Submission Guidelines
We can’t wait to see your work.
Carmalarky accepts fiction, poetry, art, and essays that vibe with our cars and transportation gestalt. It can be a review. It can be a diatribe about traffic. It can be a love letter to the first car you ever drove by yourself. It can be a story about a car who comes alive. Do you have a poem about learning to drive stick shift? You have an opinion on why the steering wheel round? A fantastic photograph or painting or drawing that is car adjacent? That’s for us.
Carmalarky accepts fiction, poetry, art, and essays that vibe with our cars and transportation gestalt.
We especially appreciate humor and writers who appreciate that transportation doesn't need to be taken very seriously, until it does. Yes please, make us laugh. And cry. And yearn to take off down a long lonely highway playing our favorite playlist over and over again.
Below are the terms of publication that outline our guidelines and expectations:
We accept submissions in the form of fiction, non-fiction, poetry, essays, artwork, and photography that explore themes related to automobiles, driving culture, road trips, and the intersection of cars and human experience.
We will also entertain pitches. You have a great idea but aren’t sure if it’s right for Carmalarky? Tell us about it via our Inquiry Form.
Submissions must be previously unpublished. Simultaneous submissions are accepted, but please notify us immediately if your work is accepted elsewhere.
We encourage diverse voices and perspectives.
We do not charge a fee for submissions.
Compensation: Carmalarky pays $100, an item from our shop, membership to Carmalarky, and two copies of the issue in which your work appears per accepted submission.
Submission Process: Please submit your work through our online submission portal. We also accept submissions via email. Include a brief cover letter with your submission, including a short bio and any relevant publication credits.
Formatting Requirements:
Submissions should be in English. We encourage translations. If you are submitting a translation, please include the original.
Prose should be under 6,000 words.
Poets, we will take up to four poems per submission.
Manuscripts should be double-spaced, using a standard 12-point font such as Times New Roman or Arial. PDF or TXT documents are preferred.
For artwork and photography submissions, high-resolution images in JPEG or PNG format are preferred.
Response Time: We aim to respond to all submissions within three months. If you haven't heard from us after this time, feel free to inquire about the status of your submission.
Rights: By submitting your work to Carmalarky, you grant us first North American serial rights, along with the right to archive your work online. After publication, all rights revert to the author. We reserve the right to edit submissions for grammar, punctuation, and clarity, with your approval.
Promotion: We promote our contributors through our website, social media channels, and email newsletters. We encourage contributors to share their published work with their own networks.
Code of Conduct: We maintain a respectful and inclusive environment for all contributors and readers. Any submissions containing hate speech, discrimination, or explicit content will not be considered.
Contact Information: For inquiries or additional information, please use our Inquiry Form.
By submitting your work to Carmalarky, you acknowledge that you have read and agree to abide by these terms of publication. Thank you for considering Carmalarky as a home for your automotive-inspired creativity. We look forward to reading your submissions!
The date for open submissions has not been decided for this year. We’ll announce it here. In the meantime, please become a member of Carmalarky by signing up for The Carmalarky Dispatch at the bottom of this page to be notified by email.
