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Magazine Stand :: Creative Nonfiction – Fall 2022

Creative Nonfiction print literary magazine Fall 2022 issue cover image

Creative Nonfiction #78 is themed “Experiments in Voice” and focuses on unconventional narrators and shifting perspectives. What is voice? How do you find yours? How can you change it, rearrange it, play with it? And then, how can you use it to make change in the world? This issue of Creative Nonfiction celebrates writerly playfulness, exploration, and risk-taking, featuring breathless, epistolary, speculative, second-person, and snarky essays. Plus, an interview with Hysterical memoirist Elissa Bassist, close reads of work by Steve Coughlin, Jaquira Díaz, Margo Jefferson, and R. Eric Thomas, micro-essays, and contributions from Sonya Huber, Beth Kephart, Leath Tonino, and Jill Christman among others.

Call :: Creative Nonfiction Sunday Short Reads

Creative Nonfiction Sunday Short Reads Call for Submissions logo image

Creative Nonfiction magazine is accepting submissions for their Sunday Short Reads email—previously unpublished work up to 1,000 words, with a deadline of August 1. Managing Editor Hattie Fletcher offers this editorial tip: “We’re open to stories on any subject, any style, but one of the questions we ask ourselves before accepting a story is, ‘Would we feel good about emailing this out to 8,500+ readers first thing on a Sunday morning?'” There is a $3 submission fee, waived for subscribers; pays $50 on publication, and all submissions are also considered for publication in CNF magazine.

Call :: Creative Nonfiction Becoming a Nurse

I Wasn't Strong Like This When I Started Out: True Stories of Becoming a Nurse book cover image

Creative Nonfiction magazine seeks submissions for a special expanded anniversary edition of I Wasn’t Strong Like This When I Started Out: True Stories of Becoming a Nurse. They are looking for pandemic-era stories dramatically and vividly written by and about nurses which examine the complex and essential role nurses of all kinds have played in providing care and guidance for patients and families, as well as the ways in which the pandemic has affected both individuals and the healthcare system. Previously unpublished, narrative form, with scenes, description, vivid characters, and a distinctive voice, 1000-4000 words. This is a paying market. All submissions will be considered for the book and might also be considered for other CNF projects. There is no submission fee for this category. Deadline: Monday, June 27, 2022.

Magazine Stand :: Creative Nonfiction – Spring 2022

Creative Nonfiction literary magazine cover image

The newest issue of Creative Nonfiction opens with the essay “50 Years of Making Nonfiction Creative” by CNF Founding Editor Lee Gutkind, in which he reflects on the contributions of Thomas Wolfe to the birth of the genre, labeled “The New Journalism.” The issue also includes “CNF’s first examples of ‘pandemic literature’ – essays written since early 2020, stories that incorporate our many individual and collective experience from the past two years.” While many found it a difficult time to record their lives, the editors acknowledge, “Maybe it’s that when everyone’s suffering – though of course we’re not all suffering equally – it seems like there’s almost nothing to say. Our grief feels unexceptional. But there is a lot to say, and isn’t that why we write?” And here to be read are works by Laura Pritchett, Amye Archer, Caroline Hagood, Meg Senuta, Francis Doherty, A. J. Bermudez, Anne Mcgrath, Clare Magneson, Joe Primo, and Amber Taliancich, as well as a selection of “Tiny Truths: 77 Micro-essays of fleeting joys, wistful memories, and passing sadnesses from the past two years” culled from the ongoing #tinytruths posted on Twitter. Cover art by Victoria Villasana.

Creative Nonfiction Spring 2022 Online Classes Announced

Creative Nonfiction has announced its lineup of Spring 2022 online writing classes. Don’t forget that subscribers to their journal receive a 10% discount for their online classes and webinars!

They are offering a nice mix of beginner, intermediate, and advanced courses.

Continue reading “Creative Nonfiction Spring 2022 Online Classes Announced”

True Story is Coming Back!

True Story 2022 Submissions Relaunch banner

Creative Nonfiction has announced its journal for long-form nonfiction, True Story, is officially making its comeback this year. In fact, they are currently seeking submissions of essays between 5,000 and 10,000 words through April 30, 2022.

Each issue will feature one exceptional work of creative nonfiction and will be distributed in print and digitally. Writers whose essays are selected for publication will receive $750 and 10 free copies of “their” issue.

There is a $3 reading fee which is waived for current True Story and/or Creative Nonfiction subscribers.

Browse through past issues of True Story for an idea of what they are looking for.

Creative Nonfiction – No. 76

In this newly redesigned issue of Creative Nonfiction we explore the roots of the genre and celebrate the spirit of rebellion that’s always infused it. And we consider where we are now at this moment that feels pivotal for so many. Plus, new essays about the limitations of identity labels; what we can (and can’t) learn from dinosaur tracks; how to reintegrate after two military tours overseas; the challenges of translation; and how to approach a sibling who’s taken a deep dive into conspiracy theories. Essays by Valerie Boyd, Margaret Kimball, Bret Lott, Marisa Manuel, Brenda Miller, Clinton Crockett Peters, and others.

More info at the Creative Nonfiction website.

Creative Nonfiction End of Year Sale

Gift yourself or someone special Creative Nonfiction goodies this holiday season. Until Friday, December 12, the literary journal is offering discounts on magazines, subscriptions, books, and merch.

Get books for as low as $8, back issues of Creative Nonfiction for $2.50 each, back issues of True Story for $1, 33% off one-year subscriptions, and up to 33% off merch.

Show off your love of CNF on your bookshelves or in your wardrobe and learn more about this limited time sale here.

Creative Nonfiction’s Self-Guided Write Your Memoir Month

creative nonfiction write your memoir month screenshotNot wanting to let novelists have all the fun during the month of November, Creative Nonfiction is offering a self-guided Write Your Memoir course.

Running from November 1-26, the course is patterned after their popular Thirty-Minute Memoir and is designed to “help you break the potentially overwhelming task of writing a memoir into manageable daily writing assignments.”

Each week’s lesson will be revealed on Mondays and will focus on a different aspect of memoir writing and offers daily prompts to help you generate work and inspiration via written lectures and selected readings.

The best part? It’s only $29.99, so join NaMeWriMo today!

Creative Nonfiction Summer 2021 Sale

Creative Nonfiction is currently having a sale on back issues, subscriptions, books, and merchandise through August 10 to help make room with the new magazine debuting this fall.

This means a digital subscription is available for just $3/month or $25/year! Plus, you can get back issues of CNF for just $2.50 and back issues of True Story for only $1!

Love their line of books, but haven’t snapped up the title you want yet? Books are starting as low as $8. How about getting a gift for a teacher who is gearing up to go back to school soon? Check out the anthology What I Didn’t Know: True Stories of Becoming a Teacher.

Love t-shirts? They are on sale, too. You can get them in white, blue, black, and red and they are only $4.

Plus, if you subscribe today as a Supporting or Sustaining subscriber (these options aren’t part of the summer sale), you gain priority registration for their fall roster of online courses, which is a pretty nice perk. So if you’ve been on the fence about subscribing, maybe it’s time to take the plunge?

Creative Nonfiction Updated Subscription Options

With the launch of the new website, Creative Nonfiction has moved the majority of its archived content online (that’s more than 27 years worth!). With this, they now offer more ways to subscribe and access the content from past issues of their journal, True Story, online exclusives, and their Sunday Short Reads.

For just $4/month or $39/year, you can become a Digital Subscriber and get access to new issues, the entire archive, and all web exclusives. You are able to access this digital content across all of your devices and subscription is setup for automatic renewals so you never miss out.

If you still love holding the printed page in your hands, you can become a Print & Digital Subscriber for $6/month or $59/year. You get everything digital subscribers get plus four issues a year mailed directly to your home.

Interested in purchasing merchandise or joining their online classes? Supporting Subscribers ($10/month or $99/year) get all the benefits of the first two subscription options plus a 10% discount on programs and merchandise. Oh…and did I mention priority registration for online courses as well as early access to events?

Speaking of their online courses, there are still a few slots available for their summer classes!

The final subscription option contains all the benefits of the previous subscriptions and adds on a charitable donation to Creative Nonfiction in the amount of $10/month ($120/year) and your name listed as a donor in the print magazine as well as online. The cost of this is $25/month or $249/year.

So if you aren’t subscribed to this powerhouse for creative nonfiction, join them today!

New Site for Creative Nonfiction

Have you heard the news? The Creative Nonfiction Foundation, home of literary magazine Creative Nonfiction, has a newly designed website! This is the first redesign in ten years. Now on the site, almost everything from the journal’s 27-year archive is now available to subscribers. If you’re not already a subscriber, you can sign up now to ensure you’ll receive the 76th issue which will explain how the genre of creative nonfiction was established, how it’s changed over the years, and where it may go next.

Take some time this weekend to familiarize yourself with the new website!

When Gaps Become Story

Guest Post by Mark Smeltzer.

“We don’t know much about Mr. Otomatsu Wada of Unit B in Barrack 14 in Block 63 of the Gila River Relocation Center,” Eric L. Muller admits at the start of his essay, “The Desert Was His Home.” This lack of knowledge does not deter Muller from examining the pain and power of absence, as well as how deep research becomes an avenue for creative discovery.

Throughout this essay, Muller lays out the facts about this one Japanese-American, among many, held prisoner in the U.S. during World War II. Muller uses what little is known of this man to sketch out a rough but potent portrait of his life. Most notable was Wada’s “two-year-old mystery” marked by the refrain “We don’t know” that Muller uses until Wada’s fate is revealed.

This essay demonstrates how seamlessly and naturally a story can incorporate the many don’t knows and can’t knows inevitable in research. It is even possible, as “The Desert” shows us, how the gaps in a subject’s life can become the story. This piece can be found in Issue 74 of Creative Nonfiction.

“The Desert Was His Home” by Eric L. Muller. Creative Nonfiction, Winter 2021.

Reviewer bio: Mark Smeltzer is a graduate student in Utah State University’s English Department. His area of specialization is in poetry.

Creative Nonfiction Offering 12 Classes This Spring

Literary magazine Creative Nonfiction has currently announced their Spring 2021 courses. They are offering a total of 12 to help people achieve their writing goals.

Currently available courses are the Creative Nonfiction Boot Camp (5-week or 10-week); Thirty-Minute Memoir; Advanced Historical Narratives: Crafting the Best Material; Advanced Memoir: From First Sentence to Resolution; and Advanced Personal Essay: Finding a Way Through. The advanced courses do require you meet pre-requisites before enrolling.

These classes are offered completely online and will run April 12 through June 20, 2021.

Sunday Short Reads

Love creative nonfiction in bite-sized form? Literary magazine Creative Nonfiction has you covered with Sunday Short Reads. This is flash nonfiction delivered weekly straight to your inbox. The pieces featured in this mailing are hand-selected from the archives of Creative Nonfiction, Brevity, Diagram, River Teeth, and Sweet Lit. They will also sometimes feature the occasional original works, too.

Check out past issues here, and consider subscribing today to satisfying your nonfiction cravings.

Interested in submitting your own nonfiction? They are open to submissions of nonfiction by older writers (age 60+) through February 22.

Clarity and Experimentations with Creative Nonfiction

Readers, Creative Nonfiction has a new issue heading out to their subscribers! Issue 74’s theme is “Moments of Clarity,” and you can get a sneak peek at what Editor Lee Gutkind has to say to introduce it. Single issue copies can be purchased from their website.

Writers, the nonfiction journal is currently accepting submissions for a few more days. The current reading period is focusing on “Experiments in Nonfiction,” and you can see more of what they’re looking for here. The deadline is January 11, and there is a $3 reading fee to writers who aren’t currently subscribed to the journal.

Navigate the Lit Mag Landscape with Creative Nonfiction

You still have time to register to attend Creative Nonfiction‘s December 16 webinar. The webinar will run from 2pm – 3:15pm EST on Wednesday. It is $25 to register, and registration closes 24 hours before the event.

The event aims to help writers:

  • GAIN an understanding of the contemporary literary/literary magazine landscape and why you would want (or not want) to publish in lit mags.
  • LEARN how and where to send your work.
  • CONSIDER the writer-editor relationship and what happens once your work is accepted

Hattie Fletcher, managing editor of Creative Nonfiction, will lead the webinar. Find out more at the lit mag’s website.

Creative Nonfiction Holiday Sale Ends Tonight!

Don’t forget that Creative Nonfiction‘s holiday sale officially ends tonight at 11:59 PM EST. They have some amazing deals going on perfect for the creative nonfiction lover in your life.

You can get 50% off a subscription to Creative Nonfiction and single issues for only $2.50. Like their long essay magazine True Story? You can get single issues for just a $1. They also have their books available for $8 and have even created special bundles of their favorite issues. These bundles include Animals, Exploration, Food & Drink, History, Home, Pushcart Nominees, Starting Over, Teaching & Learning, Technology, and Women Write.

Love T-Shirts? They have those available for $5, too.

Want to gift a writer or your self with an online course in nonfiction? Creative Nonfiction is currently offering 11 online classes. You can save $50 off the cost if you enroll by December 21.

A Portal to Powerful Nonfiction

Magazine Review by Katy Haas

The art of John Belue dons the cover and pages of the Fall 2020 issue of Creative Nonfiction, and I absolutely love it. His work remixes vintage photos, thinly cut strips overlaying another photo to create an almost portal-like image. The art drew me into the “Memoir” issue of Creative Nonfiction and the writing made me stick around even longer.

Megan Doney’s nightmares haunt her after a shooting at the school where she teaches in “The Wolf and the Dog.” While her dreams leave her powerless, she imagines finding power if the situation ever happens again. The piece begins viscerally, a dark view into Doney’s mind after surviving a horrific event.

Mary Beth Ellis gets deeply personal in “Weaponry of the Cold War” as she walks readers through her vaginismus diagnosis. While the subject of her writing is both physically and emotionally painful, Ellis uses humor in unexpected places, her writing cynical and skeptical, light when it matters. As Ellis says, up to 14% of the female population suffers from vaginismus, and there is not much to read about the subject. Ellis adds her voice, her story, giving other people with vaginas something to relate to.

Whether you pick up Creative Nonfiction‘s latest issue because the art caught your eye, or because you crave powerful nonfiction, you will not be let down.

Creative Nonfiction Now Enrolling for Fall Online Classes

Creative Nonfiction Fall 2019 coverThat’s right! Literary magazine Creative Nonfiction‘s Fall 2020 online writing courses are open to enrollment. They offer courses for writers of all levels from those just starting out to the more advanced. All courses will begin on September 7. If you sign up by August 15, you will save $50. If you have a buddy you want to do these courses with, you could save an additional $25.

Courses include a Creative Nonfiction Boot Camp, Introduction to Audio Podcasting & Storytelling, Magazine Writing, The Building Blocks of the Personal Essay, Writing for Change: The Study & Craft of Environmental Writing, Advanced Memoir: From First Sentence to Resolution, Advanced Personal Essay: Finding a Way Through, and Advanced Science Writing.

Learn more about all their courses and how to sign up at their website.

Words. Water. Woods: Write on the River.

**The Chesapeake Writers’ Conference is keeping a close eye on the current situation and as of now still plans on holding their annual June conference.**

Spend the first week of summer on the St. Mary’s River! The 9th Annual Chesapeake Writers’ Conference offers an immersive experience featuring daily workshops with accomplished faculty in fiction, poetry, creative nonfiction, and songwriting; a diverse schedule of craft talks, lectures, panels, and readings; a youth workshop for high school students; and a Teachers’ Seminar for educators. All levels welcome. www.smcm.edu/events/chesapeake-writers-conference/

View the full April eLitPak here.

Science as Story

Creative Nonfiction Fall 2019 coverIn their recent newsletter, literary magazine Creative Nonfiction has announced a new series of events launching this spring called Science as Story. The best part of this series is that these events will be free thanks to the support from the Fisher Fund of the Pittsburgh Foundation.

From March to May, five scientists will visit Pittsburgh to give public lectures. If you aren’t a local to the area, these will also be available as webinars! Each of these scientist writers will also participate in intimate conversations along with Q&As to discuss the craft of writing.

Plus, they will also be running a six-week writing workshop for scientists who are itching to tell their stories.

Featured authors in this series are Azra Raza, Amanda Little, Dawn Raffel, Danielle Ofri, and Ruth Kassinger. Visit their website to learn more.