Little Engines

About

Little Engines started in 2001, publishing four perfect-bound print issues. Each included a carefree mix of fiction, comics, interviews, photos, essays, and more. The Stranger called Little Engines “remarkably satisfying” and Philadelphia Weekly said the magazine was “such a wonderful creation.”
People liked the magazine, and I loved putting it together, but while digging into what should have been Issue Five, my day job in music became all consuming. I set the magazine aside, temporarily. Seventeen years later, a few months into Covid with live music shut down, I started working on a re-launch.

Country of Publication & Year Established

United States

Established in 2001

Publication Media & Frequency

Electronic Publication Electronic Publication: Unknown publication frequency
Print Publication Print Publication: Unknown publication frequency

AI Policy

Unknown AI policy

43 members set this magazine as a Favorite.

Statistics Synopsis

Regular Speed: Little Engines's overall average response time is within a normal range for magazines.
More Challenging: Little Engines's overall acceptance rate is lower than most magazines.
More Responsive: Little Engines's overall rate of non-response is lower than most magazines.

Learn more about our statistics

Collapse section Fiction Temp Closed

Audience:

Open to a broad Audience.

Genres:

General

Lengths:

Flash Fiction: Up to 1,000 words.
Short Story: No specific word count limits known (our definition: 1000 to 7500 words).

Styles:

Open to all/most Styles, including: Literary.

Topics:

Open to all/most Topics.

Payment:

Unknown payment Unknown payment.

Submissions:

Method: Submission manager.
Reprints: Unknown.
Simultaneous submissions: Unknown.
Media: Text.

Collapse section Nonfiction Temp Closed

Audience:

Open to a broad Audience.

Lengths:

Interview: No specific word count limits known.
Essay: No specific word count limits known.
Narrative Nonfiction: No specific word count limits known.

Styles:

Open to all/most Styles, including: Literary.

Topics:

Open to all/most Topics.

Payment:

Unknown payment Unknown payment.

Submissions:

Method: Submission manager.
Reprints: Unknown.
Simultaneous submissions: Unknown.
Media: Text.

Collapse section Poetry Temp Closed

Audience:

Open to a broad Audience.

Genres:

General

Lengths:

Poem: No line limits known; Unknown number of pieces.

Poetry Forms:

Open to all/most Forms.

Styles:

Open to all/most Styles, including: Literary.

Topics:

Open to all/most Topics.

Payment:

Unknown payment Unknown payment.

Submissions:

Method: Submission manager.
Reprints: Unknown.
Simultaneous submissions: Unknown.
Media: Text.

Collapse section Visual Art Temp Closed

Audience:

Open to a broad Audience.

Lengths:

Artwork: Unknown number of pieces.
Graphic Narrative: No page limits known.

Art Media:

Open to all/most Art Media, including...
Illustration.
Cartoon/Comic strip.
Photography.

Art Styles:

Open to all/most Art Styles.

Topics:

Open to all/most Topics.

Payment:

Unknown payment Unknown payment.

Submissions:

Method: Submission manager.
Reprints: Unknown.
Simultaneous submissions: Unknown.
Media: Image.

Always check guidelines for details and restrictions. If you aren't familiar with these terms, see our glossary.

Recent cover image or website screenshot for Little Engines

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Submission/Response
Correction/Update
New Cover Art

Social:
Bluesky @littleengines.bsky.social
Instagram @little__engines

For the Editor(s):
Request Interview
Duosuma Submission Manager
Link to Duotrope

Little Engines 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 11 reports from 11 different members within the past 12 months, not including pending responses (see below). The more responses reported, the more accurate the information.

Days Reported

18 min | 83.7 mean avg | 71.5 median | 246 max days (291.3 std dev)

Responses

81.82 %

Acceptances:

0.00 %

Rejections:

81.82 % (53.3 avg. days per rejection) | 11.1 % personal, 77.8 % form, 11.1 % unspecified

Non-Responses

0.00 %

Lost/Returned:

Never Responded:

Withdrawals

18.18 % (183.5 avg. days per withdrawal)

Pending

16 responses are pending (37 min | 53.6 mean avg | 56.0 median | 616 max days waiting | 141.1 std dev) from 16 different members

Other Information

Most recent response reported was received on 20 Dec 2025.
Responses have been received for submissions sent as recently as 08 Nov 2025.
Date compiled: 15 Sep 2026 01:50 UTC (7 hours, 56 minutes ago).

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Your Submissions

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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: 09 Aug 2026

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