Second Chance Lit is an online literary magazine and a place solely for previously rejected poetry and short prose, founded in 2020 by editor-in-chief David Wasserman. “Your work was good – is good. It just wasn’t the right fit or at the right time or at the right place. Let us give it a home here, a second chance.” They also have a specific section on their site called The Phoenix Project where they publish work that has lost their home to defunct magazines. For more information, see my interview with Founder and Editor-in-Chief David Wasserman and Managing Editor Katie Wasserman with a link to submission guidelines below.

HOPKINSON: Tell me a little bit about Second Chance Lit. 

DAVID/KATIE: Second Chance Lit is a place for writers to send pieces that didn’t quite make the cut at another lit mag, most often because they weren’t the right fit for a current issue. We try to find excellent works that were rejected for one reason or another and piece them together into cohesive, quarterly issues.

HOPKINSON: How/why was it originally started?

KATIE: David had published two books of poetry and was looking for a way to stay involved with writing when he found the lit mag community online. The warmth and camaraderie drew us both in. We soon noticed that many writers had outstanding work being rejected because it didn’t fit a particular mag’s aesthetic or a particular issue’s theme, etc. We wanted to give those pieces an alternative landing spot and Second Chance Lit was born. As a bonus, Second Chance Lit gives us something outside of our normal routine to do together!

HOPKINSON: Who is your target reader audience?

DAVID/KATIE: The whole point of Second Chance Lit is to celebrate the writing community, so our target audience is writers more than anyone else. After our first issue came out we got a lot of positive, “we can’t believe that was rejected!” comments from writers reading each other’s work – exactly what we had hoped for!

HOPKINSON: What type of work are you looking for?  

DAVID/KATIE: We love work that draws us in and makes us feel something right from the opening lines. Don’t save your best for last – suck us in with your best figurative language and flowery prose right from the get-go. We also look for surprising things like an ergodic feel or different perspective. The entire point is for us to feel like there is no way your well-crafted, quality piece could have been rejected.

HOPKINSON: What do you wish you’d see submitted, but rarely comes in?

DAVID/KATIE: We have a portion of our site called The Phoenix Project, dedicated to preserving works that have disappeared from the internet due to defunct mags. Some writers on Twitter were lamenting the fact that published pieces of theirs were no longer accessible because the magazine that published them became defunct and took down their website. We didn’t want those pieces to disappear forever – they were loved, blood, sweat, tears, pieces of writers’ souls – so we set up The Phoenix Project on our site. It is a rolling submission section where writers can send us pieces that have lost their homes to defunct magazines. As long as they meet our guidelines and we think they are a fit, we will give them a home.

HOPKINSON: What are some of your favorite lit mags/journals?

DAVID/KATIE: We feel like we discover new lit mags each and every day! Some of our favorites are perhappened mag (their light and airy aesthetic and eye for excellent writing really draws you in), dwelling literary (such a cool concept with the windows of their “dwelling” housing pieces) and The Daily Drunk (there’s something for everyone here and you just might find pieces here by your favorite writers where you can tell they just let it all go and had fun!).

HOPKINSON: What is your favorite part of being on staff with Second Chance Lit?

DAVID/KATIE: Definitely the ability to discuss and debate writing with each other! We truly talk to each other about each and every submission before making decisions and it’s so refreshing to talk to each other about something other than the kids or television shows.

HOPKINSON: Where can we send submissions?

DAVID/KATIE: Please PLEASE review our guidelines and then submit to us through email at secondchancelit@gmail.com

HOPKINSON: If someone has a question, how can they contact you?

DAVID/KATIE: Just send us an email with “Question” in the subject line at secondchancelit@gmail.com and we’d be happy to get back to you!

Click here to read submission guidelines.