Where to Submit in July 2026: All Paying Lit Mags

The July guide to paying markets, submission dates, and publishing opportunities.

July brings dozens of new opportunities for writers looking to share their work with the world. Today’s roundup is full literary magazines that want to pay you for your fiction, poetry, creative nonfiction, and more.

This roundup highlights literary magazines actively seeking submissions throughout July, complete with details on genres accepted, submission guidelines, and deadlines.

And every single one of these literary magazines is paying writers for accepted submissions.

Remember to carefully review each magazine’s submission guidelines before sending your work. Take time to read recent issues to ensure your writing aligns with their aesthetic and mission. With thoughtful submissions and a bit of persistence, July could be the month your work finds its next (or first) literary home!

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Lit Mags Accepting Submissions in July 2026

Forge Literary Magazine
A weekly online journal publishing one story every week, chosen by members of The Fiction Forge writers’ forum. Accepts fiction and nonfiction of up to 3,000 words (occasionally up to 5,000 for exceptional pieces); has a particular affinity for flash and micro prose. Opens fee-free on the first of each month and closes when the quota fills.
Payment: $100 per published piece, regardless of length.
Opens: July 1st, rolling until filled.

Flash Fiction Online – Aftermath
A long-running professional flash fiction magazine, opening in July for a themed call: Aftermath, stories exploring what comes after the moment of rupture, in any genre (literary, speculative, or otherwise). Accepts previously unpublished flash fiction up to 1,000 words. Closes when the submission cap is reached.
Payment: $100 per accepted original story.
Opens: July 1st, rolling until filled.

The Quiet Ones
A free-to-download annual e-zine centring LGBTQIAP+ and women’s voices in quiet horror and intimate-scale dystopian fiction. Accepts short stories up to 2,500 words, flash and micro fiction up to 1,200 words, and fiction-in-verse up to 1,200 words. No nonfiction, non-narrative poetry, or works in translation. Up to two pieces per author (submitted separately).
Payment: $25 USD per accepted piece.
Deadline: 1 July, 2026.

A Public Space
An independent, nonprofit literary magazine seeking brave and unexpected fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and translation, work that uncovers the extraordinary in the everyday, exposes unexpected truths, or puts forth daring hypotheses. This reading period also includes a new dedicated category for translations. No submission fee; one story at a time.
Payment: $100-$200, according to sources.
Deadline: 1 July, 2026.

Phi Kappa Phi Forum – A Change of Career
The journal of the honour society Phi Kappa Phi seeks original, previously unpublished poetry for their Fall 2026 issue on the theme of “A Change of Career.” Submit 1–3 poems, each under 40 lines. Poets published in a previous issue must wait one year before submitting again.
Payment: $4 per line upon publication.
Deadline: 2 July, 2026.