Submission Guidelines

CLOSED to Submissions
Wanderings is currently closed to submissions. Due to a high volume of quality submissions recently, all slots for the next several issues have been filled. We expect to start accepting submissions again in July. Thanks for all the great work that has been sent our way and please check back with us this summer!

Last Updated: February 21, 2008

What We Are Looking For

Wanderings strives to be free of genre boundaries. We want strongly-written short fiction and well-composed poetry on any subject you wish to write about. We will publish the best of the submissions we receive, regardless of genre. One to two page poems and stories in the range of 1000 to 5000 words are preferred. We are willing to consider longer works, but be warned that they will have to be exceptionally good to offset the additional work we take on by publishing them. Please query first for longer work.

We enjoy stories that have something interesting and unique to say. The ideal story for Wanderings is one that takes the reader to some place he or she has never been before, or that portrays something which is seen every day and forces the reader to think about it in a new way. Presenting a fresh perspective through an interesting and engaging set of characters is the best way to make it into the magazine.

What We Are Not Looking For

We do not want gratuitously violent or sexual stories. Some violence and/or sexuality will be tolerated if we feel that it advances the story, and the story that is advanced is worthy of publication. Sex and violence for their own sake will get a story shot down here. Overtly hateful or disgusting stories are also non-starters.

How to Submit

We now accept submissions only via our online form. Provide your story or poem in RTF format, including any special formatting such as bold or italic type. Please include your contact information, including name, mailing address and e-mail address, at the top of your submission. Clearly indicate the author's name you would like to use if it is different than the one listed in your contact information. You may include a brief biographical statement if you like. We reserve the right to edit the bio for content and/or length, or not to use it at all.

Please limit your submissions to two per quarter. If you choose to send two submissions in the same period, each should be submitted in separate visits to the form. We may never even see the second submission if both are sent in the same file.

Expect a response within 30 days of your submission. Feel free to query about the status of your submission if you have not heard from us within 40 days. It probably got lost somewhere along the way. Please include the text "QUERY" in the subject line when inquiring about the status of a submission.

Due to the increased number of submissions we are receiving, we will be unable to consider submissions which do not conform to the guidelines. Non-conforming submissions will be rejected without being read.

What We Each Get

Publication of your work in Wanderings requires you to grant us electronic and print publication rights. Upon approval of your submission, we will request the right to publish your work on our web site for a period of one quarter (three months), include your work in one issue of the print copy of Wanderings, and display the work in our archive for three months after the month of publication. We will be happy to work with you if you need to have your work removed from the archive early (if it will be published in another market, for example).

All authors published in Wanderings will have the opportunity to receive a printed copy of the issue in which their work appears for only the price of shipping. As the magazine grows, we hope to be able to offer more compensation for the fine work we are able to publish.

All copyrights remain with the author of the work.