Vagabond City Literary Journal

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About

This is a world in which the loudest voices are the marginalized. This is a world of poetry, essays, creative nonfiction, and art that fits outside the mainstream literary scene, yet still of significant literary merit. We actively seek work from authors and creators from diverse and marginalized backgrounds and identities. We don’t care who has (not) published your work in the past. We are interested in hearing from those who are drowning. We have a special appreciation for the creations of 20-somethings whose misery is dashed aside as hipster apathy, melodrama, overemotional. Don’t restrict your writing to your tumblr. Tell us what you feel. Let us be the home for your weird, your emotional, your challenge. Tell us how culture/religion/love/society has failed you. We’re cool with the political. Get big with us. Go ambitious.

Country of Publication & Year Established

United States

Established in 2013

Publication Medium & Frequency

Electronic Publication Electronic Publication: Published 12 x per year

AI Policy

Unknown AI policy

49 members set this magazine as a Favorite.

Statistics Synopsis

Slower: Vagabond City Literary Journal's overall average response time is slower than most magazines.

Learn more about our statistics

Collapse section Fiction Open

Audience:

Open to a broad Audience, including: All ethnic groups/populations, All genders, All sexual identities.

Genres:

General

Lengths:

Flash Fiction: Up to 1,000 words; Unknown number of pieces.
Short Story: 1,000 - 2,500 words; Unknown number of pieces.

Styles:

Open to all/most Styles, including: Literary.

Topics:

Open to all/most Topics including...
Other: May vary.

Payment:

No monetary payment No monetary payment.

Submissions:

Method: Email.
Reprints: Reprints are NOT allowed.
Simultaneous submissions: Simultaneous submissions are allowed.
Media: Text.

Collapse section Nonfiction Open

Audience:

Open to a broad Audience, including: All ethnic groups/populations, All genders, All sexual identities.

Lengths:

Review: No specific word count limits known.
Essay: Up to 2,500 words; Unknown number of pieces.
Narrative Nonfiction: Up to 2,500 words; Unknown number of pieces.

Styles:

Open to all/most Styles, including: Literary.

Topics:

Open to all/most Topics including...
Other: May vary.

Payment:

No monetary payment No monetary payment.

Submissions:

Method: Email.
Reprints: Reprints are NOT allowed.
Simultaneous submissions: Simultaneous submissions are allowed.
Media: Text.

Collapse section Poetry Temp Closed

Dates:

Will be open to submissions from 15 September 2026* (approx. 9 days from now) through 31 May 2027.

Audience:

Open to a broad Audience, including: All ethnic groups/populations, All genders, All sexual identities.

Genres:

General

Lengths:

Poem: No line limits known; Up to 5 pieces.

Poetry Forms:

Open to all/most Forms.

Styles:

Open to all/most Styles, including: Literary.

Topics:

Open to all/most Topics including...
Other: May vary.

Payment:

No monetary payment No monetary payment.

Submissions:

Method: Email.
Reprints: Reprints are NOT allowed.
Simultaneous submissions: Simultaneous submissions are allowed.
Media: Text.

Collapse section Visual Art Open

Audience:

Open to a broad Audience, including: All ethnic groups/populations, All genders, All sexual identities.

Lengths:

Artwork: 4 - 6 pieces.

Art Media:

Open to all/most Art Media.

Art Styles:

Open to all/most Art Styles.

Topics:

Open to all/most Topics including...
Other: May vary.

Payment:

No monetary payment No monetary payment.

Submissions:

Method: Email.
Reprints: Reprints are NOT allowed.
Simultaneous submissions: Simultaneous submissions are allowed.
Media: Image.

Always check guidelines for details and restrictions. If you aren't familiar with these terms, see our glossary.
* We do not know the time and/or timezone, so we cannot be more precise. Submit early to avoid disappointment.

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Social Platforms:
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Vagabond City Literary Journal Submission Statistics

The statistics in this section are compiled from submission reports sent to us through our submission tracker. They are not provided by the publication's editors/staff or by Duotrope's admins. Information in this section is updated a few times per day. Learn more about the statistics.

Filter:

Group by submission

Include outliers

Accuracy

We have received 9 reports from 9 different members within the past 12 months, not including pending responses (see below). The more responses reported, the more accurate the information.

Days Reported

1 min | 118.9 mean avg | 76.0 median | 593 max days (189.7 std dev)

Pending

2 responses are pending (39 min | 51.0 mean avg | 63.0 median | 63 max days waiting | 399.2 std dev) from 2 different members

Other Information

The editors will try to make a decision within 42 days. (66.7 % of the responses reported to us for this listing have taken longer than 42 days.)
Most recent response reported was received on 14 Aug 2026.
Responses have been received for submissions sent as recently as 24 Jul 2026.
Date compiled: 05 Sep 2026 22:43 UTC (less than a minute ago).
View report of recent responses from this project

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Before Submitting

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Always read the full guidelines provided by the publisher.
Try to read at least one previous publication to get a better idea of what the editor would like to see.
Unless the publisher's guidelines state otherwise, always use industry standard manuscript formatting.
Be professional, patient, and persistent.

Dates

Last Updated: 21 Jul 2026

We check their guidelines for changes every four weeks, and we audit the listing twice a year.