The London Magazine is the UK’s oldest literary magazine, proud to have published some of the biggest names in literature including Virginia Woolf, T. S. Eliot, Sylvia Plath, Ted Hughes, Joan Didion, Gabriel García Márquez and Hilary Mantel.
We will be open for free submissions during the following periods:
1 – 31 January
1 – 31 March
1 – 31 May
1 – 31 July
1 – 30 September
1 – 30 November
We advise sending in your work nearer the start of the month before we hit our submissions portal’s free quota. We charge a small fee of £3.50 for submissions outside of those windows. During periods in which our prizes are live, we will be closed for open submissions in that category.
- Please ensure you have submitted your piece through the correct Submittable category. For example, a short story submitted in the poetry category will not be considered. Note that running competitions will have their own Submittable category, which will be clearly signposted.
- If submitting multiple pieces through Submittable, please combine them into one document.
- We only publish original material, i.e. first-ever publication. We cannot run a piece that has already appeared online or elsewhere in print. We can, however, publish an original translation if the work has previously appeared in another language, but never before in English.
Writers should carefully review the guidelines before submitting work via our online portal; any work not in line with the guidelines will not be read.
We find those who are familiar with the publication stand a far better chance of having their submissions accepted, so we do recommend reading the latest copy of our print magazine which can be purchased via our website.
The London Magazine is the UK’s oldest literary magazine, proud to have published some of the biggest names in poetry including T. S. Eliot, Ted Hughes, Sylvia Plath and Philip Larkin. Past winners include Kathryn Bevis, Jay Gao and Isabelle Baafi.
Now, continuing that tradition, we launch our 2026 Poetry Prize. We are delighted to announce that entries will be judged by: Isabelle Baafi, Luke Kennard and Dean Browne.
Established to encourage emerging literary talent, the award provides an opportunity for publication and recognition. While there is no criteria as to theme, form or style, judges are looking for resonant and accomplished work.
Poems must be previously unpublished and no longer than 40 lines. Submissions are open for international entries.
All three prize winners will appear in a print issue of The London Magazine. Prize winners will also receive cash prizes, and will be celebrated at a prize-giving event in the summer.
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Information
Entry fee: £12 per poem
Subsequent entries: £6 per poem
Student and low-income entry: £6 per poem
(Must be submitted with a valid university email address)
Membership entry: One free entry (subsequent entries £6)
Opening date: 19th December 2025
Closing date: 13th March 2026
First Prize: £1000
Second Prize: £600
Third Prize: £400
- The London Magazine will have the unrestricted right to publish winning submissions (including runners-up) in the magazine and online.
- Subsequent entries should be submitted separately in individual entry forms through Submittable and not in the same document.
- Please read our competition rules carefully before entering. If you have any questions, please contact Zadie at info@thelondonmagazine.org
For short fiction, above all we look for elegance in voice, structure and characterisation. We do not normally publish genre fiction, such as science fiction, fantasy writing or erotica, and we do not accept flash fiction. Please make sure stories are no more than 4,000 words in length, and only submit one story per submission.
Although we prefer pitches via email for non-fiction, we are open to considering full, finished essays if you have them. When submitting these, please include a brief description of the piece. We accept a broad range of essays, from lyric, memoir and personal to reportage, criticism and features, but please do not submit academic essays or reviews. We have no set word length, but we tend to publish pieces under 4,000 words. You can read past essays here on our website.
We are always open to receiving art, illustrations or photography in our submissions to be featured in our print magazine or accompanying pieces on our website. We also welcome pitches for photo essays.