Still: The Journal

Call for Submissions for Summer and Fall (unthemed) issues, 2023

Submission Window:  April 1-30, 2023

We accept submissions only through Submittable. Beginning in 2022, we will be asking for a $3 submission fee. This is not a reading fee; rather, the money we receive through submissions is used only to help pay for our web services and Submittable services. We are a small, volunteer staff with no institutional or organizational financial support.

Our emphasis is on amplifying the diverse voices and creativity of the Appalachian region, and we are committed to publishing excellent writing that does not rely on clichés and stereotypes. We want to feature writing that exemplifies the many layers and complexities of the region. 

We especially encourage submissions from historically underrepresented voices - BIPOC, members of the LGBTQIA community and persons of all abilities. 

We don't mind if your submission is simultaneous as long as you withdraw your piece right away if it's accepted elsewhere. We will be happy for you! Use the "Withdraw" function in Submittable to withdraw work. If you need to withdraw a single poem, you can use the "Message" function in Submittable.

We are not able to pay our contributors, but we nominate work regularly to annual prizes, and we will help advertise your work on social media. Our contributors have been featured in the Best of the Net and in The Best Small Fictions anthologies.

We appreciate writing grounded in craft as well as experience. We are moved by lyrical writing that is compelling, distinctive, accessible, and finely written. We also like the wild and fragmented, the snapshot, the unforeseen. As a purely editorial decision, we don't consider trite, light verse, genre fiction, critical analyses, inspirational or motivational advice, erotica, pornography, or any writing that purposefully exploits or demeans or enables hatred and bigotry. We reserve the right to remove pieces from our archives.

We very seldom consider previously published work, including work that has been uploaded to social media or personal websites. Please do not submit any work that has been previously published unless invited to do so.

Please submit only in one genre and only once during this reading period. If you have been published in Still before, please wait until one year has passed from that publication date before sending us work again. 

We will consider one work of fiction (up to 6,500 words) or one to two flash or micro fiction works (no more than 1,000 words total). We will consider one work of creative nonfiction (up to 6,500 words) or one to two flash or micro creative nonfiction works (no more than 1,000 words total.) Please double space all fiction and creative nonfiction. We will consider one to five poems (submitted as one document). Poems can be any length, form, style. Poems can be single spaced. 

The title of your submission and the title of your uploaded file should include your name and genre, (e.g. Jane Writer Poetry). 

In the "Cover Letter" section, please include a short sentence that explains your connection to the Appalachian region. Please also include a short biography (100-200 words). You can include your publications, but please list no more than four journals where your work has appeared. Book titles should include the publisher and year of publication. You can include literary awards and prizes. Include links to your work or website (if applicable) and your social media handles (if applicable).

We try to respond to contributors within three months. Please do not query until three months have passed.

Still: The Journal acquires First Electronic Rights and Non-exclusive Archival Rights. Upon publication, all other rights revert to the author. Please credit Still: The Journal as first publisher if you reprint elsewhere; we like seeing our name in print, too. Still reserves the right to reprint work at a later date if we have the opportunity to occasionally make a print anthology and want to include your work. 

If you are interested in pitching a book review, an interview, artwork, photography, collaborations, or a Still Life feature, please contact us by email at stilleditors@gmail.com