Chicken Soup for the Soul is on the lookout for stories that have to do with the winter holidays! This includes, but is not limited to, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s, etc. Examples of what they are looking for include family traditions (sweet, funny, crazy, and so on), special memories (again, sweet, funny, crazy, and so on), special gifts, special foods, finally seeing family, etc.
The two of mine that were in last year’s Christmas book had to do with my fear of singing in front of people after being invited to go Christmas caroling and how I got over my distaste for oysters in order to eat my grandmother’s oyster dressing as a way to honor her.
What comes to your mind when you think of the holidays? Write it down!
They are accepting holiday stories through February 28, 2026.
A few guidelines:
- It must be nonfiction
- It needs to be written in the first person
- It needs to be 1,200 words or less
- To see other guidelines for Chicken Soup for the Soul stories, go to their GUIDELINES PAGE
Chicken Soup for the Soul gives a list of ideas for holiday stories. So if you’re needing some inspiration, check out their BOOK TOPICS PAGE
Once you’re ready to submit, you can go to their submission page HERE
The best part: You don’t need to make a query/cover letter. They don’t ask for one, just title, your information, and the story! AWESOME!
Now, go forth and write!