They want pitches (not submissions) from people of working-class background in the UK. The Bee is a UK-based “literary magazine, an online platform, a podcast, and the heart of a writing community. Our mission is to nurture, publish and promote the best new working-class writing by new and established working-class writers and visual artists.” Their first issue will be released in Autumn 2025. For the current call, they say, “We are looking for fiction (any genre), narrative non-fiction, non-fiction and journalism that captures something about being working class in Britain in 2025. This could be a feeling, or something you observe, or an experience. We’re particularly interested in stories about joy, community and hope. Your story can be any length from 500 to 3,000 words. It could be anything from a description of something to a short story.” They pay 30p. per word for nonfiction up to 1,000 words, and agreed-upon rates for longer works. For fiction, they pay a flat rate of £400 per story, regardless of length. See their pay rates here. Pitching is via a form on their website. The pitch deadline is 11 August 2025 (see guidelines). Details here.

Deadline: August 11th, 2025