SEND US YOUR WORK!
Third Lane is an independent, bimonthly and bilingual (English and Bengali) digital magazine launched in March 2021, and we are now open for submissions!
Email us your piece directly at thirdlane.mag@gmail.com.
THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE SENDING THE E-MAIL
We are not fussy about what we read – your piece could be anything: a poem hidden at the back of your notebook, a story about magic rabbits, a biting social commentary you have been meaning to pen down, or even a long rant to yourself you came up with on your daily commute.
You happen to be a poet, a novelist and a translator all rolled into one? That’s accepted too! You can send us multiple submissions in multiple categories – we will review each one separately. If we like what we read, we will get back to you. However, please do remember that the ultimate decision to publish a piece lies with our editors.
We just have one rule – do not send us writing that has already been published elsewhere. Simultaneous submissions are accepted but do take care to let us know if a piece has been accepted elsewhere before we make a decision about yours. If you are sending us a piece that has been previously uploaded on social media, please make sure it is taken down once we have accepted it.
Our mailbox is open all the year round! We have a rolling submission cycle, so there are no strict deadlines for submission – once a piece is selected, we will communicate when it will be published. However, we will be announcing specific calls for certain segments at regular intervals, along with calls for themed sections, special issues etc. and these usually come with their own set of instructions/deadlines. Keep a lookout for all such calls on our social media outlets (Facebook, Instagram and Twitter).
HOW TO SEND US YOUR WRITING
- Submissions must be in the form of an editable Microsoft Word attachment (.doc, .docx or .rtf) in an email. Do not share PDFs or links to your personal drive with us.
- Font preferred – Times New Roman – Size 12 (English). For submissions in Bengali, make sure your work is typed out in a Unicode format.
- Mention your name and the category of submission, including the language, in the subject line of your e-mail. (e.g: Short Story Submission (English) – John Doe)
- In the body of the email, make sure to include a short bio of yourself, along with a photograph, as well as any contact/website details you want us to publish alongside your name.
For guidelines related to specific categories of submission, refer to the tabs below:
We publish poetry in a bunch. Submit a minimum of three poems. A singular piece is not usually considered for selection.
All the poems submitted must be in the same Word document in the afore-mentioned format (see guidelines above).
Short Stories:
Minimum Words: 1500. Maximum Words: 8000. Longer pieces can be sent to us in the form of a novella. See the guidelines for the same.
Example: https://thirdlanemag.com/en/heavenly-abode-vrinda-baliga/
Flash Fiction:
Maximum Words : 1000 Words.
Very short content is not encouraged - we typically do not publish 100-word stories or one-line fiction. If you are sending us your terribly tiny tales, make sure you send in at least four.
Novel/Novella:
Long-form fiction is published in installments and are not a part of our usual bimonthly issues. We usually discuss with the author on the length of each installment and the typical frequency of publication is either weekly or monthly.
If you have a novel that you would like to publish through us, send us an excerpt (at least two chapters) and we will get in touch with you if we like the preview.
If you have a potential topic in mind for a creative-non fiction or a literary non-fiction piece, we would prefer it if you send us a pitch first before submitting an essay.
A typical pitch should not be greater than 500 words, and should ideally cover the broad outline of your subject of choice, and the narrative framework you have in mind. If a pitch piques our interest, we will get in touch with you.
What do we mean by creative non-fiction?
What we are looking for in creative non-fiction is a blend of personal experience and critical analysis.
You can also pick a purely analytical route, but while we encourage articles on topics from all literary and cultural spheres of research, we are not looking for academic writing - the kind that is typically published in journals.
Similarly, entirely personal memoirs are not particularly encouraged. We would like to see an exploration of ideas and a deeply involved narrative in our articles. However, in certain cases, if the story/experience recounted intrigues us, a personal history piece is definitely considered.
We are also not looking for purely journalistic pieces or listicles. A few examples of the kind of essays we would like to publish in this segment :
2. https://thirdlanemag.com/en/prison-walls-the-stories-within-ritarekha-dutta/
We accept translations of poetry, short stories, novels and essays. The responsibility of securing the copyrights for translation lies with the translator. Please clarify if you have the rights for translation along with your submission.
We are actively looking for translations of material in Indian regional languages. Translations and compilation of oral narratives and oral history from a particular region are also welcome.
If you would like to collaborate with us on a regular basis as a translator, or if you have a pitch in mind on what kind of material we could be looking at within the space of translation literature, get in touch with us!
Comic Strips/Cartoons:
Be it a sardonic one-panel cartoon taking down the establishment, or a charming new Peanuts-in-the-making - we are interested in all formats of graphic storytelling.
Each panel should be sent separately in a high-resolution image format (jpg, jpeg, or png).
Graphic Novel/Novella:
If you have an idea for a graphic novel that you would like to publish through us, send us an excerpt (at least one chapter) and we will get in touch with you if we like the preview.
If there is a short story or a novel that you would like to turn into a graphic novel, we are interested to hear about it! Send us a pitch - tell us which story you would like to illustrate, show us a sample (a panel or two) of your art - and if we like what we see, we will take up the project!
Long-form fiction is published in installments and are not a part of our usual bimonthly issues. We usually discuss with the author on the length of each installment and the typical frequency of publication is either weekly or monthly.
Art/Photography:
Photography and art submission on our platform is usually theme-based. Keep a lookout on our social media handles for announcements of our art-projects.
Photo-Essays:
We plan to publish more photo stories and art-based stories soon.
Photo-essay submissions should have an underlying literary or cultural theme, when submitted for our regular issues. Please send us a query, and brief introduction of your art/photo story first with a minimum of two sample image before submission.
THINGS TO EXPECT ONCE YOU HAVE SENT THAT E-MAIL WE TALKED ABOUT
We have a small team, and we make it a point to read every submission – so the response time might be a tad long, but we promise to try and respond to every email that lands up in our mailbox.
After acceptance, your work will be subjected to an editorial procedure (don’t be alarmed, it will probably be a fun back-and-forth between you and your assigned editor and an exchange of suggestions, nothing more).
Once an article has been published on our website, please remember that you would not be able to publish the same on any other platform prior to 4 weeks from our publication date.
We make it a point to provide a token of appreciation to all our contributors. So, once your piece is published, we will be getting in touch with you regarding the honorarium for your work.
Almost Done...
While we would love to read your work, don’t limit yourself to simply creative endeavors – our mailbox as well as social media handles are open to your suggestions, complaints and general advice as well. We are just starting out – so any and every kind of feedback will be welcome and much appreciated!
Third Lane is a volunteer project that is constantly dependent on the active involvement of its reader community. If you would like to join the Third Lane team in any capacity, or support us through your association, do drop us an e-mail as well. We would love to have you on board!
Just in case you don’t follow us already, here are our social media handles:
Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/thirdlane.mag
Instagram : https://instagram.com/lllrd_lane?igshid=1in88gajnplba
So then, what are you still here for? Go ahead, work your magic. We can’t wait to see what you have in store for us!
Copyright Notice:
*** All the works on our website are free to be republished after 4 weeks from the publication date. Just be sure to give us credits for publishing you first! ***