Debut Fiction Issue - Submit by Nov 6! [Spring 2025]
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Aster(ix) journal is open for submissions for a special DEBUT FICTION ISSUE (intended publication Spring 2025) guest edited by Cleyvis Natera, author of Neruda on The Park (Ballantine Books, 2023).
The DEBUT FICTION ISSUE will feature 1) short stories by writers who have not yet published in-genre in a literary journal and, 2) self-contained novel chapters of an unpublished debut novel (excerpts of forthcoming debut novels under contract will be considered). For both categories, we favor submissions under 6000 words. For this special issue, we are pleased to share that we can pay $100-250 per piece based on length.
Before submitting your work, please note that Aster(ix) is a transnational feminist literary arts journal committed to social justice and translation, placing people of color at the center of the conversation.
Submission Guidelines:
- Submissions are only accepted via Submittable.
- All submissions must be in English and must be previously unpublished.
- Translations are welcome and should be accompanied by a copy of the original as well as permission of the original author.
- Simultaneous submissions are allowed, as long as we are notified immediately if the manuscript is accepted for publication elsewhere.
- Please submit in either .doc or .docx format.
- Please include your name and email address in the document of your submission.
- We do not need a cover letter, but the form will ask for a short bio.
- We never charge a reading fee for general submissions.
- Please send only one submission per author for this call (i.e. a short story or a standalone novel chapter). If multiple submissions are sent, none will be reviewed. Focus on one piece and send us whatever you think is your best!
About Our Review Process:
We read every submission, and because we receive so many submissions per year, response times will vary according to the volume of submissions. We are a mostly volunteer team. We aim to respond to all submissions within six months of receipt. Thank you in advance for your patience.
If a piece is accepted, editors will work closely with authors. We very rarely publish submitted pieces as-is, so if the idea of working and building your writing practice excites you, then you're in the right place!
Authors will receive a contract upon acceptance and payment (if applicable) upon publication. If the work is published in a print issue, authors will receive a complimentary print copy. Authors retain copyright to their work. Thank you for sharing your work with us!
What is Aster(ix) looking for?
At Aster(ix), we're looking for the intimate, the honest, and the beautiful. To get a sense of what we're looking for, here are examples of previous debut fiction pieces published in Aster(ix):
- A short story, "Today I Will Bake a Cake" by Layhannara Tep, published in our 2021 Fiction Issue
- A chapter excerpt from the debut novel of our very own guest editor, Cleyvis Natera, that we published in 2019!
We are also currently considering unsolicited interviews and unsolicited book reviews of debut books to be featured online. See that call here.
DEADLINE FOR THIS CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS: November 6, 2024 at 11:59pm PST
About Aster(ix)
Aster(ix) is a transnational feminist literary arts journal committed to social justice and translation, placing people of color at the center of the conversation. Founded in 2013 by novelist Angie Cruz and nonfiction writer Adriana E. Ramírez, the journal loves to feature the intimate, the honest, and the beautiful.
Aster(ix) is a play on asterisk, star, splat, a wildcard. It’s the censored and omitted. It’s footnotes and to be continued. (ix) honors Mayan heart-knowing, the alignment with divine will, the torch bearer. We cast lines between the future and the past, the possible and the impossible.
We encourage you to follow our Instagram @asterixjournal here and sign-up for our newsletter here to stay-in-touch with Aster(ix) and future calls. Read the journal online for free or order in-print at www.asterixjournal.com