HerStry is seeking pitches for our AMPLIFY series in which we seek to amplify an unknown or underrepresented woman, woman identifying, or nonbinary person. There is no theme for our spring issue. 

A few Things: 

• Do not send us entire essays. A couple of well thought out paragraphs will do. 
• Keep the HerStry audience in mind when you pitch. We're looking to profile figures dead or alive, they need not be famous or well known, though they can be. 
• Upon acceptance HerStry will work with authors on length and format. 

HerStry is seeking poetry for our spring issue.

 When the world is coming back to life and everything feels fresh and new, we're looking for your best work. Send us poems that plumb the depths of the human story, of what it means to be alive in this old world. 

The spring issue has no theme; we're just looking for good writing and poems with heart.  

A few things to know before you submit: 

1. Authors may submit up to 3 poems in one document

2. We read blind. Please make sure your manuscript is clear of any identifying information. Work found to contain identifying information will be discarded without being read. 

3. We do not require a cover letter and won't read one if you submit it. We're interested in the quality of the work in front of us, not how many times or where you have been published. We love publishing new writers! 

HerStry is seeking fiction for our spring issue.

When the world is coming back to life and everything feels fresh and new, we're looking for tales that inspire, that make us think, that leave us breathless, and maybe a little broken. At HerStry, we believe in the hard stories, the stories everyone told you not to write. We like the weird stuff, the scary stuff, the stuff that you can't seem to find a home for. We love to push boundaries because we believe storytelling is the truest form of revolution. Give us unreliable narrators, plots so twisted we don't know what's coming next, prose so beautiful we'll be jealous we didn't think of them. Above all, give us a good story.

The spring issue has no theme; we're just looking for good writing and stories with heart. 

A few things to know before you submit: 

1. We publish fiction of 10,000 words or less. 

2. We read blind. Please make sure your manuscript is clear of any identifying information. Work found to contain identifying information will be discarded without being read. 

3. We do not require a cover letter and won't read one if you submit it. We're interested in the quality of the work in front of us, not how many times or where you have been published. We love publishing new writers! 

4. All work should be 12 Pt. font, Times New Roman (or similar), double spaced

HerStry is seeking creative nonfiction essays for our spring issue. When the world is coming back to life and everything feels fresh and new, we're looking for your best work. What you've been weaving all winter. At HerStry, we believe in the hard stories, the stories everyone told you not to write. We like the weird stuff, the scary stuff, the stuff that you can't seem to find a home for. We love to push boundaries because we believe storytelling is the truest form of revolution.

The spring issue has no theme; we're just looking for good writing and essays with heart. 

A few things to know before you submit: 

1. We publish creative nonfiction of 5,000 words or less. 

2. We read blind. Please make sure your manuscript is clear of any identifying information. Work found to contain identifying information will be discarded without being read. 

3. We do not require a cover letter and won't read one if you submit it. We're interested in the quality of the work in front of us, not how many times or where you have been published. We love publishing new writers! 

4. All work should be 12 Pt. font, Times New Roman (or similar), double spaced

HerStry is pleased to announce the 2027 Eunice Williams Nonfiction Prize with guest judge Kaitlyn Teer. HerStry has long been a place for women and nonbinary folks to tell their stories. Now, we’d like to amplify your stories even more with our contest and prize.

There is no theme to adhere to for this contest, simply nonfiction written by you, about you. Give us your best work, the stuff of your heart. Our stories are what make us, tell yours.  

THE IMPORTANT STUFF:  

• All essays must be true and about you and previously unpublished.
• We accept work up to 5,000 words
• Essays must be submitted in a word document (please no PDFs). Must be in 12pt Times New Roman or Calibri font, double spaced.
• All essays are judged blind, please do not put any identifying information on your document. Essays with identifying information will be discarded without being read.
• Writers are asked to submit a third person bio. Cover letters are fine but, honestly, we don’t care. It’s the quality of the writing we are looking for, not the amount of times you’ve been published.
• While your work is under consideration we ask that you DO NOT submit it elsewhere. Winners will be announced no later than April 19, 2027.

HerStry centers the experiences of women identifying persons. We’re looking for work from bigender/polygender persons, cisgender women, intergender persons/intersex persons, non-binary persons/gender non-conforming persons, transgender women/transfeminine persons, two-spirit. In other words, if you are a cis man, please refrain from submitting.  

Prizes:  First - $400  Second - $250  Third - $100  

About Kaitlyn Teer, Guest Judge

Kaitlyn Teer is the senior editor for Big Salad, a #1 bestselling publication on Substack, where she has interviewed writers like Roxane Gay, Barbara Kingsolver, and Ada Limón. She has won essay prizes from Fourth Genre and Prairie Schooner. Her work has been selected as an Editor's Pick by Longreads and published in Orion, Catapult, Electric Lit and elsewhere. She has taught writing at Western Washington University and lives in Bellingham with her husband and two kids.

 ***Contest fees go toward contest prize and paying HerStry staff and guest judge***