[The Coil]: Essays, Memoir, Articles, Creative Nonfiction, Journalism, Booklists, Trends (free form)

This is a portal for essays submitted to the online journal The Coil. Please know what the journal is before submitting.

We look for completed personal essays, memoir, creative nonfiction, hybrid essays, journalism, articles, columns, trends, and booklists on most any topic of general, universal, or literary interest. We are really geared toward a literary scene and are seeking works that reflect that atmosphere, but we are open to all universal pieces and ideas. We love pieces that incorporate current events, culture, rural landscapes, diverse voices, books, science, holidays, personal experiences, craft, literary trends, and history. We are big fans of research, digging beneath the top layer, and well-formed arguments. (Promoting a book? Essays and guest posts are part of our book blog tour packages.)

We welcome diverse and underrepresented voices and are a liberal, fact-minded, non-religious journal that is a safe space for LGBTQUIA2+ and BIPOC+ authors, and writers of all ages, cultures, backgrounds, and abilities. Hate speech and harmful agendas are not welcome here. We reserve the right to refuse any material that doesn’t align with the principles of our journal. 

• Material should have a minimum of 800 words for essays and articles, and a minimum of 500 words and five books for booklists. No maximums.
• Quotes and stats should be referenced or cited.
• All work must be in English and must be the author’s own. We do not consider A.I.-generated works.
• If you need to adjust a submission, please use the Request to Edit option through Submittable. Please don’t request to edit for minor flaws, however—all accepted work will go through an editing process and will have the chance to be updated before publication, and your work will not be disqualified for a missing comma.
• All authors must be at least 18 to submit.
• Simultaneous submissions allowed. If your piece is picked up elsewhere, please withdraw your submission through Submittable.
• Previously published articles or essays are not considered.
• Submit via Submittable only. We do not accept email submissions.
• This is a free-submission link that is unique to you and shouldn't be shared elsewhere. There is a $3.50 administrative fee for anyone able to pay it.
• We will send a response to every submission within two months. Form response only, unless we are interested in publishing your work. We are regretfully unable to provide feedback. If you have not heard back from us within two months, please feel free to contact us (kindly).
• Accepted or solicited pieces vetted through our editors and submissions portal will receive $10 after publication; there is no payment for promotional guest columns or automatic posts as part of a book tour package.

If you like our journal, please consider subscribing for less than a cup of coffee, or signing up on our free email mailing list.