Paper Road accepts creative submissions from both emerging and established writers and artists within Australia. We are open to international submissions. We publish online only.
We accept submissions of:
- Fiction (flash, literary, mystery, romance, sci-fi, fantasy, speculative and anything else in-between)
- Creative Nonfiction (memoir, personal essay, lyric essay, feature articles and reviews)
- Poetry
- Art (photography, drawings, paintings, digital art).
We will not accept ANY material that is:
- Homophobic
- Transphobic
- Sexist
- Racist
- Directly promoting hate speech or specific political or religious parties and organisations
- AI-generated.
We reserve the right to not accept pieces that do not align with our ethos at any time.
Submission Guidelines:
Fiction, creative nonfiction and poetry pieces are limited to 3,000 words or less. Works over 3,000 words will not be considered for publication. We recognise that poetry and flash fiction works might be significantly smaller in word count.
Do not submit more than two pieces at any given time. If you have several small poems limit them to just two in one submission.
We are more than happy for repeat contributors.
We do not accept simultaneous submissions.
Preparing your work:
All submissions of written work must be in word document (.doc or similar) format. We do not accept .pdf or .txt format and please do not paste the work directly into the body of the email.
Documents should have the title of the piece at the top of the page, followed by author name. Pen names are accepted and you have the option to include it with your given name or without.
All written submissions should be in a readable, size 12 font (such as Times New Roman, Arial, etc) and have double spacing.
Please edit and proofread your work before you submit to the best of your ability. We will edit and give guidance, but it does help our group to have pieces polished to the best of your ability.
Once ready to submit, make sure your email:
- Contains the type of submission in the subject line, for example: ‘Piece title’ (type)- ‘Grass is Green’ (Poetry).
- Contains your name and the title of the piece in the body of the email.
- Includes a cover letter in the body of the email.
- Is addressed to Nyalat Pel Kun.
- Has your submission attached as a word document file or an image file if not written work. Do not directly paste your written piece in the body of the email.
- Includes a brief description of the piece (around 50-100 words).
- Includes a brief bio about yourself to accompany the submission if it is accepted (this is optional).
- After these steps are completed, send email to: paperroadmagazine@gmail.com
Creative Nonfiction Pitches:
If you have an idea for a piece but are unsure if it fits with our magazine, we accept pitches and it is quite a simple process.
Simply write a short description (around 100-200 words) of what you wish to write about, an estimate of how long you think it might be, and why you think it might be a good fit for us. Include any additional information you feel is important to the piece, such as your name and possible title, or any issues you might have so we can determine how best to respond.
Please send your email with ‘Creative Nonfiction Pitch’ in the subject line to Nyalat Pel Kun at: paperroadmagazine@gmail.com
After you submit:
Paper Road relies on volunteer editors to read and edit all pieces and pitches and we cannot guarantee a fast turnaround time. We will respond with an email about your piece being reviewed as soon as we can. Please note that if we have a deadline announced for submissions, late submissions will not be accepted. We will advise that you should resubmit for our next issue. If at any stage you have any concerns or wish to withdraw your piece, please email paperroadmagazine@gmail.com
If you do submit a piece that has been published somewhere else, you must inform us so we can withdraw your submission.
Paper Road Magazine 