The Stinging Fly is a Dublin-based print magazine and small press. Our mission is to seek out, nurture, publish and promote the very best new writers and new writing.
The Stinging Fly magazine
We publish new, previously unpublished work by Irish and international writers. We have a particular interest in publishing new writers and in promoting the short story.
We publish two issues of the magazine each year, in May and November. We currently accept submissions of short stories, essays, poems, novel extracts and excerpts from longer works of nonfiction.
We are always excited to read new writers and to hear new voices in literature. Many of the writers we publish have never been published before.
We believe that a proactive approach to diversity and inclusivity is important in redressing imbalances of representation and diversity, both in the pages of our magazine and in the wider cultural landscape. As such, we strongly encourage submissions by writers from underrepresented areas of society.
We will next be open for submissions between:
Wednesday May 15th and Wednesday May 29th (for our Winter 2024 issue)
Wednesday November 13th and Wednesday November 27th (for our Summer 2025 issue).
Submissions will close at 5pm (Irish time).
Please note we no longer accept simultaneous submissions.
The Submittable link for each submission round is only available on our website’s Submission Guidelines page during the submission period.
Before submitting work to us, please read our Submission Guidelines carefully.
The Stinging Fly Press
The Stinging Fly Press publishes single-author short-story collections and multiple-author anthologies. We are not seeking submissions for the press at the moment. If you have written a collection, we advise that you submit a story to the magazine to begin with.
Fiction Workshops
In-Person
July 1st to 5th with Mia Gallagher (10.30am to 4.30pm – novels and short stories)
Online
July 8th to 12th with Cathy Sweeney (10am to 1pm – novels and short stories)
July 8th to 12th with Michael Magee (4pm to 7pm – novels and short stories)
July 8th to 12th with Wendy Erskine (4pm to 8pm, Monday to Thursday – short stories only)
To apply for a place:
Fill in the application form provided here. Please take your time and answer the questions as fully as you can. This will help us to properly assess your application.
Send 1,000 words approx. or first three pages from the opening of a short story or novel. Include your name, the title of the work, and the word count of the complete work on the first page.
All submissions should ideally be in Word doc or docx format.
Please use 1.5 or double line spacing, font size: 12pt, and insert page numbers.
Creative Non-Fiction Workshops
In-Person
July 1st to 5th with Roisin Kiberd (10.30am to 4.30pm)
Online
July 8th to 12th with Arnold Thomas Fanning (10am to 1pm)
To apply for a place:
Fill in the application form provided here. Please take your time and answer the questions as fully as you can. This will help us to properly assess your application.
Send 1,500 words approx. or the first four pages from the opening of an essay or non-fiction manuscript or memoir. Include your name, the title of the work, and the word count of the complete work on the first page.
Supply a 200-word synopsis of your work-in-progress, including as much information you can about its style, content and thematic concerns.
All submissions should ideally be in Word doc or docx format.
Please use 1.5 or double line spacing, font size: 12pt, and insert page numbers.
Poetry Workshops
In-Person
July 1st to 5th with Annemarie Ní Churreáin (10.30am to 4.30pm)
Online
July 8th to 12th with Martina Evans (10am to 1pm)
To apply for a place:
Fill in the application form provided here. Please take your time and answer the questions as fully as you can. This will help us to properly assess your application.
Send us 2 poems included together in one single document (ideally Word doc or docx format).
Maximum length for the complete submission is 4 pages.
Entry-Level Fiction Workshops
3 options available:
In-Person: July 1st to July 5th with Sheila Armstrong and Olivia Fitzsimons | 2pm to 5pm | Monday to Friday
Online: July 1st to July 5th with Maame Blue | 2pm to 5pm | Monday to Friday
Online: July 8th to July 12th with Danielle McLaughlin | 4pm to 7pm | Monday to Friday
How to apply:
Fill in the application form provided here. Please take your time and answer the questions as fully as you can. This will help us to properly assess your application.
Send one or two pages from the opening of a story you have written. Include your name and the title of the work on the first page.
All submissions should ideally be in Word doc or docx format.
Please use 1.5 or double line spacing, font size: 12pt.