While I would never describe myself as an optimist, I must be because, in addition to gardening, I write. Back in 2024, when Labor of Love: A Literary Mama Staff Anthology was published, I wrote a blog post about having a fire lit under me as a result of writing a piece that was selected […]
Getting published on a large scale or with one of the Big Five might seem like a pipedream these days, if it wasn’t that before AI stepped up. However, that’s why literary magazines like Literary Mama are such a godsend. There are chances to submit to many departments such as Reviews, Literary Reflections, Creative Nonfiction […]
Literary Mama is thrilled to announce its nominations for Best Small Fictions 2026: Tuesday Morning (Ordinary Time) by Polly Farquhar Fighting Wind by Sage Tyrtle Breath by Jessica Claire Haney How to Bake without Eggs by Edith-Nicole Cameron Tomorrow and All the Days After by Veronica Montes We’re so glad to be a small part […]
If you’re a writer and a mother, you already know that balancing these two things is an art, not a science. There is not one way to do it, nor is there a way that does it perfectly. Most of us struggle with it regularly–finding the time to raise our children while also finding the […]
When I signed my contract with the publisher of Typecast, I was thrilled. Having worked as a book publicist, I was under no illusion that having my book published meant that anyone would read it. Over the past twenty-five years, online bookselling and the advent of new publishing options have transformed the industry, leading to […]
Applications will soon be accepted for A Hotel Room of One’s Own: The Erma Bombeck | Anna Lefler Humorist-in-Residence Program (Sept. 5-Oct. 5). The winners, finalists and honorable mentions will be announced in November. The grand prize winners will be honored at the April 4-6, 2024, Erma Bombeck Writers’ Workshop, where they will be “robed” in […]
It was one of those moments that is hard to describe. An email arrived in my inbox in December 2018 from Felicity Landa and Colleen Kearney Rich, then fiction editors at Literary Mama, about the acceptance of my flash fiction. Oh, the joy! An acceptance does that every time to a writer. What’s more, Literary Mama has been […]
You’re invited to transform your favourite queer theory text into a poem using only single-syllable words. MONOSYLLABIC QUEER THEORY will be a book-length poetry collection that welcomes all forms of poetry (short, long, prose poems, free verse, highly formal, and beyond). Stylistically, knock yourself out. Have fun. Go for it! See the Call for Submissions for more details. Submission Guidelines: Submissions:Early-bird […]
Writing about family is changing to be more inclusive. Yes, it still includes writing about kids but it also includes writing about all types of family structures. Learn how to pitch, what publications want, how to find sources, how to brainstorm ideas and much more. Profiles editor, Holly Rizzuto Palker will be in conversation with […]
On March 1919, shortly after publishing her first novel, The Voyage Out, famed author Virginia Woolf wrote in her Writer’s Diary, “Is the time coming when I can endure to read my writing in print without blushing—shivering and wishing to take cover?” I am no Virginia Woolf, but at 1:00 a.m. on March 15th, 2023, struggling […]
If you’re like me, typing is faster than writing by hand. Often I get stuck staring at a blinking cursor. Recently, I discovered a trick to get the words flowing. Print the piece you’re working on. Close the computer. Find a notebook and pen. Let your mind wander on the page. Write for ten minutes. Don’t […]