What Is FLARE Magazine?
FLARE Magazine is for those who deal with mental health, chronic illnesses, and disabilities, whether that means they’re writers, readers, and/or artists and is geared for the disabled as well as friends and family of the chronically ill and disabled people they know.
FLARE was named after autoimmune flares one gets when they are chronically ill and a play on the word “flair” for writers to show their “flair” despite the “flares” they encounter.
Mission Statement
FLARE Magazine strives to be a safe and inclusive space for chronically ill and disabled writers and artists and those who struggle with their mental health to share their writing and art with the community. While searching for places to submit her work to, EIC Kelly Esparza realized there were not that many places for stories and poems about the harsh realities of chronic illnesses, mental health, and disabilities. Kelly hopes to publish creators who show the ups and downs of chronic illness, mental health, and disabled life, while also finding the light and the strength despite these struggles. EIC Kelly wants to bring awareness to certain health issues like these.
While submitters do not need to disclose what their disability or chronic illness is, this magazine only takes submissions from people who have a disability (which includes mental health like depression, bipolar, anxiety, etc.) and/or a chronic illness.
We believe in uplifting the disabled community by not only publishing their literature and art, but we also nominate for literary awards (see our sub guidelines for more info about which ones we nominate for)!
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Editor-in-Chief: Kelly Esparza
Kelly Esparza (she/her) is a chronically ill editor and writer who holds a BA in English and a BA in Creative Writing from the University of Arizona. Her poetry chapbook, A Spoonie’s Guide to Self-Acceptance, has been published by Bottlecap Press in November 2025. Buy a copy here! She has edited for Sonora Review, Free State Review, and Exposition Review. Her poems, short stories/flash fiction, photography, and essays have been published in various literary journals and anthologies, and she co-wrote a screenplay for a feature film at RIPKIRK Productions.
Her YA short story, “Destiny Says,” was nominated for a Puschart Prize, and her YA short story, “Take the Jump,” was longlisted for Voyage YA Journal‘s Anthology Contest. She was previously agented, but her former agent left the industry. She has written 3 YA mystery novels and her first adult speculative mystery. A novel excerpt of her adult speculative mystery is a semi-finalist for the Tucson Festival of Books Literary Awards for the fiction category. Follow her on Twitter: @Kelly_Esparza7, Bluesky: @kellyesparza.bsky.social, and Instagram: @kelwritesbooks2, and her website is: kellyesparza.wordpress.com.
FLARE Magazine 