frequently
asked
questions
notice:
Submissions are currently closed.
hearth & coffin will remain closed
until an announcement is made
via x (formerly twitter) in January 2024.
overview
Hearth & Coffin accepts submissions of prose and poetry, fiction and nonfiction, via email for online publication.
Please do not email your submissions to editor@hearthandcoffin.com.
Further instruction on how to submit is outlined in the sections below.
Annual Submission Calendar
New submissions calendar is forthcoming. Announcement to be made in January 2024.
Hearth & Coffin does not charge writers for submission. Consequently, the publication is unfortunately unable to offer a stipend to those whose works we publish at this time.
Until further notice, please do not mail hard copy submissions to Hearth & Coffin. We cannot guarantee receipt or processing of material sent during this time.
All submissions must be in English. Translations are acceptable (and encouraged) and should be accompanied by a copy of the original text. Simultaneous submissions are also acceptable as long as we are notified immediately if the manuscript is accepted for publication elsewhere. While Hearth & Coffin welcomes unsolicited submissions, it cannot accept responsibility for their loss or engage in related correspondence.
Is there a theme?
Yes. Each issue has a theme.
The upcoming issue will be announced in January 2024.
Is there a fee to submit?
Absolutely not. Hearth & Coffin does not charge our writers reading or submission fees. We never have, and never will.
Hearth & Coffin is run on donations, not on a writer's hard-earned cash. The [minimal] staff of H&C are also writers, so we understand how hard you work for your money and how daunting it can feel to pay a submission fee when your work may not be even be published.
This publication (and the fees associated with its upkeep) is our venture, not yours. We will figure out how to pay for it while you work on the next piece you want us to publish for you.
Is Hearth & Coffin a paying market?
At this time, no. If your work is chosen for publication, you will not be paid by Hearth & Coffin.
Sounds a little contradictory to our above statement about a writer's hard earned money, right? I mean, if we're to preach about the writers' dollar, we ought to pay you.
We agree.
Hearth & Coffin is just beginning. As we grow, we are actively working to get to a place where we may accept submissions free of charge and still offer our winners a nominal stipend. We recognize writing for the legitimate labor that it is: We will not have fully realized our dreams as a literary publisher until we can operate as a paying market for our writers.
how many works may i submit?
Prose writers (both fiction and nonfiction) may submit up to two works of no longer than 5,000 words.
Poets may submit up to three poems of no longer than three pages per poem.
Send us your best prose and poetry. That stuff you fear won't fit in elsewhere? We would love to read it.
WHAT ABOUT PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED WORKS?
Beginning January 2023, Hearth & Coffin accepts works that were previously published elsewhere, if the work was lost because the publication that it was originally published in is now defunct or has otherwise gone offline.
Work that was published in print does not qualify.
If you plan to submit a previously published work for consideration:
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The work should still fit the theme of the issue for which you are submitting it
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We will require the name of the now-defunct publication that originally published the work, as well as the month/year of original publication
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Please submit the work via email as you would any other
submission guidelines
Please submit your writing in Microsoft Word, Apple Pages, PDF, or Google Doc format. Hearth & Coffin will not accept other file types at this time. We accept submissions via email with instruction below.
Please do not email your submissions to editor@hearthandcoffin.com.
Fiction & Nonfiction Prose Submissions:
For non-poetry prose, submit one story or essay at a time. You may submit both a story and an essay or multiples of each if you wish, but please submit them separately.
Our word count cap for prose is 5,000 words, though in rare cases we may consider longer manuscripts.
Poetry Submissions:
Please cap your individual poems at three pages a piece using a 12-point font. You may submit multiples as long as you submit them separately. Poetry submissions may be single- or double-spaced.
Simultaneous Submissions:
Simultaneous submissions are welcome! However, please inform us ASAP if your work is accepted elsewhere so that we may celebrate your success with you and withdraw your submission from our issue.
READY TO SEND IN YOUR SUBMISSION?
Submissions should be emailed to:
→ submissions@hearthandcoffin.com ←
We aim to make submissions easy!
Please email your document to us with the subject line [Fiction/Nonfiction/Poetry]: [Your Name]
ex. -- Fiction: Jane Doe
⦿
Please include:
Your name as you would like it to appear on our site, should your work be chosen for publication, and your work itself.
Please do not include:
A biography or photo. All works will be read without knowledge of your educational background, publication history, and appearance.
If you're submitting previously published work for consideration, you must include the date it was originally published (month and year will suffice) and the name of the now defunct publication.
We will refuse works that include any form of hate speech including but not necessarily limited to sexism, homophobia, transphobia, racism, etc. that is blatant and/or immaterial to the plot and/or included for shock value or "edge" alone. Additionally, although work that addresses difficult topics is welcome, the author ought to know the difference between writing that achieves such and "trauma porn."
notice to writers regarding author's rights
Hearth & Coffin Literary Journal holds first publication rights for three months after publication. Authors agree not to publish, nor authorize or permit the publication of, any part of the material for three months following first publication. For reprints we ask for acknowledgement of its publication in Hearth & Coffin first.
About TRUE GRIT[S]: A LOVE LETTER TO TRANSGENDER
AND GENDER EXPANSIVE SOUTHERNERS
True Grit[s] is a special edition issue that was created in response to a flurry of anti-LGBTQ+ legislation that was filed across the South in the Spring of 2022. From March - April 2022, Hearth & Coffin accepted works of all kinds, whether they were Pulitzer-ready or meandering streams of consciousness. We asked for "your thoughts, your feelings, your loves, your hates, your wild, your mundane. Your story, whatever it is." We humbly asked for the opportunity to elevate the voice of trans+ and gender expansive folks in the American South.
As native Texans ourselves, we say this with all the love in our hearts: Your unique voice belongs, both on our digital pages and in the beautiful Southern U.S. No second-rate politician gerrymandered and voter-suppressed into office gets to say otherwise.
True Grit[s] published in May 2022.
Hearth & Coffin has set up a monthly recurring donation to the Transgender Education Network of Texas. We strongly encourage anyone with a few extra dollars to do the same, at whatever denomination is financially comfy for you. Other organizations around Texas that we suggest readers look into include:
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Allgo (Austin)
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Out Youth (Austin)
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TGQ Social (Austin)
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The Trans Legal Aid Clinic of Texas (Statewide)
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And many more.