The Carrier Bag

About

At The Carrier Bag, we seek to share stories and poems of the mundane that avoid standard writing structure, and instead focus on the minutiae of life. You can often transform something ignored into something beautiful just by looking at it. We look for the writing that does this, that ignores conventional conflict in favor of something both brand new and prehistorically familiar.
The Carrier Bag is a volunteer organization dedicated to uplifting marginalized voices and stories, which will always be free to access.

Fees Notice: This project charges fees (or requires purchases) for all submissions. (Note: About 8% of magazines always charge fees.)
The fee is USD $3 (average for magazines that charge).

Country of Publication & Year Established

United States

Established in 2025

Publication Medium & Frequency

Electronic Publication Electronic Publication: Unknown publication frequency

AI Policy

Human-created work only; no AI use allowed

5 members set this magazine as a Favorite.

Statistics Synopsis

Regular Speed: The Carrier Bag's overall average response time is within a normal range for magazines.

Learn more about our statistics

Collapse section Fiction Open Fee-based

Dates:

Open to fiction submissions through 30 September 2026 11:59 PM EDT (in 15 days).

Audience:

Open to a broad Audience.

Genres:

General

Lengths:

Flash Fiction: Up to 1,000 words; Unknown number of pieces.
Short Story: 1,000 - 3,000 words; Unknown number of pieces.

Styles:

Open to all/most Styles, including: Literary.

Topics:

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

Theme:

Eat or Be Eaten (01 Oct 2026 03:59 UTC)

Payment:

Token payment (under 1 US cent per word) to Semi-pro payment (1-4.9 US cents per word) Pay ranges from Token payment to Semi-pro payment. Details: USD $10.

Submissions:

Method: Duosuma submission manager.
Reprints: Reprints are NOT allowed.
Simultaneous submissions: Simultaneous submissions are NOT allowed.
Media: Text.

Collapse section Poetry Open Fee-based

Dates:

Open to poetry submissions through 30 September 2026 11:59 PM EDT (in 15 days).

Audience:

Open to a broad Audience.

Genres:

General

Lengths:

Poem: No line limits known.

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.

Theme:

Eat or Be Eaten (01 Oct 2026 03:59 UTC)

Payment:

Semi-pro payment (US$5-49 per poem) Semi-pro payment. Details: USD $10.

Submissions:

Method: Duosuma submission manager.
Reprints: Reprints are NOT allowed.
Simultaneous submissions: Simultaneous submissions are NOT allowed.
Media: Text.

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

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The Carrier Bag 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.

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Accuracy

We have received 7 reports from 7 different members within the past 12 months, not including pending responses (see below). The more responses reported, the more accurate the information.

Days Reported

7 min | 53.0 mean avg | 68.0 median | 75 max days (27.4 std dev)

Pending

14 responses are pending (1 min | 10.8 mean avg | 12.0 median | 16 max days waiting | 6.2 std dev) from 14 different members

Other Information

The most common submission fee paid: USD $3.00.
Most recent response reported was received on 10 Apr 2026.
Responses have been received for submissions sent as recently as 02 Feb 2026.
Date compiled: 15 Sep 2026 08:10 UTC (1 hour, 36 minutes ago).

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Before Submitting

We cannot guarantee that the information on this page is correct. It is not unusual for publications to evolve or close without notice. We do our best to keep up, but it isn't always possible. Duotrope listings do not imply endorsement or recommendation of the project being listed. Before submitting, you should use your own judgment to determine whether the project meets your standards.

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 Sep 2026

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