California Literary Journals

This is a list of literary journals based in California. It’s long but not comprehensive, so if you know of any others, please feel free to message me or leave a comment below. Happy reading and submitting!

Last Updated: July 29, 2021

*

A ~ C

  • 580 Split: Affiliated with Mills College in Oakland. Published in print once per year.
  • Altadena Poetry Review: Open to anyone in the Altadena/ Pasadena/Greater Los Angeles area, Published yearly and accepts poetry of all content and form.
  • Angel City Review: Committed to “bringing the cutting edge in fiction and poetry to a modern audience.” Published in Ebook twice per year.
  • Angels Flight*Literary West: “Angels Flight • literary west explores the uncharted stories of Los Angeles and beyond.”
  • The Bare Life Review: The only literary journal whose sole mission is to publish immigrant and refugee writers.
  • Berkeley Fiction Review: Affiliated with University of California, Berkeley. Published in print once per year.
  • California Quarterly:  Sponsored by the California State Poetry Society. Published in print four times per year.
  • Chaparral: an online journal featuring poetry from Southern California.
  • The Citadel: Affiliated with Los Angeles City College. Published  twice per year.

D ~ G

  • Dash: Affiliated with California State University, Fullerton.
  • Dryland: Los Angeles underground art and writing. “Based in South Central Los Angeles. Los Angeles, the land of all skin colors and all classes. We’re looking for Los Angeles. Waste…decay…rebirth and all.” Published once every three months, in print and online.
  • Dum Dum Zine: Dum Dum is an extraordinarily crafted experimental art-lit zine. Published in print once per year. Online content added regularly.
  • The Ear: Affiliated with Irvine Valley College.
  • Entropy: ENTROPY features both literary and related non-literary content. They cover topics such as video games, graphic novels, interactive literature, science fiction, fantasy, music, film, art, and other topics in addition to literary reviews, interviews, conversations, and articles on experimental literature, translation, small press practices, and performance.
  • Exposition Review: Independent, multi-genre literary journal publishing in the genres of fiction, nonfiction, poetry, stage & screen, experimental, art & photography, and comics. Published online once per year.
  • Faultline: Affiliated with University of California, Irvine. Published in print once per year.
  • Fourteen Hills: Affiliated with San Francisco State University. Published in print twice per year.
  • Ghost Town: Affiliated with California State University, San Bernardino. Published once or twice a year online.

H ~ N

  • Haight Ashbury Literary Journal: HALJ champions the voices of people who have been marginalized, oppressed, or abused. The Journal is produced as a tabloid to maintain an accessible price for low-income people.
  • INSCAPE: Affiliated with Pasadena City College (PCC) creative writing department. Submissions are open to PCC Students, Faculty, Staff, Alumni, and Community members.
  • The Los Angeles Press: Publishes art and literature from Los Angeles and the West.
  • The Los Angeles Review: Published in print once per year, and online 52 times per year.
  • Lunch Ticket: Affiliated with Antioch University. Published online twice per year.
  • Memoir Mixtapes: Memoir Mixtapes accepts submissions of creative non-fiction and poetry. No fiction. It is Memoir Mixtapes after all.
  • The Nervous Breakdown: Features the work of published and emerging authors and poets from around the world. Online content published on a rolling basis.
  • The Normal School: Affiliated with California State University, Fresno. Published in print twice per year.
  • Northridge Review: Affiliated with California State University, Northridge.

O ~ R

  • Pacific Review: Affiliated with San Diego State University.
  • Penumbra: Affiliated with California State University, Stanislaus. Published in print once per yer.
  • Poets Reading the News: An innovative literary journal publishing original, extraordinary “journalism in verse.”
  • Pomona Valley Review: Affiliated with Cal Poly Pomona. Published online once per year.
  • Prism Review: Affiliated with University of La Verne
  • Rattle: Publishes poetry.
  • Reed Magazine: Affiliated with San Jose State University. Published in print once per year.
  • RipRap: Affiliated with California State University, Long Beach. Published in print once per year.
  • The Rumpus: “Published essays, reviews, interviews, music, film, short fiction, poetry, and comics.

S ~ Z

  • SAGA Literary Journal: Affiliated with Long Beach City College.
  • San Pedro River Review: Published by Blue Horse Press. Published in print twice a year.
  • Santa Ana River Review: Affiliated with University California, Riverside.
  • Santa Monica Review: Affiliated with Santa Monica College. Published in print twice per year.
  • Sensitive Skin: Features art, writing, and music. Published in print
  • SOUTHLAND ALIBI: Affiliated with the Writers’ Program at UCLA Extension. Submit via their Submittable portal.
  • Statement Magazine: Affiliated with California State University, Los Angeles. Published in print once per year.
  • The Threepenny Review: Published in print four times per year.
  • Westwind: Affiliated with UCLA. Published in print once per year, and online twice.
  • WORD POPPY PRESS: An independent literary press based in Northern California. Specializes in the personal essay. Will also consider short stories, op-eds, book reviews, and poetry submissions.
  • Zoetrope All-Story: Founded by Francis Ford Coppola. Published in print four times per year.
  • ZYZZYVA: A San Francisco journal of arts and letters. Famously introduced American readers to Murakami. Published in print four times per year.