Deadline: April 20th, 2013
Payment: $10 per story

 

Each monthly flash fiction call has a theme. We ask you to write an SFF story (SciFi, Fantasy, Horror, or related sub-genres) that fits the theme in some way. You’ll find a list of upcoming themes below. Please only submit a story for a particular theme during that theme’s submission period. Stories submitted during the wrong submission period will be deleted unread.

Though this is a flash fiction contest, we’re still looking for stories with a strong narrative arc. We want stories that introduce us to character, world, and conflict in the opening 1-2 graphs. (Conflict isn’t just a fight, by the way.) We want a middle free of too much backstory; we want forward momentum. Last, we want an ending the resolves the plot, directly or subtly.

We only want stories between 500 and 1,000 words, inclusive. We pay a flat rate of $10 per story, regardless of length.

Now, without further ado, let’s showcase the themes, shall we?

Unthemed – (+) Writers may submit any flash fiction story of 500-1000 words which has elements of speculative fiction (SF, Fantasy, Horror, or related genres). No themes or restrictions!

 

Send your submission in an email to kazkasubs[at]gmail.com. Attach your file to the email. Don’t forget to include your cover letter in the body of the email. Subject Line: Flash Fiction Contest [Month’sIssue that You’re Submitting For + Year] (e.g. “Flash Fiction Contest [August 2013]” for the ‘Sax & Violins’ prompt). Imprecise subject lines may result in lost submissions.

Here are the rules and details.

Word Count:

We’re looking for a piece of flash fiction that is between 500 and 1000 words long. Thus:

499 < YOUR STORY < 1,001

We won’t publish stories north or south of this mark.

Deadline:

At midnight, as the 20th rolls into the 21st in California, we’ll stop accepting submissions for the current month’s contest. All dates and times relate to California time (Pacific PST/PDT).

Manuscript & Cover Letter:

Please get close to standard manuscript formatting. However, we’ll be formatting your story for the web, so don’t worry over this too much. Just make sure we can read your story. ONE IMPORTANT NOTE: don’t underline the italics. Just leave them as italics.

We accept .pages, .doc, .docx, .pdf, .txt, and .rtf files. Name your file: StoryTitle_713_IssueYou’reSubmittingFor (e.g. MyGreatStory_713_November).

DO NOT include your name or any other identifying markers on the manuscript. Leave that for the cover letter.

What do we want in the cover letter?

Your name, story title, address, email, and a brief bio (100 words or so, third person).

Payment, Publication, & Rights Sought:

If you’re selected as a winner of our monthly contest, we’ll purchase First Worldwide Electronic Rights from you for $10, regardless of word count. These electronic rights give us the right to:

1. publish your story on our website exclusively for six months and non-exclusively for as long as we’re an entity.
2. include your story in the Kazka Press monthly .pdf and .epub issue, available from our website for download.

Our contract asks for 6 months exclusivity on electronically published stories, so you cannot ePublish your story anywhere else, including your blog, during that time. However, since we’re not buying print rights, you can feel free to sell FNASR, for example. And, of course, you can sell audio rights as long as they’re non-exclusive (as most are).

Payment will be made via Paypal or check, and writers will be paid within two weeks of publication/signing a contract, whichever is the latest event of the two.

Original vs. Reprint:

For our flash fiction contests, we only accept unpublished work.

Simultaneous & multiple submissions:

We don’t accept simultaneous or multiple submissions for original fiction.

Questions?

Please email our editor: kazkasubs[at]gmail.com.

Ready to Submit?

Send your submission in an email to kazkasubs[at]gmail.com. Attach your file to the email. Don’t forget to include your cover letter in the body of the email.

 

 

Via: Kazka Press.