Thoughtful Dog publishes literary fiction and non-fiction. We are open to reviewing all subjects and themes as long as the work is of strong quality. Our non-fiction features stories about writing and the inspiration and creativity in our field, including interviews, essays and articles on the process, literary life, travels, retreats, and work spaces that cultivate good writing. Have a great interview with a writer speaking about their process? We'll have a look! Have you recently visited a city and have "writerly" recommendations? Let's hear it! Did you spend 10-days at a writer's retreat and have great photos about the experience? We're the site for you! We accept non-fiction pieces as well as creative non-fiction on the subject of writers, writing and the process. We read general non-fiction submissions for the digital magazine four times per year (spring, summer, fall and winter). New work is published monthly on the site. 

Because our work is often influenced and inspired by the world around us, we feature beautiful storytelling through photography. We’re not looking for photojournalism, just unique perspectives on the literary world around us. We love photographs that highlight the writing life. 

General Manuscript Guidelines:

• All submissions should be typed, double-spaced and numbered. Please type "End" at the end of your submission. 

• Submissions should be free of typos.

• Use standard fonts and formatting, including margins of at least one inch. Include your name on each page of the manuscript.

• Please limit your submissions to 5,000 words. Please indicate the word count on the first page. 

• We accept submissions ONLY through our electronic submissions process.

• Please include a cover letters in the body of the application. The cover letter should include a word count, brief publication history and bio, and whether the submission is fiction or nonfiction. If you're submission is accepted, we will contact you for a more detailed biography. 

Submitting Online:

To submit, please visit our online submissions manager. If this is your first time submitting, you will need to create an account before uploading your document. To do this, click “My Account” at the top right corner of this page.

• Upload your submission as a Word (.doc, .docx), rich-text format (.rtf) or .txt file.

• Upload only one file for fiction or non-fiction. You may upload multiple files for the short feature category. See category guidelines. 

Restrictions:

• We accept simultaneous submissions. In the event that the work is accepted for publication elsewhere, please inform us as soon as possible by logging onto the Submission Manager and withdrawing the submission from our database.

• We are not responsible for publishing material published elsewhere, if not notified, nor for consequences from other publications to the writer this includes any monetary loss to the writer.

• We do not reprint previously published work including online publications.  

• We cannot accommodate revisions.

• Work must be in English. Currently, we are unable to handle translations.

• We retain First Serial rights to publish the accepted material. After publication, all rights revert back to the author.

• Please submit only one story at a time. Multiple submissions will not be read. We will do our best to respond within three months, however, in some cases this period may be longer.

Accessing Your Submissions:

You can view the status of your current submission as well as a list of your past submissions at any time by logging into your account and clicking “My Submissions.”  If you need to withdraw your submission, log onto the Submission Manager and withdraw the submission from our database.

Contributor Honorariums:

At this time, there is no monetary compensation for publication in the digital issues.  Accepted, online submission contributors retain full copyrights of content and are compensated through links and credit only.  We're committed to promoting our writers for the weekly stories.