Each month, a physical mailing lands in your mailbox with three original short stories, hand-picked just for you. Every issue is designed to feel like something worth slowing down for — the kind of thing you tuck away to read with a cup of coffee, not scroll past on your phone.

We’re aiming to ship our first issue by October. If we’re able to get things moving sooner, we’ll let you know! From there, mailings go out at the beginning of every month, usually landing in mailboxes by mid-month.

All physical, all the time. No emails, no PDFs, no login required — just stories that show up the old-fashioned way, through your mail carrier.

Genres rotate! Each issue centers around a shared genre or theme, so every mailing feels cohesive, but across the year you’ll get a little bit of everything — think romantic suspense, historical fiction, women’s fiction, romance, speculative fiction, YA, and more.

Our authors are hand-picked based on storytelling quality, genre fit, and how well their voice matches that month’s theme. Our Inkling authors (prepublished) come through a submission-based contest (more on that below).

Twice a year, we open submissions for pre-published writers. It costs $25 to enter (a non-refundable fee that helps cover judging and admin costs), and every entry is reviewed by a panel of judges based on storytelling quality, originality, and fit with The Wandering Words. Six winners are chosen to be featured in upcoming mailings. Submission windows, guidelines, and deadlines will be posted right here when they open.

Yes — every story is brand-new and exclusive to us for a set period. After that window closes, the author is free to publish it elsewhere.

Always! We love hearing about writers our readers admire. We can’t feature every suggestion, but we read and consider every one.

Yep — just update it in your subscriber account before the monthly cutoff date so it’s reflected in the next mailing.

You can. Just submit your pause request via email before the cutoff date for the upcoming month.

Reach out to us — we’ll always do our best to make it right. (Postal mishaps happen, but we’ve got you.)

Not at the moment, and we’re sorry about that! Right now The Wandering Words is available to U.S. addresses only. We’d love to expand down the road, so stay tuned.

The Wandering Words is an ongoing subscription — pick 6 months or 12 months, and it renews from there unless you decide to pause or cancel.

Absolutely! The Wandering Words makes a wonderful gift. Just add the recipient’s name and mailing address in the order notes at checkout, and we’ll take care of the rest.

Because each issue is a limited print run, all sales are final once a mailing has shipped. If your issue arrives damaged or something’s missing, contact us within 7 days of delivery and we’ll make it right.

Subscriptions aren’t refundable, but life happens — if you need to pass yours along to someone else, just let us know and we’ll make the switch.