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Deadline: October 31st, 2020 Payment: $60 USD for fiction and $30 USD for poetry Theme: Speculative fiction of all types Fiction and Poetry Guidelines Arsenika is looking for previously unpublished original fiction and poetry up to 1,000 words long. Submissions may be in English, Spanish, and/or Chinese. Any submissions not in English will be translated by S. Qiouyi Lu. Se puede enviarnos obras en español. Si publicamos su obra, S. Qiouyi Lu la traducirá al inglés. 我們歡迎繁體和簡體中文的作品。如果我們出版您的作品，陸秋逸會替您翻譯成英文版。 我们欢迎繁体和简体中文的作品。如果我们出版您的作品，陆秋逸会替您翻译成英文版。 Payment is $60 USD for fiction and $30 USD for poetry for first world electronic rights and non-exclusive audio rights. We hope to raise the poetry rate to $60 as well in the future. Submit no more than two flash fiction pieces and five poems at a time, and please make sure you fill out the form again for each piece you send, unless the pieces are meant to be read together (e.g. a triptych of poems). Format poetry exactly as you would like to see it online—use italics for italics, underlines for underlines, boldface for boldface, etc. Send only TXT, RTF, DOC, and DOCX files. Simultaneous submissions are allowed. Multiple submissions are allowed, but please have no more than two flash fiction pieces and five poems in the submissions queue at a time. We try to respond to all submissions within 30 days. If you haven’t heard from us in 90 days, please send us a query at [email protected]. Our secondary email address is [email protected]. Remember: Don’t self-reject. We use Moksha to manage submissions. If you are ready to submit, please use the button below to reach our Moksha page. Do not email submissions. Submit to Arsenika Reprints Arsenika does not accept unsolicited reprints. Payment is $30 upon acceptance. Art Arsenika pays $100 for reprint art. Please feel free to query us at [email protected] with a link to your portfolio. Questions Q. Can I submit multiple times per submissions period? A....

Deadline: October 31st, 2020 Payment: $10 Theme: Gothic Romances GOTHIC ROMANCES of old featured a female protagonist dealing with a terrifying ordeal while struggling to be with her true love. Set against dark backgrounds of medieval ruins or haunted castles, the love interest was either a brooding handsome gentleman or a supernatural monster disguised as a gentleman. Following the example of such works as Northanger Abbey, Phantom of the Opera, The Grey Woman, Dracula, The Woman in White, Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights, Witch House and the like, we want your darkest, creepiest horror love story. Although we crave gothic romance style, don’t feel the need to paint a damsel in distress. The woman may certainly be the one who saves the day. We are also open to LBGTQ love stories. The main plot should be horror and romance. We don’t like stories written specifically with social or political agendas. Sensual or passionate stories are acceptable but we don’t want erotica or sexually-based stories. No rape. The editor likes horror. Be careful of sci-fi creatures or anything that sways sci-fi or fantasy. Stories MUST contain: An overwhelming sense of menace and dread. Horror must be just as much a part of the story as romance. Inclement weather.  ie…fog, rain, snow, hurricane.  A supernatural horror being or entity. ie…ghost, monster, vampire, werewolf. Being can be the hero, anti-hero, or the being they are battling against. Just remember the editor likes horror. Be careful of sci-fi creatures or anything that sways sci-fi or fantasy. Set in a spooky location. ie…ghostly gatehouse, haunted lighthouse, dilapidated abbey, crumbling cathedral, terrifying tower, cursed castle, decaying plantation. Time period 1700-1940. We are looking for the classic gothic romance feeling in whatever time period you choose. Also, if writing a diverse character, please set to time period standards. Know your world, what the political/social rules were...

Deadline: October 31st, 2020 Payment: Contributor's copy Theme: The afterlife's bodyguard A Sinister Collection of Short Stories Zimbell House is holding open submissions for short stories from the point of view of the afterlife’s bounty hunter. Your story must include: which side the debt collector works for, what the debt to be collected is, the consequences at stake, how the afterlife system works, and most importantly, be from the point of view of the debt collector. Does he/she love or hate his/her job? Is he/she up for a promotion, due for a vacation? What’s in it for the collector-is it just a job or something more sinister? Please keep foul language to a minimum-it loses its punch if over-used. Dialogue needs to be believable, and please keep dialects/slang to a bare minimum if you must use them. No head-hopping or POV changes. Pick one point of view and stick with it. Please show more of the action than just telling the reader what happens. Submissions of both short stories and novellas to this anthology are welcome, please keep in mind the minimum word count is 4,500 and the maximum word count is 19,500. This anthology is a great opportunity to showcase emerging writers and allow them to build their professional platforms. Submission Deadline: October 31, 2020, with a targeted release date of early January 2021. Submit your best work. Poorly formatted and unedited work will be turned down. Please use Americanized English spellings. We will be doing light editing as necessary to fit the standards we strive to maintain. Submission Guidelines: Any work under 4,500 words will be automatically disqualified for this anthology. The work must not have appeared in print or online anywhere before. All submissions must be in English. Each author may submit up to three (3) unique works—please submit them separately. Work...

Deadline: October 31 2020 Payment: $0.01 CAD per word to an upper limit of 4000 words. Theme: Stories of mythology inspired by any and all cultures, from the classic stories of Greek gods, to Celtic and African-inspired myths, to adaptations of modern mythology-inspired works like HP Lovecraft! Note: Canadian authors only Over the last five years, the From the Rock series has become one of the preeminent anthology series’ in Atlantic Canada. We have been home to some amazing established talent and helped some new authors break through that have gone on to dominate their fields, becoming genre bestsellers in their own right. From the Rock is a title readers consistently ask for, review well, and is a great way for avid readers to get introduced to indie talent they might find interesting. In 2018 the series’ third entry, Chillers from the Rock, went Bestseller on pre-orders alone! We are currently accepting submissions for the seventh entry in this series: Mythology from the Rock, to be available in Winter of 2021. Editors Ellen Curtis and Erin Vance are scheduled to return to helm the project. Many authors have expressed interest, but anyone can submit to be a part of this collection! Deadline is October 31 2020, but get your stories in as quick as you can, as it gives our wonderful editors more time to work with you and make sure it is as good as it can possibly be! We’re looking for stories of mythology inspired by any and all cultures, from the classic stories of Greek gods, to Celtic and African-inspired myths, to adaptations of modern mythology-inspired works like HP Lovecraft! What is the target audience? For this specific collection, we’re going for an equivalent of PG to PG-13. Rather than limit our authors creatively, we encourage them to write from the heart and allow us...

Deadline: October 31st, 2020 Payment: Poetry – $10, Flash – $15, Short Fiction – $20, Novelette – $35 Theme: Wasatch Witches. Note: Must be connected to Utah somehow to submit Calling all horror writers! Submissions are now OPEN for the Utah Horror Writers 7th annual anthology! Utah Horror Writers is proud to announce its seventh annual horror anthology and call for submissions! Following the success of our previous six anthologies, we’re pleased to announce this year’s theme: Wasatch Witches. Submissions will be accepted from now until 11:59 PM (Mountain) on October 31, 2020. We’re looking for well-written stories and poems involving witches or witchcraft, and which are set firmly within the horror genre. A connection to Utah is required, either on the part of the author or the work itself. If you’re not sure whether you or your work would qualify, please contact us at [email protected]. Entries will be judged on compliance with submission requirements, the quality of writing, originality, creativity, and the inclusion of thematic elements, specifically Horror and the overarching theme of witches/witchcraft. Gratuitous erotica, gore, profanity, as well as manuscripts promoting drug abuse, child abuse, illegal activities, or self-harm will only be considered if the gratuities are critical to the story itself; otherwise, please do not try to cover up bad writing with shock. Remember: the genre for your story, poems, and/or visual art should be Horror. Elements of other genres – Western, Paranormal, Speculative, Dystopian, Magic Realism, Gothic, etc. – are acceptable as long as they are only elements that contribute to the overall genre of Horror. If you are unclear on what horror and other genres are, see Writer’s Digest’s Definition of Fiction Categories and Genres: http://resources.writersonlineworkshops.com/resources/definitions-of-fiction-categories-and-genres/ Writers must also be willing to work with editorial staff to revise their work to meet publication standards. WASATCH WITCHES: A...

Deadline: October 31st, 2020 Payment: Contributors Copy and an unknown amount Theme: Queer memoirs deepened, amplified, illuminated, and (re)considered through the lens of a various horror movies Horror movies hold a complicated space in the hearts of the queer community: historically misogynist, and more than occasionally homo- and transphobic, the genre has also been inadvertently feminist and open to queer readings, thanks to tropes such as: the circumspect and resilient “final girl,” body possession, costumed villains, secret identities, things that go bump in the closet. Horror films have also been, for many of us, a safe space where our closeted selves could hide in plain sight among our cis, heteronormative peers and, for two hours in the dark, share in the camaraderie of fear and vulnerability without giving ourselves away… It Came from the Closet will be, at its core, a strong and eclectic collection of queer memoirs deepened, amplified, illuminated, and (re)considered through the lens of a various horror movies (international, obscure, classic, mainstream – open to all!). Submissions should be personal essay/memoir/creative nonfiction ranging from 2500-7500 words, though length and format/structure are flexible if the writing calls for it. We are committed to inclusivity along the LGBTQIA spectrum, particularly QTBIPOC voices. Previously unpublished work preferred. Final Submission Deadline: October 31, 2020. Contributor Payment: All contributors will receive a copy of It Came from the Closet upon publication and a modest honorarium (amount TBD). Send queries, pitches, questions, and submissions to: [email protected] Via: Lambda Literary.

Deadline: October 31st, 2020 Payment: $10 for short stories (3000-8000 words, not for shorter work.) Theme: The monsters that come after the apocalypse Working Title: Apocalyptic Monsters ​Deadline: Oct 31st or When Full Premise: The human world has ended, done in by a pandemic, global warming, or maybe a nuclear bomb—spin the wheel of destruction and see what pops up! Out of the ashes, creatures of shadow and myth claim new dominion. Whether it is vampires fighting over the last remains of human cattle to survive, werewolves trying to rebuild a more Earth friendly society, or cthulian nightmares commiserating over a game of poker how they missed their window to enjoy human suffering, we want to see how the dead world fares under new management! The theme is horror/monster fiction, but some elements of romance or humor are welcome. Length Accepted: Drabble, Flash, and Shorts. Author eligibility: Open to all Reprints Allowed: No Simultaneous Submissions Allowed: No Multiple Submissions: See guidelines and story lengths for the number of submissions per pen name. Publication: TBA Submission Guidelines ​ Unless otherwise stated, all submissions should be sent to [email protected] Please fill the subject line as follows:  “SUBMISSION CALL – Author Name – Story Title” ​ Address the email to WTP for a general submission, or a specific editor if you choose (some calls will be run by different individuals). Length ​ Drabble = EXACTLY 100 words. Excludes title and author. Hyphenated words count as 1. Scene break markers and em-dashes are also excluded. No more than 5 drabbles per Pen Name per submission project. These may be submitted at the same time if connected to one another, but all must stand alone as they are likely to be separated from one another in a given anthology.   Flash = 500 -1000 words. Excludes title and author. Hyphenated...

Deadline: October 31st, 2020 Payment: $0.08/word Theme: fantasy, sci-fi, horror, and any genre in between or around it, as long as there’s a speculative element. General Information khōréō is a quarterly publication of stories, essays, and art: fantasy, sci-fi, horror, and any genre in between or around it, as long as there’s a speculative element. We’re especially interested in writing and art that explores the impact of human or cultural migration, whether voluntary or forced, peaceful or forceful. Examples include themes of immigration, diaspora, and anti-colonialism, as well as more metaphorical interpretations of the term. Most importantly, we’re a new magazine and we’re still finding our identity: therefore, please don’t self-reject because you’re not sure if your work is a good fit. We won’t know until we see it, so please give us a chance to look! Who can submit? khōréō is dedicated to diversity and amplifying the voices of immigrant and diaspora authors and artists. We welcome, but do not require, a brief description of the author’s/artist’s identity in their cover letter. We invite you to submit if you identify as an immigrant or member of a diaspora in the broadest definitions of the terms. This includes, but is not limited to, first- and second-generation immigrants, refugees, asylum seekers, undocumented migrants, persons who identify with one or more diaspora communities, persons who have been displaced or whose heritage has been erased due to colonialism/imperialism, and anyone whose heritage and history includes ‘here and elsewhere’. We especially encourage BIPOC creators who identify as the above to submit their work. When reading submissions, we take in good faith that you identify as an immigrant or member of a diaspora as described above. If you still aren’t sure if you should submit, please email [email protected]. We kindly request individuals who do not identify as such to support the magazine...

Deadline: October 31st, 2020 Payment: 8 cents a word Theme: Interesting takes on how science will change our lives, see below for examples! Science fiction often thinks about the technology and science without considering the ways social structures will change as tech changes — or not. What will relationships look like in the future when we have complications like clones, uploaded intelligences, artificial brains, or body augmentation? What happens when emotions like love and friendship span vast distances — in space, in time, and in the heart? And as we acknowledge differences in gender in a way we never have before, what stories are finally given the space in which to emerge? Among the stories I hope to see: Stories that focus on the relationship between an individual and a community or communities, or even on relationships between communities or social groups. Stories that complicate sex and gender by showing how shifting technology may affect social attitudes and practices. Stories with romances that reinvent traditional tropes and recast them for the 21st century. Stories that experiment, astonish, and entertain.   This anthology is open to female and nonbinary writers. Writers of color, QUILTBAG writers, writers with disabilities, and neuro-diverse writers are actively encouraged to apply, as are writers from outside the United States. Open for submissions Oct 1-October 31. Submission portal. Guidelines: Please remove identifying information from the manuscript, but otherwise use standard manuscript format. Length: 500-5000 words (5k is going to be a tough sell) Buying: Original fiction; exclusive rights for 18 months with standard “best of” anthology exceptions. Paying: 8 cents a word (SFWA pro rates) No multiple or simultaneous submissions Timeline: Submissions open Oct 1 and close October 31. The first round of reading will run November 1 through the end of the month. All submissions will be informed...

Deadline: October 31st, 2020 Payment: $100 Theme: Time Travelers and Secret Agents FICTION SUBMISSION AND AUTHOR GUIDELINES The theme of Issue 1 is Time Travelers and Secret Agents. We are currently looking for stories that at least loosely fit into those categories, or concern alternate dimensions. What We Want The absolute best literature possible in the field of fantastic stories. The greatest emphasis of this magazine is the quality of writing. Whether an orthodox narrative tale, a dreamlike vignette, or a poetical prose scene, a story should be comprehensible on some level, stay truthful to the literary world that the author has created, and be pleasing or satisfying. Any type of science fiction or fantasy story is acceptable, such as a subtle metaphysical or surreal modern tale, a dark fantasy thriller, a science fiction mystery, or an imaginary world fantasy adventure. We hope for stories that are either fantastic with at least a hint of eroticism or erotic stories that have at least a hint of the fantastic. In terms of quality, some examples would be stories by Jorge Luis Borges, Fritz Leiber, Catherine Lucille Moore, Harlan Ellison, Ray Bradbury, Michael Moorcock, Jody Scott, Anne Rice, Robert Aickman, Jack Vance, Conrad Aiken, Giovanni Boccaccio, and Shirley Jackson. Comics would be work by creators such Moebius, Manara, or Esteban Maroto.  In TV or film, examples are harder to come by, as the mainstream has little true erotic content, and such non-mainstream work tends toward adult content or horror. A few examples of work that is erotic or contains erotic elements would be TV shows like Aeon Flux: The Animated Series or Lexx, and movies like Lair of the White Worm, Barbarella, The 10th Victim, Logan’s Run, or Danger Diabolik. Erotic Content Sexy Fantastic is looking for stories that deal frankly with...

Deadline: October 31st, 2020 Payment: $8 Theme: Love gone wrong Note: The author submitting MUST BE FEMALE (or identify as female). Deadline: Oct. 31, 2020 Payment: $8 flat fee per story (author must have a valid PayPal address as that will be used for payment) Publisher: Twisted Wing Productions Theme: Love Gone Wrong The theme can explore ANY type of love: romantic or platonic, obsessive, mother/daughter/son relationship, father/daughter/son, bestfriends, siblings, unrequited love, loss of love, falling in love with the wrong person, addiction, love/attachment for a specific place, location or building, student/teacher relationship, etc. The genre is HORROR. Stories MUST have elements of horror in them. The author submitting MUST BE FEMALE (or identify as female). The author must retain full rights to the work intended for our consideration and that the work itself is complete and not published anywhere else (including personal websites or social media). Having been previously published isn’t a requirement, if you have a compelling story, send it to us! Format: Word doc, 12 font, double space Times New Roman. Not a reprint. We are asking for exclusive first worldwide electronic and print rights for 18 months and the right to keep the story in print, and nonexclusive right to continue to publish for the life of the anthology. We do not place any limits on what the author does with the story after the exclusivity period. We are not looking for poetry or screenplays. Bonus: Characters in stories are own voices, POC, or LGBTQ Submission method: Please send story as an attachment (.doc or docx. Only) to azzurranoxyahoo.com Please include the following with your submission: Author (Legal Name) Pen name (if applicable) Email Story Title Word Count Third person biography The anthology will be published both in e-book and print formats with an estimated publication date of February 2021. Via: Azurra Nox.

Deadline: October 31st, 2020 Payment: $25.00 Theme: Short horror stories Note: Sorry for the short deadline! Just saw this one There’s nothing better than a short, sharp slice of flash fiction to get the mind working. 99 Tiny Terrors is an anthology that the reader can dip into for something deliciously dangerous in a short amount of time or spend an afternoon trolling through blood soaked stories from all over. There’s nothing better than a short, sharp slice of flash fiction to get the mind working. 99 Tiny Terrors is an anthology that the reader can dip into for something deliciously dangerous in a short amount of time or spend an afternoon trolling through blood soaked stories from all over. Simultaneous and Multiple Submissions: We do not accept simultaneous submissions. We will allow up to two (2) submissions per author. Note: only one can be accepted. Instructions: All fiction must be submitted through our Moksha online submission system. Please do not email your submissions. Manuscript must be in either .RTF, .DOC, or .DOCX format. Submit your manuscript in double-spaced Times New Roman or Courier font. Please include your byline as you’d like it to appear in publication. Keep your cover letter short and sweet. The Editor wants your story to do the talking. Crunchy bits: • Limited time open call: October 1-31. • Flash fiction wordcount: 500-1000 (firm) • Genre: Any flavor of horror. • Payment: $25.00 • Rights: Non-exclusive (story will only be published as part of the anthology as a whole) print, ebook, and audio rights in all languages throughout the world. What the Editor is looking for: • Neat twists or unexpected turns. • Atmospheric or unusual settings. • Stories that stick with the reader. • The Editor favors supernatural elements but you’re not restricted to that....

Deadline: October 31st, 2020 Payment: 3 (Euro) cents per word for original fiction and 1 (Euro) cent per word for translations of fiction into English Theme: Campbellian hard SF There are plenty of amazing print and online journals out there for ‘character-driven’ fiction, and we encourage you to read them. SPJ is not one of them, though. Hence, we are not interested in stories predominantly about the sentiments and subjective experiences of fictional people. We want hard SF that zooms out of the personal and lifts off into the structural, the systemic, the epic. We yearn for carefully crafted philosophical speculation that puzzles over the questions of the future and alternate pasts. And we have a soft spot for stories created as ‘artefacts’ (fictional, ‘in-universe’ non-fiction). So here are SPJ‘s quests: – Campbellian hard SF. Reaching back to the roots of classic sci-fi, these rigorous tales take themselves seriously and push the boundaries of our scientific imagination, scaling from the nano to the meta. The cast, if any, is functional and disposable. It’s the sociological, technological and indeed cosmic developments that sweep the reader up in an expanding sense of wonder. (For a contemporary long-form example that received mainstream attention, see the latter two books of Cixin Liu’s Three-Body Problem trilogy.) – Fictional non-fiction. The purest, most intimate form of world-building. A transcript of the last UN Security Council meeting before an extinction-level event. The dental bills of a cybernetic vampire. Interviews with eyewitnesses of a battle between Martians and archangels. Think ‘World War Z’, not ‘Walking Dead’. – Speculative philosophy. Extrapolating abstract ideas to examine the implications if they were to manifest. (See for instance The End of History, the Beginning of Hers in Vol. V. Issue 1. for a theological example of just what we mean.) (The first author to have a story published in each of the three categories...

Deadline: October 31st, 2020 Payment: $0.10/word up to 3,000 words for fiction. $300 flat rate above that. $5/poem flat rate for poetry. Theme: Speculative fiction that astute readers should be able to see how your story addresses the world we live in right now. What we Publish: Original fiction and poetry, all of which must be broadly “speculative fiction” (science fiction, fantasy, alt-history, magical realism, slipstream, or in some other way altered reality). Length: 12,000 words or less preferred, but you may submit stories up to 20,000 words. 30 lines or fewer for poetry. Rights Purchased: First worldwide English-language rights. Payment: $0.10/word up to 3,000 words for fiction. $300 flat rate above that. $5/poem flat rate for poetry. Simultaneous Submissions: Accepted. Please let us know immediately if your work sells elsewhere. Multiple Submissions: Accepted on a trial basis. Please do not dump your entire trunk on us or this will change. For fiction, we recommend not sending us multiple submissions unless there is a compelling reason to do so (in case we send feedback). Please submit each story separately. For poetry, please submit up to 10 poems in a single file. Reprints: By solicitation only. Query if your work was previously published but obscurely enough that you think it should not count. Translations: Accepted for first worldwide English publication. Response Time: We strive to respond to all submissions in less than 90 days. Query address: departuremirror gmail Departure Mirror Quarterly stories are: Current. Astute readers should be able to see how your story addresses the world we live in right now. Well written. Accessible to a mainstream American audience. Diverse. We mean this not only in terms of the types of stories we publish, but also in terms of the types of authors we publish. Writers from historically underrepresented and oppressed groups are especially encouraged to submit. Anti-violence. We do not publish anything that promotes...