If you believed (as I did) that historical fiction is by nature more the domain of long novels than short stories (or flash fiction), be ready to be surprised. As a matter of fact, there are a few publishers around that offer a wide selection in this sense. Some are paying, some are not, all of them are good, for what I have seen so far. The following list is not comprehensive, of course, and heavily biased toward English venues, but it is a starting point. I hope to add items over the months, or whenever I learn about new zines.
Disclaimer: I have included here ONLY the outlets that specialise in historical fiction, not the general ones (which of course at times publish it as well. They are for another post).
The Copperfield Review. This is one of the earliest I have discovered and it deals primarily with historical fiction. They publish fiction (flash fiction and short stories), poetry, and book reviews. They pay their contributors.
The Magazine of History & Fiction is an online zine that publishes both Historical Fiction & Historical Nonfiction. Their website is well done and full of materials. H & F also publishes reviews of historical works. They don’t pay but accept reprints.
FlashBack Fiction is the only journal dedicated to historical flash fiction, together with accepting prose poetry and hybrid work, and they’re simply amazing. “We decided to start this project after multiple conversations about where to find great historical flash fiction, and where to submit our own work. Our aim is to collect and celebrate shortform work — both traditional and experimental — that in some way engages with the historical.” Have a look at their zine.
Timeworn Literary Journal. This is a new zine -their first issue is due to come out in October 2019, but I like their approach. “Historical Fiction is an undervalued genre, often overlooked for its wide margins spanning all time, all eras. There are so many vivid settings to be explored, rich characters and intense research outside of the mainstream. We aim to find obscure writers working on the fringes of this genre and present their stories in a hand-bound issue you can hold.” They pay their writers.
Any other you think I should add to this list? Please do let me know!
That’s interesting! I’m always on the lookout for interesting short stories (they work well for reading on my lunch break…) and I will take a look at your suggestions. Thank you so much for sharing this!!!! 🙂
My pleasure. I love short-short formats, like flash fiction or haiku, and historical is a plus 🙂