Taking Submissions: Flashpoint Science Fiction 2024 Open Window #3
October 31
Submission Window: September 15th – October 31st, 2024
Payment: $0.02 per word
Theme: Science fiction, fantasy, slipstream, and everything in between
Note: Reprints Welcome
We are open to submissions:
Jan. 15 – Mar. 31
May 15 – Jul. 3
Sep. 15 – Oct. 31
Nov. 1 – Nov. 30 (Drabbles only)
Before submitting, please read the writer’s guidelines below.
Story Guidelines
Flash Point Science Fiction wants speculative fiction stories from 100 to 1,000 words in length. Send us your science fiction, fantasy, slipstream, and everything in between, so long as it’s short. We here at FPSF are partial to flash fiction and want to see the flash market grow. So as much as it pains us, please take your 10,000 word tour de force elsewhere. We’re not looking for the next Brandon Sanderson. (Unless you are, in fact, Brandon Sanderson, in which case we’d be delighted!)
What we’re looking for:
-Fantasy (all kinds—epic, adventure, contemporary, urban, grimdark, fairy tale, magical realism, myths and legends, etc.)
-Science Fiction (all kinds—hard, space opera, military, near future, science fantasy, cyberpunk, dystopian, etc.)
-Slipstream (make it as weird as you want, so long as it works)
-Seasonal (we love stories with holiday and/or seasonal themes, but please submit AT LEAST 3 months in advance of the relevant occasion)
-Anything that makes us laugh, cry, think, or smile.
What we aren’t looking for:
-Horror—it can be spooky or menacing, but we’re not a horror market, so the fright factor should not be the primary appeal. DARK fantasy and sci-fi, however, are welcome.
-Literary fiction—this is a genre market, so there needs to be an SF&F element, however slight.
-Gratuitous sex or violence—we’re big fans of Love Death + Robots, but don’t be that guy.
-Fanfic—original concepts only, please. We know there was a lot going on in Hobbiton while Frodo was away, but that’s not our property and it’s not yours either.
-Stories previously published in a different language.
Submission Specs
In terms of how your story should look, we recommend you read William Shunn’s Proper Manuscript Format. This is the industry standard and we think it’s a good one. When we receive your manuscript file, we will expect it to be in this format (as a .doc or .docx file). Poorly formatted submissions may be rejected unread.
Please do not submit to us via email directly. Submissions received in this manner will be deleted unread.
We do not accept unsolicited reprints. Even if it was posted on a personal blog or website, so long as it’s public anyone who has access to the internet can read it, and that qualifies as publication.
No simultaneous submissions. This means you shouldn’t submit the same story to us and any other market at the same time.
No multiple submissions. One story at a time please.
Authors we have previously accepted: we prefer to publish only one story per author per calendar year. Please wait for us to announce open submissions for the next year (typically in September) before submitting new work to us.
Our normal response time is 30 days. If our response is taking longer, this likely means your story is being given special consideration, but if you haven’t heard back after 60 days, please contact us and we’ll bump your story to the front of the line. Please wait the full 60 days before reaching out. If we were fast readers, we wouldn’t be reading flash, right? Wrong, we still would, because we love it.
Note: Flash Point SF welcomes submissions from writers of all races, colors, religions, genders, gender expressions, ages, national origins, disabilities, and sexual orientations. No matter who you are, we want to give you a voice (provided that voice stays under 1,000 words)!
Still have questions? Check out this interview with the editors in which we discuss what FPSF looks for in great flash fiction.
Payment
We pay $0.02 per word for first worldwide rights and for non-exclusive reprint rights. We also reserve the non-exclusive right to republish your story in our annual anthology, as long as this right is activated within 24 calendar months of the story’s original publication date. These anthologies are anticipated to consist entirely of material originally published by Flash Point SF.
(Optional) After you submit, track your submissions at Duotrope.
Via: Flash Point Science Fiction.
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Stuart Conover is a father, husband, published author, blogger, geek, entrepreneur, horror fanatic, and runs a few websites including Horror Tree!