Although Glimmer Train has only existed since 1992, this quarterly collection of literary fiction has earned a strong reputation and might be considered a high-end goal for any writer. Yet, Glimmer Train does accept submissions from previously unpublished authors and routinely includes their stories. Sister editors Susan Burmeister-Brown and Linda B. Swanson-Davies host their Short Story Award for New Writers three times annually. (See the Glimmer Train web page for details.)
Fiction writers should consider it essential to read at least one issue of Glimmer Train cover to cover before submitting, which is done primarily online. Subscribing and regularly reading each issue would be even better and very helpful for all writers seeking to hone their skills at the craft of writing. Conveniently, I recently picked up a copy of Glimmer Train issue #73 at my local Barnes & Noble.
What you will find between the covers of Glimmer Train are tight, cerebral stories. The writers, each featured in a childhood photograph, are masters at bringing readers intense, detailed, and vivid locations. They introduce us to characters brand new in the opening sentence and astoundingly familiar by the closing paragraph. Without exception, this is achieved using minimal and careful dialogue. There is no monologuing here.
If you get a rejection email from Glimmer Train, you'll find a link to an online form letter with writing guidelines, as well as some encouragement. (The editors do not provide commentary on individual submissions.) Having submitted and been rejected myself, I puzzled over the guidelines, which seemed confusing after reading the magazine. The guidelines stated, " . . . we don't publish poetry, stories intended for child audiences, mystery, romance, scifi, or fantasy." However, I recalled reading a story from an early edition that featured a character seeing the ghost of a fallen soldier. (In fact, that story, "Angel," was later included in a collection titled The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror.) And there are indeed child characters in the stories. The guidelines continued with, "Some writers use graphic language or images to shock -- we don't publish hate material or pornography." Whereas, the stories in issue #73 include brief, horrific images of dying and dead animals, loved ones who died in tragic accidents, a murdering bank robber, vulgar language and scenes no doubt sexually explicit. What I think the editors intend to convey is Glimmer Train isn't looking for stories in which magic, dragons, or technology are central. They don't publish stories intended to frighten the reader. Although they welcome stories about children, they don't want children's stories. Nor are they a venue for erotica or political statements. Writers of such genres should look elsewhere to publish.
The Glimmer Train Web page is easy to navigate and the process for submitting a story is simple: Create a profile with a user name and password, choose a category, then click the Browse button to select the file for uploading. (Although, the profile requires an email address, I've never had any problems with spam from Glimmer Train.) There is also an area for pasting in an optional cover page. Be aware there is a $15.00-$20.00 reading fee for contest submissions. There is no fee for the Standard Story category. Recently, Glimmer Train editors decided to allow simultaneous submissions, but request they be contacted immediately if a submission is published elsewhere.
In this era of "No Unsolicited Manuscripts," writers of literary fiction are fortunate Glimmer Train welcomes their literary short story submissions. Take note, these submissions must absolutely be exceptional, compact, and compelling. Before uploading stories to Glimmer Train, writers should master sense of place, the development of strong characters, and style.
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