Submission Guidelines

* Black Heart is on a brief hiatus until the end of May 2013. We are still open for submissions, but will not be reading them until June 1. Additionally, we are currently accepting applications for a new Fiction Co-Editor to join the team. To apply, please see complete details here. *

SHORT FICTION: We accept short fictional pieces of up to 1,500 words. All genres will be read, although we DO NOT accept novel excerpts. Please send only one story in your submission, and wait for a response before submitting another. Simultaneous submissions (i.e. sending the same piece to several different publications) are fine; just let us know if your work has been accepted elsewhere. Writers have a choice between Fee and Free submissions; fee-based submissions will receive brief feedback on submitted work, whereas free submissions will only receive a form rejection letter. Submit your short fiction here.

POETRY: We accept poetry submissions of up to 3 poems in one document. Writers have a choice between Fee and Free submissions; fee-based submissions will receive brief feedback on submitted work, whereas free submissions will only receive a form rejection letter. Submit your poetry here.

*NEW* AUTHOR BLOG POSTS: For published authors looking to promote their books, we are now accepting brief blog posts about the journey to publication. Send posts of 500 to 1,000 words relating to your publishing journey, written in the first person, for consideration. Author blog posts will appear on Saturdays only, and a nominal fee of $6 will be charged, due to the advertorial nature of these pieces. Submit your posts here.

RESPONSE TIMES: Vary. If you haven’t heard from us in after 3 months, we’re probably not interested. If you haven’t received any comments on your fee-based submissions after 3 months, hit us with an email and we’ll get back to you.

PAYMENT: We regret that no monetary payment is available, as Black Heart’s day-to-day activities are run on the sunshine and rainbows that emanate from our volunteer staffers’ asses. Want to help pay our writers? All sales generated by our online store and fee-based submissions are reinvested into the magazine, so the more you buy, the more likely we can one day afford to pay our writers.

How to Submit

Send us your best work via our submissions manager. Options are available for each genre; please choose appropriately (i.e. make sure your “poetry” submission is actually a poem and not a short story, as they will be routed to different editors).

NOTE: The editors also respond favorably to being addressed by name, so for the record: Heather L. Nelson is our fabulous Fiction Editor, and Gabino Iglesias is our awesome Poetry Editor. (Founding Editor Laura Roberts doesn’t do slush, though you may see her name on your acceptance or rejection emails.)

(Last updated 14 May 2013)