by Stuart Conover | Apr 18, 2019 | Events, Flat Amount, Magazine, Poetry, Pro, Reprints Allowed, Semipro
Deadline: June 30th, 2019
Payment: Between $0.04 and $0.08/word, depending on factors listed below
Note: Reprints, poetry accepted
Following our guidelines does not guarantee that we will accept your story, but ignoring them does guarantee that your submission may be returned without receiving the attention it deserves.
An Overview
At DreamForge, our goal is to publish positive science and fantasy fiction. (That’s about it, but if you want to know more, you can check out our Rules of Fiction page.)
What Are We Looking For?
Space opera, urban fantasy, military sf, magical realms, hard science fiction, sword & sorcery, time travel, cyberpunk, steampunk, hopepunk, and whatever else comes before punk. Parables, poetry, zombies, and vampires are also welcome. No horror please.
- Yes to communities and teams working together to overcome dire challenges.
- Yes to marginalized and under-represented characters as protagonists.
- Yes to science and magic that solve problems, alleviate suffering, and boldly explore new possibilities.
- No to corrupt, dystopian governments or evil corporations.
- No Horror, please
- Stories set before, during, or after an “apocalypse” are more likely than not to be rejected.
- Tone down the violence, profanity, and sex
Story Length
Shorter is better!
If you submit a story over 5,000 words, it has to be amazing to get very far in the review process. We want variety in each issue, and longer your story, the less variety we can print.
Overall, we will consider the following word counts:
- Flash Fiction & Poetry: 100 – 1500 words
- Short Stories: 2,000 – 7,500 words
- Novelettes: 7,500 – 12,000 words.
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by Stuart Conover | Apr 17, 2019 | Anthology, Events, Semipro
Deadline: August 31st, 2019
Payment: trying for 0.02/word (see below) and a contributor’s copy
Anthologists: Ronald Linson & Deidre J Owen
Publication format: print (POD), digital
Word count for submissions: 2,000-7,500 (with exception; see below)
Compensation: authors will receive a free contributor copy (print and digital) as well as a modest monetary compensation; details below.
LITTLE GIRL LOST: THIRTEEN TALES OF YOUTH DISRUPTED will be an
anthology of original stories centering around the idea of the lives of young girls being disrupted in some way. It could be through vanishing mysteriously, experiencing a life-altering event, or… ? We are seeking well-written, imaginative tales that explore this idea to its fullest. Use your own interpretation as to the meaning of ‘lost.’ Surprise us!
Submissions period opens APRIL 8th, 2019 and will close AUGUST 31st, 2019 or when the anthology is filled. Submissions received outside of this period will be deleted unread.
We are seeking original, previously unpublished stories of the highest quality between 2,000 and 7,500 words. We are willing to look at stories up to (but not exceeding) 10,000 words, but they are less likely to be accepted. There are a few slots open for reprints, however (see “Reprints” below).
Genre: Your story can be in any genre so long as it fits the theme of the anthology, with the firm exception of erotica/pornography.
Subjects we WILL NOT accept include (but are not limited to):
- Erotica or pornography
- Pedophilia or bestiality
- Depictions of rape
- Graphic descriptions of sexual activity involving persons under the age of eighteen (18)
- Gratuitous or excessive violence or gore
- Racism, bigotry, or slander towards anyone
- Fan Fiction
(If you are unsure whether your story crosses any lines, please feel free to submit it anyway. Decisions will be made on a case by case basis.)
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by Stuart Conover | Apr 4, 2019 | Audio, Events, Semipro
Deadline: April 30th, 2019
Payment: 1 cent per word, a flat rate of $20 if under 2,000 words.
The Overcast is currently open to submissions three times a year, during the months of January, April, and October. (Note we are no longer reading during July. Our summers have just gotten too hectic. Sorry for the inconvenience. Thank you for understanding.)
What We Want
We are interested in speculative fiction, whatever that means to you, be it Science Fiction, Fantasy, Steampunk, Magical Realism, Slipstream, or an as-yet-unnamed genre. Anything that looks at the world and life from an unexpected angle. We want the original vision of William Gibson. The magic and beauty of Erin Morgenstern. The uncompromising voice of Margaret Atwood. The technical brilliance of Ted Chiang. We want to read stories that transport us to places that we’ve never imagined. We want to still be thinking about a story days after reading it. Be original. Be amazing.
We are based in Portland, OR, and shine a spotlight on writers hailing from, living in, or connected in some way to the Pacific Northwest, as loosely defined by the bioregion of Cascadia. We feel there is an exceptionally strong talent pool of speculative writers in Cascadia, and we want to celebrate and promote them to a larger audience. Roughly half the stories we publish are by PNW writers. That said, we are not exclusive, and the other half of our stories come from authors all over the globe. So no matter where you live, send us your stories. If they make us laugh, cry, or turn cartwheels of astonishment, preferably all at once, we will find a place for them on The Overcast.
This is an audio format publication. We feel that stories of around 20-30 minutes in length are the best fit for our podcast. While we will consider submission between 1,000-5,000 words, we read at around 100 words per minute, so the sweet spot for submissions is 2,000-3,000 words. If it comes to a choice between two stories of equal merit, we will generally choose the one that is closer to the sweet spot.
Reprints are welcome, so long as they have not been previously produced in an audio format.
What We Don’t Want
Fan Fiction
Generic settings or characters we’ve seen a million times before (lithe elves, dour dwarves, charming vampires, etc)
Horror. Dark, gritty fiction is fine, but straight horror really isn’t our thing.
What We Pay
Our authors are the soul of our podcast. We strongly believe that creators should get paid for their work. Period. We would love to pay pro rates, but alas that is beyond our current financial reach. At the moment, we pay a semi-pro rate of $0.01 per word. Because we think it’s insulting to pay less than $20 for any story, we pay a flat rate of $20 for all stories less than 2,000 words. We hope, however, that our podcast will soon bring us fame, fortune, and success beyond our wildest dreams, as well as the ability to pay pro rates. We’d also like a pony. A genetically modified pony with six legs that runs 100mph and urinates a rich, tasty stout.
All payments made via Paypal.
(Our rates are directly tied to our Patreon funding goals. As we reach our goals, our rates will go up. Simple! If you want our authors to get paid more, please help spread the word!)
How To Submit
Please attach your story in standard manuscript format to a brief email containing the following information: Story Title, Word Count, and what, if any, connection you have to Cascadia. Please DO NOT include a bio or list of credits. We do not care how many degrees, awards, or publications you have. We want your fiction to speak for itself. If we love your story, we will ask for a bio upon acceptance.
Send your stories to: [email protected]
Please make the Subject line: “Submission: (Story Title)”
We do not accept multiple or simultaneous submissions.
If you have not heard back from us by the beginning of the submissions period following the one in which you submitted your story, please query.
For some reason, we have had numerous problems responding to submissions from AOL users. Most of our responses get bounced back as undeliverable. To prevent future frustration on all sides, please do not send submissions from AOL mailboxes. Thank you.
Rights
We purchase first worldwide exclusive audio rights, as well as the right to keep the episode in which your story is produced available in our archives for as long as The Overcast remains in operation. We do not own your story, nor do we wish to. You are free to publish and sell it elsewhere in any other format.
Via: The Overcast.
by Stuart Conover | Apr 3, 2019 | Anthology, Events, Semipro
Deadline: April 30th, 2019
Payment: $0.03 USD per word
Note: Must identify as LGBTQIA to submit.
DEADLINE: April 30, 2019
PAYMENT: $0.03 USD per word
MINIMUM WORD COUNT: 500
MAXIMUM WORD COUNT: 3500*
MAXIMUM SUBMISSIONS PER AUTHOR: 2
REPRINTS: No**
SUBMISSION EMAIL: [email protected]
*Authors are welcome to interpret the maximum word count as a guideline rather than a strict ruling. The maximum payment for a single story, once accepted, will not exceed $105 regardless of final word count. (If you send in something that is around 3690 words and we love it, we’ll compensate you for 3500 of those words and you’ll have to give the rest of them to us for free.) Regardless of this flexibility, PLEASE NOTE: Stories exceeding 3900 words will not be considered for publication.
**For the sake of this project, reprints are defined as follows: stories that are posted on your personal blog, a Reddit account, or other similar social media will be considered “first run” and eligible for acceptance. Stories that have been narrated on horror podcasts such as The NoSleep Podcast, Creepy, Monsters Out Of The Closet, etc, will be considered for acceptance (provided the author retains the right to resell these stories.) As it relates to “Black Rainbow” we define reprints as works that have been previously published and distributed in print (whether that be in a magazine, book, e-book or otherwise previously distributed medium.) If you have previously published the story with a similar publisher, it will not be accepted.
Works that have not been published anywhere will move to the front.
ADDITIONALLY:
- MOVING FORWARD ALL SUBMITTERS MUST BE LGBTQIA IDENTIFYING.
- Authors may submit any number of stories they wish for consideration. Should we choose to select multiple stories from a single author, we will only be accepting two per author.
- This is not an erotica anthology. We cannot stress that enough — THIS IS NOT AN EROTICA ANTHOLOGY. Stories that feature an overabundance or graphic depictions of sex will not be considered. Please do not send them. We will shred them and line our hedgehog’s cage with them.
- Along the same lines as the above, stories that feature pedophilia or rape will not be considered. They will instead be printed and mailed to your mother and she will never invite you to Thanksgiving again.
- All stories must feature LGBTQIA people living normal lives … (normal, that is, until the horror happens) They can be either the hero or villain. We’d prefer them heroes, but it’s your story.
- Stories may be any mix of genre. Sci-Fi, Romance, Comedy — but they have to be mixed with horror and the primary focus of the story must be horror.
- This is meant to empower our community and therefore offensive stereotypes should be avoided.
- Sometimes people say horrible things. Your story may be better if you keep it natural and include slurs in dialogue. This is part of our collective truth. The world is ugly and we have to face it head on. Don’t skirt it. Write it. Put it in … just limit yourself on how many times you allow yourself to do so please.
- Authors should be flexible if there are suggested revisions and edits required prior to publishing.
If you are not sure that your story is right for this project, PLEASE DON’T SELF-REJECT IT! Send it in and let us decide!
FORMAT:
Please attach all submissions as a word (.docx) document. Double spaced and in either Arial, Times New Roman, or Courier New font. These formats and fonts are preferred as we have bad eyesight and intend on killing trees by printing these files to read them.
Please include your contact information on the top of the first page. Additionally, please include an approximate word count at the top of the first page.
Stories should be in Standard Manuscript Format with 1 inch margins all around. We request that you consider putting page numbers and your name in the header of each page. It’s not required but it makes it easier when the wind blows all of our wasteful paper everywhere.
A friendly cover letter is always appreciated. If you have a pen name, please include it, and feel free to give your top or latest writing credits–keep it to FOUR max, please.
Please put your name and title of your story in the email subject line. Example: “A LETTER TO MY LOVER, JACK” by Scott Savino
SUBMISSION EMAIL: [email protected]
P.S. Please do not worry about how much paper we’ll be wasting as we print and read these submissions. Jason thanks you all for making his home nice and comfortable.
Via: Black Rainbow.
by Stuart Conover | Apr 2, 2019 | Anthology, Contributor's Copy, Events, Semipro
Deadline: June 30th, 2019
Payment: AUD5c/word and one contributor copy
AU5c/word / 2k-10k words
Opens Apr 1st / Closes June 30th
Fantasy, Horror, or Science Fiction
Theme – Last stand military horror.
What we want:
Military action-based last-stand horror, and lots of it.
Think 300, the Alamo, the Battle of Mirbat, the First Battle of Mogadishu, the Battle of Hel, or Custer’s Last Stand (but with unnatural monsters)… anything that can be called a high-action potentially-last stand monster story. For level of unnatural creature we will give priority to, think Dog Soldiers or Aliens. We want lots of monster goodness.
We will also be looking for soldiers, mercs, police, private security/paramilitary. Hell, even a group of bodyguards protecting some arsehole druglord on his jungle property.
Just ensure the last stand aspect is both overt and unique, and don’t forget monsters!
This volume is like the previous volumes squared. All action.
We want extreme action, and it has to be military or paramilitary action.
And to say it again, full action. Nothing less. Hoo-rah!
Introduction by Tim Miller (Deadpool, Terminator, Love, Death & Robots)
Edited by Amanda J Spedding, Matthew Summers, and Geoff Brown
Payment: AUD5c/word and one contributor copy in each format released.
Wordcount range: 2,000 – 10,000 words (query for shorter or longer)
Submissions open April 1 2019.
Closing date is June 30th 2019
Anything submitted outside this period will be deleted without being read or replied to.
No selections will be made until after the period closes.
Projected publication date: Late 2019
Please follow these guidelines when submitting to us:
Please put your full contact details and word count top left of the first page of the manuscript.
Standard submission format, with minimal document formatting.
Courier, Palatino Linotype, or Times New Roman set at 12pt.
Italics as they will appear.
No underlining.
Double spaced.
Please don’t use TAB or space bar to indent lines. Use ‘styles’ only.
If unsure or using a program that has no styles, DO NOT indent at all. That’s still cool.
SEE HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION ON STYLES.
NO SPACE between paragraphs unless a line-break is required. ONE SPACE after full stops.
Please put full contact details on the first page of the manuscript (yes, I said this twice… it’s important).
Send your submission to Geoff Brown at [email protected]cohesionpress.com as an attachment (.doc/.rtf only)
In the subject line of your email, please put Last Stand: [STORY TITLE] (Replace [STORY TITLE] with your actual story title. Yes, unfortunately I do need to say this)
NO MULTIPLE SUBMISSIONS
NO SIMULTANEOUS SUBMISSIONS
NO REPRINTS
Please include a brief ‘hello, this is who I am’ in your email body as a cover letter.
Blank emails with attachments will be deleted.
For a guide to standard submission format, see: http://www.shunn.net/format/story.html
The only variations to this format are that italics MUST appear as they will be used – no underlining – and again, only one space after a full stop.
Anyone that fails to follow these guidelines will likely see their story used to line kitty litter trays by Deadpool.
Via: Cohesion Press.
by Stuart Conover | Mar 27, 2019 | Anthology, Events, Semipro
Deadline: July 30th, 2019
Payment: 2¢ per word
(Working Cover. Fonts/colors subject to change.)
Pole to Pole Publishing is seeking short, original fiction for its upcoming anthology, Not Far from Roswell, to be published October 2019.
Not Far From Roswell will contain dark stories of aliens, alien abduction, alien experimentation, cows, paranormal investigation and more — let your imagination be your guide. We may also include one or two humorous pieces as long as the material is dark.
Stories should be 3,000-5,000 words (firm).
Hard Sells:
Profane and vulgar language. Because we market to both adult and YA readers, if you use an F-Bomb, and we accept your story, we’ll probably ask you to change it.
First person and Present Tense. We’ve published both: when the stories were very, very good. We want to let you know up front that we’re going to reject this most of the time. It’s just not our preference.
Excessive Gore and/or violence. Blood and guts are fine—as long as they’re part of the story and not the story itself.
Sex. See above about marketing to a wider audience.
Edition and Rights:
Not Far From Roswell will be published in electronic and trade paperback in English. We are asking for exclusive, worldwide rights to your work for both electronic and print for six months only, and a non-exclusive right to keep your story in the anthology after that. The anthology may be included with other “Dark Stories Anthologies” in bundles.
Payment: Payment is 2¢ per word, paid at publication, via PayPal only.
If you do not have a PayPal account, please do not submit your work.
Authors will also receive one copy of both the electronic and paperback versions of the anthology. (Authors can buy additional books at a discount.)
What We Don’t Want:
No rape, torture, etc. of children. No animal abuse. No stories with characters from a copyrighted world that belongs to someone else. No reprints. No Poetry. Only one story from each author will be considered.
Formatting:
No tabs. Please format the document with a first line indent.
Curly quotes, please—no straight quotes.
If you’re not sure if your story is suitable, don’t query; just go ahead and submit, and let our editors decide.
Deadline: July 30, 2019, or until filled. Be aware that all of our anthologies have filled before the deadline, so don’t wait until the last minute to submit.
As always, if you want a good idea of what we’re looking for, check out the previous anthologies in The Dark Series: Hides the Dark Tower, In a Cat’s Eye, and Dark Luminous Wings:
https://poletopolepublishing.com/series/dark-stories/
Via: Pole to Pole Publishing.
