Submissions

Note: For any women of color interested in joining Exhale, we’re offering a six-month free trial membership.

At the core of our space, we want mothers to feel safe, known, encouraged, and loved. We do this through a varied collection of vulnerable, honest stories.

Our next submissions windows will be June 17-21, 2024 for our 2024 Fall Collection and October 7-11, 2024 for the Winter Collection. Submit here.

We charge a small reading fee to cover the cost of using Submittable. Substack paid subscribers and Exhale members never pay to submit, and Exhale members also receive access to two additional (private) submission windows.

Submission Guidelines

Style:

• Essays should be previously unpublished and 1,200 - 1,800 words in length.

• We use the Oxford comma and the em dash.

  • Shift+Option+- creates the em dash  (—)

  • There are no spaces on either side of the em dash.

• Articles should be clear of spelling and grammar errors.

• We are open to publishing essays anonymously or under a pen name on a case by case basis.

• Writers should utilize the Coffee + Crumbs editing guide, found here.

Tone:

At this time, Coffee + Crumbs is looking for creative nonfiction essays and poetry. We do not publish expository writing, listicles, clickbait, news stories, open letters, or sponsored content. Please steer clear of offering advice or a “lesson” in your writing, and instead offer yourself through honest, narrative storytelling. We ask that you familiarize yourself with our recent content before submitting.

Process

It’s not unusual for us to receive up to 150 essays during a submission window, so we ask for your patience during the review process. We will respond to everyone with an acceptance or decline.

Please note that we may choose not to accept a piece for a variety of reasons—sometimes we already have an essay on that topic in the queue; sometimes we’re simply limited by the space in our editorial calendar. Your best odds for having an essay accepted are to choose a topic with both a unique angle and a universal truth, to edit the piece well, and to adhere to our submission guidelines. We also love an essay that makes us feel something, so don’t be afraid to go for a laugh or a tear.

All essays published on C+C are edited by a member of the writing team, and authors are responsible for making the final revisions. We will be in email correspondence with you regarding your essay edits the month prior to publication. Please note: there may be as much as a four to six month lead between submission and publication.

Authors own the copyright to their essays. Should you choose to republish elsewhere, we ask that you include a note that it originally appeared on Coffee + Crumbs.

Guest writers are eligible for a $75 payment per essay and $50 per poem, to be paid out via PayPal the month following publication.

As writers ourselves, we know firsthand the time, effort, and courage that goes into each submission. We are always respectful of your story, and thank you in advance for considering Coffee + Crumbs a safe space for your words.

Topics We Cover

While not intended to be an exhaustive list, below is a list of potential essay topics for consideration. Please note that we receive an especially high volume of essays related to miscarriage and newborns/first year of motherhood. Be mindful of taking an original angle to better your odds of acceptance.

• Adoption

• Body Image

• Friendship/Loneliness

• Grief/Loss

• Humor (Motherhood-Related)

• Infertility

• Marriage

• Mental Health

• Miscarriage

• New Mom

• Parenting Older Kids

• Pregnancy

• Single Parenting

• Special Needs

• Step Parenting

• Working Moms

• Work/Life Balance

If you still have questions, you can reach out to us via email.