Hysterical is a literary magazine that strives to highlight the diversity of writers who are women, femmes or non-binary people whose work deftly navigates and subverts societal expectations across and between genres, carving out a unique space for voices working to redefine the persistently patriarchal world of literary writing generally and humor specifically.

Hysterical publishes previously unpublished works of prose, poetry, and hybrid/cross-genre writing. Work is considered previously published if it has appeared in any publication or website, including personal sites and blogs, though exceptions may be considered. Please note in your cover letter if your work has appeared on a personal site/blog.

Hysterical is open to submissions only from writers who are women, femmes or non-binary people.

Simultaneous submissions are accepted, as long as they are noted as such at the time of submission, and any work accepted elsewhere is withdrawn from consideration as soon as possible.

HUMOR

Any genre can be funny, of course, and Hysterical will have a humor section in each issue. So, if you think your piece is funny, please label it as humor, plus whatever genre it’s in. Humor will only be part of each issue, so if your piece is otherwise awesome and affecting, send it over too! 

PAYMENT

We’re dedicated to paying for work, as we value writers and art. At the time of this writing, payment is $50 per accepted prose piece or group of poems.

RIGHTS

Hysterical will acquire First Electronic Rights (worldwide English) and non-exclusive print anthology rights. This means that your piece will debut with us and cannot have appeared elsewhere, private websites and social media included and may be published in an annual anthology. All rights will revert to the author 90 days after publication.

MULTIPLE SUBMISSIONS

Please send only one submission per issue. We do not accept multiple submissions for a single issue.