Short Fiction in the Men's Magazines of Yesteryear: An Author's Short History

One branch of literary history which has not received much in-depth attention to date -- particularly from a writer's perspective -- is the men's magazine short story market of decades past. It was once possible for fiction scribblers of all kinds -- both well-known and novice -- to sell and publish their wares in such periodicals as Cavalier, Gent, Nugget, Dude, Adam, Swank, Oui, Gallery, Penthouse, Hustler and countless others. Why was this so? And what happened to such venues for short fiction?

To begin, there is a serious paucity of information on this subject. Most of what can be learned relies largely upon circumstantial evidence and deductive reasoning. Men's magazines have come in many varieties over time, and actually date back to the Victorian era, or even earlier. But here's where, at least for our purposes, things for the most part got started:

In the 1940s, monthly titles like Men Only, Argosy, and Bluebook carried any number of nonfiction articles on subjects of interest to young men: Auto repair, fly fishing, football, hunting, cigar reviews. The fiction these magazines published reflected similar male tones: Adventure, mystery, war stories -- along with horror and science fiction tales. That the pages of such publications were filled with this kind of content should surprise no one, based upon the intended audience. What it is important to not overlook, however, is the fact that such periodicals were limited in their ability to bring to their readership what was of course in greatest demand -- women. In the forties, anything more salacious than pin-up girls in single-piece swimsuits was a most definite no-no. Thus, the bulk of the magazine was, of necessity, occupied by reading material exclusively.

Enter the 1950s and Hugh Hefner. Playboy instantly became a game changer -- not only for presenting full nudity in its photographs of beautiful models like Marilyn Monroe -- but also for a standard of literary excellence in their published articles and fiction that all of the lower circulation men's and XXX periodicals would strive to emulate in the decades to come. As a launching pad for new talent, and as a forum for established voices -- ranging from erotica to science fiction -- Playboy set the high water mark. Their competitors took notice.

While Hefner may have begun to break the cultural ice back in 1953, it wasn't until the 1960s that mainstream societal attitudes towards sexuality began to loosen and liberalize en masse. This was reflected in the more explicit nature of men's magazines as the Age of Aquarius arrived. Correspondingly, there was an increasing demand among readers for more sexualized literary content as well -- although "straight" fiction, be it literary or speculative in nature, remained a staple. The trend continued into the 1970s. It was during this era that writers as diverse as Stephen King and Charles Bukowski got a boost from selling stories to these publications. And while they were largely considered "ghetto" markets as far as literary recognition was concerned, the paychecks were substantial -- adjusted for inflation. Consider that a typical 2,500-5,000 word wonder written by King, and sold to Cavalier in the early 1970s, would net him $250 (or roughly 10 cents/word) -- which, when translated into 2019 dollars, works out to about $1,450. After a considerable measure of success with his novels, King then also sold to more lucrative markets like Penthouse and Gallery -- even the high-circulation woman's magazine Cosmopolitan. By 1975, Bukowski was publishing much of his short fiction in Hustler, averaging as much as $1,200 per story -- or about $5,700 today. Not bad paydays, all around. The money was so good, in fact, that even established science fiction writers like Isaac Asimov and Ray Bradbury continued to publish both fiction and nonfiction articles and reviews alike in such magazines, well into the 1980s.

But eventually the market tightened. The editorial and readership appetites for horror and science fiction tales seemed to dry up after about 1982. Writers like Bukowski continued to write racy stories for Hustler beyond that point, but times were changing. Such magazines now had to compete for an audience with 24/7 cable TV channels, VCRs and video rentals, and a rising demand for less and less non-pornographic content. By the late 1980s, most writing in men's magazines consisted exclusively of nonfiction, and what fiction remained ranged only from erotica to hardcore porn. Nye Willden, fiction editor at DuGent Publishing (later Firestone) commented that it was Larry Flynt and Hustler, through his legal wranglings with the Reagan administration, that had forced all of the men's magazines to "go hardcore." Whatever the veracity of that, the era of men's XXX magazines as both a market and showcase for regular short fiction had passed.

Today, of course, the Internet has largely supplanted almost the entire class of men's print magazines. Most men's periodical titles exist exclusively in cyber-form, and to the extent that any hard copy counterparts still exist, the writing that endures in their pages has been reduced to mere staff-generated captions beneath color photos of what their customers demand most. And that isn't more Stephen King or Isaac Asimov or Charles Bukowski.

In a larger sense, most modern magazines of all types (other than those exclusively devoted to fiction), unlike their ancestors of previous decades, do not accept or publish short stories. Where and when exceptions are made, it's only for well-established big voices -- often with a prior history in that publication, even if it goes back years, and the assistance of an agent -- and new blood need not apply. As for fiction-only periodicals, large well-financed ones with decent circulations are far and few between, and competition for monthly or quarterly slots in their pages is both abundant and fierce. Again, as might be expected, big names sell copies, and new talent is most frequently regarded as filler. Chances of selling even a well-crafted tale of manageable word-length are about the same as winning a lottery. Yet, we keep trying -- for try we must.

One very beneficial thing the Internet Era has brought with it, however, is the advent of independent publishing. That of course is what I do. If you click on over to my homepage from this blog, you'll find links to my books and some other cool stuff. I really appreciate your patronage and readership. I also appreciate hearing from you and reading your reviews. Without you, I'm like an electrician who wires in a light fixture but fails to install a switch. YOU complete the circuit when you pick up something I wrote and give it life by letting it enter your head. And for that I can't possibly thank you enough.

Okay, that makes this blog post a wrap. There'll be more soon (there always is). Until then, stay cool, do a lot of reading, and try to keep smiling. We'll talk again before you know it.

My very best,

Alex

The October, 1970 issue of Cavalier. Who could've ever known that Stephen King's story "Graveyard Shift" lurked in its pages...especially with such an innocent cover?

From the February, 1972 issue of Adam magazine. Hope she didn't choke on that snake...