If you’ve ever received a rejection letter, you know the let-down lurks behind the word unfortunately.

“Unfortunately, we didn’t connect with your characters.”
“Unfortunately, your manuscript isn’t a fit for the current market.”
“Unfortunately, the work just didn’t pull us in as much as we’d hoped.”

And so on.

But, we don’t have to condemn ourselves to misery. The editors at Unfortunately, aim to take the sting-and-stigma out of rejections and make the writing world a little less of a hellscape. As such, we promise to:

• Respond to all submissions.
• Be transparent about our review process and provide feedback to those who request it.
• Explain to our readers why we accepted the pieces we publish.
• Provide resources for navigating life as a writer and artist.
• Encourage diverse voices to share their stories.
• Attempt to pay you motherfuckers. We aren’t currently a paying market, but we’re working on it.
• Nominate our favorite work for the Pushcart Prize, Best American Short Stories, and Best of the Net.

So, please, send us your work that’s too quirky, too dark, too queer, not the right kind of queer, too female-driven, too literary, not literary enough.

Too much, too little, we want to see it all.

Our only requirement is that you get your piece rejected elsewhere at least once before submitting to us. You don't need to send us proof of your rejection(s) unless you really want to.

You can read our full guidelines on our website here: https://www.unfortunatelylitmag.com/submit/