Literary Journal

Mr. Beller’s Neighborhood

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About the magazine

Founded in 2000 by writer Thomas Beller, Mr. Beller's Neighborhood is an online literary magazine that publishes first-person, place-based nonfiction about New York City. Taking its name from the fictional neighborhood of Mr. Beller, the publication was conceived as a digital answer to the city's rich tradition of personal essays and reportage, offering a platform for both emerging and established writers to document the textures of urban life. Its core mission is to capture the intimate, often overlooked stories that define the experience of living in and around New York, from the mundane to the momentous. Over two decades, Mr. Beller's Neighborhood has maintained a consistent editorial vision: to publish writing that is deeply rooted in a specific location and moment, yet resonates with universal themes of memory, loss, belonging, and change. The magazine has become a vital archive of the city's shifting landscape, preserving voices that might otherwise be lost to gentrification and the passage of time.

Editorial focus

Mr. Beller’ s Neighborhood is a website that started in 2000. It is a collection of nonfiction stories, essays, reportage, and vignettes, all of which are set in New York City. Readers can search stories on the site by neighborhood (Chelsea, Midtown, Harlem, Red Hook, etc.).

Creative Nonfiction

Submitting your work

Reading periodJan 1 to Dec 31

Reading feeNo

PaymentNo payment

Response timeLess than 3 months

Simultaneous submissionsYes

Unsolicited submissionsYes

Mr. Beller's Neighborhood seeks first-person, nonfiction stories that are strongly tied to a specific New York City location. Writers should submit polished essays of 1,000–3,000 words that evoke a sense of place and time, with a clear narrative arc. Avoid fiction, poetry, or general op-eds. Simultaneous submissions are accepted, but please notify immediately if your work is accepted elsewhere. Include a brief cover letter with your submission, and allow up to three months for a response. The editors value authenticity, vivid detail, and a distinctive voice over celebrity or sensationalism.

Mr. Beller’s Neighborhood is looking for nonfiction stories set in New York. A story should be less than 2,000 words, vivid, specific, and true. It can recall a person or a place, or an experience that moved you. We’re interested in the distant past as much as the present. Your story should be true to the facts as best you understand them.

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Submission calls

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