11 New Magazines Who Love New Writers: Part Two (The Southern Mayo & Tomato Sandwich)
Sub Club List # 12
Here is another special list for newer writers who might take one look at the massive literary landscape and want to run for the hills. I’m here to remind you that no matter where you are in your writing journey, there is a lit mag out there, chilling, patiently waiting for your words.
In a recent poll of 600+ writers, we discovered that most writers submit to magazine for the lit cred, but the percentage of those who just think it's cool was not far behind. I think that can help take the pressure off.
We often forget that our writing is an art and that art can be made simply for the hell of it. Simply for our own enjoyment. Simply being we fucking want to. If we start any project with that mentality, I think it brings joy back into the work and makes everything seem less overwhelming.
The lit mags we are featuring this week, are new to the scene, just like you, having only been around since 2021 or later. Lots of new lit mags aren’t afraid to experiment and break the mold and want to make your submitting and writing experience fun and, hopefully, not so scary.
I said it before and I’ll say it again, don’t let the fear of being new at this stop you from writing and submitting.
Okay time to make a sandwich.
This week’s recipe was submitted by Sub Clubber, Taylor Greene!
Ingredients
2 slices of your preferred bread
1 – 2 of your favorite tomatoes
Duke’s Real Mayonnaise
Salt
Black pepper
Instructions
Take your bread slices and toast them however long you prefer, using your preferred method of toasting.
While your bread is toasting, slice your tomatoes as thin as you like. You need to make sure that you have enough tomato to evenly cover the entirety of the face of your slices of toast.
When the bread has been alchemized into toast, spread Duke’s Real Mayonnaise evenly across each slice, sprinkle the salt and black pepper to taste over the mayo, stack the slices of tomato, and close the sandwich.
Enjoy with a beverage of your choice.
A Note on the Ingredients
Of course, a person is entitled to their own likes and dislikes. If my mother was writing this, she would insist that the tomatoes should be homegrown, or at least heirlooms. And they would make a fantastic sandwich, but I’ve made great mayo and tomato sandwiches which the cheapest, wettest Walmart tomatoes that one could conceivably buy. Another might insist that a certain bread should always be used. A great sandwich starts with the bread, of course, but I’ve also had fantastic sandwiches with cheap white bread that costs less than $1 for a whole loaf.
However, you have to use Duke’s Mayonnaise. I’m sorry, there is simply no better mayo that could be used. You can try to convince me otherwise, and you will fail. Duke’s is simply the best, the richest, the right amount of tang, the gold standard of mayo that you can use on anything—especially if it is one of the two ingredients in your sandwich. Kraft is bad even if you try to get the olive oil based, Miracle Whip tastes like you milked an alligator tongue and left it in the sun for a week, Hellman’s is what your Midwestern soon-to-be-ex-girlfriend insists is better. If you use anything other than Duke’s, you’re doing yourself a disservice and making a worse sandwich.
Taylor Greene is archeologist living and working in Arkansas, which means he spends more time reading than you think, and is always on the lookout for a great pulled pork barbecue sandwich. View Chill Subs profile here
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Weekly Specials
11 Magazines that were founded within the last two years that love new writers.
Free The Verse
Free the Verse is a modern poetry magazine. We publish an issue every quarter and we're always open for submissions!
Genre: Poetry
Special Sauce: “Every quarter we announce the title of our forthcoming issue, which is essentially the theme of the issue. We love poems that interact with the theme in subtle and unexpected ways, rather than more straightforward interpretations. But it is a balancing act. Ultimately when it comes to deciding between the final contenders, we tend to select those that are more closely related to the theme over a brilliant poem that could have been written for any other issue.” - Zara
Catch Feels! Read:
Buttons — Naila Buckner
Hard Tomatoes — Paula Frew
wednesday in the allergy shot clinic — Molly Bolton
Chill Subs Breakdown: Founded in 2022. *They don't accept simultaneous submissions. No fee to submit. No payment for publication. They are active on socials. They don't have any Twitter presence as far as we've been able to find.
Beneath the Garden Magazine
Beneath the Garden is a literary magazine inspired by the books and films that we carry with us in our writings.
Genre: Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, art
Special Sauce: “My advice when submitting would be to explore beyond the surface level of what is being said. Don't tell/write to me you love someone or you're sad. Rather, explore what those emotions look like, sound like, smell like, feel like, etc. With our magazine, many people may think that in order for the submission to be related to film or literature you need to name drop the title of the work. No need to do that! We want to see how a specific film, book, quote, screen cap, etc. has impacted your emotional or mental state. We want to see how this piece of art carried out with you in your writing. Showcase it!” - Zaira “Bardos - Founder & Editor-In-Chief
“Don’t send us something just because it fits the theme. Of course adhering to our submission guidelines is important, but we want to see the passion behind it. We want to see writing that moves us as it moves you. We’re looking for pieces that push deeper than the surface and dig around in the dirt. Show us something we’ve never seen before.”- Katie Brackman - Co-Founder & Editor
Catch Feels! Read:
The Extra Bedroom by Zaira Bardos
The Girl Who Drank by the Sea by Katie Brackman
Chill Subs breakdown: Founded in 2023. Sim-subs are fine. No fee to submit. No payment for publication. (Responds within 5-7 days). They are very active on socials.
The Amazine
A space for joy, curiosity and the bitter-sweetness of life with a mission to keep wonder alive and kicking.
Genre: Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, art
Special Sauce: "Besides instantly making our hearts beat faster by sending us work that is in line with our mission, the best advice we can give is to make your own voice heard through your writing or art. Because style is important, sure, but being sincere is what will help you build your own in time. We want to hear what makes you human. So, always choose words that feel true to you, and if you feel like you can go further, deeper, definitely go for it.
Also, don't hesitate to resubmit with a different piece in a while (after being rejected or accepted) - we love to be part of your creative journey!" - Iva B
Catch Feels! Read:
Chill Subs Breakdown: Founded in 2022. Sim-subs are fine. No fee to submit. No payment for publication. (Responds within 21 days). They are active on socials. Accessible with a 50%+ acceptance rate. They don't have any Twitter presence as far as we've been able to find.
Astrolabe
A new literary magazine in the form of a dynamic universe. We’re interested in connecting and recombining the work we publish and letting the shape of their creations, however seeming-distant in genre or style or intent, tell larger stories together.
Genre: Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, art
Catch Feels! Read:
Chill Subs Breakdown: Founded in 2022. Sim-subs are fine. No fee to submit. Payment: 50 (Responds within 30 days). They nominate for Best Small Fictions, Best Microfiction, Best of the Net, and Pushcart. They are active on socials.
miniMAG
intense. short. weekly. literature/poetry/opinion/art/whatever magazine. Rolling submissions
Genre: Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, art
Special Sauce: "that thing that you could feel as you wrote it. send that thing to miniMAG." - Alex Prestia
Catch Feels! Read:
Chill Subs Breakdown: Founded in 2022. Sim-subs are fine. No fee to submit. No payment for publication. (Responds within 7 days). They are active on socials. Accessible with a 50%+ acceptance rate.
Honorable Mentions
Meditating Cat Zine
A mini online zine run and edited by a tabby cat named Curios, open to all cat-lovers. We produce issues quarterly, featuring art and literature from around the world.
Founded in 2021. Sim-subs are fine. No fee to submit. No payment for publication. (Responds within 30 days). We've noticed they're good about promoting their writers. They are active on socials. They don't have any Twitter presence as far as we've been able to find.
The Purposeful Mayonnaise
TPM aims to provide artists and writers with a home for their work, a space to connect, and opportunities to increase their visibility. TPM is an independent publishing project that features the creative work of artists and writers internationally.
Founded in 2021. Sim-subs are fine. No fee to submit. No payment for publication. (Responds within 14 days). They are active on socials. They have a print run. They don't have any Twitter presence as far as we've been able to find.
Abandon Journal
We publish anything that has been written with abandon (whatever that means to you). No submission fees, ever (though we do accept tips!), and we are a paying market.
Founded in 2021. *They don't accept simultaneous submissions. No fee to submit. Payment: $15/piece (Responds within 90 days). They are popular and have been bookmarked over 200 times on Chill Subs. Very competitive with a <2% acceptance rate.
Sheet Lit
A space for structurally-excluded creatives/artists/writers from South Asian backgrounds to co-create artsy discourse on social + climate justice. A D&I Collective (non-profit) imprint. Sheet is pronounced she-th -ish & translates to 'rice' from Konkani.
Founded in 2022. Sim-subs are fine. No fee to submit. Payment: 4-7 USD (Responds within 10 days). They are active on socials. They have a print run. Accessible with a 50%+ acceptance rate. They give free contributor copies to everyone they publish. They don't have any Twitter presence as far as we've been able to find.
Five Fleas
Open submissions. Send 1-10 of your itchiest poems (of 1-10 lines each). Avoid attachments if possible. Email to: fivefleasitchypoetry(at)gmail(dot)com. Fleas the day! Roberta Beach Jacobson, Fleakeeper
Founded in 2022. Sim-subs are fine. No fee to submit. No payment for publication. They don't appear to have any social media presence.
The Downtime Review
A new, bi-annual lit mag dedicated to platforming the creative work of folks with a day-job. We’re most interested in work that means something to its author, the kind of work that affirms your own love of writing through its reading. We want to read what matters to you
Sim-subs are fine. No fee to submit. No payment for publication. They don't have any Twitter presence as far as we've been able to find.
Supporter+ Members Events this week
August 1st from 1:00 -2:00 PM EST - Hit Sub Party
Get your writing and submitting done with us this week during these accountability sessions! Supporter+ Members will receive a Google invitation the day before each event
I watched Top Gun: Maverick last summer, I kept yelling, “Don’t think, just do!” to my husband at random, annoying times to make myself laugh. But I may have found a reason to yell it right now.
Don’t overthink it, writers! Or, as we at Chill Subs like to constantly say, FUCK IT, SUBMIT.
Love this list! Found a few of my favorites on here (: