Call For Submissions
About Midstory
Midstory is an online magazine for midlife women who are in the thick of it: the reinvention, the reckoning, the mess and possibility of the middle years. We publish essays, reviews, articles, and excerpts (900-2,500 words) that capture what it means to be a woman at midlife (or beyond), and to start over, to refuse to shrink, to finally speak up, or to burn it all down and begin again.
We’re interested in the stories midlife women actually live. We want the complicated, the contradictory, the unfinished business of your life right now.
Who Can Submit?
Submissions are now open to all Midstory subscribers—both paid and free.
At least three essays will be published each month, one from paid subscribers and the rest from both free and paid subscribers.
We view midlife as more of a mindset than a specific age. Are you in the messy middle of your life, whether you’re 35, 55, or 75? If you feel like you’re “midstory,” we want to hear from you.
What We’re Looking For
We publish original, unpublished personal essays by midlife women that explore:
The transformations of midlife: Not just the “I found myself” narratives, but the messy, ongoing process of becoming someone new while still being yourself. Show us what it actually feels like to reinvent your life at 45, 52, 63. What did you have to let go of? What surprised you? What scared you? What made you feel alive for the first time in years?
The reckonings: The moments when you finally confront what you’ve been avoiding, denying, or running from. The marriage that isn’t working. The career that’s draining you. The relationship with your mother you’ve never examined. The choices you made twenty years ago that you’re still living with. We want essays that wrestle with hard truths, that show you in the process of facing something you’ve kept hidden, from others or from yourself.
The resistance: The ways you’re pushing back against invisibility, ageism, diminishment, or the cultural narratives about what midlife women should be and want. How are you taking up space? Speaking uncomfortable truths? Refusing to apologize? Challenging expectations? What does it cost you, and what do you gain?
The discoveries: The passions, friendships, creative pursuits, hobbies, or parts of yourself you’re finding (or rediscovering) at midlife. The surprising plot twists. The late-blooming relationships, creative awakenings, or radical changes in how you see yourself. Show us what it’s like to experience something new when you thought you knew who you were.
The daily texture of midlife: The unglamorous, often invisible realities of life in the middle. Caring for aging parents while raising teenagers. Bodies changing in ways that surprise or unsettle you. Friendships shifting or ending. Marriages evolving or unraveling. Money worries. The sandwich years. The empty nest. Menopause. Grief. We want the details, the moments that capture what your days actually look and feel like.
What We Don’t Want
Generic reflections on aging or getting older
Essays about someone else’s experience
AI-generated content (we only publish work written by midlife women, for midlife women)
We Also Publish
Book, film, and TV reviews (900-2,000 words) that examine how midlife women are portrayed in culture, or that review work by and about midlife women through a sharp, personal lens.
Book excerpts (1,000-2,500 words) from memoirs or essay collections by midlife women. If you have a book coming out or recently published, query us with a compelling excerpt that can stand alone as an essay.
Interviews (900-2,500 words) with midlife women writers, artists, entrepreneurs, or creators who are doing interesting work or living unconventional lives. We’re looking for conversations that go deeper than standard Q&As.
For reviews, excerpts, and interviews: Query us first at midstorysubmissions@gmail.com with your idea, a brief pitch, and any relevant links.
The Midstory Essay Is:
900-2,500 words
Original and previously unpublished (including on Substack)
Centered on your experience as a midlife woman
Specific, filled with vivid details, and emotionally honest
About transformation, reckoning, resistance, discovery, or daily life
Publication & Payment
We publish at least three essays each month
One essay each month will be selected from paid subscribers only
We pay $25 per published essay (except for book excerpts or interviews) via PayPal or Venmo within one week of publication
How to Submit
Please submit your essay to: midstorysubmissions@gmail.com
Include the following:
Subject line: “Spring Submissions” (Paid subscribers: please write “Spring Submissions: Paid Subscriber”)
Your essay as a Google Doc, PDF, or Word document
A headshot or photo related to your essay
A short bio (2-3 sentences)
In the body of your email:
A brief summary of your essay
A suggested headline (optional)
Ready to share your story? We can’t wait to read it.