Sound's picture
Sound from Azusa, CA is reading Greener Pastures by Michael Wehunt March 13, 2013 - 2:42pm

We all have them. Those top publications you've been dreaming of getting into since you first started writing. Some of these places might even be the reason you started writing. Maybe you like to dream big-- The New Yorker? Maybe you like to dream small.

What are your top five markets? Those places that slap you with enough rejection slips you can wallpaper your livingroom with, yet you send off another piece the second it hits your inbox.

 

 

Sound's picture
Sound from Azusa, CA is reading Greener Pastures by Michael Wehunt March 13, 2013 - 3:16pm

I like to dream in the "Difficult, but attainable (with work)" so I don't get too discouraged. Here are mine, in no particular order:

1. Swamp Buscuits & Tea ( just love their content. Submit anytime I have something weird enough for them.)

2. Clarkesworld (A toughie, I know. But they have a quick turnaround time and it helps me flex my sci-fi muscles)

3. Nightmare Magazine (Like their site and content.)

4. Jersey Devil Press (Same as Swamp Buscuits & Tea)

5. Bartleby Snopes (Have sent about 7 or so stories, it still evades me...)

 

Shotgun Honey was one of them, but luckily my story was accepted.

R.Moon's picture
R.Moon from The City of Champions is reading The Last Thing He Wanted by Joan Didion; Story Structure Architect by Victoria Lynn Schimdt PH.D; Creating Characters by the editors of Writer's Digest March 13, 2013 - 2:48pm

1. Shotgun Honey - I still want in there. 

2. Hardcase Crime 

3. Pantheon - oh wait... Lol

theres more but I can't think of them right now. 

Sound's picture
Sound from Azusa, CA is reading Greener Pastures by Michael Wehunt March 13, 2013 - 2:49pm

Hey, I've heard of Pantheon : )

MattF's picture
MattF from Tokyo is reading Borges' Collected Fictions March 13, 2013 - 2:54pm

Granta, The Paris Review, McSweeney's, Tin House, Electric Literature (made the final editorial round there once, which can be more heart breaking than a straight rejection).

Sound's picture
Sound from Azusa, CA is reading Greener Pastures by Michael Wehunt March 13, 2013 - 2:59pm

Double post. Got too excited there.

Sound's picture
Sound from Azusa, CA is reading Greener Pastures by Michael Wehunt March 13, 2013 - 2:58pm

Wow, Matt. Those are all extremely hard markets to get into.

Mess_Jess's picture
Mess_Jess from Sydney, Australia, living in Toronto, Canada is reading Perfect by Rachael Joyce March 13, 2013 - 3:08pm

Apex Magazine and Clarkesworld are mine!. But I've only sent them one submission each. I'm almost too embarrassed to keep trying. I'M NOT WORTHY!

Sound's picture
Sound from Azusa, CA is reading Greener Pastures by Michael Wehunt March 13, 2013 - 3:15pm

I had high hopes for "Big Bang, Inc." I sent it to Clarkesworld was rejected in three days. It was like they were telling me, "Get back in your place!"

Kidding, it didn't bother me. I only cried for two days.

R.Moon's picture
R.Moon from The City of Champions is reading The Last Thing He Wanted by Joan Didion; Story Structure Architect by Victoria Lynn Schimdt PH.D; Creating Characters by the editors of Writer's Digest March 13, 2013 - 3:21pm

I'm looking to revamp Jellyfish and get it into Out of the Gutter. I have a few hundred more words to work with there. 

Mess_Jess's picture
Mess_Jess from Sydney, Australia, living in Toronto, Canada is reading Perfect by Rachael Joyce March 13, 2013 - 3:23pm

Kidding, it didn't bother me. I only cried for two days.

I laughed so hard at this. I suspect there are some spec-fic writers who do actually do this.

I got excited because it took Clarkesworld 6 days to reject one of my stories. I thought I was getting close! hehehe. 

Sound's picture
Sound from Azusa, CA is reading Greener Pastures by Michael Wehunt March 13, 2013 - 3:25pm

Out of the Gutter is a cool lookin' site. That was my second stop for Asphalt.

Bekanator's picture
Bekanator from Kamloops, British Columbia is reading Ugly Girls by Lindsay Hunter March 13, 2013 - 3:28pm

For me:

1. PANK

2. Word Riot

3. SubTerrain

4. Fiddleblack

5. Paper Darts

R.Moon's picture
R.Moon from The City of Champions is reading The Last Thing He Wanted by Joan Didion; Story Structure Architect by Victoria Lynn Schimdt PH.D; Creating Characters by the editors of Writer's Digest March 13, 2013 - 3:29pm

Yeah, I'm one of 'those' guys. But, big thanks to Matt for turning me from writer to author. Thanks, buddy!

 

Utah's picture
Moderator
Utah from Fort Worth, TX is reading Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry March 13, 2013 - 3:34pm

Spec fic mags all the way for me.

  1. Clarkesworld (very popular today)
  2. Fantasy and Science Fiction
  3. Lightspeed
  4. Nightmare
  5. Some other one that comes up when I search sci-fi pro-payment in Duotrope
Sound's picture
Sound from Azusa, CA is reading Greener Pastures by Michael Wehunt March 13, 2013 - 3:43pm

Utah, Daily Science Fiction?

Sound's picture
Sound from Azusa, CA is reading Greener Pastures by Michael Wehunt March 13, 2013 - 3:56pm

No problem, Ryan. Glad to have it.

Fiddleback is cool. Sent a few their way, too.

Bekanator's picture
Bekanator from Kamloops, British Columbia is reading Ugly Girls by Lindsay Hunter March 13, 2013 - 4:16pm

Matt, there's Fiddleback and Fiddleblack. Both look pretty amazing, design-wise, though.

JEFFREY GRANT BARR's picture
JEFFREY GRANT BARR from Central OR is reading Nothing but fucking Shakespeare, for the rest of my life March 13, 2013 - 4:17pm
  1. Grain Magazine: a Canadian (based in Saskatchewan where I gre up) lit magazine. I've had some other family members publish there, so I would love to join them.
  2. Shotgun Honey: Finally submitted my first piece there, but I don't have high hopes. Crime/noir etc is not really my strong suit, though I am working on it.
  3. Glimmer Train: may as well shoot the moon.
  4. Nightmare Magazine: John Joseph Adams curated, and recently published a Laird Barron story, and Laird Barron is GOD.
  5. Dragon Magazine: But only the print edition Dragon Magazine circa 1987, because it would have made the younger me so bloody happy.
Sound's picture
Sound from Azusa, CA is reading Greener Pastures by Michael Wehunt March 13, 2013 - 4:26pm

Ah, I had no idea. I'll have to check out Fiddleblack.

Sound's picture
Sound from Azusa, CA is reading Greener Pastures by Michael Wehunt March 13, 2013 - 4:28pm

Good luck, Jeff!

Bekanator's picture
Bekanator from Kamloops, British Columbia is reading Ugly Girls by Lindsay Hunter March 13, 2013 - 5:06pm

@Jeffrey: Is Grain magazine really like...hoity-toity "literary", or are they more accepting of more mainstream edgy kind of stuff?

Nick's picture
Nick from Toronto is reading Adjustment Day March 13, 2013 - 6:59pm

Glimmer Train, Tin House, Black Clock, The Puritan (Toronto-based and awesome, check em out), and a "review" named after a good-sized city... don't care which one.

Utah's picture
Moderator
Utah from Fort Worth, TX is reading Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry March 13, 2013 - 7:06pm

Sound, I've glanced @ DSF, but ever given it a lot of thought. It ca stand in as 5 on my list for the time being though.

Michael.Eric.Snyder's picture
Michael.Eric.Snyder March 13, 2013 - 7:08pm

Hey wait this was what I was trying to do only I guess I didn't do it very well. :)

jyh's picture
jyh from VA is reading whatever he feels like March 13, 2013 - 7:42pm

@MES - Top 5 beats desert island. I guess people don't like hypotheticals.

Renfield's picture
Renfield from Hell is reading 20th Century Ghosts March 13, 2013 - 8:08pm

The Collagist

Black Clock

PANK

One Buck Horror

Needle

Alex Kane's picture
Alex Kane from west-central Illinois is reading Dark Orbit March 13, 2013 - 8:11pm

Asimov's

Lightspeed

Daily Science Fiction

Apex

Strange Horizons

Michael.Eric.Snyder's picture
Michael.Eric.Snyder March 13, 2013 - 8:37pm

@ J.Y. - That's as good a reason as any! Regardless, I made this thread a favorite. It's an exclusive group. :)

jyh's picture
jyh from VA is reading whatever he feels like March 13, 2013 - 8:46pm

Those top publications you've been dreaming of getting into since you first started writing. ... What are your top five markets? Those places that slap you with enough rejection slips you can wallpaper your livingroom with, yet you send off another piece the second it hits your inbox.

I can only think two places I sent a second piece, and one of those was both queried and a joke.

  1. 'Oxford American' --- never submitted. They're the 'New Yorker' of the South.
  2. 'The New Yorker' --- never submitted. They're the 'New Yorker' of the world.
  3. 'The Kenyon Review' --- rejected twice (one poem, one flash; this is not the one referenced above). I don't know why I want to be there.
  4. 'Clarkesworld' --- rejected once. Once accepted to any of the three above, wouldn't it be great to also get into one of the leading SF/F markets?
  5. 'Poetry' --- rejected once. Once you've conquered both the literary and genre markets, wouldn't it be great to also be accepted at the leading American magazine devoted exclusively to poetry and its discussion?
Sound's picture
Sound from Azusa, CA is reading Greener Pastures by Michael Wehunt March 13, 2013 - 9:06pm

Lot of Sci-Fi mags. Took a look at a few that I've never heard of. Too bad Lightspeed is closed until June, I believe. 

One Buck Horror is great, except I never heard back on a submission. 

Sound's picture
Sound from Azusa, CA is reading Greener Pastures by Michael Wehunt March 13, 2013 - 9:08pm

Didn't mean to steal your thunder Michael. I honestly thought your thread was about an actual magazine/publication called Desert Island. 

Michael.Eric.Snyder's picture
Michael.Eric.Snyder March 13, 2013 - 9:14pm

It's truly no worry at all! I actually thought as well  it could be misconstrued as such but the site was running so slowly and I kept getting fun replies and I was tired. :)

JEFFREY GRANT BARR's picture
JEFFREY GRANT BARR from Central OR is reading Nothing but fucking Shakespeare, for the rest of my life March 13, 2013 - 11:09pm

@Bekanator: I believe they show a decided lean toward the former, but they take chances as well. I have to say, I've seen more than a few stories about sex (though not graphic) in Grain. It's a gov't sponsored deal (isn't everything up there), so probably one of the important considerations is Canadian citizenship/residency. 

MattF's picture
MattF from Tokyo is reading Borges' Collected Fictions March 14, 2013 - 4:35am

Lot's of Clarkesworld love. One of my good friends got in there last year, and I'll say they do pay well.

I've never seen a copy of the Oxford American, but have read an article about them (I think a change of editor recently?) and I definitely want to check them out.

Never held an issue of Black Clock either, but they definitely have a mystique. Seems like every time I  check them out they're not accepting submissions.

Gordon Highland's picture
Gordon Highland from Kansas City is reading Secondhand Souls by Christopher Moore March 14, 2013 - 6:16am

For me, it's more about finding the right story for the right mag, and not the white whale itself, but I will say that I have the most rejections from PANK and Jersey Devil. The one place I'd like to be in is of course The New Yorker, because they pay phat stacks, but I've yet to write a story worth sending them.

Bekanator's picture
Bekanator from Kamloops, British Columbia is reading Ugly Girls by Lindsay Hunter March 14, 2013 - 6:39am

I agree with you, Gordon.

I still have my white whales, but not every story is worth sending to them. Most of my stuff is too profane or sexy for most "literary" mags, but every so often I'll write something a little more generic, so I do try to send them out. It's definitely not easy when you realize that your work isn't for everyone, but when you find the right market for your stuff it is really cool.

Lately I've been finding a lot of success with noir markets, a sort of genre I never much saw my work fitting into, but now that I've been finding acceptances there it's been really cool, and I feel like I can write more work and add more of a voice, have more success there.

I may never get into PANK, but at least at this point I've got other well-known noir and hardboiled authors friending me on Facebook and leaving nice comments on my stories, so it's a nice build up. Small steps and all that.

Utah's picture
Moderator
Utah from Fort Worth, TX is reading Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry March 14, 2013 - 7:05am

BEKANATOR IS A LITERARY MEGALITH!

Gordon Highland's picture
Gordon Highland from Kansas City is reading Secondhand Souls by Christopher Moore March 14, 2013 - 8:11am

. . .

Gordon Highland's picture
Gordon Highland from Kansas City is reading Secondhand Souls by Christopher Moore March 14, 2013 - 8:09am

And you never know, that familiarity you breed with other writers may eventually lead to some name recognition that helps oil the hinges on those doors that had once been closed to you. (I was gonna say "grease the wheels," but whatever: some form of lubrication is what's important here.)

Renfield's picture
Renfield from Hell is reading 20th Century Ghosts March 14, 2013 - 8:21am

I know who to call on when I'm in need of lubricant then.

Nick's picture
Nick from Toronto is reading Adjustment Day March 14, 2013 - 5:02pm

.... what's important is that it's water-based.

I've gotten some pretty encouraging rejections from some higher-end places, PANK being one of them. Nice to know they probably got all the way through my stuff.

Courtney's picture
Courtney from the Midwest is reading Monkey: A Journey to the West and a thousand college textbooks March 15, 2013 - 11:49am

I just realized I've never submitted to my top five. Fuck. I should probably get on that.

  1. PANK
  2. Neon
  3. The Kenyon Review
  4. AGNI
  5. McSweeny's (I won't be submitting to this one for a long, long time.)
Richard's picture
Richard from St. Louis is reading various anthologies April 12, 2013 - 9:28pm

I'll just leave off The New Yorker, The Paris Review and Playboy, as they'll likely never happen. I have 39 places listed under "white whales" in my where to submit article here at LR, but here are my top 5:

1. Cemetery Dance - kings of horror (0% acceptance rate at Duotrope)

2. The Missouri Review - a top literary journal, very tough (.51% acceptance rate)

3. F&SF - i don't write much straight, traditional fantasy and SF, tough to fiind a fit (.35% acceptance)

4. Shock Totem - i love what they are doing (1.31% acceptance rate, those whores)

5. Ploughshares - another top literary journal, very tough (.9% acceptance rate)

Glad to see you all aiming high!

Richard's picture
Richard from St. Louis is reading various anthologies March 16, 2013 - 1:10pm

@Bek - for sure hit up PANK, with every story you have. the one i got in there was a weird format, a choose your own adventure, so also consider somethign atypical. roxane writes some dark, sexual stuff, so don't let that deter you at all. send them all.

i've been lucky enough to get stories in Word Riot, One Buck Horror and Shotgun Honey, so they're definitely possible, keep hitting them up.

Glad to see you all targeting Needle, love them, and Black Clock, too. Clarkesworld is a white whale of mine, but they are so hard, very picky. I usually get kicked to the curb in 24 hours or less.

I also love Nightmare, Apex, Lightspeed, Paper Darts (perfect for you Bek, keep hitting them up), Strange Horizons (just sent them a story TODAY!), Electric Literature (although I think they're closed to submissions moving forward) and The Collagist.

Obviously, Tin House, McSweeny's, and Granta, those are all top notch, very tough.

Americantypo's picture
Americantypo from Philadelphia is reading The Bone Clocks March 17, 2013 - 9:09am

1. Cemetary Dance

2. Shock Totem

3. Shimmer

4. Nightmare Magazine

5. One Buck Horror (which I managed to get into!)

6. Apex (I know its only supposed to be 5, but whatever).

Americantypo's picture
Americantypo from Philadelphia is reading The Bone Clocks March 17, 2013 - 9:12am

I'm probably gonna hear back from Cemetary Dance any day now for a sub I sent back in early December. It's really nerve wracking, caues I know how much it will mean to me as a horror writer to get accepted by them.