Peatsmoke Journal
@psmokejournal.bsky.social
Online literary journal committed to diverse voices, accessibility, and to writers. Fiction, nonfiction, poems, flash, hybrid, art.
peatsmokejournal.com
peatsmokejournal.com
In case you have missed it: we are OPEN for submissions!
January 22, 2026 at 11:25 AM
In case you have missed it: we are OPEN for submissions!
Reposted by Peatsmoke Journal
This one feels extra special and thanks so much to @psmokejournal.bsky.social for publishing and nominating “I’ll Be Waiting” 🫶🫶🫶
We are elated to announce the awardees and finalists for MONARCH 2026. Thank you to all of the organizations who nominated work for making our first anthology so stunning 🦋 and a special shoutout to @esichr.bsky.social and @bleatingthing.bsky.social for the beautiful cover photograph!
January 17, 2026 at 2:35 PM
This one feels extra special and thanks so much to @psmokejournal.bsky.social for publishing and nominating “I’ll Be Waiting” 🫶🫶🫶
Snowed in? Good - our winter 2026 issue just dropped!
FLASH
🧣“This Is How to Burn a Witch” by Aeka V. Joshi i
🧣“Baby” by Marie Buck
🧣“Central Time” by J.M.C.Kane
🧣“Good Grief, Florida Man” by Bethany Bruno
FLASH
🧣“This Is How to Burn a Witch” by Aeka V. Joshi i
🧣“Baby” by Marie Buck
🧣“Central Time” by J.M.C.Kane
🧣“Good Grief, Florida Man” by Bethany Bruno
January 15, 2026 at 5:46 PM
Snowed in? Good - our winter 2026 issue just dropped!
FLASH
🧣“This Is How to Burn a Witch” by Aeka V. Joshi i
🧣“Baby” by Marie Buck
🧣“Central Time” by J.M.C.Kane
🧣“Good Grief, Florida Man” by Bethany Bruno
FLASH
🧣“This Is How to Burn a Witch” by Aeka V. Joshi i
🧣“Baby” by Marie Buck
🧣“Central Time” by J.M.C.Kane
🧣“Good Grief, Florida Man” by Bethany Bruno
"...the title you decide to give your work may take the form of an imperative, but you then run the risk of your audience interpreting it as such; you risk their obedience."
Read "LOOK AWAY! LOOK AWAY! LOOK AWAY!" by Samir de Leon!
Art: "Chalice" by Pranav Prakash
Read "LOOK AWAY! LOOK AWAY! LOOK AWAY!" by Samir de Leon!
Art: "Chalice" by Pranav Prakash
January 13, 2026 at 11:55 AM
"...the title you decide to give your work may take the form of an imperative, but you then run the risk of your audience interpreting it as such; you risk their obedience."
Read "LOOK AWAY! LOOK AWAY! LOOK AWAY!" by Samir de Leon!
Art: "Chalice" by Pranav Prakash
Read "LOOK AWAY! LOOK AWAY! LOOK AWAY!" by Samir de Leon!
Art: "Chalice" by Pranav Prakash
"I’ll know that great power almost always succeeds over the reality of what has been lived; hope seems to eternally lag behind."
All bets are off if you fail to read "Eighth Place" by Sarai Abram
Art: "The Autistic Phoenix" by Anum Farooq
All bets are off if you fail to read "Eighth Place" by Sarai Abram
Art: "The Autistic Phoenix" by Anum Farooq
December 30, 2025 at 3:56 PM
"I’ll know that great power almost always succeeds over the reality of what has been lived; hope seems to eternally lag behind."
All bets are off if you fail to read "Eighth Place" by Sarai Abram
Art: "The Autistic Phoenix" by Anum Farooq
All bets are off if you fail to read "Eighth Place" by Sarai Abram
Art: "The Autistic Phoenix" by Anum Farooq
Reposted by Peatsmoke Journal
Publication day! Two of my prize-winning stories are included in #OurBestWarStories. Brilliant works by lives impacted by war—on the battlefront & at home. Thanks to #LineofAdvance and #MiddleWestPress. Thanks to the editing team & congrats to all included!
www.middlewestpress.com/2025/09/new-...
www.middlewestpress.com/2025/09/new-...
New Volume Collects 60+ Col. Darron L. Wright Award-winning Stories & Poems
Editors of Chicago-based non-profit literary journal Line of Advance ( www.LineOfAdvance.org ) have announced a new, second volume collecti...
www.middlewestpress.com
November 4, 2025 at 2:49 PM
Publication day! Two of my prize-winning stories are included in #OurBestWarStories. Brilliant works by lives impacted by war—on the battlefront & at home. Thanks to #LineofAdvance and #MiddleWestPress. Thanks to the editing team & congrats to all included!
www.middlewestpress.com/2025/09/new-...
www.middlewestpress.com/2025/09/new-...
Reposted by Peatsmoke Journal
I’m so excited, working with Mason Jar has already been amazing!
We are excited to announce our new author, Ani King! Ani's debut book, FAMILY NIGHT, a collection of flash fiction filled with magical realism, will be released in Fall 2026. Join us in welcoming Ani to MJP! @aniking.bsky.social @smokelong.bsky.social #flashfiction #debutauthor #magicalrealism
December 9, 2025 at 4:06 PM
I’m so excited, working with Mason Jar has already been amazing!
"The stacks shivering like a forest as I walk through them."
Read "Sad Library Things" by @eileentomarchio.bsky.social for a glimpse into the repository!
Art: "Distorted Room" by Lindy Giusta
Read "Sad Library Things" by @eileentomarchio.bsky.social for a glimpse into the repository!
Art: "Distorted Room" by Lindy Giusta
December 15, 2025 at 11:38 AM
"The stacks shivering like a forest as I walk through them."
Read "Sad Library Things" by @eileentomarchio.bsky.social for a glimpse into the repository!
Art: "Distorted Room" by Lindy Giusta
Read "Sad Library Things" by @eileentomarchio.bsky.social for a glimpse into the repository!
Art: "Distorted Room" by Lindy Giusta
Reposted by Peatsmoke Journal
In April, @psmokejournal.bsky.social published my story "The Landing"
www.peatsmokejournal.com/spring-2025-...
www.peatsmokejournal.com/spring-2025-...
The Landing — Peatsmoke
Jamey Gallagher It was while the conference organizers were giving their thank yous and preparatory speeches that she looked at her phone and saw the alert about the aliens landing.
www.peatsmokejournal.com
December 12, 2025 at 7:30 PM
In April, @psmokejournal.bsky.social published my story "The Landing"
www.peatsmokejournal.com/spring-2025-...
www.peatsmokejournal.com/spring-2025-...
"Words I had to explain to you and for you made the past a cornucopia dream, one you try to capture at night, like a firefly trying to catch the light."
Before the skeeto bites, read "Dead Bodies of Water" by @rosaleenlynch.bsky.social !
Art: "Broken" by Carolyn Adams
Before the skeeto bites, read "Dead Bodies of Water" by @rosaleenlynch.bsky.social !
Art: "Broken" by Carolyn Adams
December 9, 2025 at 11:40 AM
"Words I had to explain to you and for you made the past a cornucopia dream, one you try to capture at night, like a firefly trying to catch the light."
Before the skeeto bites, read "Dead Bodies of Water" by @rosaleenlynch.bsky.social !
Art: "Broken" by Carolyn Adams
Before the skeeto bites, read "Dead Bodies of Water" by @rosaleenlynch.bsky.social !
Art: "Broken" by Carolyn Adams
Announcement: We are OPEN for art submissions until December 15th! What's up your sleeve?
December 3, 2025 at 11:25 AM
Announcement: We are OPEN for art submissions until December 15th! What's up your sleeve?
"'If they know someone cares, they might bring it back.'"
Read "Orange Juice" by @dfcohen.bsky.social on our website! Are you feeling fresh and alive?
Art: "Flow" by Carolyn Adams
Read "Orange Juice" by @dfcohen.bsky.social on our website! Are you feeling fresh and alive?
Art: "Flow" by Carolyn Adams
November 25, 2025 at 11:59 PM
"'If they know someone cares, they might bring it back.'"
Read "Orange Juice" by @dfcohen.bsky.social on our website! Are you feeling fresh and alive?
Art: "Flow" by Carolyn Adams
Read "Orange Juice" by @dfcohen.bsky.social on our website! Are you feeling fresh and alive?
Art: "Flow" by Carolyn Adams
Reposted by Peatsmoke Journal
Catching up on bookmarks and LOVE this ingeniously structured flash stunner by Daniel Cohen in the latest @psmokejournal.bsky.social
www.peatsmokejournal.com/2025-flash-c...
www.peatsmokejournal.com/2025-flash-c...
Orange Juice — Peatsmoke
Daniel Cohen She was thirty-four and still lived with a roommate. The roommate was a singer, too, but she was a decade younger and still had hope.
www.peatsmokejournal.com
November 18, 2025 at 8:35 PM
Catching up on bookmarks and LOVE this ingeniously structured flash stunner by Daniel Cohen in the latest @psmokejournal.bsky.social
www.peatsmokejournal.com/2025-flash-c...
www.peatsmokejournal.com/2025-flash-c...
We are pleased to announce that Peatsmoke is now paying contributors! Contributors will receive $10 per piece (though we wish it was one million because that's how much we love you)!
November 18, 2025 at 11:45 AM
We are pleased to announce that Peatsmoke is now paying contributors! Contributors will receive $10 per piece (though we wish it was one million because that's how much we love you)!
We are thrilled to announce our PEN/Robert J. Dau Emerging Writer Nominations!
🌟"Where to Look" by Brian Lynch
🌟"The Blue Jays Are Imported" by Peter Alsante
🌟"Terminal Break" by Emily Drew
🌟"Eighth Place" by Sarai Abram
🌟"Where to Look" by Brian Lynch
🌟"The Blue Jays Are Imported" by Peter Alsante
🌟"Terminal Break" by Emily Drew
🌟"Eighth Place" by Sarai Abram
November 14, 2025 at 11:43 AM
We are thrilled to announce our PEN/Robert J. Dau Emerging Writer Nominations!
🌟"Where to Look" by Brian Lynch
🌟"The Blue Jays Are Imported" by Peter Alsante
🌟"Terminal Break" by Emily Drew
🌟"Eighth Place" by Sarai Abram
🌟"Where to Look" by Brian Lynch
🌟"The Blue Jays Are Imported" by Peter Alsante
🌟"Terminal Break" by Emily Drew
🌟"Eighth Place" by Sarai Abram
"I kept the tooth in my pocket all night, feeling it through the fabric while I watched my parents orbit each other like two planets that forgot they were supposed to share gravity."
Read "Teeth in All the Wrong Places" by Emely Taveras!
Art: “Ya Big Baboon” by Matthew Fertel
Read "Teeth in All the Wrong Places" by Emely Taveras!
Art: “Ya Big Baboon” by Matthew Fertel
November 5, 2025 at 11:54 AM
"I kept the tooth in my pocket all night, feeling it through the fabric while I watched my parents orbit each other like two planets that forgot they were supposed to share gravity."
Read "Teeth in All the Wrong Places" by Emely Taveras!
Art: “Ya Big Baboon” by Matthew Fertel
Read "Teeth in All the Wrong Places" by Emely Taveras!
Art: “Ya Big Baboon” by Matthew Fertel
Not a trick, but rather a treat! We will be open for ALL genres October 30-31st!
October 29, 2025 at 10:24 AM
Not a trick, but rather a treat! We will be open for ALL genres October 30-31st!
"If he was the egg. Or the frying pan. Or the man he was, or could have been. All I know is this: he scrambled it anyway."
Read the full "The Odds" by Emily Portillo on our website!
Art: “Spring’s Coming” by Yan Jiang
Read the full "The Odds" by Emily Portillo on our website!
Art: “Spring’s Coming” by Yan Jiang
October 21, 2025 at 10:31 AM
"If he was the egg. Or the frying pan. Or the man he was, or could have been. All I know is this: he scrambled it anyway."
Read the full "The Odds" by Emily Portillo on our website!
Art: “Spring’s Coming” by Yan Jiang
Read the full "The Odds" by Emily Portillo on our website!
Art: “Spring’s Coming” by Yan Jiang
When you clear the leaves, you'll see our Fall 2025 Issue is here!
Featured Contest Winners
🍁"The Odds" by Emily Portillo (Poetry)
🍁"Teeth in All the Wrong Places" by Emely Taveras (Fiction)
🍁"Orange Juice" by @dfcohen.bsky.social (Flash)
Fiction
🍁"Terminal Break" by Emily Drew
Featured Contest Winners
🍁"The Odds" by Emily Portillo (Poetry)
🍁"Teeth in All the Wrong Places" by Emely Taveras (Fiction)
🍁"Orange Juice" by @dfcohen.bsky.social (Flash)
Fiction
🍁"Terminal Break" by Emily Drew
October 16, 2025 at 12:26 AM
When you clear the leaves, you'll see our Fall 2025 Issue is here!
Featured Contest Winners
🍁"The Odds" by Emily Portillo (Poetry)
🍁"Teeth in All the Wrong Places" by Emely Taveras (Fiction)
🍁"Orange Juice" by @dfcohen.bsky.social (Flash)
Fiction
🍁"Terminal Break" by Emily Drew
Featured Contest Winners
🍁"The Odds" by Emily Portillo (Poetry)
🍁"Teeth in All the Wrong Places" by Emely Taveras (Fiction)
🍁"Orange Juice" by @dfcohen.bsky.social (Flash)
Fiction
🍁"Terminal Break" by Emily Drew
The wait is over... Congratulations to our Best of Net 2026 nominees!
Cortez
@manateevanity.bsky.social
Rachel Dorn
Annastacia Stegall
Sarah Burke
Sullivan Jordan
Eric Roy
Esmé Kaplan-Kinsey
Garth Pavell
Ruby Wang
Ara Deinde
Sewkhy Tan
Cortez
@manateevanity.bsky.social
Rachel Dorn
Annastacia Stegall
Sarah Burke
Sullivan Jordan
Eric Roy
Esmé Kaplan-Kinsey
Garth Pavell
Ruby Wang
Ara Deinde
Sewkhy Tan
October 8, 2025 at 12:24 AM
The wait is over... Congratulations to our Best of Net 2026 nominees!
Cortez
@manateevanity.bsky.social
Rachel Dorn
Annastacia Stegall
Sarah Burke
Sullivan Jordan
Eric Roy
Esmé Kaplan-Kinsey
Garth Pavell
Ruby Wang
Ara Deinde
Sewkhy Tan
Cortez
@manateevanity.bsky.social
Rachel Dorn
Annastacia Stegall
Sarah Burke
Sullivan Jordan
Eric Roy
Esmé Kaplan-Kinsey
Garth Pavell
Ruby Wang
Ara Deinde
Sewkhy Tan
"Lucky for him something in me is like a sheep with a bell. But not all of me. And lately the clapper’s started going wonky, almost like an alarm."
Read more of "Bitters" by Sarah Bess Jaffe on our website!
Art: “Contrite Respite” by Brooke Walker
Read more of "Bitters" by Sarah Bess Jaffe on our website!
Art: “Contrite Respite” by Brooke Walker
October 5, 2025 at 8:14 PM
"Lucky for him something in me is like a sheep with a bell. But not all of me. And lately the clapper’s started going wonky, almost like an alarm."
Read more of "Bitters" by Sarah Bess Jaffe on our website!
Art: “Contrite Respite” by Brooke Walker
Read more of "Bitters" by Sarah Bess Jaffe on our website!
Art: “Contrite Respite” by Brooke Walker
"The sun hit the cloudbank a fist’s width above the horizon and swelled enormously, pregnant with its own death, melting, bleeding, then spilling into the sea, metal and crucible as one..." - @gabriella-p-h.bsky.social "r/Hell"
Art: “Harpies” by Rollin Jewett
Art: “Harpies” by Rollin Jewett
September 25, 2025 at 10:45 AM
"The sun hit the cloudbank a fist’s width above the horizon and swelled enormously, pregnant with its own death, melting, bleeding, then spilling into the sea, metal and crucible as one..." - @gabriella-p-h.bsky.social "r/Hell"
Art: “Harpies” by Rollin Jewett
Art: “Harpies” by Rollin Jewett
Reposted by Peatsmoke Journal
“She turns herself upright but otherwise remains still, like she’s choosing whether to give up or go on. It takes a moment to regain your bearings when you survive. To recalculate your odds.”
@andreabishop.bsky.social in @psmokejournal.bsky.social www.peatsmokejournal.com/summer-2025-...
@andreabishop.bsky.social in @psmokejournal.bsky.social www.peatsmokejournal.com/summer-2025-...
Our Goldfinch Math Doesn't Add Up — Peatsmoke
Andrea Bishop She turns herself upright but otherwise remains still, like she’s choosing whether to give up or go on. It takes a moment to regain your bearings when you survive. To recalculate your ...
www.peatsmokejournal.com
September 18, 2025 at 4:11 AM
“She turns herself upright but otherwise remains still, like she’s choosing whether to give up or go on. It takes a moment to regain your bearings when you survive. To recalculate your odds.”
@andreabishop.bsky.social in @psmokejournal.bsky.social www.peatsmokejournal.com/summer-2025-...
@andreabishop.bsky.social in @psmokejournal.bsky.social www.peatsmokejournal.com/summer-2025-...
It's almost sweater season... What's up your sleeve?
We are OPEN for submissions for ALL genres!
We are OPEN for submissions for ALL genres!
September 15, 2025 at 11:56 PM
It's almost sweater season... What's up your sleeve?
We are OPEN for submissions for ALL genres!
We are OPEN for submissions for ALL genres!
"She turns herself upright but otherwise remains still, like she’s choosing whether to give up or go on. It takes a moment to regain your bearings when you survive."
Read "Our Goldfinch Math Doesn't Add Up" by @andreabishop.bsky.social on our website!
Art: “Queencard” by Lindsay Liang
Read "Our Goldfinch Math Doesn't Add Up" by @andreabishop.bsky.social on our website!
Art: “Queencard” by Lindsay Liang
September 8, 2025 at 12:56 AM
"She turns herself upright but otherwise remains still, like she’s choosing whether to give up or go on. It takes a moment to regain your bearings when you survive."
Read "Our Goldfinch Math Doesn't Add Up" by @andreabishop.bsky.social on our website!
Art: “Queencard” by Lindsay Liang
Read "Our Goldfinch Math Doesn't Add Up" by @andreabishop.bsky.social on our website!
Art: “Queencard” by Lindsay Liang