Greetings and salutations fellow creatives!
As July winds down, we’re gearing up for our next Friday Inspiration Prompt and Where to Submit Roundup—arriving August 1st. Time flies, doesn’t it? Even when it’s not all sunshine and creativity.
Aside from doing the normal routines, NewPages has been kicking around some innovations for our Bookstore Guide. These indie bookstores are hubs of inspiration and community. Check out our guide to find one near you—you might discover a cozy spot to work, read, and connect with kindred spirits. Who knows? They might just become part of your chosen family.
Inspiration Prompt: The Family We Choose
Family isn’t always inherited. Sometimes, it’s built—through love, loyalty, and the quiet decision to show up when no one had to.
Think about the people who stepped in, stood by, or shaped your life in unexpected ways. Maybe it was a step-parent, a mentor, a friend who became a sibling, or a partner who helped you feel seen. Maybe it’s a community that redefined what home means.
This week, write about the people who became family by choice.
Prompt Ideas:
- Tell the story of someone who became family through action, not obligation.
- Write a poem about the moment you realized someone was “yours.”
- Explore the tension or beauty in blending families, traditions, or identities or in building your own.
- Create a collage or multimedia piece that celebrates the patchwork of your personal tribe.
Whether your piece is joyful, complicated, or somewhere in between, let it reflect the truth that family is not always inherited—it’s often created. Your story matters. Write it.
🎶 Need a creative spark? Listen to our curated playlist celebrating chosen family and belonging.
Want even more writing prompts?
Get one delivered to your inbox every week when you subscribe to the NewPages newsletter! Stay inspired with fresh ideas, submission calls, and literary news—right in your inbox.
When you’ve finished your piece, scroll down to explore 48 submission opportunities for writers of all genres. Whether you’re submitting poetry, fiction, nonfiction, or hybrid work, there’s a home waiting for your voice.
Submission Opportunities: 48 Ways to Share Your Work
Paid newsletter subscribers get early access to most submission calls and upcoming events before they’re posted on our site. You’ll also receive our monthly eLitPak Newsletter, packed with even more literary goodness. Consider subscribing or upgrading today!
🌱 New to submitting? Check out our Guide to Submission Opportunities for further details on these calls and contests.
✏️ Have young writers at home? Don’t miss our Young Writers Guide for contests tailored to grades K–12.
July 2025
- MudRoom | Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, art | Free ($3 expedited submissions available) | Deadline: July 25, 2025
- Driftwood Press.
- Adrift Chapbook Contest (Poetry) | Fee: $25 | Prize: $750 + publication + 20 copies | Judge: Matthew Olzmann | Extended Deadline: July 31, 2025
- Adrift Short Story Contest (Fiction) | Fee: $30 | Prize: $500 + print copies | Judge: Kelly Link | Extended Deadline: July 31, 2025
- Press 53 2026 Press 53 Award for Poetry | Poetry | $30 fee | Prizes: $1,000 advance, publication, 53 author copies (winner); $500 advance, publication, 25 copies (runner-up) | Judge: Tom Lombardo | Deadline: July 31, 2025.
- Red Wheelbarrow Literary Magazine Red Wheelbarrow Poetry Prize | Poetry | $15 fee | Prizes: $1,000, publication, broadside (winner); $500 and publication (second); $250 and publication (third) | Final Judge: Stephen Kuusisto | Deadline: July 31, 2025
- Sunspot Lit | Novella-length fiction, nonfiction, graphic novel, epic poetry | $20 fee | Deadline: July 31, 2025.
- Wordrunner eChapbooks Prose Collections | Fiction, nonfiction | $8 fee | Payment: $125 + royalties for kindles | Deadline: July 31, 2025.
August 2025
- About Place Journal Fall 2025: On Freedom | Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, comics, cross-genre, drama, graphic narratives, screenplays, interviews, reviews, translations, art, photography, audio, video | Free | Deadline: August 1, 2025
- The Nomad Review Fragility theme | Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, cross-genre, comics, graphic narratives, reviews, interviews, art, photography | Free | Deadline: August 1, 2025
- Orison Books. Best Spiritual Literature Awards | Fee: $12 | Prize: $500 + publication | Deadline: August 1, 2025
- Radar Poetry 12 Annual Coniston Prize | Poetry | $20 fee | Prize: $1,000 and publication | Deadline: August 1, 2025
- Futurepoem 2025 Other Futures Award | poetry, cross-genre | $28 fee | Prize: $1,000 advance, standard royalty contract, publication, 25 author copies | Deadline August 15, 2025
- Inverted Syntax Aggrey & Tabbikha Prize for Poetry | Poetry, cross-genre | $20 fee | Prize: $500 and book publication | Deadline: August 15, 2025 | Open to Black poets and/or those part of the S.W.A.N.A diaspora
- Inverted Syntax Sublingua Prize for Poetry | Poetry, cross-genre | $20 fee | Prize: $500 and book publication | Deadline: August 15, 2025 | For female-identifying poets only
- Thorn & Bloom Issue 03: The Splinters We Carry | Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, cross-genre, comics, graphic narratives | Free | Deadline: August 15, 2025
- Speckled Trout Review Summer 2025 Issue | Poetry | Free | Deadline: August 20, 2025
- The Headlight Review Anthony Grooms Prize in Fiction | Fiction | $18 fee | Prize: $750, chapbook publication, 20 copies | Judge: James E. Cherry | Deadline: August 31, 2025
- Inverted Syntax Fissured Tongue Volume VII | Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, art | $4 fee | Deadline: August 31, 2025
- Stepping Out: Writings on Infidelity anthology | fiction, nonfiction | Free | Proposal Deadline: August 31, 2025 | Draft Deadline: October 1, 2025
September 2025
- The Main Street Rag: North Coast Voices. Poetry Anthology | Fee: $3 | Payment: copies | Deadline: September 1, 2025
- Last Syllable. Book Awards in Poetry & Prose | Fee: $25 | Prize: $1,000 + travel + Visiting Writer Series feature | Deadline: September 1, 2025
- Superpresent Fall 2025: TRUTH | Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, cross-genre, drama/plays, comics, graphic narratives, translations, art, photography, audio, video | Free | Deadline: September 1, 2025
- The Branches Fall 2025 Issue: VOICE | Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, drama, screenplays, graphic narratives, graphic novels, reviews, art, photography, audio, video | Free | Deadline: September 13, 2025.
- The Big Book of Quantum Fiction | fiction, poetry, cross-genre, art, photography | Free | Payment: $24 and 1 contributor copy | Deadline: September 30, 2025
- DuFrank Lit. Fiction | Free | Deadline: September 30, 2025
- Livingston Press Open Reading Period | Novels, linked story collections, narrative poetry | Free | Deadline: September 30, 2025
October 2025
- The Missouri Review 35th Annual Jeffrey E. Smith Editors’ Prize | Fiction, nonfiction, poetry | $25 fee | Prize: $5,000 and publication awarded per genre | Deadline: October 1, 2025
- Willow Springs Books. Spokane Prize for Short Fiction | Entry fee | Prize: $2,000 + publication | Deadline: October 1, 2025
- Kings River Review. Fall 2025 Issue (all genres + art) | Free | Must be a 2-year college student | Deadline: October 15, 2025
November 2025
- Black Fox Literary Magazine. Winter Issue | Fiction, nonfiction, poetry | Free | |Deadline: November 30, 2025
- Blueline 2025 Open Reading Period | Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, art, photography | Free | Payment: Copies | Deadline: November 30, 2025
Year-Round Opportunities
- Blue Mountain Review | Prose, poetry, music, visual art | Fee: $5
- The Capra Review | All genres + multimedia | Free
- Changing Skies | Creative nonfiction, poetry, art | Free
- Decolonial Passage | Fiction, nonfiction, poetry | Free
- Driftwood Press | All genres + graphic works | Fees vary
- Fahmidan Journal | All genres | Free | Payment: $15
- Feels Blind Literary | All genres + comics | Fee: $3 (free on Mondays)
- Fiction on the Web Critique Service | Fiction | Fee varies
- Gambling the Aisle | Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, cross-genre | Free
- Hindsight Journal | Art, photography, nonfiction, poetry | Free
- Jewish Fiction | Fiction, translation | Free
- Kaleidoscope | Articles, fiction, poetry, reviews, visual art | Free | Payment: $10–$100
- New Verse News | Current-events poetry | Free
- Palooka | Magazine & chapbook submissions | Fee: $3 (magazine), $8 (chapbook) | Payment: copies
- Philly Poetry Chapbook Review | Excerpts, interviews, reviews | Free
- Pictura Journal | August 2025 Issue (all genres + art) | Free (tip jar) | Payment: $5
- Plant-Human Quarterly | Poetry, essays | Free
- Stone Circle Review | Poetry | Free
Ready to submit? Bookmark your favorites, mark your calendar, and good luck sharing your work!
Where to Submit Roundup: June 12, 2026
Where to Submit Roundup: June 5, 2026
Where to Submit Roundup: May 29, 2026
