**Magpie contest submissions are OPEN for the Clark Closser Memorial Literature Award in Poetry, Fiction, and Nonfiction. View contest call for details.**
♥ welcome, feral storyteller!
Magpie Zine is a collection of somewhat unusual, possibly urgent, and slightly unhinged human expressions, existing somewhere between feral and fancy or a rock and a highbrow. The mag was born from an affinity for early underground zines—subversive, intelligent, uniquely collaborative, and vigorously imaginative. We are devoted to the spirit of that counterculture and the heart and soul of originality. We support writers and artists whose aesthetic is an experience. View our latest issue here →
we seek the following for general submissions:
Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, humor, experimental/wildly unclassifiable, and visual art—artwork, photography, collage, comics. The prose word limit is 1500. For poetry, submit 1-3 poems. For visual art, submit 2-4 pieces. We strongly favor work with depth and unique insight. Life is absurd, and we like being moved in unexpected ways by its absurdity.
For humor, we’re accepting terrible pitches that would never sell and giggle-fit middle school book reports. More on humor subs →
publication basics:
We publish an online issue (flipbook style and downloadable PDF with no paywalls) four times a year. Submissions must be previously unpublished, original, and from the original creator. (Shared on your personal social media or personal blog is fine. We don’t consider this a publication.) We only accept work created by corporeal humans. We don’t consider AI-written work. For artwork, we ask that it not be previously published online or in a major print publication.
We cannot offer payment at this time, but general submissions are free.
Even though submissions are free, please only submit to one category per reading period. Multiple submissions will not be read.
If we have already published your work, please wait three issues before sending us more. If a piece was previously declined, please do not resubmit it unless encouraged to do so.
Currently, our reading windows are open for two months, and our response time is within three months. We only read for one issue at a time, and each editor reads every submission in their genre.
a note on poetry subs:
Poetry submissions tend to close early due to reaching our Submittable plan capacity. If you don't see an option to submit poetry, this means submissions are closed for the current reading period.
Basics
The inaugural Clark Closser Memorial Literature Award is offered in three categories: poetry, fiction, and nonfiction.
The contest is open through September. Finalists will be announced in October, and winners will be announced in November.
Past contributors to Magpie Zine are welcome to enter.
We only accept previously unpublished original work by the original creator. We only accept stories written by corporeal humans—no AI-generated work will be considered.
Simultaneous submissions are permitted.
First place: $100 minimum guarantee (final amount determined after submissions close) and publication in the special December awards issue of Magpie.
Second place: $50 minimum guarantee (final amount determined after submissions close) and publication in the special December awards issue of Magpie.
Finalists: Small honorarium (amount determined after submissions close) and publication in the special December awards issue of Magpie.
Categories
Poetry:
Submit up to three poems per submission. You may submit multiple times, but max three poems per entry. This year’s poetry judge is Todd Robinson.
Fiction & Nonfiction:
Submit one story per submission. You may submit multiple times, but only one story per entry. Max word count 4,000. This year’s prose judge is Teresa Carmody.
Mood
Like our contest’s namesake, we strongly favor work with depth and unique insight that explores the human condition. Send us your shiniest griefs, joys, and absurdities. (Bonus points for work that juxtaposes all three.) More on Clark Closser at MagpieZine.com
Judges
Todd Robinson is the author of two poetry collections, most recently Mass for Shut-Ins (University of Nebraska Press). His work has appeared in North American Review, Rattle, The Adroit Journal, and Spillway. He is an Associate Professor in the Writer's Workshop at the University of Nebraska-Omaha. More on Todd
Teresa Carmody (she/they) is a writer of fiction, creative nonfiction, inter-arts collaborations, and hybrid forms. Her books include A Healthy Interest in the Lives of Others (Autofocus, 2025), The Reconception of Marie (Spuyten Duyvil, 2020), Maison Femme: a fiction (Bon Aire, 2015), and Requiem, recently rereleased by punctum books. This fall, Boabab Press will release their novella, Today Must Be Sunday, as part of Agency 3. Carmody lives in Omaha and teaches in the Writer's Workshop and low-residency MFA in Creative Writing Program at the University of Nebraska Omaha. More on Teresa