Events

Deadline: May 1st, 2020 Payment: 3 cents per word and a contributors copy Theme: Extreme horror which involved alcohol Some call it courage in a bottle while others perceive it as the devil’s cocktail. Alcohol comes in all shapes and sizes, bringing along with it the temptation of sin, the eagerness of confusion and the psychological bombardment on the mind and senses forcing us to play a game between life and death. BREWTALITY will dive deep in the subconscious where the demons swim, blinding our judgment and guiding us to make bad decisions without revealing the consequences. 3,000 word max Must have elements of Extreme Horror. NO REPRINTS No simultaneous submissions No violence/sex towards children Pay: 3c per word paid through Paypal + (1) print contributor copy 1-year exclusive rights Send as a .DOC or .DOCX attachment to [email protected] with the subject line: BREW SUBMISSION: Title by Author Name Do not copy/paste story in body of email. Include a very brief bio just to break the ice. Deadline May 1 Responses by June 1 Via: The Evil Cookie.

Deadline: May 1st: 2020 Prizes: £75 (1st), £50 (2nd) and £25 (3rd) Themes: One Last Chance It’s 2020 and believe it or not, our fifth year of producing audio anthologies! Keeping this show on the road entails a lot of work and money, but I’m sure you’ll agree the outcome has been very entertaining. What makes all of this possible though are your stories that you submit and the precious time our judges give up to read the shortlisted work. So with it being our fifth anniversary we wanted to do something a little different and run a theme for this year’s anthology. The title will be ‘One Last Chance’. There’s no specific names or worlds, it’s simply going to be an image. All of the other rules around submissions still apply which you can check here, only the tale must include the scene from the picture below… CLICK HERE TO SEE IMAGE Stay tuned as we release further updates on this year’s judging lineup and the additional authors that will share a spot with our winners on Remastered Words 2020 Audio Anthology. Also why not take a look at some of our Write Advice articles on short story writing to get you started. We can’t wait to see what you’re going to come up with and the tales you’re going to tell! Prizes Authors of the top three selected stories will receive a one time payment of £75 (1st), £50 (2nd) and £25 (3rd), as well as having their stories produced as an audio work by Remastered Words. Samples of these stories will be made available to listen to on our website and will also be created into an audio anthology. Authors will receive a 30% share of the royalties that will be split between the winners.   Schedule We are open...

Deadline: May 1st, 2020 Payment: $30 Theme: Modern faerie tales to explain the 20th and 21st centuries Myths and faerie tales have been historically used to explain the world or enforce societal behaviors. The Gray Sisters are looking for tales that explain the events or enforce the behaviors of the 20th and 21st centuries in fanciful ways. The stories don't strictly need to take place in this world, but they do need to relate back to its existence or behavior. ​ Examples:        - A new explanation for a phenomena or occurrence that has happened or conceivably          will happen within your lifetime.        - Using old characters or creatures in new stories.        - Telling an old story in a modern way, (it should be nearly or completely unrecognizable          from its old form.) ​ Submissions may have adult themes and language and they may be violent or graphic. However, these things should be used for the quality of the story and not shock value or shortcuts. ​ Submissions should be between 1000 and 3000 words, in English, fully edited and on theme. ​ If you have any further content questions, please see the FAQ section or the Contact Us sections of this site. Submissions for our Summer 2020 Issue are open from December 22nd 2019 to May 1, 2020. Selections will be emailed out from mid to late May, and critiques (for those who chose them) will be emailed out before the next issue is published. Submissions should be between 1000 and 3000 words, in English, fully edited and on theme. ​ If you submit a piece you are attesting that                                              - it is your own work,  ...

Deadline: May 1st, 2020 Payment: 1c per word Theme: Note: Texas authors only TEXAS’S 1ST AND ONLY HORROR ANTHOLOGY—Road Kill: Texas Horror by Texas Writers—is currently accepting submissions for Volume 5 (RK5). THE GUIDELINES REMAIN THE SAME: Texas tales by Texas writers. Stories must take place in Texas and be written by native or naturalized Texans. Be original. Be scary. Be weird, wild, wacky and/or insane. But be scary. SUBMISSIONS SHOULD BE BETWEEN 2,500 AND 10,000 WORDS IN LENGTH. We’d like to pay more, but for this edition of Road Kill we’ll be shelling out one cent per word. That means a 10,000-word story will receive a check for $100 USD. We are buying first publication rights. Stories must be original, never before published tales designed to haunt, shock and terrify readers in a big way. Contributors will be free to publish the story as a reprint elsewhere after two years. RK5 will be compiled and edited by award-winning author and Road Kill co-creator, E. R. Bills, and published by HELLBOUND BOOKS PUBLISHING. Send your best, finely polished yarns to erbillsthinks at gmail.com. Include ‘RK5 Submission’ in the subject line. Include your current address and phone number. Submission deadline is May 1, 2020 But submitting sooner rather later, earns you brownie points. PLEASE read and adhere to our submission guidelines. * Word format saved in .doc, or .docx * 12 pt times new roman * single-spaced * 2.5K-10K word count * Write ‘RK5 Submission’ along with your name and story title in the header of your submission *The body of your submission email will be considered the cover letter. Attach your story to email. *Make sure that you check your manuscript for grammar and punctuation. NO REPRINTS—ORIGINAL UNPUBLISHED WORKS ONLY.      Payment—1c per word for first rights

Deadline: May 1st, 2020 Payment: $20 Open for submissions from the first of May, 2019 until the first of May, 2020. After much back and forth about what the third volume would focus on, we have realized that all roads were leading back to the Rome (as it were) of Folk Horror, and we are immensely excited to explore the fields and hollows, tenements and seashores, where the notions of folk tradition abut and subsume the contemporary. Where the past and the now collide. We do hope you’ll join us. GENERAL GUIDELINES THINKING HORROR is a journal dedicated to exploring horror in literature exclusively. We do not publish articles or essays concerning any other medium (such as films, television, or games). The unofficial theme of the literature journal is “Why Horror?” We are looking for non-fiction articles about the genre written by the people who generally think most about it. Interested contributors must submit a short proposal to the editors outlining the proposed topic. It needn’t be long, just so long as it communicates the topic and the goals of the essay. This will help prevent repetition, or work on something that ultimately does not fit the journal’s intentions. We are not accepting interview proposals at this time. When imagining ideas for the literature journal, please keep in mind the idea of ‘timelessness’. In other words, material that would date the journal isn’t encouraged, unless a strong case can be made for it. The hope/goal of the journal is to have its issues remain releveant in perpetuity. We do not publish articles or essays concerning any other medium (such as films, television, or games). The sorts of articles we envision/encourage: • analysis of specific authors and how their work illuminates the genre as a whole • discussions of movements like Splatterpunk and New Weird • essays on the different facets of written horror (i.e. Nightmare Horror, Folk...

Deadline: May 1st, 2020 Payment: $25.00 - $50.00 for fiction, $5.00 - $10.00 for poetry Theme: Story must begin with: The door was locked. We love that writers around the world are inspired by our first lines, and we know that not every story will be sent to us. However, we ask that you do not submit stories starting with our first lines to other journals (or post them online on public sites) until we've notified you as to our decision (usually three to four weeks after the deadline). When the entire premise of the publication revolves around one sentence, we don't want it to look as if we stole that sentence from another writer. If you have questions, feel free to drop us a line. Also, we understand that writers may add our first line to a story they are currently working on or have already completed, and that's cool. But please do not add our first line to a previously published story and submit it to us. We do not accept previously published stories, even if they have been repurposed for our first lines. One more thing while I've got you here: Writers compete against one another for magazine space, so, technically, every literary magazine is running a contest. There are, however, literary magazines that run traditional contests, where they charge entry fees and rank the winners. We do not - nor will we ever - charge a submission fee, nor do we rank our stories in order of importance. Occasionally, we run contests to help come up with new first lines, or we run fun, gimmicky competitions for free stuff, but the actual journal is not a contest in the traditional sense. Fiction: All stories must be written with the first line provided. The line cannot be altered in...

Deadline: May 2nd, 2020 Payment: .10/word Theme: Horror and dark fantasy, cosmic horror, swords and sorcery, dark science-fiction, and downright weird. Stuff that doesn’t really fit elsewhere. Cross-genre stories welcome. Stories that define ‘weird’. Our next issue will be out this summer and we’re starting work on the issue after that. Although we have a solid roster of amazing talent, I’m holding ONE slot for open submissions. Here are the submission guidelines. THEME: Horror and dark fantasy, cosmic horror, swords and sorcery, dark science-fiction, and downright weird. Stuff that doesn’t really fit elsewhere. Cross-genre stories welcome. Stories that define ‘weird’. EXCEPTIONS: No gratuitous sex (story appropriate sexuality is okay). Harsh languages is not a problem. LENGTH: 5-8k words. No exceptions. PAYMENT: .10/word on acceptance FORMAT: Word document only (no RTF or PDF) Times New Roman, 12 point, double-spaced. Standard 5-7 character indent on paragraphs; no extra spaces between paragraphs except to indicate specific breaks in the story. No exceptions. MULTIPLE SUBMISSIONS: Yes, but as separate emails. SIMULTANEOUS SUBMISSIONS: No. REPRINTS: No. We are only considering original works. FIRST PAGE: Include your name, address, email address, and word count on the first page of the story. No additional title page. SUBMISSION DATES: The window for submissions will be open for ONE WEEK, from Sunday, April 26, 9m Eastern time to Saturday, May 2nd, midnight Pacific Time. SEND TO: [email protected]  Put WEIRD TALES OPEN CALL in the header (without that the story will not be read). IMPORTANT NOTE: Please follow the submission guidelines. -Jonathan Maberry Editor, WEIRD TALES MAGAZINE -Dana Fredsti Submissions Editor Via: Weird Tales.

Deadline: May 4th, 2020 Payment: $30 for each accepted submission Theme: Digital Fingers, Digital Roots, Digital Families SUBMISSIONS FOR OUR FOURTH ISSUE, COMMUNITY THROUGH TECH, WILL OPEN APRIL 20TH AND WILL CONTINUE THROUGH MAY 4TH. Digital Fingers, Digital Roots, Digital Families In times of crisis, certain parts of us are put on hold, and other pieces may begin to come into play. Families crop up where they need to, communities fill new space. One thousand pairs of hands clap in unison and you step onto the narrow flap of a sun-starved balcony for one of only a handful of times. Turns out there are stars in this city, odors of plant-life rising from the tiles. Roads become rivers you cannot ford, the light from the window opposite feels further away than the world’s first telephone call. But we can still synchronize; we are still mass movements, one hopeful world of applause in the night. Our digital selves are never met with solitude; our digital selves are held by others’ digital arms, nets that buoy us when, otherwise, we might feel most alone. Many of us live online. We are the internet, an uprising of webpages tugging and turning us into new formations. What are we making with it, with each other? How many interiors can we unite within these collective spaces? Issue 4 of Kanstellation asks for reflections around the theme of what digital families and communities mean to you. How do you express and define your selves within and through the digital roots you’ve found or inherited? General Submission Guidelines Rights By submitting to Kanstellation Magazine, you are agreeing to grant us First Electronic Rights and Non-exclusive Archival Rights if your work is accepted. All other rights remain with the author. After that, republishing with attribution is welcome. All submissions...

Deadline: May 5th, 2020 Payment: 2 cents per word Theme: Black market businesses during a pandemic The COVID-19 quarantine has us all shut up in our homes. Businesses have ground to a halt, the economy is slowed to a snail’s pace, and nobody is entirely certain how long it is going to last. In the middle of all of this, black market businesses have begun to operate: underground hair salons, photography studios, businesses once completely legitimate and now illegal simply for operating. If I’d written this call a year ago, it would stop there–but that’s no longer speculative fiction. That’s happening. So instead, Impulsive Walrus is asking for stories about the long haul. What does our world look like if the quarantine just…stays? We’re looking for near-future science fiction stories exploring the comedy, horror, and human drama of a life spent six feet away from each other, and a world where our interaction is done digitally, lest we be ravaged by disease. Impulsive Walrus Books will be paying a semi-pro rate of two cents per word. Reading period will begin on May 5, 2020, and will end when the anthology has hit its goal of 80,000 words. Looking for stories of between 2,000 and 8,000 words. Please submit by e-mailing a .doc or .rtf file to [email protected] with the subject line GOING VIRAL SUBMISSION. Via: Impulsive Walrus Books.

Deadline: May 10th, 2020 Payment: 50% of the sales will be split between each author of each particular book after printing costs Theme: Horror To submit your short story to the Bi-Monthly Breaking Rules Publishing Horror Anthology, starting in January 2020 - released by the end of the month - please send an email to [email protected] by the 10th of the book release month. ​ In your email - please include your contact information, including location in the body of your email, as well as a "Word Doc" attachment of your work. We will confirm your submission within 24 hours, as well as get back to you within one week on the possibility for publishing options. All submissions must - Be sent in a "Word Doc" - 8.5 x 11 format - a clean, edited story with the authors name and title at the top of the page - please, no special margins - your story should be indented properly - single spaced - in a 12 font - no double spaces between paragraphs - and no headers or footers. Page limit is 30 max  - 15 min - all submissions but be sent in by the 10th of the book release month. Publishing starts January 2020. Work that is sent incorrectly will be sent back. We sincerely appreciate your interest in Breaking Rules Publishing but also don't want to add additional work for our formatting team. ​Editing: By submitting you agree to allow Breaking Rules Publishing to provide a light edit, spell check, formatting, appropriate grammar, to all stories published. Copyrights: The author retains all copyrights to the submitted work. With your consent, BRP may publish of your work in future journals and publicity pieces, and other formats or contexts determined by, and at the discretion of, Breaking Rules Publishing. Please note that other publications may not accept...

Deadline: May 10th, 2020 Payment: $20 per piece of fiction / creative non-fiction between 1000-3000 words and $30 per piece between 3001-6000 words. We offer $20 per poem. Theme: Pieces related to all things love, sex, and eroticism.  **Submissions for UnSung Volume II Close May 10th** ​ Submissions should be sent through the submission page, but any inquiries or concerns can be sent to:    [email protected].  Share Your Sauciest UnSung Literary Magazine is accepting pieces of poetry, micro or flash fiction, and short creative non-fiction. We would also like to feature visual artists, and are accepting illustrations and photography. ​ UnSung Literary Magazine is choosing to focus on marginalized voices; priority will be given to artists and authors who are Black/POC, LGBTQ, or identify as womxn.  ​ We are looking for pieces related to all things love, sex, and eroticism. But, we want to see your sensual expressions living within intersections. Have a piece about a Black, Queer AFAB (assigned female at birth) late- night tryst? Maybe prose detailing your attraction to another lesbian with masculinity similar to yours? Show us the tender poem of how his hand grazing yours first time made your heart flutter. We want to know how the moonlight looked reflecting off of their dark skin that night at the lake. Formatting and Correspondence ​ If submitting poetry, multiple pieces are allowed, but please no more than 5 at a time; if poems are each longer than 2 pages, submit no more than 3. Not all submitted may be accepted. For prose, we're looking for flash (included micro) fiction, so please limit submissions to 3000 words. Please put SUBMISSION: – – – in the header to help us weed out spam. ​ Example: SUBMISSION: – – – We invite you to add a cover letter detailing your publication history (if any, non-mandatory) and any relevant details. These...

Deadline: May 14th 2020 Payment: 0.08/word for original fiction, $0.03/word for reprint fiction. Theme: Science Fiction and Fantasy Note: Reprints Welcome Cossmass Infinities is OPEN for submissions. Submissions are open until May 14th 2020. Cossmass Infinities is a Science Fiction and Fantasy short story magazine edited by Paul Campbell. Please read and follow the instructions below before submitting to Cossmass Infinities. Submissions must be made using this form. Incomplete forms will be automatically rejected. We are looking for original science fiction and fantasy short stories. We are also interested in previously published stories. We are looking for short stories between 2000–10,000 words. We pay $0.08/word for original fiction. We pay $0.03/word for reprint fiction. The rights we wish to obtain are listed in the sample contracts for original fiction and reprint fiction. Simultaneous submissions are accepted. Multiple submissions are not accepted and will be rejected automatically. However, once you have received a rejection, you may immediately submit another story. Your manuscript should be a plain document, containing ONLY the story title, author by-line, and the complete text of the story. Do not use underlining in your manuscript for emphasis. Italics and bold are sufficient. File formats must be either Word (.docx) or OpenDocument Text (.odt) file formats. Files in other formats will be rejected. Payment is through Paypal. Submit only complete stories. An email confirming receipt of your submission will be sent within 20 minutes of us receiving it. Note that your submission is sent via a email from the form processor service (formspree.io) which may occasionally take longer than 20 minutes. If you haven’t received a notification after a day then either resubmit your story or contact us. Please allow 3 months for a decision, then feel free to reply to your notification email to enquire as to the status of your story. Cossmass Infinities will be published...

Deadline: May 15th, 2020 Payment: 3¢ per word, $150.00 max, 1¢ per word for reprints Theme: Not locked to a genre and love “The Twilight Zone” and “The Outer Limits” Note: Reprints accepted We are a literary magazine of dark fiction, both short stories and flash fiction. We want your best. But then, doesn’t everyone? No specific sub-genres or themes, just good stories. For inspiration, we suggest “The Twilight Zone”, “The Outer Limits”, and LampLight, Vol1 Issue 1 which is free. We go for stories that are dark, literary; we are looking for the creepy, the weird and the unsettling. We do not accept stories with the following: vampires, zombies, werewolves, serial killers, hitmen, excessive gore or sex, excessive abuse against women, revenge fantasies, cannibals, high fantasy. Writers We have published writers of all backgrounds from all over the world in LampLight, but not everywhere, nor all shapes and sizes of writers. Help us to shine a light on greater diverse writing and keep LampLight a showcase of the best dark fiction out there by submitting and encouraging others to as well. Edition and Rights The quarterly is published as print and ebook, and at the end of the year all the quarterlies are bound together in an annual collection. We are asking for non-exclusive, worldwide, serial rights to your work for both electronic and print. We want to publish it, we don’t want to own it. We will take reprints, provided you have the rights we are asking for. We will not consider reprints that are currently available for free online. If you have already been in LampLight, we ask you wait until the next volume to submit again. Payment We accept originals and reprints up to 7,000 words (firm). Payment in USD. Unpublished Fiction: 3¢ per word, $150.00 max Reprints: 1¢ per word...

Deadline: May 15th, 2020 Payment: $5 USD Theme: "Most" Speculative fiction, read below for specifics. Note: Open only for women-identified authors. Simply follow the schedule below to be notified when we close and open for submissions. Criteria Luna Station Quarterly publishes speculative fiction written by women-identified authors. We think women write awesome characters and really cool stories and we want to show it to the world. We will consider stories submitted by any woman writer, regardless of experience or writing resume. If you consider yourself on the woman end of the gender spectrum in any significant capacity, you’re welcome here! Stuff we want: Fantasy Science Fiction Space Opera New Fairy Tales (not retellings) Some creepiness Stories that explore the nooks and crannies of an original world Big events from the everyman perspective Unique settings and storytelling forms Well written stories with strong characters Stuff we don’t want: Anything biased toward any religion, race or moral preference Extreme gore or sexual content, in particular no explicit rape or sexual assault. (everything in moderation) Bizarro fiction Poetry Fan Fiction (original stories only, please) Bad grammar/punctuation (please proofread and watch your sentence structure!) Plagiarism A further note about sex and violence in submissions. Science fiction has a long-standing tradition of pushing boundaries and asking difficult questions. It is meant to challenge us and ask us to look at ourselves and how we treat each other and the world around us. That said, LSQ is centered on uplift and so any story that contains explicit sexual situations or violence especially toward women will be considered more carefully than other stories and the content must be justified within the story’s arch. Format and Details Stories should be 500 to 7000 words in length. We may publish longer or shorter works, but the greater your story is...

Deadline: May 16th, 2020 Payment: $30 Theme: The theme of ultimate sacrifice as key to heroism. A Heroic Anthology of Sacrifice Not every hero survives. All heroes pay a cost, some the ultimate sacrifice. We're examining that theme of ultimate sacrifice as key to heroism. Not only the willingness to sacrifice all, but the act of sacrifice for the greater 'cause,' whatever that may be. These are tales of loss. Death can be a cost of heroism--but it might not be the greater loss come story's end. Heroes die. And they lose things greater than life: Family. Freedom. Innocence. Faith. Ideals. Drastic change must happen to your hero by story's end. But this is not just a book of dead heroes. Death does not have to mean defeat. Loss does not always equal failure. We want stories across the spectrum, stories of apotheosis and of nihilism and of what lies between. Heroes die and legends are born. Or nothing changes and it is all moot. A battle is won, while a war lost . . . or a battle lost to win a war. This is character-driven storytelling, and we want to read it in all the 'Sword-and-' genres: Sword & Sorcery, Sword & Planet, Sword & Sandal, Sword & Soul, Sword & Six-gun. 11 week submission period. We will be accepting 13-15 stories, and stories should be 2k-9k words in length. Nothing shorter will be read, and our sweet spot is in the 5k-7k range. Publication is intended for Christmas 2020. Payment of $30 flat per story shall be rendered after publication, and authors will receive electronic copies and permanent discount on print purchases from RBE. Cover photography from Peter Gnas. As inspired by and foreword to be written by David Pitchford. Click the cover to enter the RB Submittable platform....

Deadline: May 19th, 2020 Payment: Royalties Theme: Family Horror In these trying times the only thing we can rely on is family. Right? But what happens when the ones we love the most turn on us? In this open call, the amazing publishers at Nocturnal Sirens want horror writers to explore the themes of family. What secrets do they hide? What evil can they commit? Submission guidelines: Stories cannot be over 1000 words minimum is 300 words, send only 3 submissions at a time, wait for our editorial team to get back in touch with you. Evil aunt's, stepsons, vigilante families, any family member is allowed but we want to get alot of mother, father and child stories since this comes out between mother and father's day Disclaimer:. Unfortunately, sexual abuse is an all too common issue among families. While this is heartbreaking and one of the best motives for murdering a family member, we would like to steer away from sexual, incestuous situations. Pay is after taxes going to be 70% of royalties given to authors (divided evenly to all contributors) Send all stories to [email protected] Do NOT send any erotic or abusive stories. We don’t want pedophilia or incest in this collection. And join our fb page for full details and questions there: https://www.facebook.com/groups/372178610142234/

Deadline: May 20th, 2020 Payment: $25 or $40 depending on the length and 3 contributors copies. Theme: Stories that take place in the world of Adrian's Undead Diary The world of Adrian Ring welcomes you again. Dead Lucky is the third anthology of short stories set in the zombie-ridden Adrian Ring universe and this is the call for submission. I am looking for stories that feature strong main characters that are put into situations where luck rears its head. Call it the Jinx Fairy, call it good fortune, but all stories should feature moments where the storyline hinges on moments of good or bad luck. Maybe your hero runs to the pickup parked outside the farmhouse with a horde on their heels, and when they drop the visor, the keys descend into the lap. Maybe those keys are for the mower. Perhaps your character gets bitten, and when they get into their safe house, they realize they have one bullet left, so they can take care of themselves, and protect their friends and family. Maybe your story features a pilot who has just enough fuel to put their plane down before they have to ditch in a zombie-infested city. It’s your story. Tell it to me so I can help tell it to the world. Dead Lucky will be divided into three sections that are AUD-universe timeline-based. The first section of stories will cover incidents on “That Day.” The second will cover the period of story between that day, and the conclusion of Book Eight. The final portion of the book will cover events after book eight. I will be writing at least three stories, one set in each of the anthology’s time periods. Dead Lucky will be released in eBook format on the Kindle, in print, and in audio...

Deadline: May 20th 2020 Payment: $20 and a contributors copy Theme: A global pandemic of "Red Lungs" is going on. This book tells stories about how the rich have gathered together to weather the storm. Only, one of them is infected As a new virus rages on land the richest man in the world has invited over five hundred rich and privileged friends, acquaintances, influences and hangers-on to weather the sickness on his private luxury yacht. But one of them has brought a guest along. You guessed it! The Red Lungs virus. It starts like a cold, becomes a raging fever, then floods the lungs with blood. What we want: Snappy short stories with a minimum of 2000 words using our provided writing prompts. Punch everyone’s virus anxieties, fears; anger at inequality in the nuts with your contribution to this anthology! Use wit, gore, action or inaction, (of course, we always love us some good epistolary fiction) you can even throw some sharks in the mix if you want to. What we DON’T want: Torture, adult content, racism, hate mongering, preachiness, bigotry of any kind, sexism, turgid writing. What can help you: Read Masque of the Red Death by Poe And this helpful Pixar information on io9.Gizmodo. Deadline: May 20 2020 Publication: June 20th 2020 at the latest Payment: $20.00 on acceptance, one paperback copy, one digital copy, one audiobook copy. Submission guidelines: Use our provided prompts Final submission must be edited Rights For this collection. Exclusive, one year; first worldwide electronic, audio and print rights for one year and nonexclusive rights afterward. For reprints, we will ask for nonexclusive reprinting rights. Formatting The first page should have: Your name and pen name if you use your pen name. Contact information: Email, phone Title of story: Title of your manuscript 8.5″ × 11″ layout Times New Roman font....

Deadline: May 23rd, 2020 Prizes: $40 each Theme: A Limerick set in 2020 Special Note for Mini-Contest #45: We're doing just one mini-contest between regular short story contests this time, but it's a doozy. Instead of the usual $25/$15/$10 for first/second/third, we're awarding ten prizes of $40 each. That's a total of $400 in prize money. Why? Because even though $40 isn't much money, it might make more of a difference in someone's life than it will to our relatively small annual OTP budget.  Premise: Life isn't much fun right now, anywhere in the world. The pandemic has touched everybody to some degree. Wrap up how you feel about life today--the good, the bad, the ugly, the inspiring, the awful, the funny, the not funny--and because this is a contest challenge, send it to us in the form of a limerick. The limerick doesn't have to be funny, but it does have to evoke thoughts and feelings in us like everything else we ask of you. For those of you who want to take political themes, please remember our audience is literally world-wide, though it definitely leans Western. Still, jokes requiring a deep understanding of the Hong Kong anti-China protests or some of the subtler points of Brexit might not translate for all of our thousands of readers, so aim for a broad audience. If you're wondering what the exact definition of a limerick is, this source should be a big help: https://examples.yourdictionary.com/limerick-examples.html Deadline: Saturday, May 23, 2020, 11:59 PM Eastern US time. Publication: Winners will be published on or around Sunday, June 7, 2020, when the next contest launches. Length: It's a limerick, so limit it to five lines of text. The first, second, and fifth line should have 7 to 10 syllables, and the third and fourth lines should have 5 to 7. No...

Deadline: May 29th, 2020 Payment: $25 and a contributors copy Theme: An apocalyptic tale of epic proportions Open submissions being accepted for “Fill The Void”. 3/30/20- 5/29/20 D&T Publishing proudly presents Fill The Void. An apocalyptic tale of epic proportions. A journey where the beginning is given to you and it is up to you to write the next chapter. One book, one group of authors, one magnificent and horrifying tale. Specific information: - To submit, write a one paragraph story about an apocalypse. I want to be intrigued and scared in the shortest words possible. If it is more than one paragraph, it will not be read. Send it in the body of an email to [email protected] - A confirmation email will be sent to you within 24 hours of receipt. - Acceptance emails will be sent out no later than 6/1/20. - 10-15 authors will be chosen - For your email, please use Fill The Void as the title. - If you received an acceptance email, a link will be provided to you for a Facebook group and all other information will be provided to you at that time. - This will pay $25 plus one paperback contributor copy. We look forward to your submissions. Via: D&T Publishing's Facebook.

Deadline: May 31st, 2020 Payment: $50 and a contributors copy Theme: Mental Note: This magazine is only from people based in Australia Submit your work for our 2020 edition, 'Mental' What is ‘mental’? Does it solely refer to the inner workings of the mind? Is it an exclamation attached to an extraordinary occurrence, or inherently tied to mental health? How has the word affected humanity throughout history? How does the label ‘mental’ entwine, enrich or even damage one’s sense of self? Can the word be reclaimed from its loaded history?  At Antithesis this year, we’re keen to know your thoughts on your thoughts. It is our mission to feature raw, diverse voices that uniquely illuminate the trials and wonders of the human condition. We want to learn of your quirks, of your ‘plights and gripes, as bad as Achilles’. Why do we say and do as we say and do, and how much control do we truly have over our minds? How can ‘madness’ be defined as we enter this new decade, denial and toilet rolls abound?  Tell us. We want to know. What is mental in your mind? Important info: Nothing you submit can have been previously published in any form. While we’re happy to consider works that have been sent to other journals, we ask you to please let us know well in advance if any work you have submitted to Antithesis has been accepted elsewhere for publication. We accept submissions via Submittable only, and only from people based in Australia. Living overseas? Send us a pitch first to [email protected]. We also strongly recommend you pitch us your idea first. Pitching guidelines can be found on our website. We encourage submissions from writers and creatives who are queer and/or trans and/or of any colour, religion, age, ability or gender. You do not need to be...

Deadline: May 31st, 2020 Payment: $50 Theme: Memorable, dark fiction/horror stories that could only happen (or be told) here in Australia or New Zealand. Note: Australian and New Zealand authors only What We’re After: We’re limiting this callout to current or former Australian or New Zealand residents and citizens. We want memorable, dark fiction/horror stories that could only happen (or be told) here in Australia or New Zealand. Be inspired by the people, country, history, geography, cultures, myths and legends, but please be culturally sensitive. I’m not accepting reprints for this anthology. Story Length: 4,000 – 8,000 words is the sweet spot, but it’s quality that will count. Avoid: We will not accept stories where bigotry or violence of any kind is portrayed in a positive light, or where there is a focus on violence and gore rather than story. We will not accept any form of ‘typing’ of people that could be portrayed as negative, alienating, or offensive to groups of people. No reprints for this one, sorry… Generally, I prefer supernatural and psychological (I’m a huge Ramsey Campbell fan), as well as creature features. Also stories within stories, stories with subtexts and several layers. I steer clear of body horror and gore, but if written well, I can stomach it. Remember, I’m a huge fan of Clive Barker. Submission Deadline: Our deadline for this general callout is end of May, 2020. We recommend you submit early to allow time for feedback and perhaps allow you to resubmit. We will have a number of ‘anchor’ authors already pre-selected, and we aim to have it all completed and published in time for Worldcon 20 in Wellington. Payment Rate: This will be a flat rate payment of $50. Can I Help? If you’d like to offer assistance in publicising and marketing the book, arranging interviews...

Deadline: May 31st, 2020 Payment: $10 per printed (or printed-out) page for accepted prose, and $20 per page for accepted poetry, up to a maximum of $150 and 2 contributor's copies We look for writing that catches experience before the crusts of habit form—poetry and prose that resist ideas about what a certain kind of writing “should do.” We seek out writers who tell their truths in their own words and convince us as we read that we’ve found something no one else could have written. When to submit AGNI welcomes manuscripts between September 1st and May 31st. Submissions mailed in June, July, or August will be returned unread, provided sufficient return postage is included. Things to know when submitting Nearly everything we publish is unsolicited. We encourage submissions from writers of all identities, living anywhere, published and unpublished. We will not consider writing that has already been published in English, whether in a book, magazine, newspaper, or on an app, a website, a social media feed, or a publicly accessible online community. We consider only work written in English or translated into English. We have no word limits, though space is at a premium and length sometimes affects our decisions. We do not publish genre romance, horror, mystery, or science fiction; however, we are open to writing that borrows elements from any of these. We will consider excerpts if they read as if they were meant to stand alone. We are interested in personal essays, think-pieces, memoir, prose poems, formal poems, blank verse, free verse, short stories, and short shorts; we do not publish academic essays or purely journalistic writing. Though we rely on student interns for many things, they are not involved in considering submissions. All manuscripts are read by masthead editors. Our blog features posts by writers...

Deadline: May 31st, 2020 Payment: $10 Theme: Stories must include a key worker and a hopeful ending Flashes of Hope is a Flash Fiction anthology being funded by Theresa Derwin to raise money for foodbanks to support victims of Covid 19. Francois Vaillancourt is donating the cover art. He is a Montreal-Canadian artist who has worked on Stephen King projects. I will be purchasing HWA Adverts and Newsletter space to help promote the book and also seeking advertising in other venues including Crystal Lake Publishing Newsletter and Twitter boost. What we ARE looking for:• Flash Fiction – stories of 500 – 1,000 words. Please see info on payment caps in pay rate section below) that can be characterized as being within the broad category of “horror” fiction and having met the following two criterion; as described above.  A key worker hero of any gender, race, creed, ability, religion, etc. By key worker, we mean those currently working to keep the UK running * nurses, doctors, porters, ambulance drivers, paramedics, shop workers, refuse workers * this list is not exhaustive A hopeful ending to the story * right now we need to encourage hope in light of the challenges we are all facing. Together we are stronger. • Successful submissions will be highly original, well written and cleanly edited.• Stories must hook the reader in opening paragraphs and remain engaging throughout.• Stories that imagine fresh new horrific futures different from anything we’ve seen or read about before.REPRINTS are allowed. What we ARE NOT looking for:• No multiple or simultaneous submissions.• We are not seeking “extreme horror”Explicit language, sexuality and violence is acceptable, however, if handled in a tasteful manner and integral to the story.• We are not seeking abstract mood pieces, vignettes, or highly experimental approaches to literature. We are not accepting poems.• Stories must not include actual individuals or living public figures. No matter how tempting ….•...

Deadline: May 31st, 2020 Payment: $0.03 per word, minimum of $30.00 dollars for short stories. $30 per poem Theme: Redemption Note: This call doesn't officially open until the 15th but is going live early due to the short submission window Apparition Lit is open for poetry and short story submissions four times a year. February 15-28 May 15-31 August 15-31 November 15-30 Submissions received outside of posted open dates will be deleted unread. Our themes for 2020 will be: Experimentation (Submission period November 15-30, 2019 CLOSED, Published January 2020) Transfiguration (Submission period February 15-29, 2020, CLOSED Published April 2020) Redemption (Submission period May 15-31, 2020, CLOSED Publishing July 2020) Satisfaction (Submission period August 15-31, 2020, CLOSED Publishing October 2020) Our previous themes for 2019: Resistance (Published January 2019) – Ambition (Published April 2019) – Retribution (Published July 2019) – Euphoria (Published October 2019) for 2018: Apparition (Published January 2018) – Delusion (Published April 2018) – Vision (Published July 2018) – Diversion (Published October 2018) Apparition Lit also holds monthly flash fiction contests. These stories will follow selected themes and be published online. For more information on themes and submission guidelines, please see the flash fiction drop down below. PAYMENT: Apparition is a semi-pro rate magazine, paying $0.03 per word, minimum of $30.00 dollars for short stories (excluding flash contest. See details in the Flash Fiction dropdown for flash rates) and a flat fee of $30 per poem. If we accept your story, we are purchasing the right to publish the story online and in the quarterly edition. Rights will revert back to the artist after one year. WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FOR: (Click on the sections to see detailed guidelines for each classification.) SHORT FICTION SHORT FICTION: We will only accept stories between 1000-5000 words. If the story is complete with an extra hundred words, then it will still be considered. Any stories over 5,100 words, or incorrectly formatted, will automatically be rejected. PAYMENT: Apparition is a semi-pro magazine, paying $0.03 per word, minimum of 30.00 dollars (excluding...

Deadline: May 31st, 2020 Payment: $15 for novellas, $3 for flash fiction, $8 for short stories, half that for reprints. Theme: Cutting edge Science Fiction, Slipstream, Classic and Modern Fantasy Note: Reprints Welcome Note: My apologies for the short notice, that should be resolved for the next open window. Submissions Welcome to the Silver Pen Writers Association group of publications. From this web page, you will have an opportunity to submit your work to Silver Blade Magazine. General Guidelines (Updated February 2020) Give us something unexpected and well written.  Technique, voice, characterization, and language will all play a part in our decision to publish.  Amaze us with your writing, use of language, sense of story, and memorable characters.  Give us a story readers will not be able to forget and will eagerly recommend to others. The following are “hard sells” here: Stories possessing several of the cliché elements listed here. Fan Fiction or erotica Anthropomorphism (talking cats, foxes, toasters or whatever) Sloppy work–significant typographical, spelling, or grammatical errors (please proofread before you submit) Publicly available items (seriously, why would we pay to publish something being given away on a blog, forum, social media, etc?) Our editorial policies respect the artistic license of our authors.  However, there are occasions when changes are needed that go beyond basic spelling, grammar, and punctuation corrections. In any case, the author will be given the choice of final approval, prior to publication, over substantial edits made by our staff. We appreciate your willingness to work with us in this regard. Do not submit if you are not open to suggestions. Formatting All submissions should… Have 1 inch margins, 1 1/2 line spacing and double space between paragraphs. NO fancy headers or footers, text effects, background colors or images. Use a standard font (Arial, Calibri, Times Roman, Courier)...

Deadline: May 31st, 2020 Payment: Contributors Copy Theme: Public Domain with a twist (see below.) Note: Reprints welcome Note: My apologies on the short window, just hit my inbox. Demonic Classics: Once Upon A Debacle ​ The Pitch: Demonic Classics is quite the challenge this time around. We are looking for Authors and Writers who want to add a dark humor twist to a fanfiction angle installment. Whether you intend to retell the whole story in a shortened format or dive deep into a famous scene and unravel it from within, we want your story to be inspired by a Public Domain literary work. We expect irony, a laugh, an ‘Oh no’, and some satirical twists to unfold. This year we are looking for stories between 2,000 to 5,000 words. Do not limit yourself to the list below, but feel free to email us if you need a title checked. Gutenberg.org is a great resource for doing so! ​ What stories fall into this category? Here’s a sampling: Pride and Prejudice The Raven Moby Dick Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Adventures of Sherlock Holmes Tale of Two Cities Great Expectations War of Worlds Christmas Carol Ulysses Picture of Dorian Grey Little Women Anne of Green Gables Count of Monte Cristo Wuthering Heights Treasure Island Legend of Sleepy Hollow Scarlet Letter Time Machine Find more here: http://www.gutenberg.org/browse/scores/top ​​ CURRENTLY TAKEN Alice in Wonderland Dracula Nutcracker MacBeth Much to do about nothing - Shakespeare Odyssey Peter Pan Beowulf Adventures of Huckleberry Finn ​ Deadline MAY 31st 2020 at Midnight EST ​ Publications September 2020 ​ Rights, Usage, Compensation? You retain rights to the work. I am simply approving it to be added with your permission to publish it in my collection for both eBook and Paperback. We are perfectly fine if its been published before,...

Deadline: May 31st, 2020 Payment: $500 and 25 contributors copies Theme: literary fiction Submission Periods: January 15th - May 31st | September 8th - November 14th What kinds of stories is One Story looking for? One Story is seeking literary fiction. Because of our format, we can only accept stories between 3,000 and 8,000 words. They can be any style and on any subject as long as they are good. We are looking for stories that leave readers feeling satisfied and are strong enough to stand alone. Does One Story pay? Yes. One Story pays $500 and 25 contributors copies for First Serial North American rights. All rights will revert to the author following publication. Does One Story accept previously published material? No. One Story is looking for previously unpublished material. However, if a story has been published in print outside of North America, it will be considered. Stories previously published online—on blogs, personal websites, online literary magazines, or forums—will not be accepted. Does One Story accept simultaneous submissions? Yes, but please notify us immediately if your submission is accepted for publication elsewhere. What file types can I submit? We accept PDF, RTF, and TXT files that are less than 500KB. Please include the story title and all writer contact info on the first page of the submitted file. Will you send me comments on my story? No. One Story receives close to 100 submissions each week. Please understand that we do not have time to comment on individual stories. Can I change the story I submitted with an updated draft? No. Do you consider translations? Yes. Please include the name of the original author and language, as well as the name of the translator on the first page of your submission. How do I submit to One Story? We have an automated system for you to send us your work. It will securely send our editors your...

Deadline: May 31st, 2020 Payment: Royalties Theme: Horror that takes place in Nevada An anthology dedicated to the unique horrors of Nevada. We want readers to experience the darkest, scariest, weirdest, most terrifying elements Nevada has to offer! We’re seeking short horror stories between 500 – 7500 words. Stories must be horror, and they must be reliant on Nevada somehow. The “how” is entirely up to you! Originals preferred, but reprints will be considered. Submission Deadline: May 31st or until filled. ANTHOLOGIES: At this time, we are primarily seeking short stories between 500 and 7500 words for themed anthologies. These submissions will be given priority. You will be notified whether your submission is accepted or rejected. For anthology pieces, you will be notified no later than four weeks after the submission deadline. For all other pieces, you will be notified within 10 weeks of the date of your submission. If you have not received a response by that time, please email us. First and foremost, all submissions must be horror. However, we recognize that horror is a very broad and nuanced genre. To that end, we’ll read stories that fit into other genres (thriller, family drama, coming of age, science fiction, fantasy, comedy, romance, et cetera) as long as the story contains horror, and as long as horror is integral to the narrative. ALL submissions MUST meet the following requirements (documents that do not meet these guidelines will be returned to authors for correction): 1. 12-point Times New Roman font ONLY (no other fonts, please) 2. Use “SMART QUOTES” 3. Submit all documents as an attachment in .doc, .docx, or .pages format Submit via email to [email protected] In the body of the email, include your name and contact information. Unpublished stories are given preference, but we consider reprints on a case by case basis,...

Deadline: May 31st, 2020 Payment: Royalties Theme: Horror stories which take place in Florida Note: Reprints accepted An anthology dedicated to the unique horrors of Florida. We want readers to experience the darkest, scariest, weirdest, most terrifying elements Florida has to offer! We’re seeking short horror stories between 500 – 7500 words. Stories must be horror, and they must be reliant on Florida somehow. The “how” is entirely up to you! Originals preferred, but reprints will be considered. Submission Deadline: May 31st or until filled. ANTHOLOGIES: At this time, we are primarily seeking short stories between 500 and 7500 words for themed anthologies. These submissions will be given priority. You will be notified whether your submission is accepted or rejected. For anthology pieces, you will be notified no later than four weeks after the submission deadline. For all other pieces, you will be notified within 10 weeks of the date of your submission. If you have not received a response by that time, please email us. Guidelines First and foremost, all submissions must be horror. However, we recognize that horror is a very broad and nuanced genre. To that end, we’ll read stories that fit into other genres (thriller, family drama, coming of age, science fiction, fantasy, comedy, romance, et cetera) as long as the story contains horror, and as long as horror is integral to the narrative. ALL submissions MUST meet the following requirements (documents that do not meet these guidelines will be returned to authors for correction): 1. 12-point Times New Roman font ONLY (no other fonts, please) 2. Use “SMART QUOTES” 3. Submit all documents as an attachment in .doc, .docx, or .pages format Submit via email to [email protected] In the body of the email, include your name and contact information. Unpublished stories are given preference, but we consider reprints on...

Deadline: May 31st, 2020 Payment: 3 cents per word Theme: introduce young minds to the fabulous world of horror fiction. Dark Moon Digest, the quarterly magazine published by Perpetual Motion Machine, is now open for submissions to a special annual young adult edition titled Night Frights. We want to introduce young minds to the fabulous world of horror fiction. Sounds great? Of course it does! Want to order it right this second? Of course you do! Good news: if you purchase an annual subscription of Dark Moon Digest, you will also receive issue one of Night Frights upon its Summer 2020 release, in addition to the four issues of DMD.  SUBSCRIBE HERE. Or, if you’d rather subscribe electronically only, you can do so by pledging as low as $1 over on our Patreon. PLEDGE HERE. Interested in submitting to Night Frights? Read on… What we want: the same awesome stories that we use for our quarterly magazine. We want stories with complex characters and new ideas. Scare us. But also, inspire young readers into a lifelong obsession with the genre. Cool it on the profanities, no sexual situations, nothing too graphic. Consider the following scenario: we are selling books at a local county fair. A family approaches with their kids (9 and 11 years old, maybe). One of the parents asks, “Is this okay for my kid?” We want to be able to confidently answer, “Yes,” without going through a long interrogation of what they’re allowed to read and watch at home. Stories should not exceed 3,500 words. No reprints. No multiple submissions. Simultaneous submissions are fine. All submissions should be in a legible font (think TNR) with your contact information in the upper left-hand corner. We are not too strict on format, but some consistency to readability would be nice. Deadline is May 31st. Please do not...

Deadline: May 31st, 2020 Payment: $10 Theme: We’re looking for speculative literary poems that touch the heart as much as the head; poems of the liminal, the fluid, and the fantastic. In anthropological terms, liminality is the midpoint of a ritual: the threshold where a person is no longer quite who they were, not yet who they might become. In between masks, what face might you have? What might you be in transit? Where will you go? Everything is possible in that moment; change is its own goal. Liminality is the space between. Liminality is an online quarterly magazine of speculative poetry edited by Shira Lipkin (co-founded and co-edited through our third year by Mattie Joiner). We are very pleased to meet you. We’re looking for speculative literary poems that touch the heart as much as the head; poems of the liminal, the fluid, and the fantastic. We’d love to see work that shifts shape, refuses to be to be easily pinned down or categorised. We actively welcome diversity; we want to hear new as well as established voices. Tell us tales we thought we knew, the way only you can tell them. Give us new myths. Liminality pays $10 per poem, for first worldwide publication rights and non-exclusive anthology rights. We will be open: January 1-February 28 April 1 – May 31 July 1 – August 31 To submit, send up to five poems to liminalitypoetry AT gmail.com with the subject line “SUBMISSION – ”. Please include your poems in the body of the e-mail; if you have formatting that makes that untenable, you may attach the poem as an .rtf. You may send up to five poems per reading period. We do not accept reprints or simultaneous submissions. (If the poem has been publicly viewable online, yes, it would be a reprint.)  “Dear Editor”, “Dear Shira”, and “Dear Mx. Lipkin” are...