What We Like:

Pif Magazine primarily publishes fiction, poetry, and author interviews. We have been known to accept book, film, music and zine reviews — and we have published our fair share of essays and critiques. 

What are we looking for?

The content we seek is aimed at aspiring and working writers alike. Free thinkers. Art lovers. You. Pif may be a literary magazine, but it’s also a resource for readers and writers who—like us—are inspired by originality.

Our preferred word count for macrofiction is under 2,000 words. We still read submissions that clock in over this word count, but ask that contributors keep this in mind. We’re interested in expanding our collection of humor writing, as well, and are actively seeking fresh voices that tackle this genre.

There is no limit on the number of poetry submissions an individual can submit in any given time period (or any writing genre, for that matter), but we do ask that you submit each poem as its own separate post through our submission portal. One more time, just to make sure this detail stands out: please submit each poem as a separate submission. 

We accept essays on nearly any topic, although our favorite content is the type that impacts writerly folk. The word count for these submissions, as well, serves our online and for-print magazine best at under 2,000 words. Topics can include your experience as a writer or artist, information on how to write better, how to write for a particular kind of genre–let your imagination be your guide. These submissions are welcome in HeyPublisher and should be categorized as essays.

Book reviews are also welcome at Pif; writers may submit these through our submission portal or directly to the editors at editor@pifmagazine.com. Please title book review submissions as follows: [Name of Book] Book Review [Your First & Last Name]. Please remember to submit your review along with a bio, such as a link to your personal website or social media account and a little info about yourself.

For artwork, there isn’t anything in particular that we’re looking to stay away from outside of lascivious images or anything that promotes intolerance or hate. We’re happy to accept: 

• photography
• artwork
• experimental artwork
• short films
• comics
• graphic novel excerpts
• traditional (oil, acrylic, sketches, etc.) art forms
• tactile (sculpture, paper artwork, etc.) art

Please review our Artwork Submission Guidelines for more information on how to share your art with us.

What are we not looking for?

Fan fiction can be wonderful, but unless you have a piece that is better than the original fiction from which you draw your inspiration, the odds are high that we will not publish your work.

We don’t want anything that promotes hate, is lewd (although there’s a fine line between indecent and lewd), overtly pushes a political agenda or encourages discrimination. Topics that examine these issues in a thought-provoking way is one matter; creating artwork that seeks to encourage a hateful agenda is another matter.

Pif would like to stress, again, if you submit work that is over 2,000 words there’s a strong chance your submission will not be accepted. 

We pride ourselves on working with new and emerging writers and artists. To this end, we tend to shy away from previously published works. However, we will consider anything that is of high quality, intriguing, and of interest to our readers.

To get a better idea of what we’re looking for, spend a little time browsing through the site.

To sum it all up plainly: we prefer individual creative vision over commercially accessible sameness; brevity is the soul of wit for our audience; please format your submissions according to the guidelines above.

Thank you for sharing your work with us! We look forward to reviewing your submission.

How to Submit:

Click on the button at the top of this page. We use HeyPublisher to manage our submissions. If you already have an account with them, great. If not, you can easily set up your free account when submitting your work.

How the Submission Process Works:

Prior to submitting your work, please ensure you have read and understand Pif Magazine‘s Rights and Royalties policy.  By submitting your work to us you are agreeing to the terms explained therein.

When you submit your work to us, we will consider the submission “pending.” All this means is that we have received your submission. Nothing more.

When one of our editors has read your submission, you will receive an email letting you know that we are reading your work and will be in touch shortly.

If we decide to accept your work for publication, you will receive an email letting you know that your work has been accepted. Additionally, an editor may contact you directly with suggested edits if it is felt they are warranted.

Due to the volume of submissions we receive and the time it takes to individually read every submission, we will gladly accept simultaneous submissions.  We will try to get you a response, one way or another, within 90 days of your submitting your work to us. If that doesn’t happen, please shoot us an email at editor@pifmagazine.com. We’ll let you know if there’s a problem with your entry or expedite the process whenever possible.

If we reject your submission, please consider us for future submissions. Publishing is about finding the right piece at the right time.

If we accept your work for publication, we ask for 30 days exclusivity from the date of publication. Please do not submit or publish this accepted work elsewhere during this time. After the exclusivity period has expired, all rights revert back to you and you are free to publish the work elsewhere, as detailed in our Rights and Royalties policy. We ask only that you mention that the work was originally published in Pif Magazine.

We look forward to reading what you send us!

The Editorial Staff