porridge magazine 2023

We have two related but separate magazines – the online magazine, which opens submissions twice a year and publishes continuously, and our print magazine which opens for submissions twice a year and publishes issues biannually.

Here are the things you need to know if you’re interested in publishing in either.

ONLINE 

We now open submissions for the online magazine twice a year. Our online submissions periods for 2023 are as follows:

• 1st April – 30th April
• 1st October – 31st October

We accept non-fiction and COMFORT FOODS on an ongoing basis. Other submissions sent outside of these dates will be removed from our inbox.

We are interested in:

• Essays and creative non-fiction of up to 4,000 words, from any discipline. We’re especially interested in articles about history, culture, current affairs, politics, technology, and the environment. If you are submitting something with academic referencing, we prefer the MHRA style but it is not a deal-breaker. All published work is accompanied by a featured image, usually a stock image, but if you have a suggestion please include this in the email.
• Poetry (up to three poems per submission). It is difficult to pin-point the type of poetry we like so do take a look at what we’ve published recently to get an idea but we enjoy work that employs evocative imagery and takes hold of our senses, work that shies away from cliché but isn’t afraid to be earnest. We also like the abstract and absurd. We do have a preference for non-rhyming work though won’t rule out work that does rhyme. We will not accept work that is offensive, graphic, or excessively violent.
• Prose in the form of short stories, flash fiction, and non-fiction, all capped at 4,000 words. We prefer stories that examine the everyday, that infuse the quotidian with magic, that explore our interactions with the people and world around us in an interesting way.  We don’t have preferences genre-wise but would discourage horror submissions and aren’t big fans of ‘twist’ endings.
• Visual art: photography, painting, collage, and other visual media (max 6 pieces per submission). We are also looking to interview more artists so if you have a show coming up in London, Birmingham or Lancaster, do let us know about it.

How to submit:

We accept submissions via email: porridgemagazine@gmail.com. Written work must be provided as a Word or Google Doc and artwork and images as .png or .jpeg attachments. Please include a short third-person bio (fewer than 100 words) telling us a little about yourself and your interests with your submission. If applicable, do include social media handles. Simultaneous submissions and previously published pieces are welcome.

If your work is accepted, please wait at least twelve months before submitting to us again. If your work is not accepted then please wait until the next submissions period to try again. Do not submit multiple times during submission periods, even if your work has been rejected before the deadline – we will not consider anything after your first submission – and do not send repeat amendments while your work is under consideration; if your work is accepted you will have the opportunity to make changes before publication.

Porridge consists of a small team of volunteers all working and studying full-time so do expect our response time to be slow, however if we haven’t been in touch within eight weeks do feel free to get in touch.

Sadly, we are currently unable to pay contributors.

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COMFORT FOODS

The COMFORT FOODS series publishes creative responses to the relationship between food and culture, identity and cuisine, from people in diaspora or those from various marginalised identities. From eating away exile to 2,000 word philosophical treatises on biryani, we’re here for it.

While COMFORT FOODS was first intended as a space for people from ethnic minority backgrounds to write about food and ideas of home, our interest in the way food can be utilised in community building means we also accept food writing from other marginalised perspectives. It can be difficult to root yourself in a world that is hostile but the food we share and the communities we cultivate allow us to carve out a space for ourselves that we can call home. This is what comfort foods are all about.

We’ll accept creative non-fiction, food writing, poetry, and artwork on this theme. If you’re submitting writing, please do also include photographs – we can use stock images but it feels more personal to have photographs taken by the author.

If this sounds like something you’d be interested in then please do submit in the usual way, putting ‘COMFORT FOODS’ in the subject line. We look forward to feasting on your submissions.

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PRINT – ISSUE SEVEN

Submissions for our seventh print issue are open from 5th November – 31st December 2022. We will not consider any work submitted before or after this time frame for print.

We are seeking:

• Creative non-fiction and essays. We’d really like to see writing about literature, history, culture, technology, and the environment but most of all we want things that are interesting, whatever that means to you.
• Visual art of all types – painting, photography, collage, digital art etc. accompanied by an artist statement.
• COMFORT FOODS submissions (read guidelines above). We prefer non-fiction and visual art for this category.
• Flash and other short fiction.
• Poetry.

Limits: 2,000 words for essays and fiction, three poems per submission, or six illustrations / photographs. To get an idea of what we like, have a look at the site or consider buying a copy of the previous issues here.

How to submit:

We accept submissions via email (porridgemagazine@gmail.com) and ask that you include PRINT in the subject line, followed by your name and the genre of the work you are submitting e.g. PRINT – JOE BLOGGS / PHOTOGRAPHY. Your work should be provided as an attachment, not pasted into the body, and all submissions accompanied by a short 2-3 line author biography.

Unlike our online platform, we do not accept previously published work for print.

If your work was published in issue six then please refrain from submitting on this occasion.

Unfortunately we are not yet in a position to pay, but all contributors will receive a copy of the print magazine, regardless of where they are based.

If you have any questions please do not hesitate to get in touch, otherwise we look forward to reading your work.

We reserve the right to disregard submissions not formatted as per the guidelines.

website: Submissions – Porridge (porridgemagazine.com)