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Please read our full submission guidelines, here, before submitting.
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What we publish in Hippocampus Magazine
During our submission periods –March 1 through May 31 AND Oct. 15 through Jan. 15 – we accept the following:
- Personal Essays & Memoir Excerpts, max 4,000 words.
- Flash Creative Nonfiction, max 800 words.
Reviews, interviews, craft articles, and writing life articles by invitation.
What are we looking for in submissions?
True tales from your life. Honesty that possesses both the situation AND the story. Intensely personal experiences that reflect universal truths about what it means to be human. Firsthand accounts from the full spectrum of humanity – folx from the LGBTQIA+ community, Black writers, Indigenous writers, and writers of Color, disabled writers, writers of all genders, backgrounds, experiences, lifestyles, and identities.
What we publish elsewhere:
- Memoirs, Essay Collections, Craft Books: View our Books by Hippocampus manuscript submission guidelines.
- Anthologies: Open anthology calls are also listed at our Books by Hippocampus submissions page.
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Dates & Deadlines
- We're open for magazine submissions twice per year: March 1 through May 31 AND Oct. 15 through Jan. 15. (Please note the change in dates for our fall 2022 reading period; we've pushed back our start date in order to reorganize our reading teams and get caught up. We'll still be open for three months, extending into January of 2023.)
- We're on hiatus from for book queries through Aug. 1, 2023.
Reminder
Please read our full submission guidelines, here, before submitting.
Hello, creative nonfiction friend! Below, you will find our abbreviated essay submission guidelines; Please read full guidelines on our website first if you have not done so already. Otherwise, please fill out the brief form, including checking off if your piece is an essay or memoir excerpt.
Essay submissions should be:
- No more than 4,000 words
- Double-spaced, with pages numbered
- Free of your name in header/footer, title page, and file name. (We do realize that in creative nonfiction, your name might be necessary within the content. Please use your judgment.)
Hello, creative nonfiction friend! Below, you will find our abbreviated essay submission guidelines; Please read full guidelines on our website first if you have not done so already.
Flash CNF submissions should be:
- No more than 800 words
- Double-spaced, with pages numbered
- Free of your name in header/footer, title page and file name. (We do realize that in creative nonfiction, your name might be necessary within the content. Please use your judgment.)
Submitters: Please include your original title (in case you changed that) and date of your first submission in your cover letter; this will help us keep track of its progress.
Note: Submitting a revision does not guarantee acceptance; it is vetted just the same.
If you use this category and were not invited to re-submit, your submission will be declined.