Submitting poetry and flash can be tricky. Most (but not all) journals will consider multiple pieces in a single submission. Some journals allow you to send two flash, others three. Some will read three poems (but no more than ten pages), or five one-page poems, or only poems with fewer than ten lines. Occasionally, there are no limits at all. This can send writers (I’ll be honest, I’ve been there) into a tailspin. Should I put my strongest piece first to catch the editor’s

Submitit has recently made some changes. Here’s the big one: WE NOW OFFER POETRY SUBMISSIONS!!! (We're going to send an email blast about this soon.) But you’ll also notice a few other changes at your new Client Portal. Refresh Your Screen (Probably) If you're an existing client, after you click the link above, your browser may try to connect with our old system. To be safe, plan to do a hard refresh to clear your cache. Just click the following keys (all at once), depending

As I’ve discussed in past posts, I’m selective with the literary journals I add to Submitit’s database. I always ask myself the following questions: Is the journal’s website (layout and copy) of relatively high quality? Is there a masthead, preferably with multiple editors, and are the editors experienced and accomplished (as editors, writers, or (ideally) both)? Are the submission guidelines sensible and clear? (Some new journals, with inexperienced editors, have unusual gu

First of all, if this is your first time exploring my style essays, please check out the Introduction . As usual, most of my examples are from my “textbook”: The Penguin Book of the Modern Short Story , ed. John Freeman (Penguin Press, 2021). I recommend—I dare say, insist—that writers get ahold of this book. It is an excellent source of spectacular writing, truly the best short story writers of the past fifty or so years. (I also recommend this book to writers of creative no

Introduction Professional editing can often be exactly what you need to take your manuscript to the next level. To humblebrag for a minute, Submitit clients have described my edits as “amazing,” “brilliant guidance,” and “like I just took a master class in writing!” But hiring an editor can also be intimidating, overwhelming, and downright confusing. How do you know if your manuscript needs editing? And what type of editing does it need? An internet search will quickly pull

When we send you a list of journals, you’ll notice several labels for each one: “Match” (match percent), “Year” (inception year),...

If you’re like me, you sometimes have absolutely no trouble coming up with a perfect title. It just falls onto the page, as if through divine or muse-like inspiration. But other times the gods and muses are silent. You have the dreaded place-holding “[Title]” or “[Story]” or “[today’s date]” written at the top of the page. And nothing falls from the sky, not even bird poop. I’m not sure I have all the answers (my disclaimer), but I hope that by exploring different kinds of

Details, quite simply, are one of the most important parts of literary writing. The way writers use details—what they choose to present...

We all do something like this: Submit a story to a wonderful journal. Try not to think about it (we know it’ll be a while). But then we...

In the last two style essays, I covered relatively short, simple sentences ( §1.1 ) and their longer counterparts ( §1.2 ). Now I’m going...

It’s hard to imagine that Submitit has been going strong now for over four years. Near the end of 2021 (around a year in) I wrote a post...

When we return, via email, a story or essay, we will include several important steps—from saving the file, to dealing with our tracked...

Ever since Submitit started handling creative nonfiction a few years ago, I’ve acquired the uncomfortable notion that many writers of...

My Editing Philosophy Like all good editors, I’m concerned with those elemental, essential aspects of writing, including plot,...

Submitit has recently (July 11, 2024) introduced a huge update: an (almost) magical platform. While in the past, Erik and Christine used...

For an introduction to these essays on style, click here .) In my last style post (section 1), I got into the art of writing short,...

The above is from Jon Fosse's brilliant Septology . My corrections are ironic. First of all, I’d like to forewarn the reader. The...

As some of you may recall, a few weeks ago I received an email from a certain Erik Harper Klass, which email contained a...

A few days ago I received the following review of my novella . The review was sent anonymously—or, I should say, homonymously—to my...

A good first step in developing style is to focus on the structures and combinations of sentences. All the great writers seem to...