Submissions for Issue 5: Smoke//Mirrors are open between December 1, 2025 – January 31, 2026! Submissions are open to all writers currently residing in Australia, and there is no submission fee. We welcome writing inspired by the theme of either “Smoke”, “Mirrors”, the phrase “Smoke and Mirrors” or the space in-between.
Submissions should be made through our Submission Form.
We accept:
Short Fiction up to 5000 words, paid at $90 per story published.
Flash Fiction – between 100 – 1500 words, up to three stories per author, paid at $30 per story published.
Poetry up to 50 lines per poem, up to 3 poems per author – paid at $30 per poem
Our house style skews towards literary fiction and contemporary poetry, although exceptions can always be made for work which would be of interest to our audience. Previous issues will provide a guideline of the types of work we publish, everything published on Locative Magazine will remain free to read. We are open to writing of all forms, and welcome submissions from emerging and diverse authors.
Our preferred formatting style is:
For prose: Double-spaced, indented and justified, with page numbers.
For flash fiction: All stories on one document, double-spaced, indented and justified, with page numbers.
For poetry: All poems on one document, new page per poem
Are you an author who has not been published before? We would love to work with you to develop and edit your piece to be ready for publication, either in Locative Magazine or elsewhere! Submissions from unpublished or emerging authors will be eligible for an opt-in editorial and development process at the editor’s discretion. We are happy to accept drafts and works-in-progress. New writers from culturally diverse backgrounds are especially encouraged to submit.
Results of submissions are presented as follows:
–Accepted with minor edits – We absolutely love your work and think it’s pretty much ready to go as-is!
–Accepted conditional to moderate edits – We see huge potential in your work, and if you are willing to partner with us in up to 3 rounds of structural edits, we would love to publish the finished product!
–Rejection with great regret – We love your work and we’re heartbroken that it was not a good fit for our publication this time. We think you’ll easily find a home for this work elsewhere, and we’ll be jealous that it wasn’t us.
–Rejection with politeness and encouragement – We love your work but we are unable to publish this particular piece. We welcome you to submit again to further issues.
But most of all, for taking the time to consider and submit to our publication, we love you dearly.
For further enquiries please get in touch at locativezine@gmail.com
Locative Magazine 