Category: Call Type

Events / Flash / Flat Amount / Magazine / Token Payment

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Taking Submissions: Carnage House Issue 4

Deadline: August 1st, 2024
Payment: $5
Theme: Splatter-friendly extreme horror stories

We want solid, entertaining writing that evokes feelings. Carnage House is a splatter friendly web ’zine—so nothing against cozy, but cozy, we’re not. We’re looking for gore, extreme horror, splatterpunk, and horror with sexual elements to it. For a better understanding of what we’ll take, think of the Hot Blood book series or Love in Vein. Or, as a more practical proposition, read our back issues at carnagehouse.com.

We invite LGBTQIA and BIPOC themes, and we encourage authors from diverse backgrounds to submit to us.

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Audio / Events / Flat Amount

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Taking Submissions: The Other Stories #103

Deadline: September 1st, 2024
Payment: 15GBP
Theme: Shakespeare

(Vol 103) SHAKESPEARE, 1st September 2024
Pay homage or re-imagine the Bard’s timeless works. We’re looking for stories of star-crossed lovers, tragic heroes, cunning jesters, and more.

If you think you’ve got what it takes to terrify, scar and haunt our audience of 10,000 daily listeners, then we want your stories!

If accepted, we’ll get our fantastic narration team to lend their voices, our editor will sprinkle some magic pixie dust on the track, and you could have your story heard by thousands of listeners each week.

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Anthology / Events / Royalties

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Taking Submissions: Face the Storm

Deadline: August 1st, 2024
Payment: Royalties
Theme: Space Coasties

Genre: Speculative Fiction

Theme: A collection of stories dealing with Space Coasties!

Concept: We’re looking for a story that shows a modern Coast Guard in a speculative fiction setting. These can be set in any speculative fiction setting that you want, so long as the story covers a Coastie in action. Generally speaking, we want action stories, but we want your creativity to be the only limiting factor!

Word Count: 5,000 – 10,000 (standard word count)

Edited by: JR Handley & Bayonet Books

Opening Essay by: TBD

Anchor Author: TBD

Due Date: August 1, 2024

Email Submissions to: [email protected] with “Space Coasties!” in the subject line

Payment: Stories selected for publication in the upcoming Anthology(ies), will receive a percentage of sales divided equally between the contributing authors.

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Anthology / Events / Semipro

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Taking Submissions: Starspawn: A Miskatonic Mystery Anthology

Deadline: September 15th, 2024
Payment: 2 cents per word, lore from these stories will also be featured in the upcoming Starspawn videogame which is cool for bragging rights but you won’t be paid extra for it which is an honest sticking point for many
Theme: Stories set in a variation of the Lovecraft universe which is listed below
Note: Be sure to read the legal at the bottom, it is very straightforward as this is for a videogame, but might be news to some

Ancient horrors… secret countermeasures… a cosmic cold war, turning hot…

This is the world of Starspawn: A Miskatonic Mystery, an indie video game in development by our team of two. We will be doing a Kickstarter later this year, and we would like to offer an original short story anthology as a reward; portions of the stories will also be included in the game, with the full text available as bonus achievements. These stories will flesh out the lore of the game’s universe, and should be based on the prompts listed below. We are offering $0.02 per word (to a maximum of $100), and looking for stories in the 2,500 – 7,500 word range. Submissions are open now, and close on September 15, 2024. We will evaluate all submissions after the closing date.

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Events / Flash / Flat Amount / Magazine

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Taking Submissions: Astral Alien Fiction Second 2024 Window

Submission Window: July 7th – 28th, 2024
Theme: Stories that are told from an alien perspective (See below for more details.)
Payment: $20 per story

Here you will find all you need to send us your stories. We look forward to reading them. As a reminder: we only publish five stories per issue. Magazines like ours generally receive submissions numbering in the hundreds. Don’t be too hard on yourself if we do not take yours. There is a lot of competition and it mostly comes down to individual editor opinion (which is unpredictable and not a reflection of quality of writing necessarily). We know the submission process is hard and we wish you the very best in your writing.

When to Submit

Submissions are open:

  • January 7th–28th (closing at 10pm PST on the 28th)
  • July 7th–28th (closing at 10pm PST on the 28th)

What to Submit

Astral publishes short stories ranging from 1,000–7,000 words. We want stories that are told from an alien perspective. By alien we usually mean extraterrestrial… but other perspectives can also qualify, such as Lovecraftian horrors, plants, bacteria, etc. Send us weird and surreal stories that challenge our notions about ourselves and the universe.

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Events / Flash / Magazine / Pro

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Taking Submissions: If There’s Anyone Left Volume 5

Deadline: July 15th, 2024
Payment: 8 cents per word
Theme: science fiction and speculative fiction

GENERAL (i.e. non micro-fiction) GUIDELINES

We are currently OPEN to GENERAL flash submissions. For Volume 5, we will remain open until July 15, 2024. Proceeds from Volume 5 will go toward Palestinian relief organizations.

We want science fiction and speculative fiction. So long as it falls into one of these categories, we will happily read it. If other elements are present, that is fine, but it must include science or speculative fiction.

NOW ACCEPTING TRANSLATIONS (MORE INFO BELOW)

  • No more than 1000 words. This is a firm limit. Please no queries about longer pieces.

  • NO AI-GENERATED/ASSISTED STORIES

  • Pay rate is professional – $0.08 US/word

  • This is for marginalized members of the sci-fi/spec community—this includes people of color, the LGBTQ2S+ community, members of marginalized genders, and disabled and neurodiverse people. If you are not a person of color, LGBTQ2S+, neurodiverse, disabled, or of a marginalized gender, please DO NOT send us your work. Authors of all accepted pieces will have the option to include a short bio in the anthology. We understand the sensitive nature of gender identity and sexual orientation, so if you wish this status to remain unwritten and/or if you prefer to be anonymous, we will print only what you wish to be printed. If you would like your piece published under a pseudonym, please indicate this on your submission. If you would like your pronouns included, please indicate those as well.

  • DO NOT send us anything hateful. No gratuitous violence, torture, rape, or any work that promotes an ideology unbecoming of an inclusive society – no stories supporting racism, misogyny, homophobia, transphobia, or any other of the many forms of hate.

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Anthology / Events / Pro / Reprints Allowed / Semipro

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Taking Submissions: Planet Black Joy

Deadline: January 1st, 2025
Payment: 8 cents per word for original work, 2 cents per word for reprints
Theme: Stories that express black joy written by women and non-binary folk who identify as Black, African, or of Afro-descendent heritage
Note: Reprints welcome

You are cordially invited to contribute to an anthology of speculative fiction that’s being published through Rosarium Publishing titled Planet Black Joy in Fall 2025. The collection will feature about 20 to 25 short stories by women and non-binary folk who identify as Black, African, or of Afro-descendent heritage exploring and celebrating Black joy and pleasure.

What are we looking for?

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Anthology / Events / Royalties

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Taking Submissions: What If… Skunk Wurks Edition

Deadline: January 1st, 2025
Payment: Royalties
Theme: Top secret government projects

Who doesn’t know the black projects that rolled out of the Skunk Works like the famous SR-71, U-2, or F-117 stealth fighter? What do you think they aren’t telling us about? This anthology dives into the concept of other black projects, their uses, and outcomes. Maybe the crazies are right. What If… the UFO’s are actually ours… Anything from discovery and design to use in application of the Aircraft, Heavy Weapons, Power Armor, Sea Vessels, and more are welcome.

We’re looking for new, previously unpublished stories that take us on an adventure and leave us wanting more.

  • Genre: Speculative Fiction
  • Word Count: 5,000 – 10,000
  • Opening Essay by: TBD
  • Edited by: William Joseph Roberts
  • Anchor Author: TBD
  • Due Date: January 1, 2025

Email submissions to: threeravenspublishing @ gmail dot com with “Skunk Wurks” in the subject line

Payment: Stories selected for publication in the upcoming Anthology(ies), will receive a percentage of sales divided equally between the contributing authors.

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