Hey everyone!
For today’s blog post, I wanted to talk about something very near and dear to my heart: on-campus magazines! For me, being published and having worked on multiple magazines on campus has really influenced my time at the University of Iowa, and it’s helped me connect on a whole other level to the literary community. The magazines here have also given me a taste of the publishing industry (something that I’m interested in going into after graduation!). So, whether you’re interested in being an editor, getting your writing out into the world, or you’re just curious in general about Iowa magazines, I decided to compile a list of all the on-campus magazines at the University of Iowa, so you can see for yourself why Iowa is the best place for future writers and publishers!
Ink Lit Magazine
Ink Lit is considered the “first-year” magazine here on campus because the entire staff consists of first-year students! Their mission is to collect first-year and Ink Lit alum work to compile a magazine each semester. Even though the staff are newbies on campus, they’re given the necessary tools and guidance to guide them through this process, and those skills are retained to help them if they decide to work on other lit mags later in their college career.
During my freshman year, I was the Editor-in-Chief of Ink Lit and not only did it teach me how to support the mark of my staff, lead team meetings, and act as a liaison between editors and publishers, but it has served as a great stepping stone for my publishing journey so far. If you’re a first-year looking to get involved right away, this publication is a great first place to look!
earthwords Magazine
earthwords is the oldest literary magazine here on campus! Every year, they publish fiction, nonfiction, poetry, drama, and art/photography, and it’s considered one of the most challenging magazines to be published in.
As a former Nonfiction Editor and now Managing Editor, I’ve gotten the opportunity to ascend with earthwords and I’ve loved every second of it! My duties now include assisting the current Editor-in-Chief, helping with events, promotional work, and everything in between. So much of my job is just the enjoyment of being in the literary community, so if you’re looking to work on the coolest magazine on campus, definitely check out earthwords!
Wilder Things
Wilder Things is one of our newest magazines on campus, yet it has truly made a name for itself!
This magazine stands out in the crowd because it only publishes speculative fiction pieces. These pieces could be fantasy, sci-fi, romance, comedy, mythos, and more! In the fall semester, they have a print issue magazine, while in the spring, they do a digital magazine where editors get the chance to workshop with the authors.
This publication holds such a special place in my heart since I love speculative fiction and it was also the first magazine to publish my work! As the years go on, the submission process continues to be more competitive, but I’m proud to say that I have two pieces coming out in their print issue this January! If you enjoy speculative work, this magazine is the magazine for you!
Snapshots
On a completely different note, Snapshots specializes in children’s literature. For those of you who enjoy writing stories for kids, or want to work with a staff that’ll be hands-on with local elementary schools and the children’s hospital, this is a fantastic magazine to work with. They’re still pretty new, but they’ve already made a claim for themselves across campus, and it’s a great way to get involved in the larger community as a whole.
Something I personally love about Snapshots is how they take artwork from local kids and use it as their magazine cover art! Such a cool touch that really makes them stand out on shelves, so look out for them and their upcoming issues!
Fools Magazine
Fools Magazine specializes in all things experimental. Whether it’s a short story formatted completely in bullet points, a poem that’s told in a circle, or a piece of art with color all over the place, this magazine will take it and run with it! So much of their focus is the work that goes into designing a magazine, so if you’re interested in working on a magazine where you can explore your own designer flair, this could be a great one to look into!
As of this year, I got my first publication in Fools, and I can’t wait to see what this issue looks like when it comes out sometime this winter.
New Moon
New Moon serves as one of our fastest publications here on campus, because every month, they only publish one page of work! Because they only have the front and back of a single page, they specialize in smaller poems and stories with tight word counts. Personally, I love seeing the vibrant cardstock paper all over Iowa City and being able to read the entire month’s issue front and back while I wait in line for my coffee!
If you’re interested in working on a magazine that’ll keep you busy every month, then New Moon is the magazine for you!
Boundless
Boundless is our translation magazine here on campus! The entire staff specializes in translating undergraduate works from English to Italian, Spanish, Mandarin, Korean, German, you name it! In my freshman year, I had a poem of mine published in Italian and it was so cool being connected with the editor and talking throughout the year about the meaning of my poem and how to properly translate it for the magazine.
They only take short pieces, but why not submit something and see where it goes? I know firsthand how cool it is to see your own words translated, so submit, submit, submit to Boundless!
Catharsis
Catharsis is our newest magazine on campus, and it specializes in all things nonfiction! Whether you have an essay, a memoir, or a creative nonfiction piece you want to share with campus, Catharsis will consider it for publication. They also have something called “Confessions” on their website where students can submit anonymous confessions that they’ve never told anyone. Super cool!
Their first print magazine comes out this year and I’m so excited to see all the wonderful student work that’s going to be published in their very first edition.
The Foundationalist
The Foundationalist is an intercollegiate literary journal that is co-run with students at the University of Iowa, Bowdoin College, and Yale University. Together, the entire staff collaborates to spread the word across the country and gather fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and essays to publish in their yearly journals.
They’re a smaller literary magazine here on campus and a bit harder to get into, but still worth submitting to if you have any extra work lying around!
Horizon Magazine
Horizon is a digital literary magazine on campus that specializes in pieces that center on the theme of joy and happiness! With so much sadness and grief in the world, Horizon is determined to publish pieces of hope and optimism, so if you have any pieces that bring you a lot of happiness, submit them to Horizon!
I was lucky enough to be published in one of their only print magazines and I definitely think they deserve more love, so go check them out!
Cave Writing Magazine
Cave Writing Magazine is another digital magazine that specializes in long-form fiction. For this publication, they’ll take chapters of your novel or work that is over 20+ pages (typically, magazines only want pieces under 15 pages!) and consider it for publication. They’ll take any genre, and it can be the very first chapter, the last chapter, or something plucked straight from the middle of your manuscript. Anything you’re proud of, Cave Writing will take a look!
If you don’t have a novel in the works, Cave Writing also does monthly prompts to help stir your imagination, so take a second to see if any new novel ideas come up from any of those!
Broken Clock
This last magazine on campus is called Broken Clock, and the theme of their publication is pieces about time. Whatever time means to you: lost time, killing time, or just being in the nick of time, as long as it fits the theme, Broken Clock will take a look!
Like most of the other magazines, they take any genre and are completely student-run, so take the leap of faith and see what they’re all about!
At last, we’ve reached the end of all the magazines here at the University of Iowa (for now, at least!). Something I love about this school is how many publishing opportunities and how diverse each magazine on campus is. There is truly something for everyone, so if you’re a writer looking to get published for the first time or an aspiring editor trying to get their foot in the door, the University of Iowa is the BEST place to begin that journey.
Who knows where it could take you!?
