So, you’re a novice Canadian writer looking to see your name in print.
Good news! Writers looking to be published can submit their work to a variety of online and print publications across Canada. Simply searching “Canadian publishing opportunities” on Google will retrieve several thousand pages of possibilities, but unfortunately, this is often hardly helpful.
While the list of journals, magazines, newspapers and writing contests out there is extensive, understanding the specific guidelines surrounding what you can submit, when you can submit and what you’ll get out of submission can be overwhelming. Furthermore, unless you’re writing something completely new that’s tailored to the specifications of a particular organization, it can be nearly impossible to find a publication whose requirements perfectly match the nature of a piece you’ve already written.
While this can be frustrating, it isn’t a reason to give up. Here is a list of four of my favourite Canadian publication opportunities for you to consider.
The Malahat Review:
The Malahat Review, published by the University of Victoria, is one of Canada’s most prestigious literary journals, accepting poetry, short fiction and creative nonfiction. Throughout its nearly 60 years of existence, The Malahat Review has been named the Western Magazine Award Foundation’s Magazine of the Year three times and many of the authors whose work was first published in one of their issues have gone on to win various writing-related awards and prizes.
Published quarterly, The Malahat Review is currently accepting submissions from Canadian writers via their Submittable page until June. It is important to note that writers are asked to submit their work only once per genre in each calendar year and that any work that has previously been published will not be accepted.
For general poetry submissions, The Malahat Review asks that writers send in three to five poems formatted in a single document.
For general fiction submissions, The Malahat Review will accept one piece of short fiction or up to three pieces of flash fiction. Short fiction cannot exceed 8,000 words in length and each piece of flash fiction can’t be longer than 750 words.
For creative nonfiction, writers can submit up to three pieces at once. If you submit one longer piece, the word count must be under 5,000. If you submit two or three shorter pieces, The Malahat Review requires each work to be under 1,000 words.
As of writing, The Malahat Review has put out a call for submissions for a special issue titled Inhale/Exhale: Contemporary Indigenous Storytelling. Special guest editor Richard Van Camp, a proud member of the Dogrib (Tłı̨chǫ) Nation, will be a part of the creation of this issue which will celebrate the work of Indigenous storytellers. All First Nations, Métis and Inuit storytellers are welcome to submit work in the genres of short fiction and creative nonfiction (up to two stories with a maximum word count of 3,000 words) or poetry (three to five poems with a maximum of 100 lines per poem). Submissions end on June 1.
The Malahat Review is also looking for submissions for its Far Horizons Award for short fiction. Each piece of work must be no longer than 3,500 words but entries to this contest are unlimited and will not impact your ability to submit your work to the regular publication. Please note that you will be considered ineligible for this award if you have already published a book (defined as a work more than 48 pages in length). The deadline for submitting work to this award is May 1 at 11:59 p.m.
More information regarding the formatting for any of these submission opportunities can be located on The Malahat Review’s submissions page.
The Fiddlehead:
The Fiddlehead is a well-respected Canadian journal that accepts submissions of poetry, short stories and creative nonfiction from both emerging and established writers. Published four times a year at the University of New Brunswick, The Fiddlehead is 80 years old and has acquired the reputation of being a Who’s Who in Canadian literature. Many well-known writers first found a home for their work in the pages of this journal.
The Fiddlehead accepts work between Jan. 1 to March 31 and Sept. 15 to Nov. 30 through Submittable. While The Fiddlehead totes only a 1 to 2 per cent acceptance rate, submissions are free and therefore there is no reason not to give it a shot.
The Fiddlehead accepts up to six poems per submission for poetry. All poems must be submitted in one document which may not exceed 12 pages in total.
For fiction and creative nonfiction, The Fiddlehead will accept one piece per submission. The piece should be double-spaced and no more than 6,000 words.
As of writing, The Fiddlehead is also currently open for submissions for its creative nonfiction contest. The contest will accept unpublished entries of up to 6,000 words until June 2 via their Submittable page.
More information regarding the formatting of any of these submission opportunities can be located on The Fiddlehead’s submissions page.
Room:
Room is the oldest feminist literary magazine in Canada, publishing poetry, fiction and creative nonfiction penned by women and other gender-diverse writers. Published quarterly since 1975, many pieces that first found themselves published in the pages of Room have made their way into other award-winning publications such as The Journal Prize Anthology, Best Canadian Poetry, Best Canadian Stories and Best Canadian Essays. Many have even won National Magazine Awards. To keep things fresh, each issue of the magazine is edited by a different team of editors chosen from the Growing Room Collective, allowing for a variety of unique editorial visions to shape Room’s body of work.
Room accepts work starting on Feb. 28 and their submissions remain open on a rolling basis until they reach their ascribed submissions limit. Submissions then open again in May, August and November according to the same principles. Pieces of poetry, short fiction and creative nonfiction can be submitted via Room’s Submittable page.
Room will accept up to five poems at a time. No clear word or line limit is outlined.
For short fiction and creative nonfiction, Room will accept submissions up to 3,500 words in length.
Room is not currently running any contests as of writing, but starting April 1, submissions for their creative non-fiction contest will open. Their poetry and short forms contests will open on June 15 and Sept. 1 respectively and will run for exactly two months.
More information regarding the formatting of any of these submission opportunities can be located on Room’s submissions page.
Paloma:
Paloma is an up-and-coming literary magazine that publishes a monthly issue featuring a variety of creative genres including poetry, reviews, essays, short fiction, creative nonfiction and more. While Paloma is a smaller publication that has just found its footing in the world of Canadian publishing, that doesn’t mean it has any less merit.
To leave room for creative exploration, Paloma’s submission guidelines are rather vague. The only clear specifications given are that non-fiction cannot exceed a word limit of 1,000 and creative fiction cannot exceed a word limit of 3,500.
Work can be submitted to Paloma via their email, palomathemagazine@gmail.com.
More information regarding the formatting of any of these submission opportunities can be located on Paloma’s Substack account.
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While the feeling of being published can be incredibly thrilling, it is not always easily accomplished. Similar to actors, writers often face the answer “no” far more often than they do the answer “yes.” Although it’s easy to get bogged down by the disappointment of rejection, the best writers continue to hone their craft and put themselves out there, even in the face of adversity.
While this list cannot guarantee you will find the “yes” you’ve been looking for, it can provide you with a jumping-off point as you persevere on your journey towards becoming a published author.