Submission Guidelines

The Scandinavian Quarterly publishes fiction, poetry, essays, criticism, translation and art from across the Nordic world, alongside a small selection of exceptional work from elsewhere.

Submissions are free.

Who can submit?

TSQ is a Nordic-focused magazine, but contributors do not need to be Scandinavian or Nordic to submit.

We are especially interested in work by writers and artists from, based in, translated to/from, or meaningfully connected to:

Sweden
Norway
Denmark
Finland
Iceland
the Faroe Islands
Greenland
Åland
Sápmi and Sámi literary cultures

We also publish a smaller selection of work from elsewhere.

Nordic work does not need to be about the Nordic region. We are interested in the literature being made here, not in asking contributors to perform a particular idea of 'Nordicness'.

What we publish

Poetry

Submit up to 5 poems in a single document.

There is no minimum length. Longer poems are welcome, though very long works may be difficult to accommodate in print.

Fiction

Submit one work of fiction at a time, up to approximately 4,000 words.

We welcome short stories, flash fiction and other forms of literary fiction.

Essays

Submit one essay at a time, up to approximately 4,000 words.

We are interested in literary essays, cultural essays, personal essays, ideas, language, art and work that sits between conventional categories.

Criticism

Submit one piece at a time, generally up to 4,000 words.

We welcome literary and cultural criticism, reviews, reconsiderations, rediscoveries and essays engaging seriously with books, art, language and culture.

Translation

We welcome translations into English from any of the Nordic languages, into a Nordic language from English, or from one Nordic language into another.

Please include:

the original language
the name of the original author
the name of the translator
confirmation that you have permission to translate and publish the work where required
the original text, where possible

Translations from Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Icelandic, Faroese, Greenlandic and Sámi languages are all welcome.

Art

We accept illustration, photography and other visual work suitable for print publication.

Please submit high-resolution files wherever possible and include a short description of the work.

If selected, we may contact you for a higher-resolution or print-ready version.
If your file exceeds the allowed file size on the submission form, kindly attach your file as an email attachment or send a link to your piece to [email protected]

Language

Submissions may be written originally in English or one of the nordic languages.

Work submitted in a language other than these should normally include an English translation unless otherwise agreed with the editors.

Multilingual work is welcome.

Theme

Our issues are not strictly themed.

We may develop loose editorial ideas or motifs around an issue, but contributors do not need to write toward a theme.

Submit the work you believe is strongest.

Previously published work

We accept previously unpublished work. Work that has appeared only on a personal website, blog or social media account is not considered to be previously published.

Simultaneous submissions are welcome. However, if your work is accepted elsewhere, please withdraw it promptly or contact us if only part of a submission is no longer available.

Multiple submissions

Please wait for a response to your current submission before sending another submission in the same category.

You may, however, submit work in more than one category where the submissions are genuinely different works.

Formatting

For written work, please upload a DOC, DOCX or PDF file.

Your manuscript should include:

the title of the work
your name
page numbers for longer works

Please use a readable font and standard formatting. We care about the work, not whether your manuscript looks like a typeset book.

Author bio

Include a short third-person biography of no more than 100 words.

You may also include your social media handle(s) and personal website if you would like them included with your published work.

Cover letter

A formal cover letter is not required.

You may use the cover-note field to tell us anything relevant about the work, including previous publication, translation information, context or anything the editors should know.

Artificial intelligence

We do not accept work generated substantially by generative AI.

Writers may use ordinary spelling, grammar or accessibility tools, but the submitted creative or critical work must be the contributor's own.

Editorial process

All submissions are read by the editors of The Scandinavian Quarterly.

For the Spring 2027 issue, submissions close on 1o January 2027. The form will be open until 15 January for late submissions. Note that late submissions go through our readers and will only be added to the issue if there are places left.

We aim to respond to all submissions by 9 February 2027.

Please do not query before that date unless you need to withdraw your work.

Contributor compensation

Contributors whose work appears in the print issue will receive:

one complimentary print copy of the issue in which their work appears (free delivery if within the Nordics)
a one-year digital subscription to The Scandinavian Quarterly.
consideration for nomination to relevant literary awards and prizes for which the work is eligible.
A dedicated contributor profile on the TSQ website, including their biography and, where provided, links to their personal website and social media.
Contributors who have published books may also have links to their books included on their contributor profile. We link to books only, rather than other products or services.

Award nominations are made at the discretion of the editors and may be limited by the rules of individual prizes.

Rights

For previously unpublished work, The Scandinavian Quarterly requests first publication rights in print and digital formats, together with non-exclusive archival rights allowing us to keep the work available in our print and digital archive.

After publication, rights revert to the contributor.

If the work is subsequently republished elsewhere, we ask that The Scandinavian Quarterly be acknowledged as its place of first publication.

Different arrangements may apply to translations, previously published work or commissioned material and will be agreed with the contributor before publication.

A final note

We are interested in strong work before impressive résumés. To ensure this, our editors do not see your bio before the piece has been read and accepted.

You do not need previous publications, representation, awards or an academic background to submit to TSQ.

Send us work that feels necessary, distinctive and is fully your own.