What kind of content is The Cantabrigian looking for?

Our focus is literary fiction. We accept stories up to 8,000 words. Suffice it to say we are looking for your best, polished work. To get a good idea of what we like, pick up a copy of our latest issue.

 

We welcome submissions of photography, illustrations and graphic design to be considered as the cover art for our magazine. Please bear in mind that we have an in-house design team and that submitted artwork will be selected based not only on how much we admire it, but also on how closely it fits the themes of the fiction we select. To submit artwork, visit our Submittable portal and select "Artwork Submission."

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In exceptional circumstances we may publish playscripts, poetry and nonfiction per inquiry. If you have written content besides fiction that you would like to see published in our magazine, feel free to contact us with a proposal.

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Does The Cantabrigian pay?

Yes! Although we are a small operation, it is important to us that anyone contributing to our publication be compensated. We pay a semi-professional rate (between $20 and $50 per contributor) which varies per issue depending on donations received and number of authors published. All rights will revert to the author following publication.

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Does The Cantabrigian charge submission fees?

We do not charge submission fees for most of our regular submission period.

However, once we exceed the number of unpaid submissions allowed by our submission portal, we are required to add a small fee (the smallest our portal will allow) in order to continue to accept submissions. Submit early to avoid the fee.

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Does The Cantabrigian accept previously published material?

Yes. We feel it is rather unfair to make authors who have just seen their work published resign themselves to never seeing the same work published again. We merely ask that you inform us if your story has been published elsewhere in your cover letter (and provide any other contractually obligated information) when you submit, so that we may give your piece's previous publication(s) the credit of discovery.

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Does The Cantabrigian accept submissions that are simultaneously submitted elsewhere?

Yes, but please let us know immediately if your submission is accepted for publication elsewhere. You may withdraw your submission at any time through our Submittable portal.

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How many stories may I submit at once?

Please submit only one story at a time. We will only consider the first story you submit. Should you submit a second story before your first is declined, we will decline the second one without reading it. In the event that we decline your first submission before our submission window expires, you may submit something else. 

 

In what format should I submit my story?

We accept .DOC, and .DOCX files that are less than 500KB. Stories must be in a readable font (why not Times New Roman?), and double-spaced. Please number pages and include the story title and writer contact info on the first page of the submitted file.

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Cover letter?

We expect a cover letter to be included with your submission that contains some of the following: a short bio, how you found us, why you've decided to submit to our magazine in particular, why you've chosen this particular piece, and any other information you think we may find useful.

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Will you send me comments on my story?

Probably not. We have a small staff whose hours are devoted to finding the stories for our next issue. Because of this, if we decide against publishing your piece, most often we will merely send a form email indicating rejection. On rare occasions we may send additional personal correspondence in keeping with our mission of fostering a literary community (you may, for example, receive an invitation to participate in The Wyoming Project). If you receive any comment on your story, we ask you to keep in mind that it is the subjective opinion of our editorial staff and does not necessarily reflect the will of God.

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Can I change the story I submitted with an updated draft?

No. Sorry, we do not have the organizational bandwidth to keep track of revisions. Make sure it is finished before submitting it.

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Do you consider translations?

We aren't going to say no, but it is not our focus. If submitting a translation, please include the name of the original author and language, as well as the name of the translator on the first page of your submission. Priority, however, will be given to original works, especially if the language from which your piece is being translated is one that none of our staff speaks.

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When can I submit to The Cantabrigian?

We accept submissions from September 1st through December 31st. No submissions received outside of this period will be considered for publication.

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How soon can I expect to hear about my submission?

We do our best to respond to submissions within 4 months of their receipt. If you have not heard from us within that time, it may be that your piece is being considered for publication. We will only respond to follow-up inquiries if 4 months have elapsed since your submission. When inquiring, please include the date on which your piece was submitted in the subject line of the email.

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Have more questions? Here is an interview with our editor-in-chief about our process and what we're looking for.

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This list of questions is inspired by the submission guidelines for One Story Inc., another publication, the style of which we admire. One Story is another great place to submit your work!