First, do your research
The old-school but reliable Novel and Short Story Writer’s Market (Writer’s Digest Books)covers many of the better publications with detailed descriptions of tastes, editorial guidelines, payment, and rights.
The Pushcart Prize Anthology (Pushcart Press) is an annual anthology of the best of literary magazines and presses selected by editors themselves; you’ll not only find fiction in here, but a list addresses of prize-winning magazines and presses.
For current publishing opportunities, check out the Writer’s Chronicle, published by the Associated Writing Programs, and Poets and Writers Magazine (my personal favorite), which has upcoming deadlines for literary contests, as well as calls for submissions.
Here are some wonderful resources for anyone looking to submit fiction:
• Newpages.com—litmags, publishers, and book reviews
• www.webdelsol.com–Contains many useful links to literary magazines and resources for writers.
• Mid-American Review–Contains useful links under “Writer’s Tools” link. (http://www.bgsu.edu/studentlife/organizations/midamericanreview/index2.html)
• www.zuzu.com–Same concept as Webdelsol, but with even more links to literary magazines and e-zines
Some of my favorite literary magazines:
Glimmer Train
Fourteen Hills
The Sun
Other Voices
Alaska Quarterly Review
Mid-American Review
Ploughshares
Granta
Boulevard
Story Quarterly
Quick Fiction Online
CutBank
South Carolina Review
Nerve (sexy stuff only)
Missouri Review
Bellevue Literary Review
Blackbird
Mississippi Review
Gulf Coast
Identity Theory
North Dakota Quarterly
Sycamore Review Exquisite Corpse
Any publication is a big boon and a definite validation of your talent, but here are the magazines that can really jump-start a career: The Atlantic Monthly, Harper’s, The New Yorker, Zoetrope, McSweeney’s, The Paris Review. It never hurts to send to these guys as long as you’re sending out a bulk submission. All of them except McSweeney’s & The Paris Review publish mainly agented material, but occasionally a non-agented submissions will make it into the magazine.