George Mason University

Intersectional feminist mag publishing poetry, fiction, nonfiction & art

So to Speak seeks work by writers, poets, and artists who want to challenge and change the identity of the “canonical” writer.

 We believe in an intersectional feminist outlook that includes, advocates for, and amplifies the perspectives & experiences of marginalized individuals.

Our mission is to provide a digital and print platform to amplify the voices of BIPOC, people with disabilities, LGBTQ+ people, nonbinary people, women, neurodivergent people, people of all different religions or none, migrants, refugees & immigrants (regardless of citizenship), and incarcerated writers. 

Piece must engage with the lens of intersectional feminism in some way. The best way to understand if your piece is a fit for us is to read our latest issue, which you can find on our home page. We also have a full catalog of our online issues, which can be accessed for free. 

Digital publications chosen for Best of the Net. These journals demonstrate consistent excellence in identifying digital fiction that deserves wider recognition and readership.

Fiction Magazines Featured in Best of the Net Anthologies

Online publications putting forward exceptional short stories for Best of the Net.

Fiction Magazines That Nominate for Best of the Net

A targeted resource for short story placements with potential for Pushcart recognition.

Fiction Magazines That Nominate for the Pushcart Prize

Specialized publications that recognize exceptional brief fiction through Pushcart nominations.

Digital publications advancing very short fiction for Best of the Net consideration.

Flash Fiction Magazines That Nominate for Best of the Net

Digital publications with work selected for inclusion across genres. These journals consistently publish online work of exceptional quality that stands out in the digital literary landscape.

Lit Mags Featured in Best of the Net Anthologies

Publications with narratives under 1,000 words selected for this anthology series. These journals consistently identify short-short fiction, exemplifying the artistry possible in compact narratives.

Lit Mags Featured in Best Small Fictions Anthologies

Identifies publications that put forward outstanding online work for this respected digital anthology established in 2006.

Literary Magazines That Nominate for Best of the Net

A comprehensive guide to journals that regularly nominate work for the Pushcart Prize.

Literary Magazines That Nominate for the Pushcart Prize

These magazines have the fastest response times, so you won't be left hanging for months. No more endless waiting. Just, you know, regular waiting.

Literary Magazines with the Fastest Response Times

All-time most competitive literary magazines. Getting published in these is a significant achievement for any writer.

Most Competitive Literary Magazines of All Time

Explore the all-time most competitive speculative fiction literary magazines. These magazines are revered in the fiction world for their editorial rigor.

Most Competitive Speculative Fiction Magazines of All Time

Explore the most competitive speculative fiction literary magazines this year. These magazines are revered in the fiction world for their editorial rigor.

Most Competitive Speculative Fiction Magazines This Year

Explore the most popular literary magazines of all time. These long-established publications are a staple in the literary world for writers of all genres.

Most Popular Literary Magazines of All Time

Check out the all-time most popular speculative fiction literary magazines. These publications have a long-standing reputation for quality speculative fiction.

Most Popular Speculative Fiction Magazines of All Time

Digital publications chosen for Best of the Net. These journals consistently publish digital essays and memoirs that exemplify the best of what's possible in online creative nonfiction.

Nonfiction Magazines Featured in Best of the Net Anthologies

Digital publications nominating outstanding essays and creative nonfiction for Best of the Net.

Nonfiction Magazines That Nominate for Best of the Net

Highlights publications that regularly put forward essays, memoirs, and other creative nonfiction for Pushcart consideration.

Nonfiction Magazines That Nominate for the Pushcart Prize

Online journals that specifically champion poetry for Best of the Net consideration.

Poetry Magazines That Nominate for Best of the Net

Focuses specifically on poetry journals with established histories of Pushcart nominations.

Poetry Magazines That Nominate for the Pushcart Prize

Digital publications with poems chosen for Best of the Net. These journals consistently identify exceptional verse that represents the highest quality of poetry published online.

Poetry Mags Featured in Best of the Net Anthologies

So to Speak

Digital Issue (NONFICTION)

Digital Issue (FICTION)

(Prose Poetry, Any, Confessional Poetry, Hybrid, Translation, Political Poetry, Narrative Poetry, Micro Poetry, Lyric Poetry, Free Verse, Feminist Poetry, Experimental Poetry, Ekphrastic Poetry)

Digital Issue (POETRY)

Digital Issue (ART)

Digital Issue (FLASH FICTION)

Digital Issue (FLASH NONFICTION)

So to Speak is looking for art that is implicitly or explicitly intersectional. Artists of all backgrounds and experiences are encouraged to submit work of any visual medium that is not video/audio-based. We are excited to see everything from digital drawings and oil paintings to sculptural works and comics.
We strongly believe that artists do not have to have classical training to make great art. We love art that challenges us--politically, emotionally, spiritually--through a variety of traditional & experimental mediums. We love color, collage, and overtly political themes. Our favorite artists include Amy Sherald, Tschabalala Self, Sasha Gordon, Ana Mendieta, Jenna Gribbon, and Martha Rosler.
All contributors will receive a $100 prize.
Formal Guidelines
You may submit up to 5 pieces of art per submission period, whether in a single entry or multiple entries.
All submissions must be in jpg, png, or tif formats at 300 dpi. Please label each file as LastName_Title.
A Cover Letter that includes your name, address, phone number, email address, how you heard about So to Speak, and brief bio describing your background as a writer or artist and any applicable awards or publications.
A brief description of how you see your piece (implicitly or explicitly) fitting into our intersectional feminist mission.
We do not accept content generated or edited by AI. Please don't use AI for your cover letter or artist statement—we would rather hear your authentic voice and do not evaluate based on grammar.
Find more information on our Submission Guidelines here: https://www.sotospeakjournal.org/submissions Find more information on our Mission Statement here: https://www.sotospeakjournal.org/about

VISUAL ART Print Issue

To our staff, being an intersectional feminist is a commitment to lifelong learning; an open acknowledgment that systems, institutions, identities, and places do not operate the same for every person. We want to read poetry that aligns with this perspective, challenges our understanding of form and language, explores new landscapes, and speaks its own embodied truth.
We’re interested in poems that engage, challenge, and surprise us. Poems that tackle multiple intersections (of race, class, ability, sexuality, and/or gender identity) and commit fully to chosen images and structures. Right now, we’re particularly obsessed with poets Claudia Rankine, Layli Long-Soldier, Mary Szybist, Don Mee Choi, Louise Glück, Sylvia Plath, and Mary Oliver. All contributors will receive a $100 prize.
Formal Guidelines
In your submission, please upload and enter the following information:
A single doc., docx., or pdf. file with up to 5 poems. Your submission should not exceed 10 pages.
A Cover Letter that includes your name, address, phone number, email address, how you heard about So to Speak, and brief bio describing your background as a writer or artist and any applicable awards or publications.
A brief statement about intersectional feminism.
We do not accept content generated or edited by AI. In addition, please do not use AI for your cover letter.
You may only submit one poetry packet per submission window. You may submit to other genres in this submission window, as long as you pay the submission fee each time.
Find more information on our Submission Guidelines here: https://www.sotospeakjournal.org/submissions
Find more information on our Mission Statement here: https://www.sotospeakjournal.org/about

POETRY Print Issue

So to Speak is seeking nonfiction with an intersectional feminist lens. Get weird. Be reflective. Tell us the gray areas and the questions you are still trying to unfurl. For what we're looking for, look to the work of Haven Steel in our 2026 summer digital issue, Dani Putney in our summer 2025 digital issue, or Jade Green's "Mushroom Clouds" in our 2025 annual print issue. Outside of our journal, we deeply admire the work of prolific writers like Vivian Gornick, Melissa Febos, Ashley C. Ford, Carmen Maria Machado, and Maggie Nelson. These writers investigate themselves and the world around them in complex, nuanced ways.
Bex (Nonfiction Editor) is looking for personal essays with stakes, explorations of gender, and long-form nonfiction that converses with art, fact, and experience.
Gemmalee (Asst. Nonfiction Editor) is looking for narrative essays and experimental pieces with discovery/transformation of identity, and nonfiction that braids culture with personal experience.
To our staff, being an intersectional feminist is a commitment to lifelong learning—an intellectually open acknowledgment that systems, institutions, individual people, and places do not operate the same for every person. We want nonfiction that aligns with this perspective. While no content area is “off limits” for us, we ask that you submit work that seeks and speaks its own embodied truth.
We aim to be a space for voices occupying intersections that are not always heard. We deeply admire complex and sophisticated nonfiction that puts its subject under a tight lens. We appreciate the integration of research as a means of diving deep into the personal. All contributors will receive a $100 prize.
Formal Guidelines
In your submission, please upload and enter the following information:
A single doc., docx., or pdf. file with a single prose nonfiction piece that should not exceed 5,000 words, OR up to 3 micro/flash pieces not exceeding 1,000 words each. All submissions should be double-spaced with numbered pages.
A Cover Letter that includes your name, address, phone number, email address, how you heard about So to Speak, and brief bio describing your background as a writer or artist and any applicable awards or publications.
A brief statement about how you relate to our magazine’s mission of intersectional feminism.
We do not accept content generated or edited by AI. In addition, please do not use AI for your cover letter.
You may only submit one nonfiction piece/packet per submission window. You may submit to other genres in this submission window, as long as you pay the submission fee each time.
Find more information on our Submission Guidelines here: https://www.sotospeakjournal.org/submissions
Find more information on our Mission Statement here: https://www.sotospeakjournal.org/about

NONFICTION Print Issue

The fiction team is looking for short stories and flash fiction pieces that engage, challenge, and surprise us. We particularly love stories that tackle multiple intersections (of race, class, ability, sexuality, and/or gender identity) and allow us to hear points of view that often go unheard.
We’re inspired by many great intersectional feminist authors doing important work. We admire fiction by Toni Morrison, Carmen Maria Machado, Ottessa Moshfegh, J.M. Coetzee, and Julia Armfield.
In our time at So to Speak, the fiction team has seen many stories that reflect the perspective of white, cisgender, heterosexual women. While no content area is “off limits” for us, we ask that you submit work that contributes something new to the conversation. We prefer to read stories that come from an "Own Voices" perspective—in other words, stories that feature characters who explore intersections and perspectives the writer is familiar with. All contributors will receive a $100 prize.
Formal Guidelines
In your submission, please upload and enter the following information:
A single doc., docx., or pdf. file with one prose fiction piece not exceeding 5,000 words, OR up to 3 flash/micro pieces not exceeding 1,000 words each. All fiction submissions should be double-spaced with numbered pages.
A Cover Letter that includes your name, address, phone number, email address, how you heard about So to Speak, and brief bio describing your background as a writer or artist and any applicable awards or publications.
A brief statement about intersectional feminism.
We do not accept content generated or edited by AI. In addition, please do not use AI for your cover letter.
You may only submit one fiction piece/packet per submission window. You may submit to other genres in this submission window, as long as you pay the submission fee each time.
Find more information on our Submission Guidelines here: https://www.sotospeakjournal.org/submissions
Find more information on our Mission Statement here: https://www.sotospeakjournal.org/about

So to Speak

Highlights

About

Featured Call

VISUAL ART Print Issue

Appears in collections