Old Scratch Press — Submissions

Overview
Old Scratch Press operates as a literary magazine with a continuous reading period, a structure that signals an editorial stance rooted in sustained attention rather than the cyclical urgency of contest-driven publication. The press does not impose a deadline; instead, it positions itself as a standing venue for writers whose work might otherwise circulate without a natural home. This rolling model suggests an interest in work that arrives when it is ready, not when a calendar demands it. As a magazine, Old Scratch Press publishes across the three principal literary disciplines: fiction, poetry, and nonfiction. The absence of a stated theme or aesthetic mandate in the available information implies an editorial scope that is broad rather than narrowly prescriptive. Writers are not being asked to fit a predetermined mold; they are being asked to submit work that stands on its own terms. The press does not disclose a fee status, prize, or location, which places the emphasis squarely on the writing itself rather than on ancillary incentives. What the press offers, then, is the fundamental transaction of literary publishing: careful reading and, where warranted, publication. There is no promise of remuneration, no contest hierarchy, no geographic affiliation. For writers, this clarity can be its own form of respect. The submission process is the primary interface, and the work is the only currency. Old Scratch Press appears to operate on the premise that good writing finds its readers through editors who remain open, not through gatekeeping that opens and closes on a schedule.