As the editors of the farthest north literary magazine, we’ve chosen an unconventional, expansive place to live. That, too, is what we seek in your submissions. Give us the stuff you tucked away in the folder you hesitate to open on the weekdays—the pieces you scour and revise during weekend binges.

Located at 64° 50′ N, 198 miles from the Arctic Circle, Permafrost Magazine is the farthest north literary journal for writing and the arts.

We’re proud of Permafrost’s forty years as interior Alaska’s foremost literary magazine.
Founded in 1977, Permafrost is housed at the University of Alaska Fairbanks MFA program, and run by dedicated creative writing graduate students. We publish a winter online issue as well as a spring print issue, both of which feature compelling poetry, fiction, and literary nonfiction by established writers and new voices alike.

In Alaska, our unique environment shapes our perspective, but Permafrost seeks original voices from all over the world.

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Permafrost Magazine

Submissions should be approximately 150-300 double-spaced pages (45,000 - 90,000 words). Please note that these numbers are intended as a guide, and not a mandate. We are more interested in the quality of the work than adherence to a page or word count. 

Permafrost Book Prize

General call

Permafrost is now accepting submissions for the 2025 Permafrost Book Prize in Nonfiction.  The final judge will be award winning author Alison Hawthorne Deming. Permafrost editorial staff as well as select outside readers serve as the preliminary judges. Winner receives publication of their full-length manuscript and $1000. The submission period opens on April 21, 2025, and closes on October 1 at midnight, Alaska Standard Time. We plan to announce the finalists by January, and the winner by March.
Guidelines:

  Submissions should be approximately 150-300 double-spaced pages (45,000 - 90,000 words). Please note that these numbers are intended as a guide, and not a mandate. We are more interested in the quality of the work than adherence to a page or word count.
  The reading fee is $25.
  All nonfiction sub-genres and forms are eligible, including essay collections, memoirs, literary journalism, and other book length works.
  The manuscript must be previously unpublished as a whole. However, individual pieces may have been published in journals, magazines, or anthologies. It is fine to include acknowledgements of such previously published work.
  We only accept original manuscripts; AI-generated or AI-supported works are not accepted.
  Please do not include your name anywhere on the actual manuscript.
  Please include a brief bio in the “cover letter” section of Submittable.
  Simultaneous submissions are fine and encouraged. Please let us know immediately if the manuscript is accepted elsewhere
  Current and former University of Alaska Fairbanks and University of Alaska Press employees, current and former UAF students, and anyone who has served as an editor or reader for Permafrost whether for journal submissions or the book prize may not submit to the contest. Previous winners of the prize are also ineligible.

Permafrost Book Prize in Nonfiction

We look for stories that reveal some understanding of the world we are living in, even if the work is speculative, and with a vibrant sense of place and character.
Fiction submissions may include one piece of up to 8,000 words or up to three flash pieces (less than 1,000 words each) in each submission.
We welcome novel excerpts (also up to 8,000 words), so long as they stand alone.
Submissions will be eligible for the fall online issue or the spring print issue. Please note in submission if you have a preferred publication medium.

Fiction

We’re looking for fresh language and imagery, both with an element of risk. We like both experimental and conventional poetry, including traditional forms.
Poetry does not need to be double-spaced; please submit it as you would like it to appear.
Please only submit up to five poems at a time.
Submissions will be eligible for the fall online issue or the spring print issue. Please note in submission if you have a preferred publication medium.

Poetry

We seek essays by writers who are willing to wrestle with language and experiment with form. We have a soft spot for place-based writing, flash and micro memoirs, prose poems, hermit crab essays, or anything that pushes the limits of the fourth genre.
Nonfiction submissions may include one piece of up to 8,000 words or up to three flash or micro pieces (up to roughly 1,000 words each) in each submission.
Excerpts (also up to 8,000 words) from book-length works are welcome, so long as they stand alone.
Nonfiction work does not need to be double-spaced; please submit it as you would like it to appear.
Submissions will be eligible for the fall online issue or the spring print issue. Please note in submission if you have a preferred publication medium.

Nonfiction

We like work that uses hybridity to rethink language and genre. Stories in verse, speculative nonfiction, graphic essays, excerpts from your comic book or graphic novel, sound play, and any other experimental or multimodal texts are welcome.
Hybrid submissions may be up to 8,000 words.
Please ensure you have the necessary copyrights if you use audio and/or visuals. Hybrid work does not need to be double-spaced; please submit it as you would like it to appear.
Submissions will be eligible for the fall online issue or the spring print issue. Please note in submission if you have a preferred publication medium.

Permafrost Magazine

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