BESTSELLING AUTHOR AND COLUMNIST
SHWETA GANESH KUMAR
Inkspire
A Digital Showcase of New and Upcoming Indian Writing
Inkspire is an exclusively online literary journal for aspiring Indian writers from across the world. Our mission is to discover and publish stories, personal essays, poetry, book reviews and more from those who are taking their first steps in the world of writing. We are particularly interested in writing by Indian women and those who have not had formal training in writing, yet demonstrate a clear passion for it.
It does not matter if you have never published anything before or whether you have had 22 rejections for that one short story that you believe needs to be out there. What we care about is your writing and your perspective on our issue’s theme.
Inskpire does not charge a reading fee to read your work and unfortunately, we do not pay for accepted pieces, at the moment.
WE ARE NOT ACCEPTING NEW SUBMISSIONS AT THE MOMENT DUE TO THE OVERWHELMING NUMBER OF PIECES THAT HAVE COME IN.
Please check back in a few weeks.
From January 2022, Inkspire will be open for submissions from January 15th to May 15th and August 15th to December 15th.
Submissions that come in between the reading and publishing period will not be reviewed.
We will take 8 weeks to review and respond to your submission.
The first eight issues are now online.
Submissions OPEN for the next publishing season on January 15th 2022.
The last day for submissions during this season is May 15th, 2022.
Submissions that do not adhere to the guidelines and submissions that come after the season has ended will not be entertained.
Please go through the submission guidelines in detail before you send your piece in.
Submission Guidelines and FAQ
What is the theme for this publishing season?
Starting January 2022, there will be no more themes or writing prompts. Writers are encouraged to send in their pieces irrespective of the theme.
Can I send in stories written in regional languages?
We are only accepting pieces in English at the moment.
How can I submit?
Use the submission form below to send across the first paragraph of your prose or the first two verses of your poem. If your writing grabs our eyes and hearts, we will get in touch with you for the complete piece. Please send an excerpt across only if you have the complete piece ready for further review. We will not be able to give you additional time to finish your piece once we reach out for it based on your excerpt.
Is there a word limit?
We are looking at a minimum of 750 words and a maximum of 2000 words for fiction and non-fiction pieces.
This includes short stories and essays. Non-fiction in particular needs to be very strong to be considered for publication.
Poetry needs to have a minimum of 500 words. Poems that do not adhere to the word limit will not be reviewed.
When will I hear back from you?
We take around 8 weeks to respond to each submission but you may hear from us a lot earlier than that as well.
How do I get a featured piece published?
Featured pieces are the stories and non-fiction pieces written by writers who have participated in the Writers Workshop. After 6 weeks of intensive training and one on one editing, the final piece crafted by these writers earn their Featured Spot on Inkspire.
Will my piece be edited once accepted?
All accepted pieces will be put through a process of editing and review before publication, but the final say will always be the Author’s.
All the best and we look forward to reading your submissions.