All submissions are closed at this time! Thank you for your interest!
Love,
your editors
Up the Staircase


Up the Staircase's artistic vision defined: Our taste leans more towards confessional writing, although not exclusively. We appreciate writers who do not merely record their emotions on paper, but also place importance on craft and construction. We desire works that are groundbreaking and shocking, while still maintaining a high level of craftsmanship through careful attention to and use of prosody. These works should not only describe events and occurences, but rather explore and examine self-revelations that uncover human truths, creating a close connection with its readers.

A quick note about all submission genres: Profanity for the sake of it isnt desired by Up the Staircase. We are not being prudish in regards to content; we enjoy shock, vulgarity and decadence, but we do not want to offend any of our readers.

Up the Staircase is a quarterly publication. We are accepting submissions all year long unless otherwise specified. Expect a response from our editors in about 4 weeks. We aim to return responses much quicker than this, but please don't feel discouraged if you haven't heard back immediately. If 4 weeks have passed and you haven't heard from us in that time, feel free to contact us then. Please do not send multiple submissions, however, you are more than welcome to submit to more than one category of writing!

If we have rejected you, please do not send more of your writing for that quarter unless we have asked for it.
(You may wish to try your hand at a different season.)

***We do not mind simultaneous submissions, as long as you tell us so! With that said, contact us if the submission has been accepted elsewhere. We will not publish a work alongside another online publication. We just think it is distasteful. You do understand?

Poetry: Please submit poems to upthestaircase@gmail.com
Put "Poetry Submission" in the subject line along with the name you wish to be published under. Send your poems in the body of the email, no attachments will be accepted! Please send a brief bio (50 words or less) so that we (and our readers) can learn a little about you. We hold the right to shorten unnecessarily long bios.
Please submit three to five poems, as for each issue we will be looking for a new spotlight poet.

We want unique voices, and well-edited poems. If you rhyme, you better make it good! All in all, we simply want the poem to be emotive. The length of a poem is not an issue for us at this time. If you have an epic poem, we are okay with that. When we move on to print editions, then we will have to change that rule. For now, everything goes. You can submit a poem of any subject matter, just please browse our poems online, as the work we have posted is of a high standard and is what we expect. Rights stay with the author.

Short Stories/Flash Fiction/Prose: Please submit to upthestaircase@gmail.com
Put "Fiction/Prose Submission" in the subject line along with the name you wish to be published under. Send your fiction in the body of the email, no attachments will be accepted! Also send a brief bio (50 words or less) so that we, and our readers can learn a little more about you. Short stories and Flash Fiction may also be of any subject matter. We want stories that are intellectual, compelling, thoughtful; shock us! Limit flash fiction to 400 words or less. Keep short stories to 5000 words or less. Rights stay with the author.

Essays: Submit essays to upthestaircase@gmail.com
Put "Essay Submission" in the subject line along with the name you wish to be published under. Send your essays in the body of the email, along with a brief bio (50 words or less); no attachments will be accepted! Send us your nerdy essays, your critical essays, opinion essays, etc... We love them. It can be on any literary subject, but please include a works cited page (we will look upon you more favorably). We want them, send them to us!

Book Reviews/Advertisements:Need A Book Reviewed and Advertised? If you have written a book - of any genre - and would like a review and advertisement of it posted on our website, please send us a brief synopsis and a small excerpt, along with a bio.

If we feel your book matches the artistic vision of Up the Staircase, we will ask you to send a copy of your book to us.Your book will not be returned. We will also charge a $10 reading fee at this time. Your book and its review will be listed on our web page as a way to help promote your work.

If we feel that your book does not meet our artistic visions,then you will receive notice that we will not do a review. We strongly encourage writers to examine our publication before submitting. Please inquire at www.upthestaircase@gmail.com.

Love,
your editors
Up the Staircase