Empty Sink, In Other Words and Geist seek prose, poetry and postcards

Empty Sink Publishing is an on-line magazine. It’s looking for professional-quality prose, poetry, fiction, non-fiction, and visual media submissions that stretch the mind, defy convention, and offer a new perspective on life. We currently pay all writers with a pat on the back and a byline. We hope to change that soon.

Send submissions directly to emptysinkpublishing@gmail.com

Deadline ongoing. Full submission guidelines here.

Note: The editors seem to be very anal (even for editors) and caution you to follow their guidelines “to the letter.”

In Other Words: Mérida, an English language Literary Magazine based in Merida, Mexico, on the Yucatan Peninsula is looking for previously unpublished poetry and fiction that is exciting and inspired. 

“We are especially looking, however, for poetry and fiction that is exciting and inspired and written by English speaking residents of the Yucatan Peninsula, so please let us know if you are one of those. We won’t reject you if you’re not. We’ll just be sort of biased for you if you are. ‘Cause this is a literary magazine celebrating Merida and environs and the literary scene herein.”

Deadline ongoing. Full submission guidelines here.

Geist Postcard Contest

Send us a story and a postcard — the relationship can be as strong or as tangential as you like, so long as there is a clear connection between the story and the image. The story can be fiction or non-fiction; maximum length is 500 words. For a classic example of a postcard story, read "How to Survive in the Woods" or "Death in the Family." Visit the postcard story archive for more examples of notable stories.

First Prize: $500; Second Prize: $250; Third Prize: $150

All winning entries will be published in Geist and on geist.com

Entry Fee: $20. All additional entries are $5. Includes a one-year subscription to Geist

Deadline February 1, 2014. Full contest rules here.

Regular submissions to Geist:

Geist is a magazine of ideas and culture, with a strong literary focus and a sense of humour. The Geist tone is intelligent, plain-talking, inclusive and offbeat. Geist requires a Canadian connection in all non-contest submissions.  Geist does accept contest submissions, with or without a Canadian connection. 

Non-fiction: We publish short non-fiction, usually personal narrative, in the Notes and Dispatches section. Longer non-fiction pieces are published as Features. We are especially interested in photographs and stories about family history (see Julia L. Star’s “The Patio”) and in historical narrative (see Stephen Osborne’s “Signs and Portents”). Send a maximum of one longer piece or two shorter pieces.

Fiction: We publish short stories (see Michal Kozlowski's "Antonia") in the Features section. Send one story at a time. We also hold contests, including the annual Geist Literal Literary Postcard Story Contest for short-short stories. Winning entries and honourable mentions appear in the magazine and at geist.com.

Poetry: Send a maximum of 5 poems.

Photography/Art: We look for art and photography to accompany written work in the magazine, and we also publish art and photo essays with text by the artist. For a good example of this, see "Memory and the Valley" by David Campion and Sandra Shields. When submitting artwork by mail, send digital media or photocopies only—no originals.

See Brian Henry’s schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Barrie, Brampton, Bolton, Burlington, Caledon, Cambridge, Georgetown, Guelph, Hamilton, Kingston, London, Midland, Mississauga, Newmarket, Orillia, Oakville, Ottawa, Peterborough, St. Catharines, Stouffville, Sudbury, Thessalon, Toronto, Algoma, Halton, Kitchener-Waterloo, Muskoka, Peel, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.