Submissions

*We are closed to new submission indefinitely *

We’re looking for solid writing. Chip-your-teeth-on-it writing. Punched-in-the-throat writing. Don’t-care-if-it’s-funny-or-sad-or-sarcastic-so-long-as-it-makes-us-react writing. We publish what we like. It’s as simple as that. For more information about our aesthetic and history, check out editor Kerri Farrell Foley’s Interview with “Six Questions.”

All submissions must be received via our Submittable online portal. Review the category guidelines carefully. We currently have several publication opportunities. Please review the following categories to determine where your work fits in with Crack the Spine. We currently do not offer payment to contributors. If you are sending multiple pieces, please send them as a single submission.

CRACK THE SPINE DIGITAL LITERARY MAGAZINE
This is where it all began with Crack the Spine. We publish a new digital literary magazine every two weeks filled with brilliant short stories, poetry, essays, flash fiction, microfiction, and art. We accept submissions on a rolling basis throughout the year. If you are published in one of our digital issues, you are automatically eligible to be accepted for one of our “Best Of” Anthologies, which we publish twice each year. These print anthologies compile the best submissions from our ongoing digital issues into a stunning print edition.

THE YEAR ANTHOLOGY
A good literary anthology should provide not only entertainment, but also a snapshot of the culture from which the anthology originates. With this goal in mind, we are pleased to announce a new project at Crack the Spine:”The Year” Anthology. Our mission with this year-in-review style anthology is to capture a snapshot of our culture in an ever-changing landscape. With so much rapid alteration, rabid division, and creative diversity enveloping us daily, we often find ourselves pausing merely to wonder “how did we get here?” This anthology seeks to fill in that gap by providing a record of our world, as it changes. We are accepting submissions throughout the year for this anthology. We will be open for submissions from the 1st of each month, through the 15th. The completed anthology will be published and available in early 2020. Short stories, poetry, flash fiction, micro fiction, and creative non-fiction are accepted. Learn more about “The Year” anthology.

THEMED ANTHOLOGY
We publish one “themed” anthology per year. This category is currently closed to submissions. Check back soon for our 2020 theme announcement and opening for submissions.

SUBMIT YOUR WORK TO CRACK THE SPINE