Submissions

A night landscape stretches out into the distance. The photo appears in black and white with a V-shaped center section digitally painted in vibrant colors: magenta, orange, blue, purple.

The Basics

  • Vast Chasm Magazine publishes bold work that explores the expansive human experience, including flash and short fiction, creative nonfiction, poetry, and other nonconforming work.
  • We read year-round, on a rolling basis, for our quarterly online issues.
  • Submissions are reviewed only through Submittable, where specific guidelines for each genre are provided.
  • Submit one piece to a single submission category. Please wait to hear back before trying us again.
  • We do not charge a submission fee.
  • We happily consider simultaneous submissions. Life is short. Just let us know if your work is accepted elsewhere, so we can update our queue and celebrate your success.
  • Send us your previously unpublished work as a .doc, .docx or .rtf in an easily readable format. For a nontraditional piece, you may opt to submit a .pdf. When photography submissions are open, previously published work will be considered. Send your image as a .jpeg or .png file.
  • Please include a 3rd-person bio of no more than 100 words.
  • We will thoughtfully consider your work and typically respond within 3 months.
  • If we’ve already read and declined a piece, please do not submit revisions unless specifically requested.
  • Vast Chasm is a paying market. Currently, we are able to offer $50 per published piece, payable via Paypal or Venmo.

Additional Details

  • Genre-specific submission guidelines are as follows:
    • Flash Fiction: one piece, up to 1,200 words
    • Fiction: one piece, up to 5,000 words
    • Flash Creative Nonfiction: one piece, up to 1,200 words
    • Creative Nonfiction: one piece, up to 5,000 words
    • Poetry: one poem
    • Other Nonconforming Work: one piece, mindful of the limits detailed above; use this submission category if you feel your work does not conform to the other genres listed. For example, you might submit a hybrid piece, a hermit crab essay, or anything we haven’t seen before.
    • Photography: We accept photography submissions on a rolling basis. Images must be original work. In general, we are not looking for portrait photography. Any photograph selected will be paired with an artist who will reimagine a swath of the image, resulting in a collaborative piece. Please see our website header for an example.
  • We care about content, not formatting, but if you’re wondering what we consider readable, 12-point Times New Roman works well.
  • If there is anything you want us to know about your submission, please include a note at the top of the document (e.g. content warning, excerpt, greater context).
  • We strive to cultivate a safe and inclusive literary community. You can read our inclusivity statement here.
  • Please email us if you run into any issues while submitting or accessing our content. We believe art should be accessible.
  • Know your rights: For Vast Chasm Magazine, Vast Literary Press acquires First North American Serial Rights and Archival Rights. Following publication, copyright reverts to the author. Learn more about your publication rights here.
  • If you haven’t heard from us within our usual response time of 3 months, feel free to check with us by emailing Editors@VastLiteraryPress.org. 
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Header photograph by Stephanie Johnson
Header artwork by Avery Kester