Electric Literature accepts internship applications with deadlines three times a year: Aug 15 for the fall semester, Dec 15 for spring, and April 15 for summer. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis and evaluated after each deadline. 

Electric Literature internships introduce undergraduate and graduate students, emerging writers, and aspiring publishing professionals to literary digital publishing. Because we are a small, not-for-profit publisher, we provide unique opportunities for professional development and resume-building.

Responsibilities

• Write book lists and news items for electricliterature.com
• Provide feedback on pitches and submissions with written responses, and in editorial meetings
• Select images to pair with articles and brainstorm headlines
• Format, copy edit, and draft articles in Wordpress
• Perform administrative tasks as needed
• Draft and schedule social media posts

Skills

• Experience using Wordpress, Canva, and Submittable is preferred but not required
• An enthusiastic, informed, and unique perspective on literature and culture
• Strong copy editing skills, and a firm grasp of grammar and spelling
• Organized and fastidious

The Ideal Candidate

• Has an educational background in journalism, literature, or creative writing
• Has prior internship or entry-level job experience at another publishing, media, or non-profit organization
• Undergraduate applicants should be in their junior or senior year, and should preferably have off-campus work or internship experience
• Regularly reads new book releases as well as literary magazines and literary websites (including but not limited to Recommended Reading, The Commuter, and electricliterature.com)
• Believes strongly in Electric Literature’s mission: to make literature more relevant, exciting, and inclusive
• Is hard working, pays attention to detail, and can work independently
• Writes clearly and with personality
• Has an eye for design and knows what images will grab a reader’s attention

Details

This is a part time, remote internship (15 hours/week) with a $250 per month stipend. 10–12 hours per week will be spent in the virtual office, with 3–5 hours per week spent reading submissions (~10 submissions per week, fiction and nonfiction). Candidates must be able to work at least 2 days per week (Monday–Thursday) during East Coast business hours (9am–6pm ET). We ask that interns make a minimum 3-month commitment, with the opportunity to extend the internship up to 8 months.

How to Apply

To apply, please submit the following via Submittable at your earliest convenience. We are looking to fill the position immediately and applications will be considered on a rolling basis.

1. A cover letter and resume. (Current EL readers need only send an updated resume; a cover letter and reading list sample are not required.)
2. Write the headline and 2 to 3 paragraph introduction for a reading list (you can look at the Reading Lists on our site for inspiration). Include 5–7 book titles that you would include on the list, and a short capsule description of one of those books. 

Calling all readers! Electric Literature is always accepting applications for volunteer readers to join our editorial team in one of three capacities: 

1. Recommended Reading, EL’s weekly fiction magazine, publishes one story a week: a mix of original work, forgotten classics, and forthcoming excerpts, each with a personal foreword by today’s best writers. Readers must commit to reading ten stories per week, ranging in length from 2,000 to 8,000 words.
2. The Commuter, EL’s weekly magazine of flash fiction, poetry, and graphic narratives, publishes one piece of original work per week, as well as occasional forthcoming excerpts. Readers must commit to reading ten pieces of flash prose or poetry per week.
3. EL publishes a selection of original creative nonfiction nearly every day of the week on wide-ranging topics, including but not limited to culture, literature, industry, craft, and personal narrative. Readers must commit to reading ten essays per week, running in length from 2,000 to 5,000 words.

Electric Literature receives a large volume of submissions in all categories, and a committed corps of volunteer readers is essential to helping the editors find new, unknown, and/or overlooked talent.

All reader positions are volunteer and require a commitment to complete reading assignments on a weekly basis for approximately six months. Readers will work remotely and on their own schedules (as long as they meet the weekly deadline). Current readers are not allowed to submit their own work for consideration in the category they are reading in.

Responsibilities include:

• Reading ten pieces per week, ranging from 2,000 to 8,000 words for Recommended Reading and 2,000 to 5,000 words for essays. Submissions for The Commuter vary in length, but a poetry submission typically contains three poems or two to three pieces of flash fiction.
• Providing concise but thorough responses (one to two paragraphs) for each submission, with a clear YES or NO recommendation for each.
• Meeting weekly reading deadlines, and clearly communicating with editorial staff when scheduling conflicts arise.

The ideal applicant is:

• An avid and attentive reader
• A proactive and responsive communicator
• Self-motivated and able to meet deadlines
• Able to express themself clearly in writing
• A regular reader of the category who is familiar with its back catalogue
• An educational background in literature and/or professional experience in literary criticism, editing, and creative writing is a plus, but not required
• An active participant in their local literary scene, and an avid reader of contemporary writing

This is a volunteer position that requires a commitment of approximately six hours a week for six months, with an opportunity to renew. Readers will work remotely and on their own schedules (as long as they meet the weekly deadline). 

Current readers are not allowed to submit their own work for consideration in the category they are reading in. Discussion of submissions outside Electric Literature is strictly prohibited, and will result in immediate termination. 

For a sense of the kind of submissions you’ll be reading, visit our website and take a look at literary magazines and essays.

If you are interested in reading for Recommended Reading, please submit your resume and a two-paragraph response/critique of a story published in Recommended Reading. If your resume is selected, the application process will also include a reading test.

If you are interested in reading for The Commuter, please submit your resume and a one-paragraph response/critique of a piece of flash fiction or poetry published in The Commuter. 

If you are interested in reading nonfiction essays, please submit your resume and a two-paragraph response/critique of an essay published on our website. If your resume is selected, the application process will also include a reading test.

Applications will be accepted year-round, and we will review and take on new readers as needed.