In The Mood Magazine is a pop culture journal about the things we like to watch.

Theme: Performance
Submission deadline: July 20
Honorarium: $300 CAD, sent upon publication

For our sixteenth issue, we’re getting into character: the theme is PERFORMANCE.

From celebrity personas, to impersonations, to acting school methods, we’re looking for criticism, essays, poetry, and visual art that engages with the concept of performance.

Is there a performance you can't get out of your mind? Maybe you want to do a deep dive into an actor's body of work? How does performance construct or deconstruct identity, fantasy, and reality?

This issue will be produced with the support of the City of Toronto through Toronto Arts Council: Toronto-based writers are especially encouraged to pitch! Issue 16 features will also be included in a special limited edition print anthology.

For the first time, we are also accepting visual art and comics! We are looking for art that engages with performances in film, TV, and pop culture. Submissions that don't meet this criteria will not be considered.

💡 Some topics and films we’d love to publish:

• Films or plays within a film (Tropic Thunder, The Watermelon Woman, Irma Vep, Opening Night)

• An actor's public performance (interviews, styling, acceptance speeches, press stunts)

• Fake movie musicians (A Star Is Born, Trap, Walk Hard)

• Social performances of race, gender, class, and/or identity

• Survey of a specific actor's body of work

• Transformation of voice, appearance, physicality

• Biopics (Michael, Center Stage (1991), Being John Malkovich, Pablo Larraín)

• Performance concepts/cliches ("chewing the scenery", "Oscar clip acting")

• Different acting schools, processes, or methods

• Performance art/video installation (Tilda Swinton inside the glass box, Julian Rosefeldt’s “Manifesto”, Candice Breitz's Meryl Streep installation, I'm Still Here (2010)).

What we publish

We’re looking for writers with a distinctive voice, who aren't afraid of getting personal, and who are curious about why we watch what we watch.

We appreciate thoughtful analysis but also a playful tone; we want intelligent pieces that aren't too full of themselves. We don't think of ourselves as an authority, but a confidante.

🎬 We publish the following about film, TV, pop culture, and moving image media—click for some examples we love:

• Personal essays, non-academic essays

• Conversations, roundtable discussions, interviews

• Poetry

• Round-ups, lists

• Experimental pieces, fan fiction, spec scripts

• Games, questionnaires

• Visual art, comics

• First-person, on-the-ground pieces about going to movies or working behind the scenes

• Film diaries

• Anniversary pieces (but try to think beyond just "this movie is still great!")

• Works on other moving image media, e.g. music videos, celebrities, commercials, filming locations, interesting areas of the film industry

❌ Things to avoid: 

• Straight up reviews

• Excessive plot summary

• Academic or overly formal tone

• Flat-out pans (if something is bad, tell us why that's interesting!)

• We generally focus on media made post-1970

• Clickbait/hot takes

Please explore our past issues and our newsletter to get a sense of what we publish.

How to submit

‍We strongly prefer completed pieces (max 1,000 words), but we understand that writing on spec is not a realistic prospect for many writers. With that in mind, we still accept pitches.

‍👇 Please include:‍

• Completed piece (max 1,000 words—doesn't need to be perfectly polished!)
  ‍OR if you’re pitching: a short paragraph about your piece (topic, format)

• Why you think this is a good fit for In The Mood

• If pitching: 1-2 writing samples (they don’t need to be published)

• Short bio or link to your website

Send submissions & queries to:

inthemoodmagazine@gmail.com‍

What then?

Magazine submissions: We review all of them at the end of our submission period, after which you’ll receive a response from us with our publication decision. Usually this is within 10 days of the submission deadline.

If your piece is accepted, it will go through an editing process.

Please keep in mind that a rejection is not necessarily a reflection on the quality of your work. We get a large number of submissions and only have a very limited number of spots, which unfortunately means we have to pass on many great submissions.

As a volunteer-run magazine, we pay a modest honorarium of $30 CAD per piece, sent upon publication (with the exception of Issue 16, which will be funded by the Toronto Arts Council). We acknowledge that this is not a market rate, and won't be doable for some writers.

Thanks for pitching to In The Mood, we're looking forward to reading your work! 😈

we're hiring:
event planner + print layout designer

In The Mood is seeking two part-time contract collaborators to support the production and launch of our upcoming issue: an Event Planner and a Print Layout Designer.

These roles are central to the rollout of this special issue, funded by the Toronto Arts Council. In The Mood is committed to collaboration and dialogue, experimentation, and shared-decision making in all aspects of our process.

Contract Period: August 1, 2026 – November 30, 2026
‍Application Deadline: July 6, 2026
‍Honorarium: $540 CAD (per role)

Workload:
‍Flexible and project-based, with workload increasing toward the November launch. Estimated at no more than 1-4 hours per week, and up to 30 hours total over the contract period. This includes a 30-minute weekly virtual check-in with the team.

‍Location: 
‍Toronto-based applicants are preferred. While most meetings will take place remotely, the November launch event will be in person and may require occasional on-the-ground involvement, such as venue scouting and/or reviewing print proofs.

Role Descriptions:

Event Planner
We are looking for someone to help shape and coordinate the launch event for the issue. This includes supporting development of the event concept, assisting with logistics and timelines, liaising with venue(s) and performers as needed, and helping ensure the event reflects the tone and values of the publication. The ideal candidate is detail-oriented, organized, and comfortable working independently while remaining receptive to collaboration.
‍
Print Layout Designer
‍We are seeking a designer to develop the print layout of a special print issue, alongside our Creative Director. This includes translating editorial content and our creative vision into a cohesive visual system, working closely with the editorial team on typography and pacing, and preparing print-ready files. Experience with editorial design and print processes is required. Familiarity with independent publishing, zines, or experimental layout approaches is an asset.

‍To Apply:
‍Please send a short introduction, relevant experience, and if applicable, a portfolio or examples of past work to: inthemoodmagazine@gmail.com