Submissions
Our mission is to discover distinctive voices from around the world and bring them together in one cosmopolitan literary space.
The Belles Letters Review is committed to championing new voices and is open to unsolicited submissions of fiction. We consider all submissions for both print and online publication.
We charge a fee of £4.00 for full-length prose submissions, equivalent to printing and postage. During every opening period, we offer 100 free submissions to authors on low incomes. If you are a low-income writer and would like to apply for free entry, please read our guidelines for low-income entry below.
We are committed to offering a home to writing by those who are marginalised or underrepresented. We welcome submissions by writers of colour; writers who are working class or on low incomes; writers who are queer, transgender, non-binary and gender-nonconforming; writers with disabilities; as well as any writer who feels that they or their story are underrepresented.
Guidelines
We will be open only fiction submissions during the following periods in 2026:
1 October – 25 December
We will be open only fiction submissions during the following periods in 2027:
1 January – 31 January
1 March – 31 March
1 May – 31 May
1 July – 31 July
1 September – 30 September
1 November – 30 November
Submissions can be made from 10 a.m. UK time on the opening day until midnight UK time on the closing day.
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Please submit only one complete story. You can submit once in each genre but please do not send multiple submissions of a single genre.
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All submissions will be considered for both our print and online editions, unless you specifically state otherwise in your cover letter.
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We only publish original material, i.e. first-ever publication. We cannot run a piece that has already appeared on the web or elsewhere in print. We can, however, publish an original translation if the work has previously appeared in another language, but never before in English.
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We have no set maximum length or minimum length, though most of our submissions are between 2,000-6,000 words.
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Please include a cover letter stating where your work has been published before, if relevant.
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Please do not submit academic essays or reviews.
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Please only submit work written in English.
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Please use double-spacing for prose.
Please note that we are not in a position to comment on your work. We receive a significant number of submissions every day, many of which may be unsuitable for The Belles Letters Review, however well written.
If you are waiting to hear back about a previous submission, please rest assured that we are still reading and you will receive a response as soon as possible. If you have a question that is not answered by the above, please refer to our frequently asked questions page.
We encourage to all who submit that they read recent issues of The Belles Letters Review to familiarise themselves with material the magazine has published. Subscriptions are available here.
If you are ready to submit your work, please visit our online submission system.
For Artists
We welcome submissions from artists creating original visual narratives and wordless stories. We are particularly interested in work that can tell a story through images, without relying on written text.
We are looking for distinctive visual storytelling that can stand on its own as a complete narrative or form part of a continuing visual story.
Although we never announce the theme of an issue or specify in advance what kind of visual stories we are looking for, please note that our first issue will be published in winter. However, even this will not determine the subject matter of our selection.
We are looking for stories created and drawn by human artists. We do not accept AI-generated artwork. Any work created using artificial intelligence will be rejected.
We also do not welcome overly dark styles or romantasy. Please do not submit work in these genres.
We value high art and distinctive artistic vision, and we will give preference to work that demonstrates exceptional artistic quality, originality, and a strong visual language.
Selected artists are paid £500 and upwards, depending on the work and commission.
Please review our artists’ submission guidelines and submission requirements before submitting your work.
If you are ready to submit your work, please visit our online submission system.