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The Top 10 Literary Magazines Of India – Inkerspress
India is a land rich in literary traditions, with a vibrant and diverse literary scene. Literary Magazines play a crucial role in promoting and showcasing the works of talented writers, poets, and artists. These literary magazines also serves as the platforms for the emerging voices by providing them with the much-required space for literary experimentation, critical discourse, and cultural exchange. Interestingly, the literary magazines offers several benefits to both writers as well as the readers!
For readers, literary magazines offer a treasure trove of literary gems. They provide a curated selection of thought provoking & engaging writing across different genres, including poetry, fiction, and creative non-fiction. Readers can discover new writers, explore different writing styles and engage with contemporary literary trends. Literary magazines often publish works that push the boundaries of conventional storytelling, fostering a sense of intellectual curiosity and expanding readers’ literary horizons.
In this write-up, we shall be exploring the Top 10 Literary Magazines of India that have made a significant impact on the literary landscape –
The Top 10 Literary Magazines Of India
The caravan.
Founded in 1940, The Caravan is one of India’s oldest and most respected literary magazines. It covers a range of topics, including politics, culture, and the arts, and features essays, reportage, fiction, and poetry!
Pratilipi is an online platform for Indian literature that publishes fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and translations. It features work in a range of Indian languages, as well as in English, and has a large and active community of readers and writers!
The Literature Today
The Literature Today is an online as well as print magazine that publishes short stories, poetry, and essays by emerging writers. It focuses on promoting new and diverse voices in Indian literature, and has published work by many writers who have gone on to become established in the field.
Granta India
Granta India is the Indian edition of the prestigious British literary magazine Granta. It publishes fiction, non-fiction, and poetry by established and emerging writers from India and around the world.
The Bombay Review
The Bombay Review is a bi-monthly online literary magazine that publishes short stories, poetry, essays, and artwork. It aims to promote new voices in Indian literature & has published work by many emerging writers!
The Indian Quarterly
The Indian Quarterly is a print and online magazine that features fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and art. It covers a range of topics, including politics, culture, and society, and has published work by some of India’s leading writers.
The Little Magazine
The Little Magazine is a bi-monthly literary magazine that publishes poetry, fiction, and non-fiction. It has a reputation for publishing experimental and cutting-edge work, and has featured many emerging writers!
Himal Southasian
Himal Southasian is a print and online magazine that covers politics, culture, and society in South Asia. It features essays, reportage, and fiction by writers from across the region, and has a reputation for publishing work that is critical and thought provoking.
Out of Print
Out of Print is an online literary magazine that publishes short stories, essays, and interviews. It focuses on promoting new and emerging writers, and has published work by many writers who have gone on to become established in the Indian literary scene!
Muse India is an online literary magazine that publishes fiction, poetry, and essays. It aims to promote Indian writing in English, and features work by established and emerging writers.
In conclusion, these top 10 literary magazines of India offer a glimpse into the diversity and richness of Indian literature. From established magazines like The Caravan to up and coming publications like The Literature Today, they provide a platform for emerging writers to showcase their work and for established writers to continue to engage with readers. These literary magazines are a vital part of India’s literary scene, and they continue to play an important role in shaping the future of Indian literature!
Moreover, these literary magazines serve as a platform for literary discussions and critical analysis. They not only feature book reviews, author interviews, and essays that delve into the craft of writing, explore literary themes & trends, but also offer insights into the creative process. This enriches the reading experience by providing readers with a deeper understanding and appreciation of literature. Hence, by supporting and engaging with literary magazines, writers and readers can contribute to the vitality and growth of the literary ecosystem.
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32 Literary Magazines in India

Mustering the courage to send your written work to potential publishers and magazines might seem intimidating at first glance. Having finished writing your piece, regardless of your genre, getting it published is a momentous step in your writing career.
It’s of paramount importance that you choose a suitable literary magazine for publishing.
We have curated a list of prestigious literary magazines in India that accept short fiction, poetry, and essays from upcoming writers in this article, to act as a guide for you while submitting.
Disclaimer: The list of literary magazines in India shared below is true as of Nov 2022. Purple Pencil Project will not be responsible for upcoming changes in the information listed below. Please go through the submission guidelines before sending your submissions to any of these literary magazines in India.
Table of Contents for literary magazines in India
Cafe dissensus.
Cafe Dissensus is a literary magazine established with the idea of true alternative media. They publish quarterly issues as well as run a daily blog accepting creative writings as well as visual and audio essays.
- Genre : Short story, poetry, audio-visual submissions (in the form of interviews, conversations, etc.), Photo Essays
- Submission fee : Nil
- Compensation: Nil
- Guidelines for submission : https://cafedissensuseveryday.com/submissions/ (Currently no open calls of submission for creative writing as of November 2022)
1455´s mission is ´´to celebrate and showcase creatives in general and writers in particular. They publish monthly under the name Movable-type which are curated around different themes and the submissions are received year-round. They also aid upcoming creative writers by providing solidarity and a community of like-minded people by conducting summer festivals, live virtual readings of each issue of Movable type, and monthly author events.
- Genre: Original work in poetry, fiction, essays, memoir, visual art, photography, etc
- Submission fee: Nil
- Guidelines for submission : https://1455litarts.org/movable-type/
Contemporary Literary Review India
Contemporary Literary Review India (CLRI) is a peer-reviewed and internationally referred literary journal in English and publishes a wide variety of creative pieces including research papers, critical essays, stories, poems, book reviews, film reviews, arts, and photography of the best quality of the time. CLRI is considered one of the leading English literary magazines in India.
- Genre : research papers, critical essays, stories, poems, book reviews, film reviews, arts, and photography
- Submission fee: A unspecified amount of reading fee is applied to submitted pieces
- Guidelines for submission: https://www.literaryjournal.in/index.php/clri/sg
eFiction India
eFiction India is a professionally produced independent literary magazine in India devoted to showcasing the work of writers with a connection to the Indian subcontinent. The magazine is established as a recurring dialogue between various writers and readers and accepts exciting new writing in essays, fiction, poetry, art, and criticism.
- Genre : Essays, fiction, poetry, art, and criticism
- Compensation : Nil
- Guidelines for submission : https://www.efictionindia.in/submit/ (Currently no open calls of submission as of November 2022)
Helter Skelter
Helter Skelter is an online literary magazine in India with a focus on independent and alternative culture in India. They publish annual anthologies curated around themes and accept original fiction, and poetry from the Indian subcontinent.
- Genre : Original fiction, poetry, and art from India
- Compensation :- Nil
- Guidelines for submission :- https://helterskelter.in/about/
Indian Literature
Indian Literature, Sahitya Akademi’s prestigious bimonthly journal, is the oldest literary magazine in India featuring translations in English of poetry, fiction, drama, and criticism from twenty-three Indian languages besides original writing in English. Indian Literature is also a highly valued source of reference for literature in India and accepts through e-mail as well as post.
- Genre: Poems, short stories in English translation and English, and critical articles on Indian literature
- Compensation: – Nil
- Guidelines for submission :- https://sahitya-akademi.gov.in/journals/indianliterature.jsp
Jaggery Lit
A DesiLit arts and literature magazine, Jaggery Lit connects South Asian diasporic writers and homeland writers. Jaggery aims to create a journal that offers the best writing by and about South Asians and their diaspora.
- Genre: Essays, Fiction, Poetry, Reviews
- Compensation : $100 for fiction, $25 for nonfiction/poetry/art/reviews
- Guidelines for submission : https://jaggery.submittable.com/submit ( No open submission calls as of Nov 2022)
Kitaab is an online literary magazine dedicated to connecting Asian writers with a global audience. They accept pieces that are set in Asia, are about Asia, or are Asians anywhere in the world.
- Genre: Short Stories, Essays on literary criticism, Poetry, Non-fiction – Travelogues, Memoirs, Personal essays, Book Reviews, Author Interviews
- Submission fee: NIL
- Compensation : Annual membership of Kitaab.org is free for one year if accepted
- Guidelines for submission : https://kitaab.org/submissions/
Muse India is a bi-monthly literary magazine available only online that showcases Indian writings in English and in English translation to a broad-based global readership.
Muse India invites works that meet the broad objectives of the journal from both experienced and young writers and accept a wide range of literary forms year-round.
- Genre: Poetry, Book Reviews, Literary Articles, Interviews, and Fiction
- Submission fee: Submission is free but you need to have a membership in Muse India for sending in pieces. Registration for membership is free.
- Guidelines for submission : https://museindia.com/MuseIndia/submission
The Bangalore Review
The Bangalore Review is a monthly online literary magazine aimed at promoting literature, arts, culture, criticism, and philosophy at a deeper level. The magazine´s purpose is ´´to give back, in our own way, to society´´ and aspires to be unbiased towards the writings that come its way.
- Genre : Literary fiction, creative nonfiction, reviews, criticism, poetry, and art.
- Submission fee : 3$
- Guidelines for submission : https://bangalorereview.com/submissions/ (rolling submissions)
Antiserious
A quarterly publication proclaiming to tread the anti-spotlight path of challenging the authoritarian rule of the SERIOUS. Apart from accepting essays, creative nonfiction, short fiction, poetry, illustrations, and photo features, they also are interested in accepting pieces from under-represented places and communities.
- Genre : Original works from essays, creative nonfiction, short fiction, poetry, illustrations, photo features, graphic stories, scripts of plays and movies, recipes, and interviews.
- Submission fee : Nil
- Guidelines for submission : https://antiserious.com/antiserious-submit-4ea3a20c087f
Ashvamegh is a monthly literary magazine established in 2015, primarily interested in publishing English poetry, short stories, research articles, and scholarly essays. They strive to provide ´´an abstract get-together of the intelligence´´, gathering the ‘wordwise’ creative and intellectual people at a platform. Though Ashvamegh´s interest leans toward scholarly essays, they also publish curated collections of creative writings as well.
- Genre:- Original works from poetry, short stories, research papers, General and scholarly essays, and book reviews
- Compensation:- Nil
- Guidelines for submission:- https://ashvamegh.net/submission/
Indian Review
Indian Review is an India-based journal with year-round submissions. They seek writing in ´´English or translated into English that is strong, well-crafted and reflects the pace and transition of our times´´ and look forward to reading pieces that reflect the stories of the Indian subcontinent.
- Genre: Invites submissions from Poetry, English Literature, Literature written in other languages, Indian Writings in English, Colonial and Postcolonial Literature, Cultural Studies, Aesthetic Studies, Critical theories, Literature and Environment, Visual Arts, Photography, Digital Arts, Philosophy and Art, and History of Art.
- Guidelines for submission:- https://indianreview.in/submit-your-work/guidelines/
Inkspire is an exclusively online literary magazine that aspires to discover and publish stories, personal essays, poetry, book reviews, and more from those who are taking their first steps in the world of writing. As of April 2022, Inkspire is only open to those writers who participate in online creative writing workshops.
- Submission fee: They charge an introductory Price of 62 USD /4500 INR for an Online Creative Fiction Writing Course for Beginners
- Guidelines for submission:- https://www.inkspiremag.com/p/submit_21.html
Indian Rumination
Indian Ruminations is an online literary magazine striving to showcase new perspectives, ideas, opinions, and styles in the domain of English Literature. Since its inception in 2010 Indian Rumination has conducted multiple international seminars and workshops in the domain of academia and literature.
- Genre: submissions in the form of reportage, opinion, poems, fiction, interviews, book reviews, research articles, etc. Submissions are accepted year-round.
- Guidelines for submission:- https://www.indianruminations.com/contribute/
Mithila Reviews
Mithila Reviews is a journal devoted to science fiction and speculative writing. They appeal to explore speculative elements that explore ´´the interstitial spaces of politics, identity, and culture and reflect the diverse experiences, perspectives, and nuances of the world we live in today´´
- Genre: Speculative fiction, poetry, and essays centered around stories, books, movies, television series, arts, comics, and other media, with speculative elements
- Compensation : If/when their Patreon funds permit, they pay $10 for original poetry, essays, flash stories (under 2500 words), and reprints and $10-$50 for original stories between 4000-8000 words or longer.
- Guidelines for submission : https://mithilareview.com/submission-guidelines/
Out of print
Out of print is an online platform (quarterly) that specializes in short stories connected to the Indian subcontinent. Since its launch in 2010, Out of print has vouched to establish a platform where the traditions of storytelling layer a collective contemporary voice.
- Genre : Short stories
- Guidelines for submission : https://www.outofprintmagazine.co.in/submission-guidelines.html
Spark is a non-commercial online literary magazine established to explore Words, World, and Wisdom. Since its conceptualization in 2009, they publish creative writing bound to each other by a common theme.
- Genre : Creative writing
- Guidelines for submission : https://sparkthemagazine.com/write-for-us/ (No open calls as of Nov 2022)
Storizen is an online monthly literary magazine that publishes a physical magazine annually.
- Genre: Book Reviews, Short Stories, Poetry, PR/Events coverage, and Author contributions other than stories and poetry
- G uidelines for submission: https://www.storizen.com/submission-guidelines/
The Bombay Literary Magazine
Bombay literary magazine is an ezine dedicated to promoting writers through their fine work. Though most of their works are concentrated in South Asia, they welcome talent from all over the world.
- Genre: Fiction, poetry, and graphic fiction
- Guidelines for submission: https://bombaylitmag.com/submit/ (closed for submission as of Nov 2022)
The Bombay Review
The Bombay Review is an internationally esteemed literary magazine publishing some of the finest creative writing from around the world. They accept stories for submission centered around themes and are on a rolling basis hence do not have submission deadlines.
- Genre : Fiction, Poetry, Photography, Essays, Excerpts, etc
- Submission fee : NIL
- Guidelines for submission : https://thebombayreview.com/submit/
The Little Magazine
Little magazine is an online literary journal with a special interest in work in translation from languages other than English. They also encourage original fiction in English.
- Genre : essays, fiction, poetry, novellas, film and theatre scripts
- Guidelines for submission: http://www.littlemag.com/forms/submit.html
Punch Magazine
The Punch Magazine is an online monthly journal that endeavors to promote arts and literary and cultural traditions around the world and publishes various speculative writings with the core belief that these efforts are all connected and the process of creating good art is similar across disciplines.
- Genre: Essay, fiction, non-fiction, poetry, reviews, photos, and videos
- Submission fee: Undisclosed
- Guidelines for submission : https://thepunchmagazine.com/contribute#submissio
UNIverse journal
The UNIverse journal is a quarterly open-accessible, multidisciplinary journal focusing on English Literature. They strive to connect passionate writers with passionate readers who would in turn support their work.
- Genre: original Research papers, articles, book reviews, Interviews, Poems, Short-Story and Non-fiction
- Guidelines for submission: http://www.theuniversejournal.com/submission.php
Nether is an online quarterly that curates pieces based on predetermined excellent and alluring themes. They publish literature, art, photography, and work that overlaps across these forms.
- Genre : Literature, art, photography
- Guidelines for submission : https://netherquarterly.com/about/
The Madras Mag
The Madras Mag is an independent literary magazine that publishes at least one debut author each month and is committed to finding and promoting new literary voices.
- Genre: All genres
- Guidelines for submission : https://madrasmag.in/submit/
Himal Southasian
Himal Southasian is South Asia’s first regional magazine on politics and culture. For the last prestigious 30 years, Himal challenged and reconstructed the authoritarian and nationalistic orthodoxies and strive to cross border pro-people nature of possibilities.
- Genre: Long-form reportage, political analysis, essays and opinions, interviews, photo essays, reviews, and videos that relate to South Asia and fiction
- Compensation :- USD 100-150 for an article
- Guidelines for submission :- https://www.himalmag.com/submissions/
Setu Bilingual
Setu is a prestigious bilingual literary journal that ´´as the name indicates, is here to connect the extreme ends of the words, written and spoken across the globe.´´ Setu publishes separate monthly editions of English and Hindi.
- Genre : Theoretical or research articles, book reviews, interviews, poems, and short fiction
- Guidelines for submission : https://www.setumag.com/p/write-for-setu.html
Did You know? Purple Pencil Project also accepts submissions for essays, short stories, and book reviews.
The Aleph Review is an annual anthology of creative literature that provides a space for emerging writers, poets, and artists to have their work published next to more established ones.
- Genre: Currently closed for entries
- Guidelines for submission : https://www.thealephreview.com/contribute
Qissa is an online literary publication with a focus on South India. They accept relevant and innovative short fiction, poetry, and essays from around the world.
- Genre: Short fiction, poetry, and essays
- Guidelines for submission:- https://qissamlbr.wixsite.com/home
Reading Room Co.
Reading Room Co. is an independent online publication platform dedicated to exploring literature, politics, society, and culture based in Kerala. They try to establish a progressive space that encourages writers to explore and experiment with their creativity as well as develop a strong sense of inquiry.
- Genre: Original, previously unpublished fiction, essays, reviews, and poetry
- Guidelines for submission: https://readingroomco.com/submissions/
Haritha T Chandran
4 responses.
Thanks H. It was quite very much helpful.
Gulmohur Quarterly too!
Really it created an interest in me .
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The Literature Times

Top Literary Magazines in India to Submit Writing
Table of Contents
Introduction: Literary Magazines in India
Literary magazines in India have long been a beacon of creative expression, providing a platform for both emerging and established writers to share their work with a broader audience. These literary gems are not only a testament to the rich literary heritage of the country but also an avenue for showcasing the diverse voices and stories that make up the cultural tapestry of India. From their humble beginnings to their influential present, Indian literary magazines have played a pivotal role in shaping the literary landscape of the nation.
The Evolution of Indian Literary Magazines
The journey of Indian literary magazines began several decades ago, with the first wave of magazines dedicated to literature and culture emerging during the colonial era. Over the years, these magazines evolved to reflect the changing social and political landscape of the country. What started as platforms for showcasing poetry, short stories, and essays have now expanded to include translations, experimental writing, and pieces that delve into contemporary issues.
In recent times, the advent of technology has brought about a new era for literary magazines in India . The rise of online platforms has not only made literary magazines in India more accessible to a global audience but has also enabled a wider range of voices to be heard. This digital transformation has given writers the opportunity to submit their work electronically, easing the process of getting published and encouraging a more inclusive literary space.
Read our new blog: Self Publishing a Book
Why Submit to Literary Magazines?
Opening doors to visibility.
Submitting your writing to Indian literary magazines can be a game-changer for writers seeking recognition. Literary magazines offer a platform where your work can be discovered by readers, agents, and publishers. If your piece gets published in a reputable magazine, it could potentially catch the eye of industry professionals looking for fresh voices.
Refining Your Craft
The editorial process of literary magazines can provide invaluable feedback to help you improve your writing skills. Editors often work closely with writers to refine their work, providing insights and suggestions that can contribute to your growth as a writer.
- Getting Featured in Magazines
- Book Marketing
- Book Publishing
Top Literary Magazines to Submit Writing in India
1. granta india.
As a branch of the renowned Granta magazine, Granta India is dedicated to curating and presenting contemporary Indian writing in all its forms. Its pages host a vibrant mix of fiction, non-fiction, and poetry that reflects the multifaceted cultural landscape of India. Granta India serves as a platform for both emerging and established writers to share their perspectives, stories, and experiences. With its finger on the pulse of modern Indian literature, Granta India continues to foster literary excellence and offer readers a window into the rich tapestry of Indian narratives.
2. The Caravan
Blending journalism and literature seamlessly, The Caravan is a literary magazine that delivers long-form essays, reportage, and literary pieces that tackle a wide range of topics. Known for its commitment to in-depth exploration, The Caravan provides a platform for incisive analysis, thought-provoking narratives, and literary prowess. This magazine welcomes submissions that transcend boundaries, offering both writers and readers a chance to engage with narratives that reflect the complexities of contemporary society.
3. Out of Print
Celebrating the experimental and the translated, Out of Print serves as a hub for writers and readers interested in exploring innovative literary forms. The magazine specializes in publishing fiction, essays, and poetry that challenge conventions and push the boundaries of language and narrative. By providing a space for work that might otherwise go unnoticed, Out of Print contributes to the evolution of literature in India by introducing readers to new voices and perspectives.
4. Indian Quarterly
With its diverse array of genres, Indian Quarterly offers readers a holistic literary experience. This magazine features fiction, poetry, essays, and interviews that span a wide spectrum of themes and styles. From introspective explorations to societal commentaries, Indian Quarterly aims to capture the essence of Indian literary creativity and provide a platform for writers to express their thoughts and imaginations.
5. Himal Southasian
Sitting at the crossroads of politics, culture, and literature, Himal Southasian is a unique platform that encourages critical thinking and nuanced perspectives. This magazine engages with regional voices and narratives that often remain untold, fostering dialogue and understanding across South Asia. With an array of content that includes essays, poetry, fiction, and more, Himal Southasian is a vital bridge between literature and the socio-political discourse of the region.
6. The Bombay Literary Magazine
Bridging literature and visual art, The Bombay Literary Magazine offers an innovative approach to contemporary poetry. By exploring the interplay between words and visuals, this magazine provides a space for poets and artists to collaborate and create unique expressions. The magazine’s commitment to experimenting with form and content makes it an exciting avenue for those seeking to engage with the intersection of art and literature.
7. Papercuts
Showcasing emerging voices from South Asia, Papercuts is a literary magazine that thrives on introducing readers to new genres, styles, and perspectives. Through its commitment to diversity, Papercuts invites submissions that reflect the dynamic literary scene of the region. Whether it’s short stories, flash fiction, or creative non-fiction, Papercuts provides a platform for writers to explore the myriad facets of storytelling.
8. The Little Magazine
Embodying the spirit of independence, The Little Magazine is a space where poetry, fiction, essays, and translations come together to form a tapestry of literary expression. The magazine values creative freedom and diversity, showcasing a wide range of voices that contribute to the ever-evolving landscape of Indian literature.
Read our new blog: How to Find a Publisher for Your Book
9. Muse India
Operating as an online literary magazine, Muse India curates poetry, fiction, and critical essays from Indian writers. By offering a digital platform, Muse India has the ability to reach a global audience and showcase the depth and breadth of Indian literary talent. The magazine’s dedication to fostering intellectual discourse and creative exploration is evident in the range of genres it features.
10. Vayavya
Celebrating linguistic diversity, Vayavya is a multilingual magazine that publishes works in various Indian languages. By providing a platform for regional voices, Vayavya showcases the richness of Indian literature beyond the confines of a single language. With genres ranging from poetry to essays, Vayavya highlights the unique narratives that emerge from different linguistic traditions.
How to Submit Your Writing to Literary Magazines
- Research: Explore the magazines to find the one that aligns with your genre and style.
- Read Guidelines: Carefully read the submission guidelines on their websites to understand their requirements.
- Prepare Your Work: Edit and format your work as per their guidelines.
- Compose a Cover Letter: Write a concise cover letter introducing yourself and your submission.
- Submit: Follow their submission process, which usually involves emailing your work along with the cover letter.
- Wait Patiently: Literary magazines receive numerous submissions, so be patient while waiting for a response.
Read our blog: Top Self Publishing Companies in India
Submitting your writing to Indian literary magazines can be a fulfilling step on your writing journey. It can help you reach a wider audience, receive constructive feedback, and potentially open doors to further opportunities in the literary world. You can try submitting to these literary magazines. Embrace the process, refine your craft, and let your voice resonate through the pages of these esteemed magazines.
Magazines are the best option to publish short contents. May it be a short story or a poem or an article, the top indian literary magazines accept them all. If you have a good enough content, you can arrange them as a book and can publish it. There are many traditional publishers in India waiting for good and unique content. If not traditional publishers, you may go for self publishing easily. Check for cost of self publishing in India in our latest blog.
Hope you find this article useful. Don’t forget to put your comments and feedback. Each magazine offers a unique lens through which to view the diverse literary landscape of India, making it a worthy endeavor to share your work and be a part of this vibrant literary conversation.
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The Bombay Review

Top Indian/Asian Literary Magazines to submit your Creative Writing to.
Literary magazines are a catalyst to good publishing in any country, functioning as a parallel industry to traditional book publishing. A rich literary magazine landscape comments on writing being taken seriously, and also nurtures a reading market for aspiring writers. Stimulating intellectual conversations, niche catering, lending support to Creative Writing programs, and providing a platform to be heard, or well, read; surround the larger role of magazines.
In India, South Asia, Africa and certain parts of the world, literary magazines may have another role to play. Support writing careers. The magazines are a pillar to graduates of literature, passionate readers, bibliophiles, hobbyists; lending them the shoulder to spring start a probable writing career.
Here, today, we have curated a list of our favorite literary magazines of Indian/Asian origin, publishing steadily for a couple of years. Persons of words in this part of the world, or anywhere else, go ahead and submit your creative writing.
We, The Bombay Review, are also always open to reading your work, publishing your work, and commending your work. Details below.
By Team TBR

The Bombay Review Year established: 2014 Published from: New York City & Mumbai Genres: Fiction, Poetry, Essays, Art, Reviews, Interviews, Culture pieces Submission period: All year Type: Online + Print Website | Instagram | Facebook Submission fee: None Payment: upto $50 for solicited entries Editors: Kaartikeya Bajpai | Rochelle Potkar
30 LITERARY MAGAZINES (Established more than 5 years ago, as of 2020) Short fiction, poetry, translations, reviews, screenplays, essays, and more.
Indian Literature: Sahitya Academy
- Year established: 1954
- Published from: New Delhi, India
- Genres: Poetry, short fiction in English translation and English, critical articles
- Submission period: All year
- Type: Digital + print
- Submission fee: None
- Payment: None
- Editor: Dr. A. J. Thomas
Asymptote Journal
- Year established: 2015
- Published from: Taiwan
- Genres: Unpublished translated poetry, fiction, nonfiction and drama; original English-language nonfiction; visual art
- Type: Digital
- Website
- Editor: Lee Yew Leong
Jaggery Lit
- Year established: 2013
- Published from: India
- Genres: Fiction, poetry, essays, art, reviews
- Submission period: May 1 to July 1
- Submission fee: $25/piece
- Payment: $100 for fiction, $25 for nonfiction/poetry/art/reviews
- Editor: Anu Mahadev
Cha: An Asian Literary Journal (Could be defunct)
- Year established: 2007
- Published from: Hong Kong + London, UK
- Genres: Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction
- Editor: Tammy Ho Lai-Ming
Spark Magazine
- Year established: 2010
- Genres: Short fiction, art
- Submission period: On a break, currently not accepting submissions
- Editors: Anupama Krishnakumar and Vani Viswanathan
The Indian Quarterly
- Published from: Mumbai, India
- Genres: Essays, features, essay-reviews, photo-essays, travelogue, poetry, fiction
- Type: Print + Digital
- Editor: Unknown
Reading Hour
- Year established: 2011
- Published from: Bangalore, India
- Genres: Short fiction, poetry, book reviews
- Editor: Unknown
eFiction India
- Published from: Gurgaon, India
- Genres: Essays, fiction, poetry, art and criticism, interviews, book reviews
- Editor: Nikhil Sharda
The Bangalore Review
- Genres: Fiction, creative non-fiction, translations, essays
- Submission fee: $3
- Editor: Suhail Rasheed
Himal South Asian Mag
- Year established: 1987
- Published from: Colombo, Sri Lanka
- Genres: Long-form reportage, political analysis, essays and opinion, interviews, photo essays, reviews, fiction
- Website
- Payment: USD 100-150
- Editors: Kanak Mani Dixit
Muse India
- Year established: 2004
- Published from: Secunderabad, Telangana, India
- Genres: Poetry, short fiction, essays, conversations with writers, book reviews
- Editor: Atreya Sarma U
Helter Skelter
- Published from: Mumbai
- Genres: Helter Skelter Anthology of New Writing: Short fiction, poetry
- Submission period: Varies, usually November to January
- Editor: Arun Kale
The Alipore Post
- Published from: Unknown
- Genres: Poetry, art, photography, comics, interviews, prose
- Submission period: Check website
- Submission fee:
- Editor: Rohini Kejriwal
Open Road Review: (To be verified)
- Editor: Kulpreet Yadav
Cafe Dissensus
- Published from: New York City, USA
- Genres: Audio-visual (interviews, conversations), Political articles/essays, Photo essays
- Type: Online
- Editors: Mary Ann Chacko, Mosarrap Hossain Khan
- Published from: Singapore
- Genres: Short Stories, Essays on literary criticism, Poetry, Non-fiction – Travelogues, Memoirs, Personal essays, Book Reviews, Author Interviews
- Editor: Zafar Anjum
- Year established: 1984
- Published from: London, UK
- Genres: Articles, essays, journalistic prose, short fiction and poetry
- Submission period: October onwards
- Editor: Malachi McIntosh
The Bombay Literary Magazine
- Genres: Fiction, poetry
- Submission period: Varies, currently closed
- Payment: Nil
- Editor – Tanuj Solanki
The Mithila Review
- Year established: 2016
- Published from: Delhi, India
- Genres: Fiction, poetry, non-fiction
- Submission period: Varies, updates on website. Currently open for poetry, closed for fiction (opens August 2020)
- Payment: Nil to $10 for original poetry, essays, flash stories; $50 for original stories
- Editor: Salik Shah
Nether (To be verified)
- Year established: 2009
- Genres: Fiction, poetry, art, photography
- Type: Digital (quarterly) + Print (annual)
- Editor: Avinab Datta-Areng
Vayavya (To be verified)
- Year established: 2011, first published in 2013
- Genres: Poetry, prose on poetry, interviews
- Editor: Mihir Vatsa
The Little Magazine (To be verified)
- Year established: 2001
- Genres: Essays, fiction, poetry, novellas, film and theatre scripts
- Editor: Antara Dev Sen, Pratik Kanjilal
Setu Billingual
- Published from: Pittsburgh, USA
- Genres: Research articles, book reviews, interviews, poems and short fiction
- Submission period:
- Editor: Anurag Sharma, Sunil Sharma
The Punch Magazine (formerly Byword)
- Year established: 2016 (formerly Byword)
- Genres: Articles (Non-fiction, Poetry, Interviews), Reviews, Photos, Videos, Fiction
- Submission fee: Small donations are welcome
- Editor: Shireen Quadri
The Aleph Review
- Year established: 2017
- Published from: Pakistan
- Genres: Prose, poetry
- Submission period: January to July
- Editor: Mehvash Amin
The Missing Slate:
- Genres: Poetry, fiction, non-fiction, photography, visual arts
- Editor: Moeed Tariq, Noah Klein
Out of Print
- Genres: Fiction
- Editor: Indira Chandrasekhar
Anak Sastra
- Published from: Florida, USA
- Genres: Short fiction, creative nonfiction, comics, poems, book reviews
- Editor: Kris Williamson
The Asian American Literary Review (Under construction)
- Published from: USA
- Submission period: Jun 1 to Aug 31
- Website Currently under construction
- Payment: Contributor copies only
- Editor: Lawrence-Minh Bὺi Davis and Gerald Maa
If we have missed out any literary magazine, which we surely have, please comment below with details and we will take a look. Do note, that we are not considering literary magazines/journals which are less than 3-5 years old. The above list in not in any particular order.

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Share this:, 24 thoughts on “ top indian/asian literary magazines to submit your creative writing to. ”.
Hello sir, Kavya Kishor (Magazine) may should to add on this list, This is a 3 years old magazine from Bangladesh.
Kavya Kishor https://en.kavyakishor.com https://kavyakishor.com [email protected] https://g.co/kgs/3nkyZ3
Published From: Bangladesh Genre: Literary and cultural Submission fee: no Languages: English and Bangla Payment: no Editor: Parvej Husen Talukder
Love this, we need ore structured avenues to express our thoughts minus the noise. Reposting this on my blog https://coldbrewpostcards.wordpress.com/
thanks for sharing such reviews.i like you content.
I think this is a champion among the most basic information for me. What”s more, i”m glad scrutinizing your article.
Thanks TBR. Will help me a lot. Kindly update in future, if any.
Pratik, The Magazine of Contemporary Writing published from Kathmandu missing in the list. http://pratikmagazine.blogspot.com/ https://niralapublications.com/new-booksarrivals/pratik-magazine/pratik-magazine-2/
- Pingback: Which are the Very Best Literary Journals? - Letter Review
Nice info. Keep sharing updates.
We, The Cognitive Quotient, are a collaborative family of litterateurs, poets, storytellers and budding authors. In this world of compulsions and norms, we strive to build a community where ‘literariness’ is our colour and ‘freedom of speech’ is our right. Peep in and have the pleasure to plunge into the depths of consciousness and art, colour the world in your own perceptual mysticism, and join a community of creative and passionate followers! We feel, we write, we publish! This is a small step of our own to make this world a better and colorful place to live in through our artistry.
The Hyderabad Review also missing.
Hello, at present the list is only including zines and ventures at least 5 years old. Another list is upcoming for new ones, where we will include this. Thanks for informing us!
Reblogged this on .
Thank you so much for the list ! Great post!
Thank you! We have a few more lists in case you want to check out.
Welcome! Sure !
Hello TBr! thank you for the wonderful list. I have a question? I read somewhere that you are looking for smaller magazines to fund and sponsor, how can I apply for that? We just registered last year and see about 50 submissions every month. I have mailed you the proposal, can you please look at it? and tell me if I can be considered? I don’t require the entire 3000 dollars, just enough to pay for premium domain name and website hosting which is about 280 dollars
Hello, please send us a mail at [email protected] , with a cover letter, proposal, and other details.
Hi, thanks for the list. However, there’s an error here. Jaggery doesn’t charge a submission fee.
Informative enlistment for a week old beginners like us___Provincialcreatives.wordpress.com. Editor: Sabreen Ahmed, Nagaon, Assam, India. Email- [email protected]
I think Indian Rumination journal is missing here.
A good piece of info. Kindly keep me posted of updates from time to time.
Thank you for this! Can I submit for Iraq issue of bombay review even though I am from Iran?
This is brilliant! I have been looking for an updated list for long! Thank you Kaartikeya and TBR!
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40 Literary Magazines to Submit Short-stories, Non fiction and Poetry in India
- April 20, 2020
- 75 Comments
Curious about literary magazines to submit short stories, non-fiction, and poetry in India? Then this post is for you.
Well done! By completing the piece you have been working on, you have completed the first step towards getting published. Now, let’s move toward the second step.
Introduction
Have you written something, but don’t know where to publish it? Maybe you’ve written poems you want to publish? Or a short story? Or maybe it is a work of non-fiction you want to publish on a credible platform? Further, do you wonder if you can get paid for your work? Or if there are literary magazines that focus specifically on India / South Asia?
We encountered these questions repeatedly in our workshops and from the participants of our various programs. So, we put together this list which we update regularly.
Why should you submit to literary magazines?
Irrespective of the genre of creative writing, getting published is very important for a writer. For many short-story writers, finding a good home for their work matters a lot. Even if having a published book to your credit is your ultimate goal, having short stories/poetry/non-fiction published in literary journals is an important milestone. It helps you add to your author profile and create a reader base that comes in handy when your book is released.

Getting published in prominent, well-recognized sites boosts your confidence. Exposure means people read your work, and that means feedback. That in turn helps you hone your writing skills.
Before we share the list of literary journals and magazines where you can submit your short stories, a few quick points:
- The magazines/journals have been listed in alphabetical order.
- All the below-mentioned magazines accept submissions only in English. In some cases, they accept translations too but those also need to be in English. We have a separate list of Literary Magazines in Hindi.
- At the time of publishing this article, all the mentioned literary journals and magazines did not have any submission fees unless specifically mentioned (sometimes in the case of annual print editions). However, that is subject to change at the discretion of the editorial team of the respective journals and magazines.
- Most of the magazines accept short stories across genres, however, some are specific to certain genres and themes of their issues. These have been highlighted in their respective cases below.
- Currently, we have included only the literary journals and magazines which accept submissions from writers based in India and South Asia and are based in South Asia. In the future, we might come up with a similar list for international submissions also.
- Most of the magazines have submission periods during which they are open to submissions and for the rest of the year, they are not. Do read the submission guidelines before submitting.
- Last, but not least, the list is dynamic and we will keep updating it from time to time. In case you feel we have missed out on any of your favorites, do let us know in the comments.

{Check out our post about 15 Contests and Awards for Poetry in India }
Disclaimer: Himalayan Writing Retreat has no affiliation with any of these magazines or websites. We have solely collated a list as a reference guide for writers. In case of any queries, please write to the concerned magazines on the email ids provided on their sites directly. Team HWR will be unable to respond to any queries regarding your submissions to them.
List of Literary Magazines to submit Short-Stories, Book Reviews, and Essays.
Originally conceived as a magazine “by writers for writers” 1455 has greatly expanded its scope and seeks to celebrate storytelling of all types. Each issue of Movable Type revolves around a theme, and 1455 welcomes submissions year-round. Each issue will be accompanied by a live (virtual) reading, featuring the contributors.
- Submission Guidelines: 1455’s Movable Type eMagazine (1455litarts.org)
- Genre: Poetry, fiction, essays, memoir, visual art, photography, etc
- Compensation: NIL
- Literary Quotient: Excellent
Asia Literary Review
The Asia Literary Review is an independent quarterly literary magazine publishing the best contemporary writing from and about Asia, in English and in translation.
- Submission Guidelines: https://asialiteraryreview.com/submissions
- Genre: All (Including translations)
Auroras and Blossoms
Auroras and Blossoms run regular submission calls and accept six-word stories, essays, flash fiction, short stories, photography, paintings, drawings, and poetry.
- Submission Guidelines: https://abpoetryjournal.com/submit/
- Genre: All but the content should be positive content, as in stimulating, optimistic, confident, uplifting, inspirational.
- Compensation: They offer ongoing royalties and complimentary PDF copies of anthologies to selected artists
- Submission Fees: $6 per piece (or $15 for three pieces)
Antiserious
Antiserious is a quarterly magazine of essays, fiction, and poetry, and a blog that is a web archive of Indian culture and politics.
- Submission Guidelines: https://antiserious.com/antiserious-submit-4ea3a20c087f
- Literary Quotient: Good
Ashvamegh- International Journal & Literary Magazine
Ashvamegh is a monthly literary journal cum magazine that aims at keeping the flight of literature always at the height that it deserves.
- Submissions guidelines: https://ashvamegh.net/submission/
- something that invokes terrorism
- something that deliberately insults the sentiments of a religious community
- something that calls for violence in any of its kind
- unnecessary use of abusive words
- Literary Quotient: Medium
Borderless Journal
Borderless is a literary journal based in Singapore accepting submissions from across the world.
- Submission Guidelines: https://borderlessjournal.com/submission-guidelines/
Cafe Dissensus
Cafe Dissensus is an alternative magazine dealing in art, culture, literature, and politics. It’s based in New York City, USA. We DISSENT. The magazine also runs a blog, Cafe Dissensus Everyday .
- Submission Guidelines: https://cafedissensus.com/forthcoming-issuecall-for-contributions/
- Genre : All
Contemporary Literary Journal of India
CLRI is a literary journal in English and publishes a wide variety of creative pieces including research papers, critical essays, stories, poems, book reviews, film reviews, arts, and photography of the best quality of the time.
- Submission Guidelines: www.literaryjournal.in/index.php/clri/sg
- Submission Fees: Any submission for their annual print edition has a reading fee of an unspecified amount.
- Genre: All ( except any articles that reflect pornography, use racial language, hatred, or any sorts of aversion.)
CHA: An Asian Literary Journal
Cha is dedicated to publishing quality creative works from and about Asia. At this time, we can only accept work in English or translated into English.
- Submission Guidelines: https://www.asiancha.com/wp/submission-guidelines/
- Genre: All (Though there are contests organised regularly which are theme-specific- the contest entries are also a part of the journal, if selected)
{Check out our post about 15 Contests and Awards for Short-Stories in India }
efiction India
eFiction India is a professionally produced independent magazine devoted to showcasing the work of writers with a connection to the Indian subcontinent.
- Submission Guidelines: http://www.efictionindia.in/submit/
- Genre: All but should be relevant to the theme of the issue. Writing should adhere to a mild R rating. Sexuality, violence, and unsavory language are acceptable but contributors should avoid the explicit and the gratuitous. Also, no erotica.

Helter Skelter
Helter Skelter is an online magazine with a focus on independent and alternative cultures in India. The scope of content includes films, books, theatre, food, music, art, and travel — personal essays, social commentary, human interest pieces, interviews, features, reviews, photography, and lots more.
- Submission Guidelines: About | Helter Skelter Magazine
- Compensation: Payment has not been mentioned on their site.
Himal South Asian Mag
Himal Southasian is Southasia’s first and only regional magazine of politics and culture.
- Submission Guidelines: https://www.himalmag.com/submissions/
- Compensation: Not all are paid. It is at their discretion to decide which write-up will be paid for. On average Himal pays USD 100-150 for an article, subsequent to publication.
Indian Literature (Sahitya Akademi)
Indian Literature is Sahitya Akademi’s bi-monthly journal. Considered to be India’s oldest and the only journal of its kind, it features translations in English of poetry, fiction, drama, and criticism from 23 Indian languages besides original writing in English.
- Submission guidelines: http://sahitya-akademi.gov.in/journals/indianliterature.jsp
- Genre: All
Indian Review
Indian Review, as the name suggests is a literary journal based in India.
- Submission Guidelines: https://indianreview.in/submit-your-work/
- Genre: All except genre fiction ( e.g. horror, science fiction, mysteries) and any work containing explicit or erotic language
- Compensation: If they are able to get sponsors, they aim to pay.
{Check out our interview with Kritika Pandey, the 2020 Commonwealth Short Story Prize Winner }
Inkspire is an online literary journal for aspiring Indian writers from across the world.
- Submission guidelines: https://www.inkspiremag.com/p/submit_21.html
Indian Ruminations
Indian Ruminations is a monthly online literary journal especially dedicated to Indian English literature.
- Submission Guidelines : http://www.indianruminations.com/submission/submit-form/
- Genre: All (prefer works that reflect different aspects of social issues with literary appeal)

Though primarily a publishing house, the Juggernaut platform also allows you to upload your short stories and share your work with readers.
- Submission Guidelines: https://write.juggernaut.in/
- Genre: All (including erotica)
Jaggery Lit
Jaggery Lit is a DesiLit Arts and Literature Journal
- Submission Guidelines: https://jaggery.submittable.com/submit
- Compensation: Paid ($100 for every fiction published)
Joao-Roque Literary Journal
Established in 2017, Joao-Roque Literary Journal celebrates Goa through its writings. They invite submissions from residents of Goa, Goans in diaspora, and non-Goans exploring Goa-related issues.
- Submission Guidelines: https://www.joaoroqueliteraryjournal.com/submit
- Genre: All ( Writing has to be related to Goa)
{Check out the list of 50 Literary Awards in India }
Headquartered in Singapore, Kitaab provides a writing and publishing platform to emerging and seasoned writers from South Asia to express themselves creatively.
- Submission Guidelines : https://kitaab.org/submissions/
- Compensation: NIL (Some of the stories will go into the upcoming anthologies/journals by Kitaab and authors will be paid royalties for their contributions.)
Muse India is a literary e-journal with the primary objective of showcasing Indian writings in English and in English translation to a broad-based global readership.
- Submissions guideline : http://www.museindia.com/MuseIndia/submission
- Compensation: NIL (However, all the writers submitting their work should be registered Members of the journal. If they are not already so, they should enroll as Members. Membership is free.)
Mithila Review
Mithila Review is an international science fiction and fantasy magazine founded in late 2015 with focus on speculative fiction and poetry.
- Submission guidelines: https://mithilareview.com/submission-guidelines/
- Genre: Speculative fiction ( science fiction, fantasy, science fantasy, horror, alternative history, magic realism, uncanny and weird)
- Compensation: If/when their Patron funds permit, $10 for original poetry, essays, flash stories (under 2.5K words), and reprints; $50 for original stories between 4-8K words or longer.
Out of Print
Out of Print magazine is an online platform for short fiction with a connection to the Indian subcontinent.
- Submission guidelines: http://www.outofprintmagazine.co.in/submission-guidelines.html
- Genre: All except offensive, excessively violent or sexually explicit writing.
Poetry without Fear
This is a bilingual online quarterly magazine of poetry in English and Assamese.
- Submission Guidelines : https://poetrywithoutfear.com/guidelines-for-submission/
- Genre: Poetry, Prose
- Submission Fees: A minimum fee for submissions for English translations, none for Assamese poem

Spark- The Magazine
Spark is an online literary magazine exploring W ord, W orld, and W isdom.
- Submission Guidelines: http://www.sparkthemagazine.com/write-for-us/
- Genre: All but has to match the specific theme of the current issue.
Storizen is a literary ezine based in India which also has a physical magazine released annually.
- Submission Guidelines : https://www.storizen.com/submission-guidelines/
The Caravan
The Caravan is India’s first long-form narrative journalism magazine which also publishes short stories.
- Submission Guidelines : https://caravanmagazine.in/pages/submit-to-us
- Compensation: Unspecified
{Check out the list of 16 Publishing Houses for Poetry in India }
The Bombay Literary Magazine
The magazine largely publishes literary fiction, as well as some poetry and book reviews, and encourages submissions on topics which are less spoken about.
- Submission Guidelines: http://bombayliterarymagazine.com/?page_id=10
The Bombay Review
The Bombay Review is a bi-monthly online literary magazine publishing short fiction and poetry, with annual print anthologies.
- Submission guidelines: https://thebombayreview.com/submit/
The Bangalore Review
TBR publishes exemplary writing from all over.
- Submission Guidelines: http://bangalorereview.com/submissions/
- Submission fee: $ 3
The Little Magazine
The Little Magazine encourages writers to send in their work from all over the world.
- Submission Guidelines : http://www.littlemag.com/forms/submit.html
- Genre: All with a special interest is work in translation from languages other than English.
The Lookout Journal
The Lookout Journal is a quarterly magazine that invites submissions on a specific theme for the issue.
- Submission guidelines: https://www.thelookoutjournal.com/contact
- Genre: Theme specific for every issue
The Curious Reader
The Curious Reader publishes intelligent, thought-provoking, and well-written original articles related to books, literature, and writing.
- Submission Guidelines: https://www.thecuriousreader.in/write-for-us/
- Compensation: Pays unspecified amount on a per word basis
The Meraki Magazine
The Meraki Magazine welcomes the love of literature, aiming to bring forth raw imaginative & artistic sparks of people in English and Urdu language.
- Submission Guidelines : https://themerakimagazine.com/submission/
{Here’s a list of 50 Traditional Publishing Houses in India }
The Shanghai Literary Review
The Shanghai Literary Review is a biannual English-language print magazine that features quality creative work from or about Asia and introduces new voices to the critical conversation on world literature and publishes it both in print and online.
- Submission Guidelines: https://www.shanghailiterary.com/submissions/
The Indian Quarterly
Indian Quarterly is aimed at a judicious mix of new and well-established writers and artists, and a balance of Indian and international talent in print.
- Submission Guidelines: http://indianquarterly.com/contact/
The Punch Magazine
The Punch Magazine is an initiative by Punch Art and Culture Foundation and is a monthly digital magazine of arts, literature, and culture featuring fiction, poetry, essays, reviews, and interviews.
- Submission Guidelines: http://thepunchmagazine.com/contribute#submission
- Submission Fees: Undisclosed ( http://thepunchmagazine.com/submission-fee )
The Purple Pencil Project
The Purple Pencil Project aims to talk about literature in various Indian languages through different mediums events, awards, videos, books, merchandise.
- Submission Guidelines: http://www.purplepencilproject.com/general-submission-guidelines/
- Genre: No poetry. Short Stories, Personal Essays, Memoirs, Book Reviews, Reportage are welcome
- Submission Fees: NIL
- Compensation : Undisclosed
The Universal Journal
‘The UNIverse Journal’ is a digital publishing platform that aims to connect passionate writers with passionate readers who will support their work.
- Submission Guidelines : http://www.theuniversejournal.com/submission.php
- Genre: Fiction, poetry, book reviews, and research papers.
The Little Journal of Northeast India
This is a journal featuring art and literary content from Northeast India.
- Submission Guidelines : https://the-little-journal.com/guidelines
- Genre: Fiction, poetry, essays, photo essays, and art.
Chaicopy – MCPH Literary Journal
A bi-annual literary journal dedicated to upcoming voices started in january 2023.
- Submission Guidelines : https://chaicopy.wordpress.com/submission-guidelines/
- Genre: Poetry, fiction, visual art and creative non-fiction
We hope this list takes you one step closer to getting published. Do share this with all your friends who are writers or who aspire to get published and also with those who enjoy reading great literature. You may also want to check out our list of Top Literary Agents .
Here’s wishing more power to your pen!
Featuring images sourced from:
- Unsplash ( Ewan Robertson@ewan121 )
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75 Responses
Please do add our journal to your list which has been in existence for 4 years, is richly curated and rigorously edited. https://www.joaoroqueliteraryjournal.com/
Thank you so much for reaching out! We have added Joao-roque literary journal to the list.
Really thankful to you for sharing the list of various magazines. Hope to get published in the near future. Regards
Wow !! Thanks for providing a platform especially for beginners like me to offer our work.. it’s a great opportunity and I really excited to share some of my work .
kindly add one more great journal
http://www.theuniversejournal.com
The UNIverse Journal
Done. Thanks!
Hey Guys, If you write a story in Hindi, then you can also submit your story on this blog https://abletricks.com/ .
Thanks for your comment, Mithun. We will be publishing a list of non-English Literary Magazines where people can submit their creative writing soon. We have made a note of this, and will include abletricks in that.
Hi Your list of writing platforms has been very helpful for an aspiring writer/poet like me. I am already publishing my short stories and poems in some of the dailies and weeklies in my city. However, I’d like to reach out to a wider audience and improve further.
Thanks Zerine
Glad you found the list of value, Zerine.
Hello there!
I am the co-founder and co-editor of Auroras & Blossoms, a platform dedicated to positive and uplifting art. We accept poetry and short stories all year long. Poetry can be submitted to our Auroras & Blossoms Poetry Journal, while short stories go into our Auroras & Blossoms Creative Arts Journal.
Would you be able to add us to your list?
https://abpoetryjournal.com
Thank you very much for your consideration!
Thanks for writing to us! We have added Auroras and Blossoms to the list.
Thanks for the list What about compiling a list of active literary agents in India to help writers .
You’re a seer! That’s coming up later this month.
Has the list of literary agents been published please
Hi Nirmala, It is up at https://www.himalayanwritingretreat.com/top-literary-agents-in-india/
Thanks a lot for this very useful information to clueless budding writers like me. It’s definitely a beginning for me. Hope to successfully submit my stories.
Please add http://www.histolit.com in your list. I created this website a year ago. Anyone can send Poems, Short Stories, Essays, Travelogues etc.
Thanks for writing to us!
Congratulations for the website. While the idea behind it is really wonderful, we noticed it is still in very nascent stages to be featured in the list. We will revisit this a few months later and review.
Hi, I am a freelance writer. I curated my own website where i publish my blogs based on the buddhist philosophy of which i am a practitioner. The link to my website is : http://www.tellingtales.info I am looking for platforms where i can get my work posted for a wider reach. Please get back to me in case this sounds of relevance to anyone.
Thank you !
Thank you wholeheartedly for sharing the list of various magazines. Dear friend, if you are interested in writing a story in Hindi, you can also submit your story on this blog apnasandesh.com
Hello, I write articles on automobiles and technology, I got good information in your article, I am writing for this website https://www.apnasandesh.com/ , if you are willing to write a story in Hindi, you You can also submit your story on this blog.
You could also add The Little Journal of Northeast India which publishes poems, short stories, art and photos based on or inspired by Northeast India.
Done, thanks Divya!
Very useful list of variety of literary journals. I will try to send my poems in English. Thanks.
Thank you for your time. Please include The Weekly Avocet – every weekend, Editor a prompt, courteous and kind Charles Portolano, Very encouraging to emerging Nature poets. Their guidelines: If you don’t send them, we can’t share them! Share one of your Fall-themed poems, 4 photos, haiku (up to 10), Saving Mother Earth Challenge poems Please read the guidelines before submitting Only one poem, per poet, per season. Please send your submission to [email protected] Or [email protected] Please put (early or late) Fall/your last name in the subject line. Please be kind and address your submission to me, Charles. Thank you. (Just so you know: I do not read work from a poet who doesn’t take the time to address their submission to the editor, who they want to read their work.) Please do not just send a poem, please write a few lines of hello. Please do not have all caps in the title of your poem. Please no more than 45+ lines per poem. Please no religious references. Please use single spaced lines. Please remember, we welcome previously published poems. Please put your name, City/State, and email address under your poem. No Zip codes. Please send your poem in both the body of an email and an attachment. We look forward to reading your Fall submission
Hello! This is a great list, Thank you. I’ve a small collection of poems and short stories and I want to know if I can send it to multiple magazines/journals at the same time. How should I go about this ? I’d appreciate any help. Suchita.
Hi Suchita,
Thank you! Glad you found it to be of value.
You can send your work to multiple magazines/ journals at the same time. Some magazines have a criteria of avoiding multiple submissions at the same time, while some are comfortable accepting them. You can check their submission guidelines about this. However, it is advisable to inform them as soon as your piece is accepted elsewhere so that they can remove it from their evaluation queue.
Hope this helps.
The list is amazing and I am trying a few of them, this list might be a greater help for new writers like me to publish and get a good exposure. I have recently started a blog http://www.longtakes.in/ . Where I have posted a few short stories
Also I have some small poems but don’t know how can send it to a magazine center… Please suggest me…
If you go to the website of the individual magazines, each will have it’s own submission guidelines. All the best!
Thanks for sharing this list. It is great and I also follow few of them, It is a great help for new writers to publish to take good exposure. I appreciate your this great thought. Please continue it.
Very Nice Information..Thanku For Sharing..Have Good Day
The articles you write seem very inspiring. Thanks for writing this article.
I’m a beginner. I write poems on my blog http://www.conceptionsofthebrain.wordpress.com I do hope to get published someday. Thanks for the list.
All the articles in your blog are very good, inspiring and useful. I have been following this blog for many days.
Thank you so much! Glad you have been finding value in our posts.
I like to convert short stories into radio plays- both in Hindi and English…could you connect me with people who are looking out for such writers. Thank You.
While we do not have any specific information about people who are looking out for such writers at the moment, we would encourage you to connect with individual radio stations directly with your pitch. Alternatively, you could also consider reaching out to podcasters who are into story-telling. Some of them also invite guest storytellers to their shows.
I really like what you’ve shared, and that it’s so well organised it’s such a pleasure to read it. Thank you so much. Hope to get published in one of these mags 🙂
It would be great if you could add The Letters Page to your list. We are an online literary journal, and we publish creative pieces which are sent to us as handwritten letters. You can read our submission guidelines here, https://theletters.page/submit/
Thanks for sharing this with us, we will include it in this list.
Hi, Chetan sir!
Hemanya here, from last year’s Himalayan Writing Retreat for teens. Not sure if you remember me considering the number of retreats you’ve organised plus my unusual name, but ok 🙂 anyway, thank you so much for putting this list together! It was a HUGE help. I’ve come quite some distance from where I was during the retreat- I’ve started blogging on a website, will soon make my own blog, working on it, won a 7000 cash prize for an essay contest and been published in Inkspire, one of the magazines here. Tell me if you’d like the links to it, that is, the average writing of a thirteen year old 🙂 The blog posts are absolutely wonderful and I really want to thank you for organising such a beautiful retreat. It changed me. Sorry for being late with the updates but I wanted to have done something before I told you, and I considered writing a mail but I wanted to drop a suggestion as well- why don’t you guys start your own literary mag? You could also publish the first time submitters so you could show them first hand how submissions are made, cover letters and all, I struggled with that a bit. Hope everything’s ‘ight and your book is going great and you haven’t dropped it! My regards to your wonderful team. I regularly tune in to your blog but none has topped the toilet paper and Bollywood translate ones. 🙂 Stay safe.
Many many congratulations Hemanya. That is a lot of achievements in a pretty short period of time. You have some great suggestions and our only challenge is bandwidth, with us being a small team of just three. But thanks for the update and for reaching out.
Keep the writing going!!
Is all these paid ? I mean do I get any remuneration for submitting my work ? I wanted to monetize my write ups so …
Hi Namrita,
Some of them do pay if your write-up is selected for publication. You can go through their submission guidelines before sending your work. The guidelines will have all the details clearly mentioned therein.
Greetings! The Red Megaphone is an initiative that pulls bashful writers into the limelight. We believe that absolutely anyone can write. Our motto is #OpenYourMindOut
Here’s our website: https://www.theredmegaphone.Com/
We would be very grateful and highly honored if you could add us to you amazing list of literary magazines. Thank you!
thank you for the website list where I publish my poetry my little story …
This post was truly worthwhile to read. Being receptive to learning something new every day means that you are open to improvement. Many notable authors you know are readers. So if you are new to writing a new format of fiction, the best thing to do is search for something that can help you. Here are some of the hacks you can incorporate as you come up with a successful short fiction Tips to Come Up with a Successful Short Fiction
thanks for publishing the website list where I also publish story …
Is it also applicable for non India or Asia?
Most of the magazines do accept Asian writers’ works also. Would request you to read the submission guidelines carefully before sending in your work/s.
Hi, are there any which publish in Hindi?
You can check the list of Hindi magazines here: https://www.himalayanwritingretreat.com/literary-magazines-in-hindi/
awesome post, thanks admin.
Creation and Criticism (ISSN: 2455-9687)
[Creation and Criticism (CC), which is a Quarterly International Peer-reviewed Refereed e-Journal Devoted to English Language and Literature, aims at providing an opportunity to the researchers and scholars for sharing their creative and critical views through poems, plays, fiction, interviews, book reviews and research articles.]
Nice article.Thanks for publishing very useful content.
This is a great idea. This will definitely help lot of new writers. I’m also a writer, published three Malayalam books ashanthiyude poomaram in 2017, njngal abhayarthikal in 2019 and covid enthu? Enthukondu? in 2020. You can find it on https://www.dennyvattakunnel.com/ .
Another paying market that accepts a lot of articles is https://www.authormag.com/paying-market/
Awesome resources thanks for sharing.
Nice article. Thanks for publishing very useful content. I am sure this will definately a way to newby writters how to write an artical.
Thank you very much for sharing this awesome information. this is great list.
Literary work is always prays and apreciated . Good to share some magazines that are accepts a Web and Marketing Agency and no-fictional work .
Hello, May I know where I can submit translated work. I have translated a short-story from Assamese to English and searching for a journal to publish it.
Hi Tanushree. We don’t have a specific list of Magazines that accept translations, but you can check the list in this blog itself. I imagine some would be open to translations.
i enjoyed your post
Thanks so much for the list. It is indeed quite exhaustive and the links work. Greatly appreciate the compilation work.
Thanks for the list. We shall be grateful if you would please add the name of ‘Poetry without Fear’ in your list.
All the literary magazines we list accept submissions, but we do not see a submissions page on your website. Without that we cannot list you. Once you add a submissions page please let us know.
Dear Mr. Mahajan, We accept submission through email only. Here is the submission Guidelines page — https://poetrywithoutfear.com/guidelines-for-submission/ Regards,
Thanks for your response. We accept submissions only through email. Here is the Submission Guidelines and email id: https://poetrywithoutfear.com/guidelines-for-submission/
I wish to publish stories written by me
Good to Work.
The edges of the drill machine stalled out in the flotsam and jetsam as it was boring through the rubble of the imploded Silkyara burrow. The weighty drill got from America to get through almost 60 meters of flotsam and jetsam was harmed on Friday and is currently being pulled out, authorities said, adding the last 10-15 meters would need to be broken with hand-held power devices. Manual penetrating would include a specialist entering the generally drilled stretch of the salvage entry, boring for a concise period in the restricted space, and afterward emerging to let another person dominate. Indian Armed force is supposed to complete the manual boring. A unit of Madras Sappers, a specialist gathering of the Corps of Designers of the Indian Armed force, showed up at the site today to aid the salvage tasks. Mahmood Ahmed, overseeing overseer of Public Interstates Framework Improvement Partnership Restricted, said various plans have been set in motion to save the specialists. “Assuming there are no significant obstructions, it will require four days to arrive at the passage through the upward penetrating technique,” he said. Caught for north of 360 hours, the 41 men may now need to hang tight for a few additional days, perhaps weeks, before they are brought out securely. Specialists have said they are protected, with admittance to light, oxygen, food, water and prescriptions. Prompting tolerance, Public Catastrophe The executives Authority (NDMA) part Lt Gen (retd) Syed Ata Hasnain said, “This activity could consume a large chunk of the day. At the point when you are dealing with a mountain, everything is unusual. We never gave any course of events.” At the debacle site, worldwide burrowing master Arnold Dix guaranteed that the specialists would be out “by Christmas”, which is as yet a month away. Vertical penetrating has proactively started and manual boring is supposed to start today after the 25-ton drill boring machine has been removed the flotsam and jetsam. Uttarakhand Boss Pastor Pushkar Singh Dhami said that a plasma shaper is being carried from Hyderabad to eliminate the stuck revolving cutting edges. In the interim, a security umbrella is being laid for the laborers who will respond to the call of manual penetrating. A landline is likewise being set up for the caught men to permit them to talk and stay in contact with their families. 41 ambulances stay on backup at the passage’s entry, prepared to whisk the laborers away to the Chinyalisaur People group Wellbeing Center. An assigned ward has likewise been set up with 41 oxygen-prepared beds, ready to furnish every laborer with brief clinical consideration. Arranged around 30 km from Uttarkashi and a seven-hour drive from Dehradun, the Silkyara burrow is a necessary piece of the focal government’s Singe Dham all-climate street project.
Dear Nashy, If you want to submit your writing to a contest, please go to the contest website and submit there. The place where you have put your writing is just a comment on the blogpost listing these contests. It is not submitted to a contest.
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Best Indian Literary Magazines to Submit Writing
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Table of Contents
Best Indian Literary Magazines – Introduction
Indian literature has a long and rich history. Apart from being a platform for budding writers, literary magazines in India play an important role in promoting and popularising regional literature. The Best Indian Literary Magazines help in preserving the language and culture of a particular region and act as a catalyst for meaningful literary exchange between writers of different regions. In a country as vast and diverse as India, literary magazines provide a much-needed sense of unity and identity.
Best Literary Magazines – The Current Scenario
It is no secret that the world of book publishing is undergoing some big changes. The way that people consume books and magazines is shifting, and print media is feeling the effects. This is especially true for the Literary Magazines, which have always been a tough sell. Historically, literary magazines have been subsidized by universities or other institutions, but that is changing. With the rise of digital media, literary magazines are increasingly feeling the pressure to go online-only or to find new ways to fund themselves.
What is the Biggest Challenge?
This is a problem for literary magazines because, as writer and editor J.W. Crichton points out, “the internet is not a very good place for long-form fiction or poetry.” Long-form writing is harder to find online, and it is harder to get people to pay for it. This is why many literary magazines are struggling to find their place in the new media landscape. But it is also why some literary magazines are thriving.
There are a few things that literary magazines can do to adapt to the new media landscape and ensure their place in the future.
First, they can embracing digital media. This means using social media to reach new readers, posting content online, and making use of promoting the content. Second, they can find new ways to fund themselves. This might include things like crowdfunding, paid subscriptions, or advertising. Third, they can focus on quality. In a world where there is so much content available for free, literary magazines need to make sure that they are offering something that is worth paying for.
It is clear that the world of literary magazines is changing. But with some adaptation, these magazines can still play an important role in the world of literature.
Also Read: Top 5 Websites to Buy Second Hand Books Online
Top 10 Literary Magazines in India
There is no dearth of literary magazines in India. India has a long and rich tradition of literary magazines, with some of them dating back to the 19th century. Many of these magazines are still going strong, and continue to play an important role in promoting and nurturing Indian literature.
However, not all literary magazines in India are created equal. There are some that are clearly better than others, in terms of the quality of writing they publish, the visibility they provide to Indian writers, and the overall impact they have on the literary scene in the country.
In this article, we will take a look at some of the best Indian literary magazines, and what makes them stand out from the rest.
The Hindu Literary Review
The Hindu Literary Review is one of the most respected literary magazines in India. It is published by The Hindu, one of the largest and most respected newspapers in the country. The Hindu Literary Review features articles, essays, and reviews on a wide range of subjects, ranging from politics to art to literature. On Sundays, readers of The Hindu may peruse the Literary Review section of the newspaper. This area includes interviews with writers, reviews of the most recent novels, and other topics pertaining to the literary world.
Visit: https://www.thehindu.com/topic/Literary_Review/
Indian Literature
Indian Literature is a literary magazine published by the Sahitya Akademi, India’s National Academy of Letters. The Sahitya Akademi, often known as India’s National Academy of Letters, puts out a literary magazine in the English language twice every month under the title Indian Literature. It was originally published in 1957, and at the present time, British-Indian journalist Antara Dev Sen is in charge of its editing.
Visit: https://sahitya-akademi.gov.in/journals/indianliterature.jsp
The Little Magazine
The Little Magazine is a relatively newer entrant into the world of Indian literary magazines. It was founded in 2006, with the aim of promoting and publishing new and emerging Indian writers. The Little Magazine has been very successful in achieving this goal, and has published some of the best new writing from India in recent years. TLM is South Asia’s only professionally produced independent print magazine devoted to essays, fiction, poetry, art and criticism. It is also the only publication to offer full-length novellas and film and drama scripts, complete with camera and stage directions.
Visit: http://www.littlemag.com/
Also Read: Top 10 Most Popular Book Genres
Kritya is a literary magazine with a difference. It is devoted entirely to poetry, and features some of the best poetry from India and the world. Kritya also organizes poetry festivals and workshops, and is involved in many other activities that promote and nurture poetry in India. Kritya is an international magazine of poetry that publishes contemporary poetry from India as well as from across the globe. In addition to that, it includes poetry written in several Indian regional languages.
Visit: https://kritya.in/
Contemporary Indian Writing in English
Contemporary Indian Writing in English is one of the most respected literary journals in India. It is published by the Indian Academy of Letters, and features articles, essays, and reviews on a wide range of subjects relating to Indian literature.
The Indian Review of World Literature in English
The Indian Review of World Literature in English is a literary journal published by the Indian Association for the Study of World Literature. The journal features articles, essays, and reviews on a wide range of subjects relating to world
There are many other literary magazines in India that are also worth checking out. These include The Journal of Indian Writing in English, The Quest, and The literaryCriterion.
Visit: https://www.worldlitonline.net/
India Review
India review is another one of top literary magazines in India. They are open for almost all genres except horror and erotica. They have earned a favourable spot in the minds of the readers by consistently delivering high-quality material.
Visit: https://indianreview.in/
Muse India is literary e-journal for Indian writing. They accept writings from their registered members of the journal. Authors may submit manuscripts that conform to the scope and focus of the journal as elaborated in ‘About Us’ section of their website. Manuscripts of literary criticism, essays, interviews, reviews and short fiction should normally not exceed 2500 words in length and adhere to detailed Guidelines.
Visit: https://museindia.com/
The Caravan
They feature a part of fiction and poetry in addition to being a magazine that focuses on politics and culture in India and that is dedicated to long-form journalism. Print and internet submissions are both acceptable formats. Poetry, short tales (no more than 5,000 words), and translations are the forms of writing that are accepted here.
Visit: https://caravanmagazine.in/
India Today Magazine
India Today is a news magazine that is published every week in India and is written in English. It is owned and operated by Living Media India Limited. With a readership of about 8 million, it is India’s most widely read magazine. Its circulation is the highest of any magazine in the country. In 2014, India Today introduced a brand new opinion-focused website on the internet under the name of the DailyO.
Visit: https://www.indiatoday.in/magazine
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I ndian Literature , Sahitya Akademi's bimonthly journal, is India's oldest journal featuring translations in English of poetry, fiction, drama and criticism from twenty-three Indian languages besides original writing in English. We strive to feature the best of Indian literature and Indian writers in our journal, old as well as new. There is hardly any significant Indian author who has not been featured in the pages of this 65-year-old journal.
Our journal offers a feast of literature with short stories, poetry, book reviews, plays, travelogue, essays, author interviews, tributes to writers and excerpts from novels and autobiographical work. Indian Literature is also a highly valued source of reference for literature in India and is essential for libraries and for discriminating readers, researchers and students of literature.
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Poems (not more than 6), short stories in English translation and English, and critical articles on Indian literature (not exceeding 3500 words) may be emailed as a Word attachment to [email protected] along with a brief bio-note (50-70 words) and photographs of the author and the translator. English translations must be accompanied by a letter from the original author granting permission to publish the translations in Indian Literature.
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20 Places to Submit Creative Writing in India

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In the ’70s, one of our most well-known poets, Jayanta Mahapatra, started a journal of Indian Writing in English called Chandrabhaga because there was no dedicated magazine for Indian poetry. He used to send his poems abroad which proved expensive and difficult.
For years, Chandrabhaga provided a platform for Indian writers. Many poets who are established today published their first poems in that magazine. Today, there is a growing number of literary magazines in the subcontinent that are either solely devoted to creative writing or run regular sections of original work.
At Helter Skelter , we focus on independent and alternative culture in India, but we’ve also been publishing original short-fiction and poetry as part of our New Writing series for close to three years . We thought it would be great to compile a list of a few other magazines that are interested in creative writing from the subcontinent. The publications listed below are all either based in India or actively seek work with a connection to the place. Each magazine has its own niche which one can get a sense of by reading some of their previous issues. Editors are often writers themselves and we have included their names here should you want to look up their writing.
Out of Print Magazine
Based out of India, this magazine provides a platform for writers of short fiction with a connection to the subcontinent. Since 2010, they have published an issue every quarter (March, June, September, December).
Editors: Indira Chandrasekhar, Samhita Arni, Leela Levitt, and Ram Sadasiv Format: Online Genre: Fiction (stories between 1,000 and 4,000 words)
The Little Magazine
The Little Magazine has been publishing contemporary South Asian writing across genres since 2000. It is possibly the only place that publishes full-length novellas and scripts, complete with camera or stage directions.
Editors: Antara Dev Sen and Pratik Kanjilal Format: Print Genres: Fiction, poetry, novellas, film and theatre scripts
The Caravan
They are an Indian magazine of politics and culture that is devoted to longform journalism, and publishes a fiction and poetry section.
Formats: Print and online Genres: Poetry, fiction (short stories no longer than 5,000 words), and translations
Antiserious
They look for work that “believes in the beauty of brevity” and struggles with the “authoritarian rule of the serious”. They are closed for submissions at the moment, but their reading period begins on August 1, 2016, and ends on January 31, 2017. They will be publishing an issue in July that they are working on at the moment.
Editors: Sumana Roy, Debojit Dutta, and Manjiri Indurkar Format: Online Genres: Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and translations
Based in Bombay, Nether publishes literature, art, photography, and work that overlaps across these forms.
Editors: Avinab Dutta, Divya Nadkarni, Mohit Parikh, and Ujjal Nihil Format: Print and online Genre: Text across genres
Based in New Delhi, Vayavya publishes poetry and art three times a year (February/ March for Spring, June/ July for Summer, and November/ December for winter). They confess a fondness for poets who have never published their work before.
Editors: Mihir Vatsa (poetry), Alex Nodopaka (art), Avradeep Bhowmik Format: Online Genre: Poetry
Cha: An Asian Literary Journal
The first Hong Kong-based literary journal in English has a strong emphasis on Asia-centric creative work and work by Asian writers and artists.
Editor: Tammy Ho Lai-Ming, Jeff Zroback, Eddie Tay Format: Online Genres: Poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction
Asia Literary Review
The Asia Literary Review publishes writing from, about, and related to Asia.
Editor: You can see the details of their entire editorial team here . Format: Print and online Genress: Poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, memoir, and travel writing
Open Road Review
They are a South Asian magazine which has published more than 300 writers from more than 20 countries since 2011.
Editors: Kulpreet Yadav, Jhilmil Breckenridge (fiction), Pooja Garg Singh (poetry), Rachel Edwards (creative nonfiction) Format: Online Genres: Fiction (not more than 4000 words), creative nonfiction (not more than 2,000 words), and poetry
Indian Literature (Sahitya Akademi)
This bimonthly journal has published Indian writing in English and 23 other languages for the last 58 years.
Format: Print Genres: Poetry, fiction, and translations
The Four Quarters Magazine
Each issue of this Indian literary journal has a theme which is announced a few months in advance.
Editors: Arun Sagar, Sohini Basak, Arjun Choudhuri, Uttaran Das Gupta, Mithun Mukherjee, Gayatri Goswami, Shan Bhattacharya, Avirup Ghosh, Abantika Debroy, and Abhimanyu Singh Format: Online Genres: Fiction and poetry
The Bombay Literary Magazine
This magazine is interested in literary fiction (and sometimes poetry). It seeks writing from India (but also the world).
Editor: Tanuj Solanki Format: Online Genres: Poetry and fiction
North-East Review
They are interested in work that is connected to any of the regions in northeast India, though they welcome all submissions. They also have a children’s section called Moina Mel which is open for submissions.
Editors: Uddipana Goswami, Sumana Roy Format: Online Genres: Poetry, fiction (at least 3,000 words), literary nonfiction, and memoir

Muse India is a literary magazine which aims to show Indian writing in English.
Editors: Ambika Ananth (poetry), Atreya Sarma (fiction) Format: Online Genres: Poetry and fiction
Mithila Review
They’re looking for literary speculative fiction and poetry . They are interested in marginal experiences and the fluidity of reality and language. They pay for fiction in their upcoming anthology.
Editors: Ajapa Sharma, Salik Shah Format: Online Genres: Fiction and poetry
Published in English and Bengali, Aainanagar is focussed on activism, literature, and art .
Format: Online Genres: Poetry, fiction, and travelogues
Indian Review
They’re looking for writing connected to the subcontinent that reflects the transient nature of our times.
Editors: Tyrron Leo Whyte, Bijit Borthakur, Prabhat Bora, Lyra Neog Bora, and Leontia Whyte Format: Online Genres: Poetry, fiction, and translations
The Bangalore Review
They’re looking for original fiction and poetry , particularly by new and emerging writers.
Editor: Arvind Radhakrishnan Format: Online Genres: Poetry and fiction
The Madras Mag
Based out of Madras, they are committed to finding and promoting new literary voices . They also publish the work of established writers.
Editor: Krupa Ge Format: Online Genres: Poetry, fiction, and narrative nonfiction
If you know of any other publication currently interested in work from the subcontinent, let us know in the comments.
Urvashi is a writer and a feminist. She trips over her own feet a lot.

Pune’s Theatre Connection

The Real World
Jaggery jaggerylit.com
The Caravan no longer accepts fiction submissions.
This is great! Thanks.
Prachya Review
This is very valuable information! Thanks
thetribejournal.com
Earthernlampjournal.com
Great list. Thanks.Ther eis also the http://lijla.weebly.com/ Lakeview Journal of Literature & Art.
https://literaturestudioreview.in/
Informative post. Good to know there are number of sources from where emerging writers can also prove themselves.
Yes, there’s the new literary magazine The Byword too. It’s fantastic.
Contemporary Literary Review India http://literaryjournal.in/index.php/clri
Choose any picture from our posts on Facebook/Instagram or Tweets on Twitter. Craft a creative short story of 500 to 1000 words based on that picture. Submit your story to us at http://www.picnstory.com/submit.php
Telegram, a new-age literary magazine focussing on emerging Indian writing. It is bootstrapped and run by a team of three voracious readers and none-too-shabby writers themselves.
I guess Telegram can also be added to this list – https://www.magzter.com/IN/Talking-Books-in-Delhi/Telegram/Fiction/
Gratis.org.in – A space for creative writing publication. Check it out guys!
Gratis.org.in – Visit for independent stories written by writers across India
Thanks a ton:-)
If you write in English, you could consider https://www.shortstories101.com/ . It’s a free, user-driven website where other users can read and give feedback.
Extremely helpful! Thanks :D
Thank you so much!!!!!!!
Thanks a tonne!
Sir if I make submission.. am I going to be paid for my work??
Great list for a lad who loves reading Indian poetry. Also, check out The Poetry Mail, they also have a free poetry competition, the RL Poetry Award open in two categories, national and international with a chance to win and have your book published.
You have missed two most prominent literary journals: 1 The Muse http://www.themuse.webs.com
2. Literature Today http://www.literaturetodayjournal.webs.com
Can’t actually see where the ‘Literature Today’ people publish their work. And there doesn’t seem to be any way of contacting them, other than by sending them a submission. Got any clues?
It was an awesome post. I write short stories and in search of some genuine websites which accept short stories. Hope the sites suggested by you are the ones I was looking for. Going to give then a try!
Other then above http://highlightstory.com is also a very good website.
http://maazepula.emyspot.com/
hello, i have an habit of writing many poems,short stories and even beautiful lines. let me show a story written by me *a cute love story A boy loved a girl who is the topper of his class. The girl also loves the boy but never told her feelings to him He tried many times to propose her.. But he was afraid that she may reject him as he was poor in studies. He always feel difficult to hold his breath whenever he talks to her..
One day she entered the class.. his eyes were completely paying attention towards her.. she was messing with perfection and looked stunning.. she has a warm walnut hair colour,pastel white skin and pluffy cheeks. her eyes were so attractive with black mascara and seeing her eyes he melt like a cold ice. even in her school dress, she looked like a model for angels to him.. he was completely starring her small blue eyes and keenly observing the movement of the eyelashes which flutter like the wings of the butterfly.. he could clearly hear the clicking sound of her heels that add rhythm to his heartbeat.. and finally….
one day he asked her a doubt in mathematics… He asked her to solve a problem of multiplication.. She said okay,write it on a paper and give it.. He gave the paper on which the question was written and he started to move back away from her.. She solved the problem and she felt blushy and looked around to see him… He went away from her as he felt that she may slap him after asking that question.. She went in search of him and finally she succeeded in finding him. rushed near him and hugged him and told “action speaks louder than words” but I love to hear those magical words from you.. And he took a paper and made a paper craft of flower.. sitting on his knees and lifted his head a little and looking into her blue eyes he gave her the paper flower and told “will you please hold my hand, I want to grow old with you. Please be mine forever.
*The question on the paper was (11×13).
and approximately 82 beautiful lines are written by me
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/b4557da132e7924f6574fd714f6df2de45c1ca7ef771a7f90cced83d3dac4434.jpg https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/eb7e79cd8a286aa9646a360215709507fd74c8329705a28b1bf2fc98c742fe15.png
The above is a very helpful information . someone who wish to work in the above magzines or any other should have the great knowledge of creative writing, for this you can consider Craft film school. http://www.craftfilmschool.com/course/creative-writing-screenplay-script-dailogue
Thanks for this post. http://rajasthanholiday.com/
wow what an amazing post. http://www.rajasthanholiday.com/
mulligatawnymag.com
it is very helpful for me. Looking for a acting talented students for my school Positive Life Acting School. Here is the website https://www.positivelifeclippings.com/ Best Acting School in Mumbai
The New Rationalist Magazine ( https://newrationalist.com ) also publishes short non-fiction and fiction.
This article was really useful to me. I’m so glad for this..
The Little Journal of Northeast India publishes art essays, photo essays, poems, fiction, and flash fiction based in Northeast India or inspired by it.
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More submissions, fewer readers? How India’s literary magazines are coping with the pandemic
First person accounts from the editors of lit mags in english, hindi and tamil..

Literary magazines have been quiet, stable homes for creative writing, sheltering fiction, poetry, essays from the bluster of the mainstream. So what happens when the world falls apart and everything becomes noise? How do the gentle stables of literature cope? As we wait anxiously for the first post-pandemic literary masterpiece, there is curiosity about the kind of submissions literary journals have been receiving; whether isolation, grief, fear, longing are spilling on to the page, and if they are, what form they are taking. If some reports are to be believed, more people are writing now than ever – there’s even a “ poetry virus ” going around. Just how contagious is it?
When all manner of publishing platforms are bumbling their way through “the new normal”, literary journals must also find ways to survive. And many have – despite hitting pause on print runs, despite disrupted distribution channels, despite running low on time and resources, all the while competing with escapist, clickbait-y material popping up at every turn.
Floating in a pool of doom and gloom as we all are, one could argue, is precisely why we need these little literary islands – to travel the length of a memorable short story, to savour the contours of a poem and, as Out of Print founder Indira Chandrasekhar puts it, to “also find escape from fear of a looming cloud of viral particles or the imagery of fellow citizens dropping dead as they embark on a journey home, the horrors of Indian matchmakers or low brow Scandinavian crime.”
Editors of literary journals from across the country talked to Scroll.in about the highs and lows of working through the uncertainty of the times, the new sense of intensity in the creative writing coming their way, and what the future holds for them.
Sampurna Chattarji, Poetry Editor, The Indian Quarterly
The first and immediate impact of the pandemic was on our April-June 2020 issue, which was about to go to press when Mumbai went into lockdown. For a magazine that is absolutely sumptuous in print that was a big blow. And while it is available on Magzter , I – as well as some of the poets featured – certainly missed the beautiful tactility that every issue of IQ brings to readers and contributors alike. (I’m sure more than one of us felt at that point that April, is indeed, the cruellest month!)
Another thing I miss is working with the team – Rahul Das, the Art Director, and Preksha Sharma, the Assistant Editor, who are both Mumbai-based; Nayantara Patel, our Managing Editor, and Madhu Jain, our Editor, who would both fly down from Delhi. Conference calls and emails, while efficient enough, simply cannot replace the joy of working together in the same space, with pure concentration and camaraderie before sending each issue to press.
As for submissions, there is an explosion of poetry about isolation, vulnerability and – inevitably – the virus. Poems about the longing for human contact, as expressed through the body. Poems about “the new untouchables” (the title of a poem Manohar Shetty sent me along with two others, in response to the Corona crisis). The issues, however, that poets grapple with pre-date the pandemic, and will outlive the crisis, as will the best poems that emerge through this phase.
It’s interesting, the extent to which the current situation has brought out “the poetry virus” online. I hope some of it will be converted into real gains for practising and struggling poets – in the form of book sales and magazine subscriptions, for example, and support that goes beyond the affirmation of floating hearts on poetry videos.
Going by what I see, readers are seeking – through tiny windows of time and technology – connection, consolation and comfort, pretty much what they’ve always looked for. Reading has always been a form of travel and escape, and with so much of the external world at bay, these capsules of online engagement have acquired a new intensity. Poetry is particularly suited to this encapsulated intensity, especially online.
At IQ , adaptability has had to do with periodicity – the July-Sept 2020 issue will be double issue, out in October – virus willing – in all the glory of print. The process remains the same, with the same focus on fine writing, in English, and in translation from other Indian languages. As Rahul tells me, “We have never missed an issue!”
I’m delighted to say that I have a very strong poetry selection in place for October and for January (already!)—so clearly, despite all the pressures, it’s a rich and fruitful time for poets and poetry editors.
As far as financial concerns go, IQ ’s managing editor Nayantara Patel says,“ IQ is not a commercial magazine and has been supported by its publisher, Anuradha Mahindra. She feels strongly about the need to continue to do so in these financially straitened times (she has extended similar support to IQ ’s sister magazine, Verve ). Salaries have not been docked, employees have not been laid off, nor contributor payments reduced. So we are fortunately placed, given the disquieting situation at virtually every other media and publishing group.”

Tanuj Solanki, fiction editor, The Bombay Literary Magazine
The pandemic hasn’t changed anything in monetary terms for The Bombay Literary Magazine , which is published online. TBLM neither earns nor pays any money. The amount required to run the magazine – about Rs 8,000 per year – is something that the two editors, myself and Arjun Rajendran, can manage.
In terms of the writing that has come our way since the pandemic became such a force in everyone’s life, we haven’t seen any epoch-defining changes, so to speak. Of course, the badly-written pandemic poem, one that deals with the overt effects plainly, has on occasion found its way into our inbox.
Also – even though we’re not a publisher of non-fiction – some people always try their luck with articles about the latest news items, and so we’ve observed the expected inflow with regards to pandemic-related articles. Interestingly, I can’t quite recall reading fiction concerned, or inspired by, or referring to, the pandemic yet; that is probably because fiction takes longer to write and finesse.
The major challenge with running TBLM now is time. I work in an insurance company. I have been working from home for the last five months now, and these have been intense months, their intensity deriving from the fact that every employee’s mind space is somewhat laced with the vague fear of landing up on the bad side of a recession – which is to say, losing this job and finding it impossible to find the next one. As a consequence, everyone wants to put in more effort, and so workdays shoot over 12 hours; and when that happens, there isn’t much energy left to continue sitting on the same seat and read submissions for my tiny literary magazine. I guess what I’m saying is – the overlap in the workspaces of what-I-do-for-money and what-I-do-as-labour-of-love has had a detrimental effect on the latter, for it is only the latter that is negotiable.

Rachana Yadav, M anaging E ditor, Hans
The pandemic has impacted not just Hans but almost all magazine and book publishers. Hans has been around for the last 34 years. It has a very loyal reader base that is used to receiving it every month as a printed copy and reading it at their leisure. Since the magazine offers stories and articles and not quite daily breaking news, one is not really time-bound to read it.
With the pandemic breaking out, there was no possibility of printing hard copies. Though the presses became operational sometime by end of May, we decided against printing our latest issue as the distribution channels such as trains, postal services, hawkers were not fully functional.
But since Hans is one of the few magazines that holds a record for not missing a single issue since its inception, we resorted to online releases. So, starting in April 2020, we have been releasing the magazine online on the Hans website. Though it was exactly the same format and content as our print edition, our readership dropped drastically. Our readers just couldn’t make the transition to online reading.
In the first month, we had very few downloads. Although the number of downloads has gradually increased, it is not at the same level as our print sales. The absence of advertising support has also contributed to a huge dip in revenue. So sustainability is our top concern at the moment.
To overcome this we decided to collect stories from our archives and organize them in thematic anthologies, such as best stories by women or stories by writers from overseas. We have also been offering our readers inducements such as free PDFs for three months to the ones who are the first to download our issue on any given day.
The pandemic has struck our market very hard. I feel that even when things do return to normal, the whole readership landscape will have changed for good. For instance, readers who have got used to online reading (mainly the younger demographic) may want to continue doing this even when the print editions are readily available to them.
With hawkers and book agents abandoning the business for greener pastures, there will be a definite weakening of distribution channels, which may leave us with no option but to increasingly rely on the online medium. One encouraging trend is that even during this extended lockdown, there hasn’t been a significant dip in submissions. The other heartening aspect is the overwhelmingly positive response we have received for our heightened social media activities and initiatives. We hope this will help us to bounce back once the situation is normal again.

Indira Chandrasekhar, Founder and Principal Editor, Out of Print
Out of Print has been flooded with submissions, many of them strong and compelling. Not all of the stories emerge directly from the pandemic, many visit and record an earlier time, a time before the world stood still and fought for breath. Many were written before the pandemic. Yet all of our recent submissions are certainly products of this strange time.
Solitude, loneliness, the feeling of being trapped within four walls, either alone or within an intensified family dynamic, inform these stories. At Out of Print , I have been able to immerse myself in the editing of these works with a keen, enhanced attention.
We are a quarterly and have published two issues between March and August featuring works that veer between the jagged and the mesmeric. Even though I am a scientist, it is not the data I am looking at – the online traffic and so on – but, rather, the less tangible responses, like an ever-widening author pool that allows me to speculate that the magazine is being read.
We’ve received letters about the recent issues, including references to individual stories, that indicate that readers are responding to what we’re publishing. Yes, the tensions of the moment must drive people to escapism. I believe, however, that readers can open their minds with a thought-provoking short story and at the same time find escape from fear of a looming cloud of viral particles or the imagery of fellow citizens dropping dead as they embark on a journey home across the stretch of the country, the horrors of Indian matchmakers, or lowbrow Scandinavian crime. The mind needs stimulation even while it indulges itself in mindlessness.
We have been lucky: our primary sponsors are also readers of the magazine, our outlay is not over-demanding, and Out of Print continues to be supported. If things change, I suppose, we will have to adapt.

Anupama Krishnakumar and Vani Viswanathan, Editors, Spark
After publishing an issue every month for a decade-and-a-half , we decided to take a break once we put out our 125th issue in May 2020, two months into the pandemic. This was for two reasons: the first, as a self-care measure for the editors. Editing a lit-mag month on month is not easy, and with just the two of us running the show, we were juggling multiple responsibilities to ensure a new issue was published on the fifth of every month.
We are very particular about the quality of the content we put out, and that meant an enormous amount of reviewing and editing, besides fulfilling our personal and professional commitments. All of these got even bigger with the lockdown, so we decided to take a break, and are now catching up on reading and spending some time writing ourselves! Secondly, we wanted to get some perspective on where we want to go with Spark from here. To do this, we needed mind space freed from the constant editing and publishing cycle.
For our April 2020 and May 2020 issues, despite our monthly themes, we saw a huge increase in submissions about the pandemic: the associated gloom, people’s experiences, the plight of migrant labourers, doctors, volunteers, lessons and reflections on the current and the post-pandemic world. We understood that in these trying times, people were looking for platforms to share their experiences – but the issue was that the quality of submissions was often poor, and for a lit mag, that matters. We got a good mix of fiction, non-fiction and poetry submissions, but saw an upsurge in “guest post” requests and unrelated queries ––like seeking advice for publishing poems, or submissions in Hindi, which we don’t feature.
Interestingly, even though we have announced that we are on a break, we get regular enquiries on how to send submissions, or when we will open for submissions again. So people are looking at lit mags to share their experiences. In terms of what people are looking to read in a lit mag, we would think it would be the experiences of others coping with life under the pandemic, stories of hope, and a good dose of humour. But we would say our fundamental expectations from authors remain the same: good literary writing
As for our next steps, we are thinking deeply about the kind of content we want to publish. Things are significantly different today compared to when we started publishing in January 2010 – attention spans have come down, social media has altered the publishing game, and audiovisual content has gained prominence. So as a lit mag based purely on the written word, what’s the best role we can play?
We also want to shift to a more manageable publishing cycle, standardise our submission process, and ensure we receive high-quality submissions from writers who are clear about what they want to write and write it well. We want to think all of this through and restart when we feel ready to get “back to business”. We spent ten years nurturing Spark out of sheer passion for the written word, so we want to make our next steps count to the best of our ability.

Arun Kale, Editor, Helter Skelter
Helter Skelter exists both online and in print. The online magazine features nonfiction writing about India, and we publish a roughly annual anthology of original short fiction and poetry from India in print. We celebrated 10 years of Helter Skelter in June, launched a brand new website for the magazine a month or so ago, which has been very well received, and announced the writers who have been selected for our upcoming anthology – volume 7 of the Helter Skelter Anthology of New Writing , the theme for which is “identity” – about a month into the nationwide lockdown.
While it’s exciting to be working on this new volume, the pandemic has resulted in a significant amount of uncertainty in terms of what the schedule for producing the book should be, and the best ways to distribute it. We’re also considering releasing Kindle versions of our past anthologies (volumes 1-4).
Volumes 5 ( After Hours ) and 6 ( Dissent ) of our anthology have been selling steadily during the lockdown. Readers have written in saying they have found the stories, poems, and illustrations in our books a refreshing and much-needed escape from the toxicity and noise that has constantly surrounded us of late.
There seems to have been an uptick in essays being pitched/submitted to the magazine that deal with reflections on the authors’ childhood experiences or stories from more hopeful times. Other writing being submitted includes slice-of-life stories, which again involve reminiscing to some degree. There are also essays revolving around introspection and an exploration of the self and the various aspects of it (gender, sexuality, race, etc)
Helter Skelter is an entirely self-funded initiative. I put in money from my paid work into the magazine, and since I’m not rich or well-off by any means, any investment (time / money / energy) has to be carefully considered. Still, I have been running the magazine for a little over ten years now, and I plan on doing so for as long as I can. I’m taking it a day at a time, trying to find new ways to keep things moving, and doing my best to be hopeful.

Jeeva Karikalan, Editor, Yaavarum
Things looked quite promising at the beginning of 2020. However, many journals began to sense the threat of closure looming over their activities by the middle of March. Throughout April, no literary magazine was sent to press. A few journals resumed publication when the lockdown was lifted. During a period when running a literary journal in Tamil Nadu was already a severe challenge, a few journals announced temporary suspension of publication. Others circulated their issues to readers in electronic file format, mostly free of cost.
The steep rise in the price of paper and losses incurred during the lockdown have made the future of many intermediate magazines highly uncertain. Even leading publishers have closed their branch offices. Since printing presses in Chennai remained closed, magazines were printed and published from different cities across the state. Because of the constraints imposed on trade with China, the price of ink and toner for digital printers went up, making even the survival of literary journals that benefited from digital printing more precarious.
The lockdown has exacerbated factors such as salaries, office rent, and the drying up of even the meagre advertisement revenue that there was. Even so, since literary journals have never been focused on profits, post-June they have prepared themselves to function as before, even in the absence of commercial prospects.
The resumption of publication of Kalkuthirai and Nadukal are examples. At the same time, one must note the way literary journals have redesigned themselves to suit the online format. There has been a notable increase in the number of works published and shared by readers and conversations online. A large number of journals, such as Uyirmmai , Vallinam , Yaavarum , Kanalli , Vasagasalai and Padhakai functioned effectively during this period.
In an essentially non-profit domain, websites that do not result in huge losses are a boon for literary journals. It is true that they cannot compensate for the bonds that readers build with print magazines. It is only the government that can, through library orders, help redeem the future of literary journals.

(As told to N Kalyan Raman)
K Vigneswaran, Editor, Kanali
In the early part of the lockdown, there was an increase in the number of contributions because writers had more time at their disposal. However, with increasing stress due to the pandemic, their enthusiasm has waned, which shows in the number and quality of submissions.
Even readers are weighed down by all the news about the pandemic. Their engagement with content seems to have been reduced considerably, as revealed in private conversations. They simply don’t have the mental energy to spend on reading literary material.
Since the journal is run as a voluntary effort through private contributions, it has been possible to bring it out every month. However, there are practical difficulties, such as not being able to get our printer serviced, or buy other supplies readily. We also make available articles, stories and essays printed in old books and magazines in the digital format for a new generation of readers. Since libraries are closed and receiving books through courier service is risky, we have not been able to do much on this front.

Neha Bhatt is an independent journalist. She writes on culture, development and books.
This series of articles on the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on publishing is curated by Kanishka Gupta.

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