Where to find publishers, agents, and literary magazines to submit your work

There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.”
Maya Angelou, author, “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings”

You have written your masterpiece—be it a novel, short story, poem, or essay—and you want to find a literary magazine, agent, or publisher. And for anyone who has gone through the tedious process of elimination, you know it is a lot of work.

The online publishing sites that allow you to do specific searches are my go-to because scrolling through all the names is time consuming. I would rather search for lit mags and agents that cater to my subject or theme, ones currently accepting submissions, and those that pay writers, among other details. I might also include word count.

This article is not about secrets of making this process easier. Sorry. But, through my own weekly searches, I have discovered a few places to use that might help you.

While you might read other articles and blogs sharing ideas of how to go through the process, how to save files, what documents to create, etc., everyone is different. I tend to overwhelm easily and so I like to keep things simple. Personally, I use an Excel file for each type of submission (poetry, essays, short stories) that includes separate tabs for:

List of lit mags/news outlets
including name of lit mag, contact (or link to submission page), acceptable word count, wait time, payment

Articles/Poems/Short Stories
titles of my work, subject/theme, word count, potential journal(s)

Submissions
work I’ve submitted—where, to whom, how (email, Submittable), date of submission, follow up, second follow up, wait time, result, and comments

Small Presses

Agents

or whatever you desire to keep track of. Some say to keep a list of agents and journals according to “dream” and “acceptable” or whatever. Do what you must.

Search sites for submitting your work periodically change, so you’ll want to check them if a year or more has passed and you want to submit. Agents leave agencies, publishing houses merge, literary magazines close. Submission guidelines also can change, so read those carefully as well.

Other sites charge membership fees. I always like to remain “free” if I can, and as I move forward in my submitting process, I understand more of my needs and will decide then if I want to pay for a membership, which can really add up. Some offer free periods, such as 30 days or 2 weeks, which allow you to try their services to see if they meet your needs.

And there are others you can sign up for their newsletters, such as Author’s Publish, to keep abreast of all the changes in the publishing industry.

Here are a few places you might consider checking in your quest to find a home for your work (in no particular order). These allow you to put in specific search terms and narrow the search. Membership to some will include an online tracking form so you don’t have to create a separate file, like the above Excel sheet I mentioned.

I will continue to visit this page to keep it up to date (and feel free to reach out if I’ve missed something or need to update).

Duosuma by Duotrope

Publisher’s Marketplace

Perplexity (I included this AI tool because sometimes I am looking for a specific type of home for my work and the other searches aren’t detailed enough. For ex., I’ve asked: “what literary magazines or online journals accept submissions from writers who write humorous female and women’s essays?” I might even include the topic or theme. It will then show a list of possibilities, which I always double check)

Books

There are many (MANY) books on how to submit your work and where, and tips on getting your work noticed. However, to keep it simple, a few I recommend are:

“How to Submit: Getting Your Writing Published with Literary Magazines and Small Presses,” by Dennis James Sweeney

“The Business of Being a Writer,” by Jane Friedman

“Writing That Gets Noticed: Find Your Voice, Become a Better Storyteller, Get Published,” by Estelle Erasmus