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The Good Life Review

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About

The Good Life Review is a literary journal committed to exploring the overlooked. Based out of Omaha, Nebraska—astride the oft unnoticed—we recognize that there are a myriad of voices that call the regions surrounding us home. Our mission is to lift up the strange, the daring, and the underrepresented to reveal complexities hidden in our heartland and beyond. We seek to elevate writing that takes risks and challenges perceptions; writing that lingers and haunts long after the last line.

Fees Notice: This project charges fees (or requires purchases) for some submissions. They charge fees for all categories, except for visual art.
The fee range is USD $2.50 to $4 (below average to average for magazines that charge).
Submission Caps: They may close to free submissions if they reach their quota.

Country of Publication & Year Established

United States
Established in 2020

Publication Medium & Frequency

Electronic Publication Electronic Publication
Published 4 x per year

AI Policy

Human-created work only; no AI use allowed

Statistics Synopsis

Regular Speed
The Good Life Review's overall average response time is within a normal range for magazines.
More Challenging
The Good Life Review's overall acceptance rate is lower than most magazines.
More Responsive
The Good Life Review's overall rate of non-response is lower than most magazines.

Collapse section Fiction Open Fee-based

Rolling Submissions:

Next cutoff date is 20 October 2026* (approx. 35 days from now).

1

Audience:

Open to a broad Audience.

Genres:

General

Lengths:

Flash Fiction: Up to 1,000 words.
Short Story: 1,000 - 5,000 words.

Styles:

Open to all/most Styles, including: Experimental, Literary.

Topics:

Open to all/most Topics including...
Place/Regions: Specific region.

Payment:

Token payment (under 1 US cent per word) to Professional payment (5 or more US cents per word) Pay ranges from Token payment to Professional payment. Details: USD $60 for one piece; $75 for two pieces.

Submissions:

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

Collapse section Nonfiction Open Fee-based

Rolling Submissions:

Next cutoff date is 20 October 2026* (approx. 35 days from now).

Audience:

Open to a broad Audience.

Lengths:

Essay: Up to 5,000 words.
Narrative Nonfiction: Up to 5,000 words.

Styles:

Open to all/most Styles, including: Experimental, Literary.

Topics:

Open to all/most Topics including...
Place/Regions: Specific region.

Payment:

Token payment (under 1 US cent per word) to Professional payment (5 or more US cents per word) Pay ranges from Token payment to Professional payment. Details: USD $60 for one piece; $75 for two pieces.

Submissions:

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

Collapse section Poetry Open Fee-based

Rolling Submissions:

Next cutoff date is 20 October 2026* (approx. 35 days from now).

3

Audience:

Open to a broad Audience.

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: Experimental, Literary.

Topics:

Open to all/most Topics including...
Place/Regions: Specific region.

Payment:

Semi-pro payment (US$5-49 per poem) to Professional payment (US$50 or more per poem) Pay ranges from Semi-pro payment to Professional payment. Details: USD $60 for one piece; $75 for two pieces.

Submissions:

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

Collapse section Visual Art Open

Audience:

Open to a broad Audience.

Lengths:

Artwork: Unknown number of pieces.

Art Media:

Open to all/most Art Media.

Art Styles:

Open to all/most Art Styles.

Topics:

Open to all/most Topics including...
Place/Regions: Specific region.

Payment:

Semi-pro payment (US$10-49 per piece) Semi-pro payment. Details: USD $25.

Submissions:

Method: Submittable submission manager.
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.

The Good Life Review 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:
Accuracy
We have received 138 reports from 114 different members within the past 12 months, not including pending responses (see below). The more responses reported, the more accurate the information.
Days Reported
0 min | 70.2 mean avg | 58.0 median | 206 max days (48.5 std dev)
Responses
88.40 %
Acceptances:
3.62 % of submissions accepted (82.4 avg. days per acceptance) | 4.39 % of submitters accepted Rejections are often underreported, which skews the statistics in favor of acceptances. Most publishers have a lower acceptance rate than indicated here.
Rejections:
84.78 % (74.3 avg. days per rejection) | 31.6 % personal, 52.1 % form, 16.2 % unspecified | 5.1 % shortlisted
Non-Responses
0.00 %
Lost/Returned:
-
Never Responded:
-
Withdrawals
11.59 % (31.4 avg. days per withdrawal)
Pending
37 responses are pending (2 min | 35.1 mean avg | 32.0 median | 103 max days waiting | 238.0 std dev) from 35 different members This only includes pending reports from people who have been active on Duotrope within the past 30 days

Other Information

The editors will try to make a decision within 180 days. (3.6 % of the responses reported to us for this listing have taken longer than 180 days.)
The most common submission fee paid: USD $4.00. (63.9 % of reports specified whether they paid a fee; of those, 98.0 % paid fees.)
Most submissions are acknowledged on the same day.
Most recent response reported was received on 11 Sep 2026.
Responses have been received for submissions sent as recently as 19 Aug 2026.
Date compiled: 15 Sep 2026 09:30 UTC (17 minutes ago).
View report of recent responses from this project

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Your Submissions

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The Good Life Review Buzz: Micro Monday  Charges fees for all submissions
Honeybee Prize  Charges fees for all submissions

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: 13 Jul 2026

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

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