Cicada welcomes submissions from readers ages 14-23.

All manuscripts should be neatly typed and double-spaced. Include your name and full address in the upper left-hand corner of the first page of the manuscript. Please tell us a little bit about yourself in your cover letter. If you submit by snail mail, enclose a self-addressed, stamped envelope for our reply and, if desired, return of the manuscript or artwork. Submissions from outside the United States should be accompanied by IRCs (International Reply Coupons). Please note that Cicada is now open to e-mail submissions. Scroll to the bottom for details. We will notify you within 12 weeks if we are able to use your story, essay, poem, or art. Please let us know if the submission has been published elsewhere, such as a school newspaper or journal.

CURRENT NEEDS: While we are open to (and need) all genres, including Expressions, we are especially looking for HUMOR: satire, lighthearted romance, deadpan humor, black humor, screwball comedy, humor with heart, contemporary realism with absurdist overtones … whatever makes you smile, even if it's through your tears. IMPORTANT: Please put HUMOR in the Subject Line for e-mail submissions to mail@cicadamag.com.

Categories
“Expressions”: monthly feature expressing our readers’ opinions and observations on just about anything, from school life to on-the-job experiences, from getting a driver’s license to picking a college, from travels near and far to baby-sitting on the home front, from concerns about social or cultural issues to humorous essays about human foibles

Fiction: realistic, contemporary, humor, fantasy, science fiction

Nonfiction: personal experiences that you feel would interest others

Poetry: serious or humorous; rhymed or free verse

Artwork: black-and-white pieces in any style or medium, showing any subject; cartoons, photography

Length
“Expressions”: 350 to 1,500 words

Stories/Nonfiction: up to 5,000 words

Poems: up to 25 lines

Rates
CICADA is a paying market. Rates and contract rights vary.

PLEASE ADDRESS ALL MANUSCRIPT SUBMISSIONS TO:

Deborah Vetter
Executive Editor, CICADA
P.O. Box 300
Peru, IL 61354

OR submit as an attachment to an e-mail sent to mail@cicadamag.com. In the Subject box, write General Submissions.

PLEASE ADDRESS ALL ART/PHOTOGRAPHY SUBMISSIONS TO:

John Sandford
Art Director, CICADA
70 East Lake Street
Suite 300
Chicago, IL 60601

OR submit as an attachment to an e-mail sent to mail@cicadamag.com. In the Subject box, write General Submissions.