about us

Sport Literate is a literary journal focusing on “honest reflections on life’s leisurely diversions.” A subsidiary of Pint Size Publications, Inc., a nonprofit corporation, Sport Literate was established in 1995 on the twelfth floor of Columbia College in Chicago. The first issue was a modest affair, printed at a local copy shop and stapled down the middle. But the idea of considering sport stories as something deeper than journalism, of illuminating the common experience of life beyond the daily grind and elevating it to something literary and thought-provoking, had staying power.

Sport Literate has grown up to be a perfect-bound magazine published twice annually and supported by eleven consecutive grants from the Illinois Arts Council. Our issues and authors have garnered awards and recognition in anthologies such as The Best American Sports Writing and The Best American Essays. We are proud to be perhaps the nation’s lone literary magazine examining sports and leisure primarily through the lens of creative nonfiction.  

Since its humble genesis, Sport Literate has sought to publish the best writing about how people pass their free time. We read elements of story in all sport; we are less interested in the final score than in figuring out why we play in the first place. Through memories, dialogue recast, and real-life characters rendered as accurately as possible on the page, our poets and writers tell true tales artistically. Our definition of sport is broad, literary excellence is our only criterion, and our loyalties lie with a story unforgettably told. 

Praise for Sport Literate

“Sport Literate is as welcome as the start of a fresh season, filled
with those breath-taking swings of phrase, catches of insight,
and the assurance that, yes, this year the word will win.”
—Robert Lipsyte, author of The Contender

“For a few tense years, we citizens of the city of literature were
worried we might lose the Sport Literate franchise to some
other town with a shiny new stadium, but thank goodness the
bullpen of articulate athleticism has burst back with a brilliant
new issue of leisurely diversions—let the poetry and prose
pennant race begin!”
—Dinty W. Moore, author of Between Panic and Desire

“The outstanding essays, poems, and reflections in this little gem
of a magazine illustrate the clear differences between writing
about sports and sports writing. By offering its readers informed,
intelligent commentary, Sport Literate establishes itself as one of
the premier journals in the field.”
—Michael Steinberg, Founding Editor, Fourth Genre: Explorations in Nonfiction; Author, Still Pitching, 2003 ForeWord Magazine /Independent
Press Memoir of the Year

SL Award Winners and Notable Writers

Illinois Arts Council Literary Awards:

Michael McColly, “Christmas City, U.S.A.,” creative nonfiction, 2000

Patricia Anne McNair, “And These Are the Good Times,” creative nonfiction, 1998

John Conway, “How to Serve,” creative nonfiction, 1998

Notable Essays in The Best American Sports Writing:

Frank Soos, “Obituary with Bamboo Fly Rod,” 1997

Mark Wukas, “Running with Ghosts,” 1998

Frank Soos, “On His Slowness,” 1999

Molly Moynahan, “Don’t Walk,” 2000

Notable Essays in The Best American Essays:

Michael Steinberg, “Elegy for Ebbets,” 2002

William Huhn, “The Triple Crown,” 2004

Robert Parker, “The Running of the Bull,” 2006

Benedict Giamo, "Played Out," 2009

The Best American Essays Notable Special Issues

2004 “Father’s Issue”

2006 “Retrospective Reflections”

2009 "Our Football Best"