Logo of The Massachusetts Review literary magazine
"In these uncertain times, the Massachusetts Review promotes social justice and equality, along with great art. "
Introduction
Vibe

Top-tier stuff. Not Paris Review, but ok

Response Time
2-6 months / 97 days
Average acceptance rate
6.25%

Need to know for submitting

Read carefully, it will save from dead rats in the mailbox

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      Simultaneous submissions

      Yes

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      Previously published

      No

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      Payment

      $100

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      Fee

      $3

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      Expedited response

      No

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      Available in print

      Yes

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      Provide contributor copies

      yes

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      Examples online

      No

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      Active on social media

      Yes

  • 01

    Important stuff

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  • 02

    How to submit 🏗️

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  • 03

    Cover Letter and Bio 🏗️

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  • 04

    Awards

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  • 05

    Demographics & Eligibility

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  • 06

    Formatting requirements 🏗️

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  • 07

    Rights for published work 🏗️

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Types of Submissions Accepted

6 genres

A general comment from the editor [coming soon]

nonfiction genre icon

Nonfiction

Articles and essays of breadth and depth are considered, as well as discussions of leading writers; of art, music, and drama; analyses of trends in literature, science, philosophy, and public affairs. Please include your name and contact information on the first page. We encourage page numbers.

fiction genre icon

Fiction

Max words: 7500

Please include your name and contact information on the first page, and we encourage page numbers.

poetry genre icon

Poetry

Max lines: 100

Max pieces: 6

Please include your name and contact on every page

hybrid genre icon

Hybrid

Max pieces: 1

A hybrid submission may cross genres with fiction, nonfiction, poetry, or art. We consider one such text per submission, with a maximum of 30 pages. Please include your contact information on the first page; we encourage page numbers.

translations genre icon

Translations

Fiction, poems, or essays are accepted. The above guidelines for essays, fiction, and poetry should be followed, and a copy of the translated text should be submitted along with the translation. The translator is responsible for acquiring permission to publish.

review genre icon

Review

General Guidelines The Massachusetts Review 2021 - 2022 Submissions Period is now closed. We will accept new submissions starting October 1, 2022. If you have submitted to us online, please check that your spam filters do not block our email. You can add massrev@external.umass.edu to your "approved senders" list. What kinds of writing are you looking for? We seek a balance between established writers and promising new ones. We're interested in material of variety and vitality relevant to the intellectual and aesthetic questions of our time. We aspire to have a broad appeal; our commitment, in part regional, is not provincial. "Inspired pages are not written to fill space, but for inevitable utterance; and to such our Journal is freely and solicitously open." —Ralph Waldo Emerson N.B. Submissions from authors who are Black, Indigenous, or People of Color will be accepted year-round; however, outside our regular reading period, when the online submission manager is shut down, all submissions from BIPOC writers should be sent by regular mail or emailed to massrev@external.umass.edu. Nonfiction: Articles and essays of breadth and depth are considered, as well as discussions of leading writers; of art, music, and drama; analyses of trends in literature, science, philosophy, and public affairs. Please include your name and contact information on the first page. We encourage page numbers. Fiction: We consider one short story per submission, a maximum of 30 pages or 7500 words. Please include your name and contact information on the first page, and we encourage page numbers. Poetry: A poetry submission may consist of up to 6 poems. There are no restrictions for length, but generally our poems are less than 100 lines. Please include your name and contact on every page. Hybrid: A hybrid submission may cross genres with fiction, nonfiction, poetry, or art. We consider one such text per submission, with a maximum of 30 pages. Please include your contact information on the first page; we encourage page numbers. Translation: Fiction, poems, or essays are accepted. The above guidelines for essays, fiction, and poetry should be followed, and a copy of the translated text should be submitted along with the translation. The translator is responsible for acquiring permission to publish. N.B. Translation submissions will be accepted year-round; however, outside our regular reading period, when the online submission manager is shut down, all translation submissions should be sent by regular mail or emailed to massreview@external.umass.edu. Also please note: Essays, fiction, hybrid, poetry, and translation manuscripts should be submitted separately. No mixed submissions please. Are there any genres or topics that you do not consider? We publish book reviews online, but not in the print magazine.

nonfiction genre icon

Nonfiction

Articles and essays of breadth and depth are considered, as well as discussions of leading writers; of art, music, and drama; analyses of trends in literature, science, philosophy, and public affairs. Please include your name and contact information on the first page. We encourage page numbers.

fiction genre icon

Fiction

Max words: 7500

Please include your name and contact information on the first page, and we encourage page numbers.

poetry genre icon

Poetry

Max lines: 100

Max pieces: 6

Please include your name and contact on every page

hybrid genre icon

Hybrid

Max pieces: 1

A hybrid submission may cross genres with fiction, nonfiction, poetry, or art. We consider one such text per submission, with a maximum of 30 pages. Please include your contact information on the first page; we encourage page numbers.

Magazine

Founded in 1959 | United States

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 :)

Jules Chametzky
Editor-in-Chief
Chill Stats (note: this is not exactly accurate...)

Total tracked

25

Average acceptance rate

6.25%

Average response time

97 days

Average acceptance/rejection time

158/93 days

Fastest response time

0 days

Slowest response time

191 days

Weird response times we excluded from calculations: 825 days