Larina's Lit Lounge Gold Star Program Gold Star

Each issue of Larina’s Lit Lounge has a writing prompt. All submissions should address the writing prompt in some way, though the connection may be slight. Please note that while I greatly appreciate tip jar submissions, using the tip jar in no way influences selections. Tip jar submissions help me continue to pay writers for their work.

Anyone, but the submission must match a writing prompt in Larina’s Lit Lounge.

Simultaneous Submissions

Yes, but please let me know if your piece is accepted elsewhere.

You may submit one prose piece and one poem per prompt.

1 nonfiction piece up to 1,000 words.

That wouldn’t be written to the prompt, now would it? No reprints.

I purchase First Electronic Rights and the piece will remain on Substack for as long as Substack and my account exist.

I pay $20 via Paypal or Venmo to you or your favorite nondiscriminatory charity.

Right now I’m really fast—within 24 hours usually. If the number of submissions increases, expect my turnaround time to slow down as well.

Please use standard Shunn's format, although format will automatically be a deal breaker.

Tough sells include:

• Gore for the sake of gore
• Shock value pieces
• Highly experimental pieces
• Pieces with unusual formatting requirements
• Unoriginal tropes and themes

Hard no’s include:

• Discrimination against any group of people
• Child abuse in fiction or graphic child abuse of any kind
• Sexual assault in fiction or graphic sexual assault of any kind
• Animal cruelty in fiction or graphic animal cruelty of any kind

Note: I lean left on the political spectrum. I’m open to center-right themes and ideas if they are written well and non-discriminatory. I will not respond to far right or hateful submissions.

The four most recent prompts are:

• Maybe next time
• Animal Friends
• Think about what makes your creative work yours. What tidbit could someone use to recognize you wrote the piece? Write something based entirely on that.
• Becoming—with help from an unexpected place

Submit

Each issue of Larina’s Lit Lounge has a writing prompt. All submissions should address the writing prompt in some way, though the connection may be slight. Please note that while I greatly appreciate tip jar submissions, using the tip jar in no way influences selections. Tip jar submissions help me continue to pay writers for their work.

Anyone, but the submission must match a writing prompt in Larina’s Lit Lounge.

Simultaneous Submissions

Yes, but please let me know if your piece is accepted elsewhere.

You may submit one prose piece and one poem per prompt.

1 story up to 1,000 words.

That wouldn’t be written to the prompt, now would it? No reprints.

I purchase First Electronic Rights and the piece will remain on Substack for as long as Substack and my account exist.

I pay $20 via Paypal or Venmo to you or your favorite nondiscriminatory charity.

Right now I’m really fast—within 24 hours usually. If the number of submissions increases, expect my turnaround time to slow down as well.

Please use standard Shunn's format, although format will automatically be a deal breaker.

Tough sells include:

• Gore for the sake of gore
• Shock value pieces
• Highly experimental pieces
• Pieces with unusual formatting requirements
• Unoriginal tropes and themes

Hard no’s include:

• Discrimination against any group of people
• Child abuse in fiction or graphic child abuse of any kind
• Sexual assault in fiction or graphic sexual assault of any kind
• Animal cruelty in fiction or graphic animal cruelty of any kind

Note: I lean left on the political spectrum. I’m open to center-right themes and ideas if they are written well and non-discriminatory. I will not respond to far right or hateful submissions.

The four most recent prompts are:

• Maybe next time
• Animal Friends
• Think about what makes your creative work yours. What tidbit could someone use to recognize you wrote the piece? Write something based entirely on that.
• Becoming—with help from an unexpected place

Submit