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"Orca publishes short stories, flash fiction, and nonfiction. We are a literary journal and we believe in the literary style of writing. We are open to almost any topic, as long as it’s written in a literary style."

"Orca publishes short stories, flash fiction, and nonfiction. We are a literary journal and we believe in the literary style of writing. We are open to almost any topic, as long as it’s written in a literary style."

Vibe

Send us your best but less intimidating

Response Time

1 month / 24 days

Acceptance Rate

0%

  • Payment

    Yes: $25-$50

  • Fee

    Yes: $3

  • Simultaneous submissions

    Yes

  • Previously published

    No

  • Expedited response

    No

  • Available in print

    Yes

  • Provides contributor copies

    Yes: yes, one-year pdf subscription

  • Examples online

    Yes

  • Active on social media

    Yes

Accepted genres

4 genres

Fiction

Max words: 8000

Max pieces: 1

Flash Fiction

Max words: 1000

Max pieces: 3

Nonfiction

Max words: 8000

Max pieces: 1

Poetry

Max pieces: 3

with a total maximum word count of 1000

Fiction

Max words: 8000

Max pieces: 1

Flash Fiction

Max words: 1000

Max pieces: 3

Nonfiction

Max words: 8000

Max pieces: 1

Poetry

Max pieces: 3

with a total maximum word count of 1000

Statistics

We're able to provide them because you use our tracker!
You're the best!

Track submission

44

Total submissions tracked

24 days

Average response time

0%

Average acceptance rate

6 days

Fastest response time

45 days

Slowest response time

*Weird response times we excluded from calculations: 193 days, 582 days

How to submit

Process

We use Submittable.

Cover letters

This magazine does not list any details on their website for this section.

Eligibility

No specific eligibility requirements

Formatting

Times/Times Roman 12 point is preferred. A word count is appreciated.

Rights for published work

Upon acceptance, Orca requests first North American Serial Rights and First Digital Publication Rights. All rights revert to the author upon publication. We ask that if the work is reprinted in a collection or anthology that you indicate Orca, A Literary Journal as the original publisher in your acknowledgments.

Additional info

Pays! $50 for stories 2500 words or longer, $25 for stories under 2500 words, plus a one-year pdf subscription. Print copies are available at a discount to contributors. Available in print Orca offers 100 free submissions each month in addition to the $3 standard fee. Submit no more than once in each category at a time. Once you have received a response to a particular submission you may submit in that category again

About the Magazine

Founded in 2019 | United States

We are committed to diversity of identities, origins, and perspectives on our pages. Many of our contributors are from other countries and cultures. But the main criterion by which we judge submissions is the quality of the writing. We seek work that is high concept: imaginative, thoughtful, even speculative, and open to possibilities. We look for deep, diverse characters, and narratives that blend genres, or connect seemingly disparate ideas. We currently pay $50 for published short stories and $25 for work under 2500 words. We are also committed to the intentions of our contributors. Although we often work with writers to polish their stories, we also respect their original intent, and as much as possible retain the artist’s individual and local language, spelling, style, and vernacular. Our current publishing schedule: June, speculative issue; October, literary issue; February 2024, literary issue. Submissions will remain open year-round. Literary stories with a speculative aspect are sometimes included in the literary issues.

Masthead

We currently list only main editors, more will be added later! If you are an editor, you can edit your masthead in our admin panel :)

Joe Ponepinto

Publisher/Senior Editor

Zachary Kellian

Publisher/Senior Editor

Renee Jackson

Editor