Evergreen Submission Guidelines

We’re a queer/trans publication interested in diverse voices. Please feel welcome to self-identify, but understand submissions are read before the cover letters, so wow us with your writing, not your bio. We are intolerant of intolerance and right-wing and neoliberal worldviews do not interest us.

DO send us human art. Do NOT send us anything where AI was involved in any part of the creative process (research, planning, drafting, editing (not including spell/grammar check)).

Payment

Originals 0-3500 words @ 0.02/word

Reprints 0-3500 words @ 0.01/word

Originals 3500-5000 words @ $70/piece

Reprints 3500-5000 words @ $35/piece

Payment is upon contract, via PayPal (USD).

HOW TO SUBMIT

Submit your work to: editor.hobbyhorse[AT]gmail.com as a .odt, .rtf, or .doc(x) file in proper Shunn manuscript format with your choice of Aptos, Times, Courier or another similar, readable font. Please include a brief cover letter and bio. Straying wildly from guidelines will result in rejection—but I’m really chill over here, I promise.

Subject line should read: “Submission, [title], [last name]”

Please white-list our email address so we aren’t caught by a spam blocker when responding to your submission.

RIGHTS

We acquire first world electronic rights, first world print rights, and non-exclusive electronic and print anthology rights. A sample contract can be found here. (←forthcoming...)

RESPONSE TIME

We strive to respond in ~90 days. No news is good news. If you’re a few weeks past 90 days, query.

‍SIMULTANEOUS SUBS

Simultaneous submissions are welcome! Encouraged, even! We’re pro-writer here and believe that unless someone has crossed your palms with silver and your desk with a contract, no one but you controls your work. That said, please let us know immediately if your piece is acquired elsewhere.

MULTIPLE SUBS

No thank you! Send the best one.

LEGAL

We will not share materials sent to us with anyone outside of Hobbyhorse personnel, except in these situations: threats are made against Hobbyhorse persons by the author, if the author has instructed us to do so, or if the work submitted is found to be plagiarized or fraudulent (this includes the use of AI).
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Hobbyhorse issue 1
Theme: Obsession

OPEN

Closes Nov 30th, 2026

For our inaugural issue, we’re looking for both fiction and creative non-fiction revolving around obsession. Fixations. Haunting thought experiments. Loud and tenacious, persistent ideas. Irrational fears and reoccurring dreams. Hopes and cognitive ear-worms.

‍ ‍In fiction:

For any issue: We love the speculative but aren’t interested in pulp action. Weird is good. Upsetting is great. Heartwarming is welcome. Connections to hobbies or creative life is a boon.

For the OBSESSION issue: The “topic(s) to which one constantly reverts” definition of “hobbyhorse” – is there a difference between reversion and return? Through the lens of obsession, is anyone’s hobbyhorse—stamp collecting or learning about serial killers—voluntary? Are these compulsions logical rejoinders or incomprehensible causalities? Take the lens of obsession loosely, and show us something we won’t forget.

‍ ‍In (creative) non-fiction:

For any issue: We’re into people simply geeking out about their hobbies! Please, tell us WHY you love what you love! How’d you discover it? You know those stories before recipes which are really annoying when you just want the recipe? Well, here we’re actually into the story part! How-to guides with plenty of voice also welcome! Come! Teach and geek!

For the OBSESSION issue: Send us reeling. We’re looking for the personal, but less confessional and more exploratory. Purely personal obsessions are less likely to succeed than say, an obsession with someone else’s obsession, or a seemingly societal obsession the writer can speak to personally.

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