Fiction, Essays, Poetry, Creative nonfiction
Menagerie
Menagerie pays $50 per acceptance - one piece of prose or one to three poems - and acquires first serial rights. It publishes fictions, essays and poems that the editors describe as strange, wild and uncanny, takes stories and essays up to 5,000 words, and allows simultaneous submissions with withdrawal. It refuses AI-written work outright, and is temporarily closed to catch up on its backlog.
🔴 Currently closed Verified 2026-10
The docket
The nine things that decide whether a pitch is worth sending. Every answer below is either taken from the publication’s own guideline or computed by BRYME from the 288-publication desk. Where the publication does not say, the docket says so instead of filling the gap in.
- Payment
- $50 per acceptance - one piece of prose or one to three poemsOf the other 63 records quoting in USD on this desk that state a figure, 45 state less, 14 state more, 4 state exactly this.
- Length
- Stories and essays up to 5,000 words, with 1,000-3,000 words published more often; poetry: three to five poems per submission
- Who can submit
- Not statedNo stated country restriction on the guidelines page.
- Reading period
- Not yet assessedBRYME has not recorded a reading period for this market from its guideline page. That is our gap rather than the publication's silence: it does not mean the window is open, and it does not mean there is none. Read the guideline linked on this page before you send.
- Response time
- 60-90 days
- Simultaneous submissions
- You may submit elsewhere at the same timeSimultaneous submissions are allowed. If your work is accepted elsewhere, please withdraw it. — https://menageriemagazine.com/submissions (read 2026-10-01)
- AI policy
- AI-assisted work is prohibitedThe guideline forbids AI-generated or AI-assisted writing.
- Rights
- StatedMenagerie acquires first serial rights and does not republish work that has already appeared elsewhere.
- Experience
- Not yet assessedBRYME has read this publication's guideline but has not yet put the experience question to it, so this row is untouched rather than unanswered — it is our gap, not theirs. Treat it exactly as you would an unstated policy.
What this record does not tell you
This publication leaves 3 of the nine questions unanswered. BRYME publishes that gap instead of filling it — a generated answer would look complete and cost you a pitch.
- Who can submit — the guideline leaves this open, so ask before you spend an evening on the pitch rather than assuming a yes.
- Reading period — no window recorded yet, so check the guideline before you pitch rather than assuming it is open.
- Experience — BRYME has not assessed this one yet, so do not read the blank as either a welcome or a bar. Look at who the publication normally publishes before you pitch.
Record last human-checked 2026-10-01. Sources listed at the foot of this page. Figures are compared only against other records quoting in USD on this desk quoted the same way, so a per-word rate is never ranked against a flat fee.
Quick facts
- Payment
- $50 per acceptance - one piece of prose or one to three poems
- Word count
- Stories and essays up to 5,000 words, with 1,000-3,000 words published more often; poetry: three to five poems per submission
- Submission
- Online form through Submittable; submissions are temporarily closed while the magazine catches up on its backlog.
- International writers
- Yes
- Status
- 🔴 Currently closed
- Last verified
- 2026-10
What this publication wants
This is BRYME's summary of the publication's focus — not a copy of their website. Type of writing: Fiction, Essays, Poetry, Creative nonfiction. Official guideline: Menagerie guidelines.
Topics, themes and styles they look for
- Sentences "so sharp they draw blood" - fictions in the register of Borges, Link, Calvino and Sparks.
- Weird lyric essays, and writing engaged with the environment and natural world.
- Poems that explode form.
- Work the editors call strange, wild and uncanny, including pieces the writer is not sure what to call.
Subjects they avoid
- AI-written work: "Absolutely no AI. We're interested in writing that reflects real, lived experience, not the hallucinations of LLMs."
- Work that has already appeared elsewhere - the magazine does not republish.
- Lukewarm prose, formulaic attempts at being on trend, conformity, pat endings and sentiment-drenched rhyming poems.
- Submissions to more than one category at a time.
- Stories or essays over 5,000 words.
Key requirements
- Read https://menageriemagazine.com/submissions before sending.
- The magazine is temporarily closed to catch up on its backlog and says it will reopen as soon as it can; no reopening date is stated.
- Submit to one category at a time.
- Poetry: three to five poems in one submission, and tell the editors if one poem is taken elsewhere so the rest stay in consideration.
- Prose: up to 5,000 words.
- Expect a response within 60-90 days.
Who can submit
No stated country restriction on the guidelines page.
Rights
Menagerie acquires first serial rights and does not republish work that has already appeared elsewhere.
AI policy
Prohibited
How to write for them
Official requirement: always follow the publication's own guideline exactly.
BRYME's practical advice: write for the publication's audience, use a clear structure, keep paragraphs short, lead with a specific angle, and confirm the word count before submitting. These are practical suggestions — they are not the publication's official rules.
How to pitch
Where a pitch is required, this is the general pattern BRYME recommends — always adapt it to the publication's guideline.
- Research the publication and read several recent pieces.
- Choose a specific idea that fits their beat and audience.
- Write a concise subject line naming your idea.
- Introduce yourself in one or two lines (who you are, where you publish).
- Explain the proposed piece in a short paragraph — angle, structure, length.
- Say why it fits this publication.
- Include 2–3 relevant clips or links.
- Close professionally and thank them for their time.
- Send through the official channel only.
Not accepting submissions at the last check.
How to submit
Online form through Submittable; submissions are temporarily closed while the magazine catches up on its backlog.
Apply through the official channel below. BRYME only records submission destinations it has verified.
- Official guideline: opens the publication guideline (new tab)
- Submission: Online form through Submittable; submissions are temporarily closed while the magazine catches up on its backlog.
What the guideline asks you to prepare
- Read https://menageriemagazine.com/submissions before sending.
- Check the status line first: submissions are temporarily closed while the magazine works through its backlog, with no reopening date stated.
- When it reopens, submit through the form on the page, to one category only.
- Send three to five poems, or a story or essay of up to 5,000 words.
- Withdraw a simultaneous piece immediately if it is accepted elsewhere.
What happens after submission
Expected response: 60-90 days
If the publication does not state a response time, BRYME records that it is unknown. A follow-up is generally reasonable after a couple of weeks; if there is still no response, treat that as a likely non-acceptance rather than a rejection. Acceptance is normally communicated by the publication. If they accept, they will tell you exactly how to submit the final piece and, for most, how and when payment is made.
Check, question or correct this record
BRYME publishes its working, not just its conclusions. Last human check: 2026-10.