Rules
Cross-border submissions, US and Canadian literary magazine norms compared
US and Canadian literary magazine norms compared: rights clauses, W-8BEN and W-9 tax forms, payment practices, and named journals on both sides.
What to take away
- US and Canadian literary magazine norms compared here cover rights clauses, tax forms, payment practices, currency handling, and response times.
- US magazines usually ask for first North American serial rights and pay in US dollars; Canadian magazines often ask for first Canadian serial rights and pay in Canadian dollars.
- US editors may send a W-9 to American contributors and a W-8BEN to Canadian ones; Canadian magazines generally do not issue a US-style form at all.
- Both countries have public funding that can offset the cost of submitting and traveling across the border: the NEA in the United States and the Canada Council for the Arts in Canada.
- Keep one submission log with dates, fees, rights offered, and payment terms, because cross-border disputes are usually about records, not memory.
Why US and Canadian magazine norms diverge for essayists
The United States and Canada share a language and a reading public, which makes the differences easy to miss until a contract arrives. US magazines sit inside a large commercial and nonprofit market with close to a thousand journals listed in the main submission databases (Literary Magazines - Nearly 1,000 Journals and Magazines | Poets & Writers).
Canadian magazines sit inside a smaller market supported heavily by public arts councils and provincial funders.
That funding shape changes editorial behavior. A Canadian quarterly that receives Canada Council or Ontario Arts Council money is often expected to pay contributors, and its rates are published in Canadian dollars. A US journal run by a university English department may pay in copies, a modest honorarium, or nothing at all.
Copyright law differs in one practical respect. The US Copyright Office registers published and unpublished works, including individual photographs (Photographs: Registration | U.S. Copyright Office), and US magazines often reference registration when they discuss who owns what. In Canada, copyright arises automatically on creation, and registration through the Canadian Intellectual Property Office is optional.
Style expectations also diverge. US essayists are usually edited to CMOS or AP style, with MLA reserved for academic work. Canadian magazines follow CMOS or the Canadian Oxford guide but keep Canadian spellings, and an editor will notice if you write "color" in a Toronto quarterly.
Rights clauses: first rights, all rights, and reprint terms compared
Most US magazines buy first North American serial rights, sometimes shortened to FNASR. You grant the magazine the right to publish the piece first in North America, and the copyright returns to you after publication.
That is the baseline you should expect, and it is worth reading how essay types compared shape the rights a magazine asks for before you sign.
Canadian magazines more often ask for first Canadian serial rights or first world rights in English. The wording matters. First world rights can block a later US reprint, while first Canadian rights leave the US market open for a second sale.
All-rights clauses appear in both the United States and Canada, usually in contest rules or in contracts from magazines with corporate parents. Signing one transfers everything, including the right to resell your essay. Watch for phrases like "in perpetuity" and "in all media now known or hereafter devised."
Reprint terms are the other common trap. A US magazine may accept a reprint but pay a reduced fee and label it "previously published." A Canadian magazine may want reprint rights for an anthology separate from the original license. Ask which rights are being bought, for how long, and for which territories.
| Clause type | What it usually means in the US | What it usually means in Canada |
|---|---|---|
| First North American serial rights | Magazine publishes first in North America, rights revert to writer | Less common; sometimes folded into world English |
| First Canadian serial rights | Rarely requested | Common; leaves US and other markets open |
| First world rights in English | Occasionally requested by large US magazines | Frequently requested by Canadian journals |
| All rights | Appears in contests and corporate contracts | Appears in contests and some agency contracts |
| Reprint rights | Reduced fee, labeled as previously published | Often tied to an anthology or a second license |
Payment practices and currency differences for contributors
US magazines quote fees in US dollars, and payment arrives by check, PayPal, or occasionally a university purchase order. Reading fees run from nothing to about four dollars, and contest fees are higher. A Canadian contributor paid by a US magazine receives US dollars and may lose a few percent to conversion at a bank or payment platform.
Canadian magazines quote in Canadian dollars and pay by Interac e-transfer, cheque, or PayPal. A US contributor paid by a Canadian magazine receives Canadian dollars, and the exchange rate on the payment date determines the real value.
A rate of 100 Canadian dollars is not 100 US dollars, and the gap has been meaningful for most of the past decade.
Payment timing differs too. US quarterlies often pay on publication, which can be six to eighteen months after acceptance. Canadian magazines funded by arts councils frequently pay on acceptance or within thirty days of the contract, because grant reporting rewards prompt payment.
Some magazines in the United States and Canada pay only in contributor copies, a subscription, or a small honorarium. That is normal at university-affiliated journals. If you need income, check the payment policy before you submit, not after.
Tax forms: US W-8BEN and W-9 versus Canadian requirements
US magazines collecting tax information use two forms. A US citizen or resident contributor completes a W-9, which supplies a Social Security number or employer identification number and lets the magazine report the payment. A Canadian or other non-US contributor completes a W-8BEN, which certifies foreign status and can reduce US withholding under the Canada-US tax treaty.
Withholding is the part writers miss. Payments to a non-US person for royalties or certain rights can be subject to US withholding, and the W-8BEN is the form that claims a treaty rate. Without it, a magazine may withhold at the default rate.
Keep a signed copy of your W-8BEN so you can resend it to a new magazine without delay.
Canadian magazines generally do not issue a US-style form. A Canadian magazine paying a US contributor reports the payment under Canadian rules, and the contributor declares the foreign income on a US return. Some Canadian publishers ask for a completed TD1 or a simple statement of residency, but the process is lighter than the US one.
If a US magazine asks for a W-9 from a Canadian writer, that is usually a mistake. Reply with a W-8BEN instead and explain that you are not a US person. The same applies in reverse: a Canadian magazine asking a US writer for Canadian tax paperwork is rare, but ask before you assume.
Simultaneous submissions and response-time expectations
Simultaneous submissions are accepted by most magazines in the United States and Canada, provided you withdraw the piece immediately when it is taken elsewhere. The etiquette is the same on both sides: one polite withdrawal note, sent as soon as you accept another offer.
Response times vary more by magazine size than by country. US journals with paid staff often reply in one to three months. Canadian quarterlies with small editorial teams can take three to six months, and some close reading periods entirely between issues.
Reading periods are the practical constraint. Many magazines open for a defined window and close the rest of the year, and the current openings are tracked in public listings (Over 100 Magazines, Journals, Small Presses Seeking Submissions Now). Plan submissions around those windows rather than sending year-round.
Silent rejections happen on both sides, and so do memoir vs personal essay vs diary vs autofiction questions about what counts as nonfiction when a magazine labels your piece. Read the whole letter before you celebrate. If an acceptance arrives with terms you did not expect, ask for a revised contract.
Named examples of magazines on both sides of the border
US examples worth knowing: The Sun, based in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, publishes personal essays and pays contributors. Creative Nonfiction, in Pittsburgh, publishes narrative nonfiction and runs contests. The Georgia Review, in Athens, Georgia, publishes essays alongside poetry and fiction. n+1, in New York, publishes criticism and essays. McSweeney's Quarterly Concern, in San Francisco, publishes essays and humor.
Canadian examples: The Walrus, in Toronto, publishes reported essays and pays professional rates in Canadian dollars. Brick, a literary journal in Toronto, is known for essays. The Malahat Review, at the University of Victoria in British Columbia, publishes essays and poetry.
Prairie Fire, in Winnipeg, publishes essays and runs an annual contest. Geist, in Vancouver, publishes essays about Canadian places and culture.
Fees and terms differ within each list. The Sun charges no reading fee for regular submissions. Some Canadian journals charge a small fee for contests only. Check each magazine's current guidelines before sending, because terms change between issues.
Grants and funding that offset cross-border submission costs
US writers can apply for National Endowment for the Arts literature fellowships, which fund individual writers, and the agency publishes its current opportunities in one place (Grants | National Endowment for the Arts). State arts councils in California, New York, Texas, Massachusetts, and Illinois run parallel programs with smaller awards.
Canadian writers have the Canada Council for the Arts, plus provincial councils in Ontario and British Columbia. The Canada Council's grants for professional writers can cover time to write, travel, and project costs, and some programs accept cross-border research travel as an eligible expense.
Prize money is a separate channel. US magazines and presses run contests with cash awards, and listings are updated continuously (Writing Contests, Grants & Awards September/October 2026 | Poets & Writers). Canadian magazines run comparable contests, often with entry fees in Canadian dollars.
Grant income rarely covers submission fees directly, but it can cover the travel and research that produce submittable work. Keep receipts for reading fees, contest entries, and postage if you plan to claim them as project costs.
A cross-border submission and record-keeping routine
A repeatable routine beats good intentions. The steps below work whether you are in Austin sending to Toronto or in Halifax sending to Portland.
- Check the magazine's current guidelines, reading period, fee, and rights clause before you write the cover letter.
- Note the rights offered in your submission log, including territory and duration, and flag anything broader than first serial rights.
- Record the fee, the currency, and the payment method so you can compare the real value of an acceptance later.
- Prepare your tax documents in advance: a W-9 if you are a US person, a W-8BEN if you are not.
- Track each submission with dates, and withdraw promptly when a piece is accepted elsewhere.
Use a checklist before you hit send. It takes two minutes and prevents most problems between the United States and Canada.
- Guidelines read for the current reading period
- Fee and currency noted
- Rights clause copied into the log
- Tax form ready if the magazine pays
- Withdrawal plan set for simultaneous submissions
- Word count and file format match the guidelines
- Contact email saved for follow-up
Keep the log for at least three years. If a payment, a reprint request, or a dispute arises, the log is the record that settles it. A written types of reasoning compared helps you compare terms across magazines, and types of criticism compared covers what happens after acceptance.
If you want a single system for drafting, sending, and following up, learn how to primary vs secondary sources from first draft to published clip.
Common questions
Do US magazines withhold tax from Canadian writers? Payments for certain rights can be subject to US withholding, and a W-8BEN claims the Canada-US treaty rate. Without the form, the magazine may withhold at the default rate.
Do Canadian magazines send a W-9? No. Canadian publishers do not use US tax forms, and a US contributor simply reports the foreign income on a US return.
Can I submit the same essay to a US and a Canadian magazine at once? Most magazines on both sides accept simultaneous submissions if you withdraw immediately on acceptance. Check each set of guidelines, because a few still refuse them.
Are reading fees higher in the US? US fees commonly range from nothing to about four dollars, with contest fees higher. Canadian fees are similar in Canadian dollars, and some journals charge only for contests.
Does a grant pay for submission fees? Rarely as a direct line item, but NEA and Canada Council project grants can cover research and travel costs. Keep receipts if you plan to claim them.
Which rights should I refuse? All-rights and in-perpetuity clauses deserve a counteroffer. Ask for first serial rights with a defined territory and a reversion on publication.
