Odd little reads for those moments in-between || indie, old school, ad-free + reader supported digital and print zine
Issue #1 available now in print / digital formats!
Rat Bag Lit is the world’s first lit mag run by rats.
Okay, the writers running Rat Bag Lit aren’t really rats, but we are human authors experienced in writing, reading, critiquing, and editing short fiction. Each of us knows the pain of submitting our work and receiving a seemingly endless flow of rejections in return. So we thought: why not make this fun?
Rat Bag Lit is a brand-new paying publication for short fiction, creative non-fiction, and poetry. Rat Bag Lit seeks to publish work that crosses genre and blurs the lines between literary and genre. Weird little stories that keep us up at night, stories that make us laugh, and poetry reflecting the strangest dreams that pop out of your odd little noggin. Bold ideas, tight prose, snappy dialogue, speculative elements.
Rat Bag Lit is looking for unique fiction that twists common tropes into something we haven’t seen and, hell, maybe something we’ll wish we hadn’t. That strange little story that you hold close to your heart but has been rejected a billion times, but you keep sending it out because you believe in it, damnit? Yeah. Send us that one. We’ll publish all the weird that fits.
We publish a new short fiction piece every Monday - Friday.
Your purchase of our print / digital issue helps us pay our authors. Issue #1 contains 27 pieces by 24 authors, most of which are exclusive to the issue.
Your support helps us pay our authors. We appreciate your tips, via tip jar submissions on our submission manager and/or our Ko-Fi. We also have merch available on Etsy and Ko-Fi, handmade by our cheddar master, Splinter.
Submission guidelines
Check out our submission manager to learn about current and upcoming openings and our website for more details. (Our submission manager has the most up-to-date information on current calls.) Join our mailing list to stay up-to-date on upcoming issues and open calls. We do not accept submissions via DMs or email.
We publish:
For digital publication: We open on the first of each month for themed drabbles (100 word stories) + every other month (or so) for untamed micros (maximum 300 words). We have occasional “secret” calls which you can learn about through our newsletter and/or social media accounts.
For print publication: We are currently editing for our October 2026 print issue.
Issue #1 is available in print / digital format.
We do not use AI-generated images or allow AI-generated submissions.
We include reader notes with our rejection / acceptance letters, often these notes are unhinged missives direct from the rats. (You can opt out of receiving these notes in your cover letter.) We pay our authors penny a word (USD).
We do our best to respond to all submissions within 60 days, if not much sooner.
