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Coming of Age

We all grow up and we all learn different lessons about the world. Sometimes those lessons set us on a course for the rest of our lives. Sometimes, they knock us off course and we have to chart new waters. In November, we’re sharing your stories about growing up.

The Rules:

  • All stories must be true and about you.

  • Stories must follow the theme in some way, interpretations can be wide.

  • Stories must stay between 500–3,000 words.

  • Documents should be double spaced, 12Pt font with 1 inch margins.

  • Submissions must be in .doc or .docx form—we do not accept PDFs.

  • Please do not put your name on your manuscript. We realize in personal essays, the author’s name often comes up, so just use your best discretion.

  • Please include a third person bio. Cover letters are fine, but not necessary (we don’t read them, we’re more interested in what you’ve written).

  • Please submit only once per theme.

  • We do not accept previously published stories.

HerStry centers the experiences of women identifying persons. We’re looking for work from bigender/polygender persons, cisgender women, intergender persons/intersex persons, nonbinary persons/gender non-conforming persons, transgender women/transfeminine persons, two spirit. In other words, if you are a cis man, please refrain from submitting.

Stories due October 1, 2022

Want Personalized Feedback?

You can now receive helpful feedback by selecting the “personalized critique” option on our submissions page. While getting your work critiqued does not guarantee publication, we can help make it great for your next submissions, whether it’s to us or someone else.

$3 submission fee goes toward keeping HerStry sustainable. All accepted pieces receive $20 payment.