Our Submission Guidelines

Locution, a literary magazine, is looking to publish works of merit, whether prose, verse, or script. The piece must be in English or understandable to the English reading audience.

As a rule, we like to see pieces that touch us emotionally or make us think. Genre fiction for its own sake is unlikely to fare well; this applies also to mindlessly plot-driven stories or pieces that rely completely on prettiness of sound (read: purple prose).

We accept all kinds of work, from poetry to non-fiction creative, and fantasy to historical. The quality of the writing, however, needs to be high. It is unlikely that we will accept children’s literature, as it is often limited by subject matter and vocabulary. However, understand there is no concrete rule beyond quality.

This also applies to subject matter and profanity. If a piece is done to a high standard, uncomfortable subject matter or the use of swearing can have merit. Be warned, however, that writing intending only to shock is simply a gimmick that falls short on true cleverness. There is also a clear link between the mastery of grammar, if not necessarily adherence to its rules, and “literary merit”.

We are currently not looking for articles, although we will publish any relating to literature we receive that is of high quality. It is probably best to send us a query first if you wish to submit one.

For a reference of what kind of work we publish, have a look at our first issue. If you are new to submissions, check our article on getting published.

As a free E-zine, Locution, does not offer payment for your publication at this time. We offer a venue for writers to receive publishing credits and public appreciation within a non-localized distribution model. We request online, private-print, and first-run physical rights, though you retain all peripheral rights and may submit your work to other publications 6 months after your Locution publication. All online and physical distribution of your work will be non-profit, unless we contact you, re: rights for a paying anthology.

To save shipping costs and to simplify matters, Locution only accepts electronic submissions. The email address is submissions@locution-zine.com.

We prefer attachments in the form of .rtf files, although we will accept .doc files too. As a last resort, the piece can be included in the body of the submission email.

Include a cover page with your name, email address, and a brief biography. You could also briefly explain the piece’s significance to you, although this is optional; we may wish to include a short description in the magazine. Make sure to include any notes regarding formatting such as shape, fonts, or images. Be aware that we may not be able to comply with your layout requests, so please indicate the importance of the layout as well as alternatives. If these are not included we may have to postpone or reject your submission.

We aim to respond in 2 to 5 weeks to submissions, and within a week for queries.

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Photography and illustrations are soon to be presented in Locution Magazine, with standards equal to our literary submissions. If you feel your work has particular artistic merit, you may query a singular piece or related series to our art editor at art@locution-zine.com.