Litro magazine seeks short stories, flash fiction and creative nonfiction...

Litro (http://www.litro.co.uk/) is a literary journal based in London, England, that's glad to receive stories from Canadians.  Litro accepts submissions of short stories, flash fiction and creative nonfiction up to a maximum of 3,000 words. We also publish poems, but on a commissioned basis only. Please do not submit poetry as it will not be read.

We welcome new, emerging and established writers in any style or genre and on any subject or none. Please, however, note that we are usually unable to publish work that includes gratuitous language, racial abuse, explicit descriptions of sexual activity, violence or the misuse of drugs. There are plenty of internet forums for that stuff.

Litro is an independent magazine which is distributed for free. As a result we do not pay contributors at present. If you would like to see your work appear in a high-quality literary publication with a monthly circulation of approximately 100,000 copies in various locations across the UK and France and gain the exposure that would come with this, we would welcome and carefully consider your submission. Please see below for more details on future issues and submitting your work to us.

Each issue of Litro focuses on a specific subject or title. You’re welcome to bear these in mind when submitting your work, but if you wish to submit unthemed work, please put UNTHEMED in the subject line of your email. If you are submitting for a theme, please clearly state the theme you are submitting for in the subject line of your email. We are happy to read up to three stories at a time as long as they are either unthemed, or for different themes. Please submit no more than one story per individual theme.

Forthcoming themes for 2011 include:

July: God Bless America. Stories from and about the land of the free and the home of the brave, just in time for the Fourth of July. Come on down, y’all! Submission deadline June 1, 2011.

August: Litro takes a well-deserved break …

September: Comics/Graphic Fiction. In September Litro is celebrating perhaps the the iconic (and only truly new) literary form of the twentieth century – comics and graphic novels. With comic books going more and more upmarket and mainstream, amazing writers are emerging and we’re seeking them out and bringing them to you. Contributions from writers, artists and cartoonists are sought for this special issue. Submission deadline August 1st

October: France. Britain has always had a love-hate relationship with our cousins (and cousines) across the Channel, but in June Litro goes Francophile. We’re celebrating the very best of French literary culture, so we’re especially interested in stories set in France or by French and French-resident authors. We are also looking for new translations of fantastic French literature so that we can share the work of the latest enfants terribles with our Anglo readers. Submission deadline September 1, 2011.

November: Street Fiction. As winter draws in, Litro hits the streets for inspiration – whether it’s London or Lahore, New York or Beijing, we are looking for the best urban prose and getting gritty in the city. Sharp, modern and real are the keywords for this issue which will uncover the best stories and authors coming up from the streets. Submission deadline October 1, 2011

All submissions should be emailed as Word documents to editor@litro.co.uk
Put the word ‘Submission’ and the theme in the subject line. No Zip files please. And no viruses! Due to the high volume of submissions, we’re not always able to respond as quickly as we would like. Please be patient; if you haven’t received a response within six weeks you’re welcome to contact us.

Full submissions information here.

See Brian's full schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Georgetown, Oakville, Burlington, Hamilton, Kitchener, Guelph, Woodstock, London, Orangeville, Barrie, Gravenhurst, Muskoka, Peel, Halton, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.