Trendy Short Story Topics That Editors Are Loving in 2023 | Writer’s Relief

by | Craft: Short Story Writing, Critique And Feedback, Publish Short Stories, Submit A Short Story Or Essay | 0 comments

Review Board is now open! Submit your Short Prose, Poetry, and Book today!

Day(s)

:

Hour(s)

:

Minute(s)

:

Second(s)

Deadline: Thursday, February 22nd

trendysstopics

Updated November 2023

Great writing is necessary if you want to get acceptance letters from literary magazines. But there’s another element that will give your submissions a competitive edge: trendiness. The idea of “trendiness” often has a bad reputation because of passing fads, but using trendy short story topics is actually about being plugged in, aware of, and engaged with modern culture—not about writing in a particular style because everyone else is doing it.

At Writer’s Relief, we spend hundreds (probably thousands) of hours every month tracking publishing trends in literary journals. We’ve noticed that there are topics, themes, and concepts that literary journal editors love to see in short story submissions—and some they don’t. Here’s what’s currently hot—and what’s not—for short story inspiration.

Trending Elements To Include In Your Short Stories

Slice-of-Life Vignettes — As more and more journals publish online, they are more inclined to accept shorter pieces for their issues. Most readers do not want to read a lengthy piece of prose on a very small smart phone screen! So, rather than trying to encapsulate an entire event or day, home in on one interesting aspect of it—create a vignette. Even if the piece is short in nature, be sure to provoke the reader’s emotions. Creating a large impact on the reader with a small number of words is what many editors are searching for.

Character studies — As the public and media become increasingly engaged in topics pertaining to psychology and mental illness, literary journals are looking for writers to help them become part of the conversation. Try writing a story from the perspective of an individual who is coping with a difficult situation.

Under-represented perspectives and voices — Give yourself the challenge of writing from a different perspective. Change the character and the voice of a familiar theme to one that’s fresh; offer something new or present different ideas to your readers.

Short Story Topics To Avoid

Very religious writing — Editors tend to back away from religiously dogmatic writing. If your work is mostly just an argument for specific religious views and values, it will most likely not be accepted by a mainstream literary journal. If you are set on submitting short stories about religious beliefs, consider submitting to literary magazines that focus specifically on religion. This is not to say that religion can’t play a part in your writing. But writing of a spiritual nature is different from dogmatically religious works.

Commercial genres or themes — Many literary journals avoid publishing works that fall into the commercial or mainstream category: thrillers, fantasies, sci-fi, and romance. However, there are magazines that exclusively publish sci-fi or only horror, etc. So if that’s what you want to write, you can! Just keep in mind that you will be targeting a limited market.

Erotica — Most literary journals will accept stories that include some graphic sex. However, consider cutting out any pure erotica, since most literary magazine editors won’t be interested. Unless the magazine specializes in sexually explicit writing, it is not a good idea to submit a story that focuses on erotica.

Looking for inspiration? Check out some of the world’s most beloved short stories!

When you’re ready to submit your short story to literary journals or a novel to literary agents, the experts at Writer’s Relief are here to help! Our research team will pinpoint the best markets for your work and boost your odds of getting published. And that’s a pretty compelling reason to learn more about our services and submit your work to our Review Board today.

In addition to helping clients navigate and submit their work via traditional publishing paths, we also provide affordable and expert self-publishing options. We understand writers and their publishing goals.

Writer QuestionsQUESTION: What elements do you like to see when you read a short story?

 

0 Comments

Submit a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Review Board is now open! Submit your Short Prose, Poetry, and Book today!

Day(s)

:

Hour(s)

:

Minute(s)

:

Second(s)

 

 

See ALL the services we offer, from
FREE to Full Service!

Click here for a Writer’s Relief
Full Service Overview

Search

Reviews

“Getting that first poem published was the hardest threshold to cross. My team at Writer’s Relief kept encouraging me…then came the acceptance! We celebrated…then I continued writing, and Writer’s Relief continued doing the wonderful work they do!”

—King Grossman, Writer
(Watch King’s video testimonial here!)

“Every piece I have sent out with their help has been accepted for publication! I am looking forward to working with the team on getting my new novel out into the world.”

Services Catalog

Free Publishing Leads
and Tips!

Featured Articles



Featured Video

Follow us!



YES, IT'S MY LUCKY DAY!
Sign me up for
FREE Publishing Leads & Tips
  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

WHY? Because our insider
know-how has helped
writers get over 18,000 acceptances.

FREE Publishing Leads and Tips! Our e-publication, Submit Write Now!, delivered weekly to your inbox.
  • BEST (and proven) submission tips
  • Hot publishing leads
  • Calls to submit
  • Contest alerts
  • Notification of industry changes
  • And much more!
close-link


STOP! BEFORE YOU GO...
Sign me up for
FREE Publishing Leads & Tips
  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

WHY? Because our insider
know-how has helped
writers get over 18,000 acceptances.

FREE Publishing Leads and Tips! Our e-publication, Submit Write Now!, delivered weekly to your inbox.
  • BEST (and proven) submission tips
  • Hot publishing leads
  • Calls to submit
  • Contest alerts
  • Notification of industry changes
  • And much more!
close-link

Pin It on Pinterest

Share This