Witness seeks original fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and photography that is innovative in its approach, broad-ranging in its concerns, and unapologetic in its perspective. The magazine blends the features of a literary and an issue-oriented magazine to highlight the role of the modern writer as witness to their times.

Our mission is to amplify extraordinary voices, feature writers from every part of the globe, and highlight pieces that speak to the present moment in an enduring and distinctive way. 

The magazine seeks to open up conversations surrounding oppression and transcendence, prejudice and compassion, fear and raw honesty. 

The editorial team is also proud to feature the work of emerging voices alongside that of established writers.

Publications with stories in this respected annual flash fiction showcase. Perhaps the most prestigious flash-specific recognition.

Lit Mags in Wigleaf's Top 50

The mags in this list are competitive and publish physical print editions, so you get the satisfaction of seeing your work in print: pocket-sized, book-like, tangible. Way cooler than you'd expect.

Reputable Lit Mags with Print Issues

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

Story-focused publications with works chosen for Pushcart Prize anthologies. Less than 5% of nominated fiction typically makes the anthology.

Fiction Magazines Featured in Pushcart Prize 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

Publications with stories in America's most visible short fiction. These journals consistently publish fiction that represents the highest levels of contemporary American short storytelling.

Lit Mags Featured in Best American Short Story Anthologies

Publications with ultra-short stories under 400 words selected for this anthology series. The definitive collection for the microfiction form.

Lit Mags Featured in Best Microfiction Anthologies

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

Publications with stories selected for America's oldest prestigious short fiction award, established in 1919. Editorial committee selections only.

Lit Mags Featured in O'Henry Award Anthologies

Publications with pieces chosen for Pushcart Prize anthologies. Recognition of exceptional quality across poetry, fiction, and nonfiction.

Lit Mags Featured in Pushcart Prize Anthologies

Looking for balance between prestige and accessibility? These magazines are competitive but attainable for poetry, fiction, and nonfiction writers.

Literary Magazines in the Sweet Spot

Journals that forward outstanding nonfiction to this respected anthology series founded in 1986. These publications identify exceptional essays that might reach the broader readership BAE provides.

Literary Magazines That Nominate for Best American Essays

Best Microfiction, edited by Meg Pokrass and Gary Fincke, celebrates the art of the extremely brief narrative. These publications have editorial teams with particular sensitivity to the craft.

Literary Magazines That Nominate for Best Microfiction

A curated selection of publications that regularly submit work to this prestigious annual anthology showcasing 50 poems from emerging writers.

Literary Magazines That Nominate for Best New Poets

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

Publications that nominate work for this respected anthology series founded in 2015 by Tara Masih to celebrate fiction under 1,000 words.

Literary Magazines That Nominate for Best Small Fictions

Essential publications that nominate short fiction for the O'Henry Prize anthology, one of America's most venerable literary awards. Established in 1919.

Literary Magazines That Nominate for the O'Henry Prize

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

Literary Magazines That Nominate for the Pushcart Prize

BASS represents the most mainstream recognition for short fiction in America. These journals serve as the initial screening layer for potential inclusion in this widely-read collection.

Literary Mags That Nominate for Best American Short Stories

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 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

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

Essay-focused publications with works selected for Pushcart Prize anthologies. These journals have repeatedly identified nonfiction that resonates with Pushcart editors and readers.

Nonfiction Magazines Featured in Pushcart Prize 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

Verse-centered publications with poems chosen for Pushcart Prize anthologies. These journals have consistently identified poems that stand out in this intensely competitive field.

Poetry Magazines Featured in Pushcart Prize Anthologies

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

Witness

Occasional special issues published during summer or winter.

Special Capsule Issues

Witness Literary Awards

Our mission at Witness is to amplify extraordinary voices, feature writers from every part of the globe, and highlight pieces that speak to the present moment in an enduring and distinctive way. We are currently reading for the Spring 2026 print issue. The theme of this issue is: DOUBLE/TWIN. What do you see in a mirror? What is reflected back? What kinds of twins—elemental, emotional—appear in the world around us? We invite you to interpret our theme “Double/Twin” imaginatively, beyond the looking glass, across winding roads that double back yet lead to somewhere new. As always, we seek work that complicates and confounds us, work that makes us see and feel seen; words that bear witness through strange and unexpected lenses. 
We encourage you to check out our past issues online or purchase a copy to become familiar with the magazine. Submissions will be open until 10/1, or until we reach capacity.
 
      We look forward to reading your work!
 
 Submission Guidelines:
 

  Previously accepted or published work is not eligible.
  Please limit your submission to five poems, and wait to hear back from us before submitting again. Poems should be sent in a single document file, with the individual poems separated by page breaks.
  Please include a title or titles in the Title Box on the submission page.
  All files must be saved in Microsoft Word (.doc or .docx) or PDF format.
  Simultaneous submissions are welcome, but we ask that you notify us and withdraw the work immediately in the event that it is published elsewhere.
  We are committed to paying our authors and artists for accepted pieces. Your reading fees help us maintain our Submittable page and operating costs, which we greatly appreciate! Please contact us if you have any difficulty paying this fee.
  If you have any further questions, please direct them to witness.poetry@unlv.edu or witness@unlv.edu.

Double/Twin - Poetry - Spring 2026

Our mission at Witness is to amplify extraordinary voices, feature writers from every part of the globe, and highlight pieces that speak to the present moment in an enduring and distinctive way. We are currently reading for the Spring 2026 print issue. The theme of this issue is: DOUBLE/TWIN. What do you see in a mirror? What is reflected back? What kinds of twins—elemental, emotional—appear in the world around us? We invite you to interpret our theme “Double/Twin” imaginatively, beyond the looking glass, across winding roads that double back yet lead to somewhere new. As always, we seek work that complicates and confounds us, work that makes us see and feel seen; words that bear witness through strange and unexpected lenses. 
We encourage you to check out our past issues online or purchase a copy to become familiar with the magazine. Submissions will be open until 10/1 or until we reach capacity.
 
          We look forward to reading your work!
 
 Submission Guidelines:
 

  Previously accepted or published work is not eligible.
  Submit one piece of nonfiction no more than 7,000 words (please include a word count and page numbers in your header), or up to three pieces of flash of no more than 1200 words each. Submissions over 7000 words will not be accepted.
  All files must be saved in Microsoft Word .doc or .docx (preferred) or as PDF.
  Please double-space your submission and use a 12-point, standard font (Times, Helvetica, Arial, etc.)
  Simultaneous submissions are welcome, but we ask that you notify us and withdraw the work immediately in the event that it is accepted elsewhere.
  We are committed to paying our authors and artists for accepted pieces. Your donations and reading fees help us maintain our Submittable page and operating costs, which we greatly appreciate! Please contact us directly if you have difficulty paying the fee.
  If you have any further questions, please direct them to witness.nonfiction@unlv.edu or witness@unlv.edu.

Double/Twin - Nonfiction - Spring 2026

We are currently reading for our 2026 Witness Literary Awards. Contest entries are unthemed, so send us your best! We welcome work that declares and/or demands a new perspective to the everyday condition, and stories that contextualize the American experience, highlight issues of global concern, grapple with the relationship between the personal and the political (however defined), and/or keenly observe interior/exterior landscapes. We encourage you to take a look at some of our previous issues before submitting your work to this contest.
 
One winner in each genre will receive $500 and publication in our Spring 2025 Issue (print). Runners-up will receive $200 and publication in our Spring 2025 Issue (print). All contest entries will be considered for publication.

 
Our judge for the Award in Fiction is Isle McElroy.

 
Isle McElroy is the author of The Atmospherians and People Collide. Their work appears in The Cut, The New York TImes, Vulture, The Atlantic, and elsewhere. They are currently a Shearing Fellow at the Black Mountain Institute. 

 Special Message from the judge: "I’m drawn to work that surprises and pivots, characters who obsess themselves into pits, stories that broach serious themes through frivolous antics--and all forms of desire. Lead with moral complexity over easy ethical triumphs. Something strange never hurts." 
 
Guidelines:
 

  Submit one, unpublished, self-contained story up to 7,000 words in Microsoft Word (.doc or .docx) or PDF format. Microsoft Word is preferred
  Work should be double-spaced, set in standard 12-point typeface, and include word count on the top/first page
  Please do not include any identifying information on the manuscript itself: all identifying/contact information should appear in your cover letter only. File name also must not include your name/info, only the story title
  Do not resubmit a previously declined submission unless substantial revisions have been made
  Entry fee is $8. We welcome multiple entries from the same writer, but each story should have a separate entry
  Simultaneous submissions are accepted, but we ask for immediate withdrawal upon acceptance elsewhere
  Writers associated with the judge, Black Mountain Institute, or UNLV are not eligible to enter


 
Thank you for adhering to our guidelines. Please contact us at witness@unlv.edu with any questions you may have. We look forward to reading your work!

2026 WITNESS LITERARY AWARDS - Fiction

We are currently reading for our 2026 Witness Literary Awards. Contest entries are unthemed, so send us your best! We welcome work that declares and/or demands a new perspective to the everyday condition, and stories that contextualize the American experience, highlight issues of global concern, grapple with the relationship between the personal and the political (however defined), and/or keenly observe interior/exterior landscapes. We encourage you to take a look at some of our previous issues before submitting your work to this contest. 

 
One winner in each genre will receive $500 and publication in our Spring 2025 Issue (print). Runners-up will receive $200 and publication in our Spring 2025 Issue (print). All contest entries will be considered for publication.

 
Our judge for the Award in Nonfiction is Mary-Kim Arnold. 
 
 
Mary-Kim Arnold is a writer, artist, and educator. She is the author of The Fish & The Dove: Poems (Noemi Press) and Litany for the Long Moment (Essay Press). A transnational, transracial Korean-born adoptee, her text and textile work explore themes of hybridity, dislocation, racial and cultural identity, and gender. Mary-Kim has taught creative and critical writing at Brown University, Wheaton College, Rhode Island School of Design, and in the Newport MFA at Salve Regina College. Prior to returning to teaching, Mary-Kim spent more than a decade working in and with arts and cultural nonprofit and philanthropic organizations, focused on making programs and funding more accessible. Mary-Kim holds a B.A. in English and an MFA in fiction writing from Brown University, and an MFA in poetry from Vermont College of Fine Arts. She serves as Senior Editor for Collaborative & Cross-Disciplinary Texts at Tupelo Quarterly.
 
Special Message from the judge: 
"Open to all forms of nonfiction, with a particular interest in:
-- Personal essays that have deep awareness of their context, time, position in relation to their subject matter
-- Works that favors inquiry over certainty
-- Experiments in form
-- Considerations in / alongside other art forms or practices"
 
Guidelines:
 

  Submit one, unpublished, self-contained piece of nonfiction (up to 7,000 words) in Microsoft Word (.doc or .docx) or PDF format. Microsoft Word is preferred
  Work should be double-spaced, set in standard 12-point typeface, and include word count on the top/first page
  Please do not include any identifying information on the manuscript itself: all identifying/contact information should appear in your cover letter only. Filename also must not include your name/info
  Entry fee is $8. We welcome multiple entries from the same writer, but each piece of nonfiction should have a separate entry
  Simultaneous submissions are accepted, but we ask for immediate withdrawal upon acceptance elsewhere
  Writers associated with the contest judge, Black Mountain Institute, or UNLV are not eligible to enter


 
Thank you for adhering to our guidelines. Please contact us at witness@unlv.edu with any questions you may have. We look forward to reading your work!

2026 WITNESS LITERARY AWARDS - Nonfiction

We are currently reading for our 2025 Witness Literary Awards. Contest entries are unthemed, so send us your best! We welcome work that declares and/or demands a new perspective to the everyday condition, and stories that contextualize the American experience, highlight issues of global concern, grapple with the relationship between the personal and the political (however defined), and/or keenly observe interior/exterior landscapes. We encourage you to take a look at some of our previous issues before submitting your work to this contest. 
 
One winner in each genre will receive $500 and publication in our Spring 2025 Issue (print). Runners-up will receive $200 and publication in our Spring 2025 Issue (print). All contest entries will be considered for publication.

 
Our judge for the Award in Poetry is Mandy Gutmann-Gonzalez.

 
Mandy Gutmann-Gonzalez is a Chilean poet and novelist working at the intersections of text, textile, performance, archive, and translation. They are the author of La Pava (Ediciones Inubicalistas) and A/An (End of the Line Press). Their work has been supported by fellowships and residencies from The Bucknell Seminar for Younger Poets, Lambda Literary, The Center for Book Arts, TAKT Residency in Berlin, The Frost Place, Studios at MASS MoCA, MacDowell, and CantoMundo.

Special Message from the judge: 
"I’m most excited by daring work that forges its own path and fully commits to its aesthetic. If I had to pick one word for what I most enjoy in poetry, it would be surprise."
 
Guidelines:
 

  Submit 1-3 poems in a single Microsoft Word document (.doc, .docx) or PDF file. Microsoft Word is preferred
  Please do not include any identifying information on the manuscript itself: all identifying/contact information should appear in your cover letter only. Filename also must not include your name/info
  Entry fee is $8. We welcome multiple entries from the same writer, but each submission should have a separate entry
  Simultaneous submissions are accepted, but we ask for immediate withdrawal upon acceptance elsewhere
  Writers associated with the judge, Black Mountain Institute, or UNLV are not eligible to enter
 

Thank you for adhering to our guidelines. Please contact us at witness@unlv.edu with any questions you may have. We look forward to reading your work!

2026 WITNESS LITERARY AWARDS - Poetry

Our mission at Witness is to amplify extraordinary voices, feature writers from every part of the globe, and highlight pieces that speak to the present moment in an enduring and distinctive way. We are currently reading for the Fall/Winter 2026 online issue (unthemed). We encourage you to check out our past issues online or purchase a copy to become familiar with the magazine. Submissions will be open until 3/15 or until we reach capacity.
We look forward to reading your work!
Submission Guidelines:
Previously accepted or published work is not eligible.
Submit one piece of nonfiction no more than 7,000 words (please include a word count and page numbers in your header), or up to three pieces of flash of no more than 1200 words each. Submissions over 7000 words will not be accepted.
All files must be saved in Microsoft Word .doc or .docx (preferred) or as PDF.
Please double-space your submission and use a 12-point, standard font (Times, Helvetica, Arial, etc.)
Simultaneous submissions are welcome, but we ask that you notify us and withdraw the work immediately in the event that it is accepted elsewhere.
We are committed to paying our authors and artists for accepted pieces. Your donations and reading fees help us maintain our Submittable page and operating costs, which we greatly appreciate! Please contact us directly if you have difficulty paying the fee.
If you have any further questions, please direct them to witness.nonfiction@unlv.edu or witness@unlv.edu.

Nonfiction (Unthemed)

Fiction (Unthemed)

Poetry (Unthemed)

Our mission at Witness is to amplify extraordinary voices, feature writers from every part of the globe, and highlight pieces that speak to the present moment in an enduring and distinctive way. We are currently accepting cover art for our upcoming online and print issues. We encourage you to check out our past issues online or purchase a copy to become familiar with the magazine. Submissions will be open until 12/31/26.
Descriptions of our upcoming issue is as follows:
Fall 2026 - online issue, unthemed
Spring 2027 - print issue, theme of Dreams
Artists are encouraged to send up to six original images (high-resolution) for our editors to consider for publication. You are welcome to look to our past themed cover art for inspiration, or engage us with something new and evocative; we are most interested in how your work interprets and communicates an experience. We accept all mediums: photography, painting, drawing/illustration, sculpture, graphic design, etc. Please include the title(s) of your work, a short bio, a link to your portfolio or website, and any social media handles you use for showcasing your work.
*Please note: While we request non-exclusive rights to the winning selections, we do ask that any of the work you submit from your back catalog or current body of work not appear on a similar publication (such as another magazine cover) prior to, or following, our 2026/2027 publication date.
Submission Guidelines:
Thank you for your interest! We look forward to seeing your work.

Witness

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