Literary Mama

Hello! My name is Isabella Vassallo, and I’m interning for Literary Mama this spring. I am from Rocky Hill, Connecticut and am currently a student at and on track to graduate this spring from Central Connecticut State University in New Britain. I am majoring in English with a minor in Writing and Publishing. I am […]

The Literary Reflections Department at Literary Mama is seeking submissions for our July/August 2023 publication. We are looking for original first-person essays about the intersection of parenthood and the creative process, and we welcome perspectives from all genders. For this issue, we’re interested in pieces between 1,500-3,000 words about children’s summer reading. Whether you have a success […]

Welcome to our Calls for Submissions page. Here, we’ll feature new publication opportunities for all our Mama readers. Look for updated posts every other month. If there is a ❤️ next to a call, that means the magazine or press is specifically looking for mother writers. We ❤️ all our Mamas! Literary Mama is always […]

What better month to reignite that creative spark than April? A month of spring, blooming, and renewal – nature is enough to inspire some beautiful writing. Whether you write fiction, creative nonfiction, or poetry, we have writing prompts to help you get ink on the page this month. 1.Fiction/CNF: Write a story about a prank […]

In this series, our editors interview past Literary Mama contributors to see what they’ve accomplished since publishing in LM and talk about their writing journeys. This week, Literary Reflections Editor and Senior Editor Andrea Lani catches up with Anne Liu Kellor. The first essay I edited when I came on board as editor of the […]

We’re excited to launch a new project at Literary Mama that will bring youth voices (ages 13-21) to our blog.  We’re seeking submissions in the following categories: * From teen and young adult children of mama writers. How has your mother’s writing life impacted your life? Has it influenced or inspired you? Has it clarified for you that a writing […]

Several Literary Mama staff members are attending this week’s AWP in Seattle, Washington, and we’re excited to hear what they learn from the event. If you’re in the area, please visit Literary Mama’s table (T1504) and introduce yourself or plan to see Senior Editor Rudri Patel on Saturday, March 11 when she joins a panel […]

Where I live in Arizona, March and April make up their own little season. Warmer than spring, way cooler than the triple-digit temps of summer – it’s an unnamed time of absolutely perfect weather. And after daylight savings takes effect in most of the country, the Arizona sun comes up earlier. The mornings become just […]

Come see Literary Mama at the Association of Writers and Writing Programs Conference! Not familiar with AWP? You can find more information here, including a full schedule of events.  Want to know where to find us? Literary Mama will be at Table T1504 in the exhibition hall. Our staff will wear t-shirts and carry tote […]

Congratulations to these Literary Mama staff members! ~~~~~ Senior Editor Rudri Bhatt Patel published the piece, “Pros and Cons of Anchor Clients,” for The Freelance Creative. She also published the piece, ““Why Pickleball Is a Great Sport for Seniors,” for FAR.com. For Apartment Therapy, she published, “How I Used the Two-Minute Rule to Stop Feeling […]

I always advise students to be wary of workshopping a poem like a checklist. Still, there are keys to a successful poem: arresting images, attention to metaphorical and sensual language, a wariness of abstraction, an awareness of sound and form, effective line breaks and an unpredictable ending. But what writers of poetry often overlook is […]