written lots of short stories, but this is the first I've ever considered submitting anywhere.

posted by kavasa to media & arts (7 comments total)

Pick up a copy of the Writers Market.
posted by ryanissuper at 2:15 PM on April 9, 2005

You can also subscribe to The Writer's Market online. Good Luck!
posted by jodic at 2:33 PM on April 9, 2005

What ryanissuper said. Writer's Market lists magazines by genre. There's a section called "Literary and 'Little' Markets" with college papers and other publications with especially small circulation. These pay less but are more open to beginners.

WM also shows you how to submit your story -- how to format your manuscript and cover letter, what to say and not say, how the magazine will behave.
posted by NickDouglas at 2:40 PM on April 9, 2005

Ok, that is good to know and I will pick one up just as soon as I can afford it. (Poor would-be writer? Impossible!) But I am impatient and want to submit RIGHT NOW! So if anyone has any specific publications to suggest, that would also be appreciated.
posted by kavasa at 3:06 PM on April 9, 2005

If you want to do this on any kind of a regular basis, you really can't afford not to buy it. It will specify exactly how and in what form an editor will accept submissions. Most publications are deluged with submissions and are happy to find reasons to quickly rule yours out (wrong size envelope, wongly addressed, not double-spaced, etc.). This may save you some rejection (but expect quite a bit of rejection, anyway).

Try the Sun magazine.
posted by Miko at 4:44 PM on April 9, 2005

Most libraries have a copy of Writers' Market less than 2 years old. If it's not the absolute newest volume, check online to see if you can find any evidence that the magazine's still being published and hasn't changed address or editor.
posted by Jeanne at 4:48 PM on April 9, 2005

Okay, this is a book published by the press I work for, so I may sound like I'm shilling, but the CLMP Directory (link not to us but to the Council of Literary Magazines and Presses) is more narrowly focused on literary mags, and it's cheaper & better updated than Writer's Market.
posted by dame at 7:21 PM on April 9, 2005