Submitting to Folding Rock

If you would like to submit your work for our consideration, please read the below guidelines very carefully first. You’ll find our submission form below.

We’re always on the hunt for the best new creative fiction and non-fiction in, from and connected to Wales. We accept work by writers at any stage and age, and we pay for every piece we publish – the same rate for seasoned authors and first-time sharers alike.

If you would like your work to be considered for Issue One of Folding Rock, you’ll need to submit by 23:59 on Sunday 1 December 2024. Read on for more about our theme of ‘Roots’.

What we’re looking for

Folding Rock‘s focus is on the bold, the innovative and the exciting, and our taste is more literary-leaning than genre-based. This doesn’t mean we don’t want your horror, sci-fi or romance – we just want them to be doing something new and ambitious with their forms. And if you have something that bends or blends, or defies easy labelling, do send it our way.

In fiction, we’re seeking short stories, or sections of longer projects that stand alone effectively for a reader. Unfortunately, we’re not currently accepting flash or micro-fiction, nor do we accept children’s or YA fiction.

In non-fiction, we’re keen on personal or narrative essays, nature or place writing, reportage and memoir. Again, anything extracted from a longer piece must work by itself.

Everything we publish – be it short story or essay – will exhibit brilliant storytelling, great use of language and a strong, consistent voice.

Unfortunately, this magazine doesn’t currently take poetry submissions. But if you have something that’s a bit outside the box (like an illustrated project or photo essay) or are unsure about where it fits, send us an email at info@foldingrock.com and we’ll see if we can help. 

Our recommended submission length is between 2,000 and 4,000 words, and we can’t accept any submissions below 1,000.

Folding Rock is a magazine dedicated to the best new writing in and from Wales. This can be interpreted in a number of ways, and by no means determines what our writers write about! We also publish select international and Welsh-language writing translated into English, and encourage translators and writers to approach us with proposals or samples regarding this.

Folding Rock strongly encourages submissions from writers who are under-represented in the arts as a result of their socio-economic background, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, age or disability.

Current thematic call-out

Issue One theme: Roots

Roots can take hold in myriad ways: in the places we are born, the ones we come from, and those we learn to call home. In this inaugural issue, as Folding Rock seeks to lay its own first roots, we invite writers both new and established to explore the shape and curious spread of life’s foundations, as literally or loosely as they choose. Whether it’s a horticultural horror or a snapshot into the lives of a sprawling family tree, we’re keen to read it!

Please note: this theme is not a limitation, but a springboard. Ultimately, if you have a great piece of work you think we’d like, send it our way. Our submissions are rolling and we may consider some work for future issues. If you would like to be considered for Issue One, make sure you submit before 1 December.

How to submit

We only accept work digitally via the submissions form on our website, and can’t accept or return any physical copies of work sent to our office address. You are welcome to email us with questions at info@foldingrock.com, but please don’t send your writing to this inbox. Work should be uploaded through the form as one double-spaced .doc, .docx or .pdf file, set in a neutral font and type size (e.g. 12-point Times New Roman). We read all our submissions anonymously – so please make sure that you don’t include your name on the document you upload.

Our promise to writers

For any work accepted or commissioned for print publication in our magazine, we pay a universal rate of £360 per piece. This applies to all our writers, regardless of experience. We will also supply contributors with a gratis copy of the issue they appear in.

We only accept previously unpublished work for our print magazine. In all cases, copyright for a work remains the property of its author.

We will respond to every submission, though bear in mind that our team is small and at busy times this may take a while. If your piece is accepted elsewhere in the meantime, please let us know. While we can’t always provide feedback, we will do our best. In some instances, such as when we love a piece but know it isn’t right for a certain issue, we might ask to keep in touch about future opportunities.

Please note: we will only consider one piece of writing at a time, so please wait for a response before submitting anything else to the magazine.

Finally, all our contributors have the option to become part of a Folding Rock alumni community, where you can connect with other creatives, share work and stay in touch so that we can celebrate all your exciting writing news when it comes!