Philadelphia Stories is a free print magazine that strives to publish the finest fiction, poetry, nonfiction, and art written by authors living in, or originally from, Pennsylvania, Delaware, or New Jersey. Philadelphia Stories seeks submissions from diverse perspectives: all ethnicities, races, abilities, and gender identification. We wish to demonstrate the vitality and vibrancy of the  Philadelphia-area residents in every issue.

Thanks to the support of the Conrad Weiser Author Fund, we pay an honorarium of $ 50 via Paypal to our authors published in our print magazine.

Please follow these guidelines for submitting material. 

*Please scroll to the bottom to select the genre or contest to which you would like to submit.  

DEADLINES:  August 2, 2024. 

PLEASE NOTE: You will be notified of the status of your submission within six months AFTER the issue deadline. If you have not heard from us within six months after your submission was sent, please feel free to contact trish@philadephiastories.org, and we'll check the status for you. (Please note, our emails do sometimes get caught in spam filters.) Thanks for submitting to Philadelphia Stories!  

In General

  1. Only work submitted through our Online Submission Form will be considered.
  2. We do not accept previously published work. This includes work published online, on personal blogs or websites.
  3. Any work received after the closing date for a particular issue will be considered for the next issue.
  4. Simultaneous submissions are accepted. Please let us know immediately if your work is accepted elsewhere.
  5. Please attach a SHORT bio (about 75 words, written in third person), including your connection to Pennsylvania, Delaware, or New Jersey.
  6. We will send notice by email regarding the acceptance or rejection of your material within six months after the issue's deadline. 
  7. If you have questions, please do not hesitate to contact our Editorial Director, Trish Rodriguez, at trish@philadelphiastories.org.


Submit to Philadelphia Stories Junior (writers aged 18 and younger)

 

Philadelphia Stories, Junior, a division of Philadelphia Stories,   is a literary magazine published each Spring for writers age 18 and under who currently live in Pennsylvania, Delaware, or Southern New    Jersey. Please follow these guidelines for submitting material.  There is no  reading fee. Deadline: February 1. We accept submissions year-round. 

Don't have a Submittable account? No problem! You can email your work to our editors here: PSJR912@GMAIL.COM

General Guidelines
1.    Philadelphia Stories, Jr.  accepts work submitted to our online submission form or by email.  
Emailed submissions will be accepted as either a Word .doc or .txt  attachment.
2.  On the first page, please include your name, school, grade, and information on how we can contact you.

3. Any work received after the closing date for a particular issue will be considered for the next issue. 

 4.  Tell us about yourself and where you live. For example: George   Smith is in sixth grade and likes to write poetry. He also likes   basketball and lives with his cat and little sister in Cherry Hill, NJ.   He has read all seven Harry Potters twice. 

Philadelphia Stories, Jr. publishes:

1. Fiction (original short stories no longer than 5,000 words)
2. Poems 
3. Essays
4. Art (original photos, drawings, pictures of sculptures, cartoons, etc.)

If you would prefer to email your submission, email to PSJR912@gmail.com.

Ends on
Submit to Essays/Nonfiction
Creative nonfiction essays should not exceed 2,500 words. We’re looking for pieces that focus on positive Philadelphia experiences, but will consider any well-written essay on any subject. In particular, essays should convey real emotional honesty and or humor. We do not accept previously published work.

Art
Submit to Art

Artwork

  1. All artwork must be submitted electronically.
  2. Please submit no more than five previously unpublished images for consideration. (You must submit each image file as a separate submission; you cannot attach multiple images to one submission.)
  3. Preliminary images do not need to be print resolution and may be attached as a JPEG or GIF. Final, approved artwork should be of professional quality, at least 300 dpi saved as a TIFF, PDF, JPEG or EPS.
  4. Do not send us links to your website. We'll leave it to you to find your best work.

Ends on
Submit to Fiction
  1. We accept short stories or novel excerpts in varying lengths but not more than 5,000 words.
  2. We look for fiction written by Pennsylvania, Delaware, and New Jersey writers (either currently residing in, originally from, or lived here at some point) that features sharp writing, carefully crafted plots, and, above all, compelling characters. Novel excerpts should be able to stand alone as a complete work.

Ends on
Submit to Poetry

Poetry [updated]:

  1.  We especially encourage poets from underrepresented or historically marginalized backgrounds or circumstances to submit work to Philadelphia Stories.  
  2. Up to three poems may be submitted in one submission period; each poem is not to exceed 36 lines. Poems may be single spaced (unlike prose submissions which should be double spaced). Poems that exceed 36 lines/one page may not be considered.
  3. Submit each poem in its own single document/attachment. Start a new submission for each poem. This will allow the submitter to WITHDRAW work that is accepted elsewhere as we DO expect some poets to make simultaneous submissions to multiple journals. Submitted documents that include multiple poems may not be considered.
  4. If your simultaneously submitted poem is accepted elsewhere, please WITHDRAW your poem as soon as possible. And congratulations!
  5. Your cover letter should include a bio of no more than 3 sentences/~50 words PLUS a brief sentence/statement indicating your connection to Philadelphia, PA, NJ, or DE. Feel free to copy and paste the same text in each submission. No need to reinvent the wheel. Upon acceptance, we will also ask for a photo and an updated bio.
  6. Please title your submission with the TITLE of the attached poem.



Ends on $20.00
$20.00
Submit to Philadelphia Stories Fiction Contest

Contest Submission Guidelines:

  • Deadline: December 1, 2024.  
  • Previously unpublished works of fiction up to 8,000 words. Please note that"published" includes any work published in print or online, including online magazines, blogs,  public social media sites, etc.  
  • Multiple submissions will be accepted for the contest only.  Simultaneous submissions are also accepted; however, we must be notified immediately if your work is accepted elsewhere.
  •  Only authors currently residing in the United States are eligible. 
  • Submissions will only be accepted via the website. If you are having trouble with your submission, please email contest@philadelphiastories.org.
  • We read all entries anonymously, so please do not include any identifying information in your submissions.
  • The winner will receive $1000
  • Three runners-up will receive $250
  • There is a $20 reading fee for each story submitted. 
  • All entrants will receive a copy of the Philadelphia Stories contest issue. 
  • Winners will be announced by April 1, 2025 


Philadelphia Stories