Tips for Submitting to Journals, Lit Mags and Contests

For a long time, I wrote poetry, day after day, week after week, month after month, year after year and even decade after decade and…
stored it away in my journals.

My Mentorship

One year ago, I joined a year-long poetry mentorship with Nadia Colburn and refined dozens of those poems, wrote many more and edited my favorites with Nadia’s guidance. My goal was to self-publish a book of poems.

I wasn’t sure about submitting to journals and contests. As a non-academic with no MFA, I figured my chances were slim. And yet…

A part of me wanted to give it a try.

Still, that world of published poetry seemed like a world I didn’t understand or know how to navigate.

In November of December of 2025 I decided to submit.

Stopped in My Tracks from Submitting

And then I did nothing. In fact, I even stopped working on the book.

I knew that publishing the poems in a book would preclude those poems from being submitted to most literary journals and contests, since most want unpublished poems.

So, I just stopped.

Sure, I could have worked on organizing the poems for the book, even if I wasn’t ready to publish it, but that’s another story, much of which you can read in this previous post about creative resistance as an invitation to heal.

Finally, I asked Nadia to use one of our one-on-one calls for her to hold my hand and walk me through the submission process.

It worked, as I mentioned in that post on creative resistance.

The Submission Process

Man, there is a learning curve in submitting to journals, lit mags and contests. Submitting effectively takes time, consideration, and learning the ropes. So, here are some ropes for you, step by step:

I used Poets & Writers to identify literary journals and magazines, as well as contests. While I’m focusing here on poetry, much of what I say is true for other genres, such as essays and short fiction.

1. First step, read the guidelines of each journal/lit mag/contest and see if it’s really a fit for your work (are you an “emerging poet” (completely unpublished)? Is your work narrative? Edgy? Progressive? FYI, if you’ve published in other genres, you’re not considered an emerging writer by the pros.
2. If there’s a match, you still need to figure out which poems to submit. So, you’ll want to read recently published work from those lit mags (poems, essays, short fiction–whatever it is you are looking to submit). Sympatico? Okay, next step…
3. Now you need to look at the more detailed submission guidelines to choose poems that are within the allowable length and number of poems.  And put them all in one document.  More info on formatting below, though the magazine’s submission guidelines will likely help with that.
4. Now review the submission guidelines for these rules: Do you submit through email? Mail (two contests I submitted to were snail-mail only!) or online via Submittable? Do you need a cover letter in the email or uploaded to Submittable? In the same document as your submission? Both? Do you need to include your name, contact info, and page number in the footer of every page, or does this journal want to “read blind”?
5. Do they request a specific line spacing for poetry, such as single-spaced? Or what spacing should you use for your poems? (for nonfiction, it’s easy—double-space).

Ah, so many things to be sure to do right—a perfectionist’s dream!

Tips I learned for submitting to journals, lit mags and writing contests!

This week I attended a course with Poets & Writers called “Mapping the Maze for Poets: Chart Your Path to Publication.” As of this writing, I’ve only attended the first session.

The moderators and presenters were all incredibly helpful, starting with Jamie Asaye FitzGerald. Emma Komlos-Hrobsky, associate deputy editor at Poets & Writers, introduced resources from Poets & Writers and answered our zillions of questions, with Ricardo Hernandez, Assistant Director of Programs & Partnerships at Poets & Writers, as moderator (who also pitched in with some answers in the chat).  In our second hour, Jenny Molberg (Poet and editor in chief, Ploughshares) 

I asked a lot of questions—some picayune and some broad. Here are some of the picky details I picked up:

a. In answer to the question on line spacing, you have some leeway if they don’t specify, but one of the presenters said she prefers 1.15 spacing if it’s not specified. In answer to someone else’s question about what font to use: Jenny shared that she prefers Garamond.  Times New Roman? Not her fave.  It reminds her of grading papers!

b. I also wondered how many poems to submit when a journal offers a large number, such as 6 or 7 max. Jenny, widely published, said she always goes for the maximum number. You just never know which poem is going to resonate with the reader/editor.

c. Jenny also offered a great tip on ordering your poems. She often turns to the last poem in a submission and reads that first because the one that a person feels is a little more oddball is often the most interesting, even if it needs a little more work.  On the other hand, many editors read in order, so maybe put your best poem first, but your most unusual poem last!

d. I was surprised by several editors’ comments on editing. If a journal or mag editor is intrigued by a poem, they may likely provide feedback to help you refine the poem.

This is just a subset of the tips learned in that fantastic class – do yourself and favor and sign up! It’s offered again June 22 and June 24. Just scroll down on the page to June classes to find it!

More Steps for Submitting

4. You’ll need to create a template for a cover letter and bio, and edit the template for each journal, following the journal’s specific guidelines and flavor. I was lucky enough to have input from my mentor, Nadia. She helped me craft a cover letter and bio that leveraged my successes and awards in the nonfiction arena.

Here are some extra tips and takeaways I picked up when I asked these questions in the Poets & Writers class

• Should I include the poets I studied with at MIT so many years ago in my bio or cover letter? Only if they were an influence on my work.
• Should I mention my nonfiction book awards and my career as a book coach? Is this relevant to the poetry bio and cover letter? Yes.
• The general consensus on cover letters and bios? Keep ’em short. Let your poems speak for themselves. If they require a lot of backstory, maybe they’re not ready for publication.

5. Once you submit your packet o’ poems, record your submissions right away. Poets & Writers has a great tool to help writers keep track, and I’ve been using it to track when I submitted, where it is in the process (submitted, pending, no or yes!), when I might hear back, and which poems I sent. This is super important because if you submit a poem to several mags or contests and it gets accepted somewhere, you need to withdraw it from the others!

Get More Training and Network

One thing I had not really considered: fellowships and residencies. Now, maybe an almost 63-year-old woman with no MFA is unlikely to get a fellowship, and they are looking for younger folks and emerging writers or successful poets to support, but given the mention during our workshop, I may look into this more. Again, Poets & Writers is a great resource for this kind of information.

Another suggestion in the class was to attend writers’ conferences and mentorship programs. Jenny mentioned that she had worked with several emerging writers as part of Frontier’s mentoring program, and then kept in touch with some of them, publishing their work later, when serving as editor at Pleiades. Jenny emphasized, though, while such relationships can be rewarding, it doesn’t replace connecting within communities of writers and writing conferences. One editor’s feedback can be helpful, but Jenny reminded us that the editor might not be your ideal reader.

And some advice from me – study beyond your genre! When I’ve presented at writers conferences, I’ve often attended workshops as a participant, when possible, often in a genre outside of the one I’m presenting for. This includes presenting and participating at The San Francisco Writers Conference, Harvard Medical School’s former annual CME publishing course (where I served on the faculty for over a dozen years), and  the former Ocean State Summer Writing Conference at the University of Rhode Island. I always learn something new, especially if it’s outside my genre.

At URI, several workshops with Kristin Prevallet come to mind as being particularly inspiring. I recall an exercise in which I wrote a list of prepositions and then used them in a poem. I’ve since borrowed that idea for my own writing prompts in Get Your Writing Done. The conference’s evening readings had me so inspired, I had to pull over on my way home and let my own poems come through. One of those poems will be in my upcoming book! And before that, I’ll submit it to a few lit mags.

More classes at P&W

In addition to the  Poets & Writers class I attended, you’ll find others for Mapping the Maze: Chart Your Path to Publication for fiction and nonfiction, as well.  These popular classes are offered several times a year with various presenters/editors where you can discover what they are specifically looking for. You’ll have plenty of time to get your particular questions answered, so come prepared!

One last bit of advice: submit several poems, essays, stories, etc. before the class. Once you start the process you’ll be sure to have questions. Note those questions and bring them to class! You’ll feel so much more confident with your next submissions! It’s a learning process, after all.

Good luck!

Note: If you’ve had experience with submitting, please share any of your tips, celebrations or challenges below. Have a question? If I can’t answer it, I’ll do my best to find an expert who can!