The following is a list of literary journals featuring writing by / for people with disabilities, or about the disability experience. These publications have a creative (rather than lifestyle) focus.

* Inclusion here does not equal endorsement. Please do your own research before submitting.

All links are current as of November 2022. If you find a non-working link, or if you know a publication that should be added to / deleted from this list, please let me know.

Thank you!

— Nicole Melanson

Ailment – Chronicles of Illness Narratives

Submissions from patients (those with chronic mental and physical illness), caretakers, family and friends affected by a loved-one’s illness and practitioners (healthcare providers) will be considered. Responses to the creative prompt may be submitted in non-fiction, essay, poetry, photography, drawing or painting form.

 

Barking Sycamores

* CLOSED

Featuring neurodivergent literature & art, Barking Sycamores accepts poetry, short fiction, hybrid genre, creative nonfiction, book reviews, and artwork submissions.

 

Blanket Sea

Blanket Sea is an arts & literary magazine dedicated to showcasing the work of artists and writers living with chronic illness, mental illness, and disability.

 

Breath & Shadow

Breath & Shadow is a quarterly literary journal that promotes disability writing and culture, thereby promoting cross-disability pride and community. The journal’s goal is to empower and create opportunities for people with disabilities in the literary field.

 

Chronically Lit

At Chronically Lit, we talk loudly about chronic illness. Our mission is to examine and expand the representation of chronic illness in contemporary literature, media, and culture.

 

Deaf Poets Society

The Deaf Poets Society is an online literary journal that publishes poetry, prose, cross-genre work, reviews of Deaf or disability-focused books, interviews/miscellany, and art by D/deaf and/or disabled writers and artists.

 

Disability Arts Online

Disability Arts Online is an online journal for disabled and deaf artists and all individuals and organisations engaged in the field of Disability Arts.

 

Disability Studies Quarterly

DSQ is a multidisciplinary, interdisciplinary and international journal of interest to social scientists, scholars in the humanities, disability rights advocates, creative writers, and others concerned with the issues of people with disabilities.

 

Exceptions Journal

* CLOSED

Exceptions Journal is dedicated to publishing artistic and literary works for and by people with visual impairments. They accept submissions in fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and multimedia.

 

Honey Literary

Honey Literary is a space for BIPOC (Black/Indigenous/People of Color and any combination therein). We publish BIPOC womxn, non-binary and trans people,  disabled writers, and anyone of color from the LGBTQIAP2+ community.

(Editor’s note: This publication is disability-inclusive, not -centric.)

 

Kaleidoscope

Kaleidoscope magazine creatively focuses on the experiences of disability through literature and the fine arts. Unique to the field of disability studies, this award-winning publication expresses the experience of disability from the perspective of individuals, families, friends, healthcare professionals, educators and others.

 

Loaded Die Review

* CLOSED

A print and digital magazine of literature and art exploring the emotional data surrounding the U.S. health care system.

 

Meeting Place Zine

Meeting Place Zine is Arts Access Australia’s first online magazine showcasing the work of d/Deaf and disabled writers, published as part of Meeting Place 2020.

NB: Please contact the organizers directly for more information about future events.

 

Monstering

* ON HIATUS

Monstering is a magazine, written by and for disabled women and nonbinary people.

 

The Offing

The Offing actively seeks out and supports work by and about those often marginalized in literary spaces, including Black and Indigenous people, and people of color; trans people, cis women, agender, gender non-conforming, genderqueer, two-spirit, and non-binary people; intersex people; LGBQA (lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer, asexual/aromantic) people; people with disabilities; and especially people living at the intersections of these identities.

 

Pentimento

* ARCHIVED

Pentimento is an ad-free literary magazine for the disability community. We accept submissions by an individual with a disability or an individual who is part of the community, such as a family member, therapist, educator, etc.

 

Réapparition Journal

A literary journal geared towards chronic illness de-stigmatization.

 

Rogue Agent Journal

What is it like to live in your body? We want work that answers this question.

 

Sick Magazine

SICK is committed to elevating the voices of sick & disabled people by publishing essays, features, poetry, visual art, interviews, and more. Our aim is to increase representation of sick & disabled people in publishing and the arts, and to challenge the harmful stereotypes and misconceptions surrounding disability.

 

Snap Journal

* CLOSED

Snap is an independent online voice for people who have a disability, a mental illness or who are deaf. It is owned and directed by members of this community. Snap is a quality literary journal publishing a diverse range of creative works.

 

Thrush

We are an all inclusive journal, publishing diverse voices.

 

Tiny Tim Literary Review

Tiny Tim Literary Review is a triannual literary review with a goal to normalize chronically ill/disability narratives in addition to humanizing medical professionals through their stories.

 

VIDA Review

The VIDA Review is a bi-monthly online literary magazine publishing original fiction, nonfiction, poetry, reviews, and interviews by those often marginalized in literary spaces, including Black, Indigenous, and People and of Color (BIPOC); cis and trans women, agender, gender non-conforming, genderqueer, non-binary, and two-spirit people; LGBQIA people; people with disabilities; and people living at the intersections of these identities.

(Editor’s note: This publication is disability-inclusive, not -centric.)

 

When Language Runs Dry

A zine for people with chronic pain and their allies. We want to hear your perspective on chronic pain. We are looking for anyone interested in submitting writing or easy-to-reproduce visual art/comics on the subject and experience of chronic pain.

 

Wordgathering

Wordgathering is an online quarterly journal of disability poetry, literature and art dedicated to providing a venue where the work of writers with disabilities can be found and to building up a core of work for those interested in disability literature.