Best Literary Magazines in 2026

Print magazine for Fiction, Poetry,

Ploughshares has published quality literature since 1971. Best known for our award-winning Ploughshares literary journal, we also publish Ploughshares Solos (digital-first long stories and essays) and a lively literary blog. Since 1989, we have been based at Emerson College in downtown Boston.

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Print & Online magazine for Fiction, Poetry, Short Fiction,

From its earliest days in 1977 under the editorial direction of Isaac Asimov, Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine has maintained the tradition of publishing the best stories, unsurpassed in modern science fiction, from award-winning authors and first-time writers alike.

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Print & Online magazine for Art, Fiction, Non-Fiction, Poetry, Short Fiction,

F(r)iction is a triannual publication that boasts work from both industry legends and emerging writers. Each issue is carefully curated to evaluate an important cultural topic from vastly different perspectives. We accept short fiction, creative nonfiction, flash fiction, comics, and poetry submissions all year round, and also host contests featuring guest judges and cash prizes twice a year (each spring and fall). Every piece published in F(r)iction is also accompanied by custom artwork, making our journal a visual odyssey from cover to cover!

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Print magazine for Fiction, Poetry, Non-Fiction,

Bard College's literary journal Conjunctions publishes innovative fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction by emerging voices and contemporary masters.

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Online magazine for Art, Fiction, Non-Fiction, Poetry, Scripts, Short Fiction,

Shorts is a free online magazine launched in February 2020 with the aim of bringing together writers and creative artists from all over the world. Shorts particularly encourages submissions from marginalised communities, and from new and emerging writers. Shorts was established in a time of growing isolationism on the part of the UK and the US, and aims to combat this by uniting global creatives and nurturing unheard voices. It is an LGBTQ+ friendly platform with a liberal outlook.

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Print magazine for Fiction, Poetry, Non-Fiction,

The Missouri Review is based at the University of Missouri and publishes four issues each year. Each issue contains new fiction, poetry and essays. We also run author interviews and found-text features where we print never before published works such as a short story by William Faulkner or one of Tennessee Williams' plays.

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Print magazine for Fiction, Poetry, Non-Fiction,

Colorado Review's only commitment is to the publication of serious poetry, fiction, and nonfiction. We do not publish genre fiction nor do we subscribe to a particular literary philosophy or school of poetry or fiction. We are determinedly eclectic and intend to stay that way. Note that we read nonfiction year-round.

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Print magazine for Fiction, Poetry, Non-Fiction,

The annual literary journal of Boise State's MFA program, publishing fiction, poetry, and creative non-fiction.

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Print & Online magazine for Fiction, Poetry, Non-Fiction,

Established in September 2003, The Cincinnati Review draws together within its pages the finest creative and critical work from across the country. We provide a venue for writers of any background, at any point in their literary careers, to showcase their best writing.

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Print magazine for Fiction, Poetry, Non-Fiction,

The Paris Review is a quarterly English language literary magazine established in Paris in 1953 by Harold L. Humes, Peter Matthiessen, and George Plimpton. Since relocating to New York City, it has become one of the world's pre-eminent publications of its type.

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Online magazine for Art, Short Fiction,

Elegant Literature is a monthly eZine that features new talent only. Each issue is filled with short fiction of all genres, handcrafted stories by new brilliant writers from around the globe. We pay all our published, aspiring writers professional rates & each issue one writer is awarded $3,000.

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Online magazine for Fiction, Non-Fiction, Short Fiction,

An award-winning monthly literary magazine that focuses on strong writing and captivating stories (fiction and narrative nonfiction), regardless of genre or author pedigree.

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Print magazine for Fiction, Poetry, Short Fiction,

The Layered Onion is looking for submissions for their publication, The Shallot: Journal of Mental Health, Art, and Literature. The Shallot’s goal is to amplify the voices of artists with lived mental and emotional health experience and accepts poetry and short stories/fiction under 1,001 words. The Shallot is part of The Layered Onion, a social benefit organization dedicated to uplifting the voices of artists with mental and emotional health struggles.

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Online magazine for Art, Fiction, Poetry, Short Fiction,

The Incandescent Review is an entirely non-profit, teen-run literary magazine, and our team hails from across the globe: from San Jose to Shanghai, from Atlanta to Athens. Our purpose is to create a platform for teens and young adults to express their opinions and emotional response to world issues in the form of poetry, prose, visual art, and more.

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