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Why Nowhere?

One hundred percent of the content in Nowhere comes from submissions. Thirty percent of the stories we publish are by first-time writers. We don’t take just anything; submitting is competitive, and our staff focuses a keen eye on narrative, setting, character, story arc, detail, research, reporting and authenticity. With fifty years of editing experience in the travel world on our masthead, the editing process is comprehensive—making your work look its best before publishing. We also nominate our authors for prestigious literary prizes each year.

Nowhere operates like a literary journal, putting what limited resources we have directly into discovering, editing and designing your work. There is no pay for accepted stories other than in the contests, but we will make your piece look gorgeous and send it out to the world. We support our writers by submitting the best stories of the year to contests and anthologies. The magazine and its contributors have been anthologized in The Best American Travel Writing, Lowell Thomas Travel Awards and magazines and reviews around the world. We write blurbs and reviews for our authors, as well as publicize their books and other work on our social media pages. We aim to cultivate a welcoming, encouraging space in which anyone—portfolio or no—can engage and entertain readers who return to Nowhere for the best travel writing, anywhere.

Nowhere‘s audience seeks long-form, complex stories, and they take delight and care in reading your work. They aren’t looking for a quick fix or a forgettable distraction. If that sounds like your people, we are your introduction.

2021 Pushcart Prize: Best of the Small Presses nominees:

“The Breakfast Queen,” by William C–F Long
“History Lessons,” by Anna Kortschak
“The Snow Accepts All Things,” by Ava Fedorov
“Mare Nostrum,” by Robert Andersen
“Stoian,” by Christopher Fenton
“Peace with the Devil,” by Elizabeth Muntean

The Best American Travel Writing 2021 nominees:

“History Lessons,” by Anna Kortschak
“Mare Nostrum,” by Robert Andersen
“Peace with the Devil,” by Elizabeth Muntean
“Sightings,” by Sharon White
“The Long View,” by Maeve Bruce
“Birth Stones,” by Genni Gunn
“Chasing Heights,” by I. L. Sherman
“Blue Crete II,” by Pamela Manché Pearce

2021 PEN/Robert J. Dau Short Story Prize for Emerging Writers nominee:

“The Snow Accepts All Things,” by Ava Fedorov


Submit to Nowhere in 2021!

(Submissions are closed when our writing contests are open.)

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Nowhere publishes literary travel writing, photo essays and, sometimes, video. To us that means anything with a strong sense of place, character or time. Most of our submissions come from seasoned journalists, but we are also interested in stories from first-timers, anthropologists, musicians, poets, film directors and anyone else who spends time traveling. Written submissions for Nowhere (narrative nonfiction, fiction, essay and poetry) typically are accepted for two months in the winter and two months in the summer. Publication is constrained only by First North American Serial Rights (FNASR). We accept reprints and simultaneous submissions. We welcome content from anyone, anywhere in the world, but submissions must be in English. Photo essays may be submitted at any time.

We ran Blaise Cendrars’ “The Prose of the Trans-Siberian”; David Quammen’s hunt for prehistoric bears in Romania; Arthur Bradford on a journey to the Home Depot in Portland, Oregon; and poet Dan Hoyle on the Republican Campaign Trail.

We have featured photos of of the Cane River National Heritage Area in Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana, snapshots from across Brazil from a photographer just beginning his now-successful career and a moving collection of images from the Oceti Sakowin Camp during their protest of the Dakota Access Pipeline.

Nowhere is produced by working writers, photographers and designers. We are trying to make something different—something without space or content limitations that’s as fulfilling for the maker as it is for the reader. We publish traditional features as well as travelogues, journal excerpts, character sketches, profiles, conversations, poetry, reviews, notes, video, audio… We like rich detail, elliptical story lines, unusual perspective, lean, evocative writing and tight collections of perhaps a dozen thematic images. We’d love to see a story about a Kansas City street corner that is significant for some reason. We don’t want destination, how-to or service fluff of any kind.

Please allow approximately four to six months for our very small staff to read your work or review your imagery.

Submit a Story or Poem Here

Submit a Photo Essay Here

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