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MAYDAY

Literary Magazine

Fiction

Flash Fiction

Nonfiction

Poetry

Review

Interview

Translation

Art

182
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MAYDAY presents new poetry, fiction, nonfiction, translations, cultural commentary, and visual art to an international community of readers. We publish artists that explore culture and history; politics regional and global; the past, present, and future.

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Highlights

  • Vibe:Send us your best but less intimidating
  • Response time:
    2 months*
    Editor reported data
     / 
    68 days*
    Chill Subs tracker stats
  • Acceptance rate:
    14% *
    Editor reported data
     / 
    5%*
    Chill Subs tracker stats

Payssee Genres section for details

Find more details in the Genres section

Fee$3

Find more details in the Genres section

  • Accepts simultaneous submissions

    What's that?

    When you can submit your work to multiple magazines at the same time

  • Accepts previously published

    What's that?

    When the magazine wants to publish your previously published work. Requirements vary

  • Nominates for prizes

  • Active on social media

  • Available in print

  • Provides contributor copies

  • Has examples online

  • Offers expedited response

    What's that?

    Expedited submission: When the magazine offers a faster response time for an extra fee

Fiction - 3000 words max

Max words: 1000

Max words: 3000

Max pieces: 1

Sub Genres: Literary

Submission fee: $ 3

Payment: $ 20

Please only send one full-length submission at a time or up to three flash fiction/short-short submissions, under 1,000 words each. We are interested in original and engaging literary short fiction. We love innovative, strong writing that trusts the reader and is true to its author regardless of genre.

Fiction - 1000 words max

Max words: 100

Max words: 1000

Max pieces: 3

Sub Genres: Literary

Submission fee: $ 3

Payment: $ 20

Nonfiction - 5000 words max

Max words: 5000

Payment: $ 20

We seek personal, critical, and hybrid essays that move, engage, and transport us and our readers. We are sure to respond to many things, but a strong authorial voice, a clear thought or experiential arc grounded in a sense of place, and some connection with a writer’s risk in approaching their story are often most resonant. And while we are open to work of all lengths, we prefer submissions of 5,000 words or less.

Poetry

Max pieces: 3

Submission fee: $ 3

Payment: $ 10

10 pages max

Review

Max words: 1000

Max words: 1500

Payment: $ 20

We publish reviews (typically 1,000-1,500 words) of books either forthcoming or published in the last six months, preferably from small presses. MAYDAY reviews place a book within a tradition, use it to form another self-contained argument, or address the defining qualities of the book—its form, voice, and themes. We want reviews to answer: What questions is the book asking? What is it reflecting? Reviewers should have an argument that draws on specific moments and quotes text.

Interview

Max words: 1000

Max words: 1500

Payment: $ 20

We’re interested in interviews with contemporary artists, writers, critics, and other notable cultural figures.

Translation

Submission fee: $ 3

Payment: $10-20

Poetry and prose from any language translated to English will be considered. Please include a brief translator’s note if you would like to provide context, artist bio, or other information important to the submitted piece. The translator must have secured rights for the translations submitted, or the work must be in the public domain. Please include both the original and the translated text in Word files. If the source text contains characters difficult for Word to present correctly, a PDF scan is fine.

Art

Max pieces: 5

Payment: $ 10

Please submit no more than five high-resolution JPEG files that include the title in the file name, along with a brief cover letter describing your work’s intention and a 150-word max, third-person bio.

How to submit

  • Processs

    Submittable

  • Cover letter

    In lieu of a cover letter, include a bio of up to 100 words in the appropriate field, as well as any social media handles where indicated in the Submittable form.

  • Eligibility

    No specific eligibility requirements

  • Formatting

    For prose: Your submission should be double-spaced and in standard font and style. We prefer .doc files, but .docx, .rtf, and Open Office files are okay, too.

  • Author's rights

    Rights revert to author upon publication. Please credit MAYDAY with first publication if the work is republished elsewhere.

  • Additional info

    Open year round Payment for work published at MAYDAY is according to the following flat rates: Book Reviews and Interviews: $20 Creative Nonfiction: $20 Culture: $20 Fiction: $20 (traditional stories), $10 (flash fiction) MAYDAY:Black: $50 Poetry: $10 Translation: $20 (stories), $10 (poems) Visual Art: $10

Tracker statistics

37

Total submissions tracked

68 days

Average response time

5%

Average acceptance rate

1 days

Fastest response time

168 days

Slowest response time

Сhill Subs is able to provide internal statistics because you use our tracker! You're the best!

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Submission calls

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    Always open

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About

First published by New American Press in 2009 and relaunched with an expanded editorial staff in 2020, MAYDAY presents new poetry, fiction, nonfiction, translations, cultural commentary, and visual art to an international community of readers. MAYDAY takes its name from the international distress c...

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Founded

2009

Country

US

maydaymagazine.com

Masthead

    Editor  avatar

    Editor-in-Chief

    Editor David Bowen avatar

    David Bowen

    Executive Director

    Editor Chase Erwin avatar

    Chase Erwin

    Managing Editor

    Editor Emma Daley avatar

    Emma Daley

    Assistant Managing Editor

    Editor Nathan Winer avatar

    Nathan Winer

    Assistant Managing Editor