Submissions

We are always on the look out for new writing, so send us your work. Rest assured that we read every submission we receive. If in doubt of the quality of your work, please look at The Brittle Paper Awards page.

Here are a few things to keep in mind:

1. Submit your work by filling out all fields below.
2. We accept fiction, poetry, creative non-fiction, book reviews, essays, literary commentaries, fun listicles, and any writing with a literary bent.
3. Except when solicited, we do not accept submissions that have been published elsewhere.
4. Simultaneous submissions are fine. All we ask is that you notify us when your work is accepted elsewhere.
5. Because we publish for an online audience, we prefer works that are short, sharp, and exciting. Suggested word count:
   • Fiction: no more than 2,500 words.
   • Book review: no more than 1,500 words.
   • Literary commentary, think pieces and essays: no more than 1,500 words.
6. Always include a short bio and photograph of yourself. Feel free to make the photograph as playful or as formal as you like.
7. Once you submit to the system, know that we will receive your submission. Because of this, we usually do not acknowledge reception unless emailed separately. However, we are working on a way to immediately acknowledge submissions.
8. Here are some of the reasons why we might turn down a submission: poor grammar, poor punctuation, poor use of tenses, plagiarism. We would especially reject a submission we deem to be misogynist or homophobic, or one that exhibits supremacist leanings on the basis of race, ethnicity or religion.
9. Be advised that we will edit your work and sometimes change the title, and if we consider the latter, we will inform you.
10. We receive over 220 submissions monthly, with a hefty backlog to wade through and because of this, we are unable to reply right away. We regret that we are unable to send out rejection emails as well for works sent in within the year 2019. We can only send out acceptances for now. However, we are clearing our slush pile so that, from February onwards, it would be possible to inform authors of the status of their work soonest.
11. You retain the copyright to your work. However, we do require that you credit Brittle Paper as the original publisher of the work.
12. Except on rare occasions, we do not remove pieces that have been published on our site.
13. If the submission is a response to immediate events on the literary scene, please email it to [email protected] for immediate consideration.
14. Further enquiries, including official contacts from publishers and editors, could be sent to [email protected].

Image by Helen Cassidy via Flickr