Events

Deadline: April 1st, 2015 Payment: 1/2 cent per word and one contributor's copy Note: As you read this is for Furry fiction, which the thought of that is kind of horrifying in itself if you ask me! ROAR 6 is open for submissions! We're looking for excellent general audience furry stories on the theme "scoundrel."  Submissions should be under 12,000 words, no lower limit.  If you have an excellent story, but you're not sure it fits the theme, give it a try.  We can be flexible on "scoundrel," but all stories have to be furry.  That means an anthropomorphic animal figure should be significantly featured in your story -- it could be anthropomorphic in body or only intelligence.  We'll consider any type of furry fiction from secret life of animals to fox in Starbucks -- as long as it's excellent. Please send submissions as an attached .doc, .docx, or .rtf file in standard manuscript format to ROARanthology(at)gmail.com.  We're hoping to release ROAR 6 at AnthroCon, so the deadline is April 1st, 2015.  For multiple submissions, reprints, or other questions, please query.  We do not accept simultaneous submissions. ROAR is a paying market.  Payment will be 1/2 cent per word and one contributor's copy on publication.* All submissions will be replied to by May 1st, possibly much earlier. The ROAR anthologies are a FurPlanet production.  The editor for ROAR 6 is Mary E. Lowd. *While mainstream sf/f/h markets may pay higher rates, 1/2 cent per word is currently standard in the furry genre.  Hopefully, it will be possible to increase the standard rate in the future.  For now, keep in mind that publishing in ROAR does use up a story's first rights; subsequent publications of the story would only be reprints, which are not accepted by most markets and often receive...

Deadline: April 1st, 2015 Payment: 6 cents per word through 4000 words Super science. Madness. Transhumanism. Some things can’t be unlearned. This is the dawn of posthumanity. Gleaming labs whir with the hum of servers as scientists unravel the secrets of the universe. But as we peel away mysteries, the universe looks back at us. Even now, terrors rise from the Mariana Trench and drift down from the stars. Scientists are disappearing—or worse. Eldritch algorithms are erected as countermeasures. Experiments take on minds of their own. Some fight back against the unknown, some give in, some are destroyed, and still others are becoming… more. The human and inhuman are harder and harder to distinguish. Mankind is changing, whether it wants to or not, using implants, chemical alterations, genetic manipulation, new senses that man did not evolve to process, artificial intelligence, cybernetics, drugs—brand new ways of thinking. Of course, the Old Ones laugh at our laws, scientific and otherwise. What havoc is wreaked by those humans trying to harness and control their science to grow as a species? As big science progresses and the very particles and substance of this universe are understood, what stories are being hushed up? Tell us a tale, and make sure it has a beginning, a middle, an end, and a Cthulhu… (Well, incorporate the Cthulhu Mythos, anyway. Big C himself doesn’t need to make an appearance.) Broken Eye Books wants your transhumanist near-future science fiction tales of the Cthulhu Mythos. These are tales of more than merely cosmic dread. They exist in our world of the next couple years (no more than that!). This is the era of big science, with stories that have full-tilt plots and characters writhing in the throes of—what is that? We’ll be right back. Send us your maddening masterwork of less than 4,000 words....

Deadline: April 1st, 2015 Payment: 6 cents per word for up to 4,000 words Super science. Madness. Transhumanism. Some things can’t be unlearned. This is the dawn of posthumanity. Gleaming labs whir with the hum of servers as scientists unravel the secrets of the universe. But as we peel away mysteries, the universe looks back at us. Even now, terrors rise from the Mariana Trench and drift down from the stars. Scientists are disappearing—or worse. Eldritch algorithms are erected as countermeasures. Experiments take on minds of their own. Some fight back against the unknown, some give in, some are destroyed, and still others are becoming… more. The human and inhuman are harder and harder to distinguish. Mankind is changing, whether it wants to or not, using implants, chemical alterations, genetic manipulation, new senses that man did not evolve to process, artificial intelligence, cybernetics, drugs—brand new ways of thinking. Of course, the Old Ones laugh at our laws, scientific and otherwise. What havoc is wreaked by those humans trying to harness and control their science to grow as a species? As big science progresses and the very particles and substance of this universe are understood, what stories are being hushed up? Tell us a tale, and make sure it has a beginning, a middle, an end, and a Cthulhu… (Well, incorporate the Cthulhu Mythos, anyway. Big C himself doesn’t need to make an appearance.) Broken Eye Books wants your transhumanist near-future science fiction tales of the Cthulhu Mythos. These are tales of more than merely cosmic dread. They exist in our world of the next couple years (no more than that!). This is the era of big science, with stories that have full-tilt plots and characters writhing in the throes of—what is that? We’ll be right back. Send us your maddening masterwork of less than...

Deadline: April 1st, 2015 Payment: 6 cents per word up to 4000 words Ghosts. Gaslight. Gears. In the wondrous age of steam, pirates, rust, and syphilis aren’t all you need to worry about. Ghosts abound! In this hissing and clanking steampunk world, there are moments that science just can’t explain. All the mechanical geniuses scratch their heads and whisper words of ghosts and powers, of spirits and demons. Possessed automatons take on lives of their own. Superstitious pilots take all necessary precautions. Avant-garde machinists harness the spirits to power their creations. Revenge-minded ghosts stalk haunted gasworks. This is a mechanized playground for the souls of the dead. These are the tales we’re looking for: where the spirit world proves itself at times inspiring and dangerous, useful and annoying. In a rich steampunk world, chock full of gizmos and gadgets aplenty, tell us the stories that go bump, clatter, boom in the night. What if Jules Verne wrote Ghostbusters? What if Scooby and the gang rode around in a steam-powered airship? What if Tesla talked to the dead? Broken Eye Books wants your alternate history steampunk ghost stories. So send us your mechanized masterwork of less than 4,000 words. If you would like to submit a story for one of them, we are having an open reading period for original fiction submissions from March 1, 2015 to April 1, 2015. We are paying six (6) cents per word for up to 4,000 words. Publication requires first rights for the print and digital versions of the anthology. No reprints. You may submit one submission per anthology. Please, no simultaneous submissions. Send your manuscript as an attachment (.doc, .docx,  or .rtf only) in standard manuscript format. Burn your story in a graveyard under the full moon, or just send it to [email protected] (with “GITC Submission: ” in the subject line)....

Deadline: April 3rd Payment: $25 per story This is an open call for agented and unagented submissions. Bring us your ghosts, monsters, night terrors…all taking place on Christmas Eve. Your middle grade short stories should be appropriate for grades 6-8. 1500-2000 words. This is a paying market. $25 / story. Please send submissions to: [email protected] with FRIGHTMARE in the subject line, followed by your story title. (FRIGHTMARE: My Story) Via: Leak Books.

Deadline: April 11th, 2015 Payment: 12.5 cents per word Fireside is open to flash-fiction submissions We are accepting submissions of flash fiction (1,000 words or less, firm limit) from March 15-April 11. Please read all the guidelines before following the submissions link at the bottom of the page. Payment, etc. Fireside pays 12.5 cents per word, with payment on completion of edits. We buy first world publication rights and six-month exclusivity, as well as the right to reprint the story once, non-exclusively, in a Fireside anthology.   Please DO NOT resubmit stories that we have previously rejected, even if you have revised them. They will be rejected unread.   You may only submit one story to us at a time. If you receive a rejection from us while we are still accepting stories, please wait one day before submitting another story.   Please do not submit a story that you have already submitted elsewhere but have not heard back from. (Often called simultaneous submission.)   We are not looking for poetry, nonfiction, reviews, art, or anything else but fiction. What we are looking for Fireside’s goal is to publish great storytelling, regardless of genre. What do we mean by great storytelling? We want stories that go somewhere, with plot and a beginning, middle, and end. We’re not looking for character studies or metafiction or hallucinatory visions. (We LIKE those things; it’s just not what we publish in Fireside.)   I’ll let Neil Gaiman say it again, as I have in our Kickstarters. This is from his introduction to his “Stories” anthology, writing of his response to a question about what quote he would want inscribed on the wall of the kids’ section in a public library. He captured the reason why we love good stories in his response:   I’m not sure I’d put...

Deadline: April 15th, 2015 Payment: $20 for each story published A note on our editorial policy: before publication we may edit the story for length or readability. However, we always remain true to the spirit of the story. Issues are published at the end of February, May, August, and November. We have reading periods for each issue, though we never close to submissions. May closes April 15 Please do not submit the same story more than once, and please submit only one story at a time. We consider any story between 250 and 7000 words with speculative fiction elements. We prefer science fiction, fantasy, and the macabre, but we're willing to push the limits of traditional forms of these genres. We do not consider poetry, stories with over-the-top sex or violence, serials, novels, fan fiction, or non-fiction. We don't accept multiple submissions; in other words, only submit one story at a time and wait for a response before submitting another. We accept simultaneous submissions as long as you let us know up front and tell us as soon as it's accepted elsewhere. We do not publish reprints, including anything that has appeared on a website. We pay $20 for each story we publish. We buy first-printing world exclusive rights for four months. Payment will be made shortly after publication using PayPal. We encourage our authors to establish a PayPal account if they don't already have one. We prefer to read submissions in traditional manuscript format. This means indented paragraphs instead of left justification, and Courier or Times New Roman font in 12 pt, double-spaced. Also, please include the title, your name, address, and word length on the first page of your story. To submit your story to Electric Spec, e-mail it as an attachment in Rich Text Format (RTF) to...

Deadline: April 15, 2015 Payment: Contributor's Copy Let's talk revenge. Have you sought or exacted revenge on another? Thought about it? Have you been the recipient of vengeance by someone? Do you view wars and other global conflicts as endless cycles of revenge? Can anyone truly get even or are negative karmic consequences always to be expected? Is karma, free of human influence, the ultimate revenge? Share your poems, essays, short stories, hybrid/cross-genre pieces, art, or photographs -- fact or fiction -- related to the topic of revenge. The only guidelines are that your submission be about revenge, and be riveting and gorgeously written. Deadline: April 15, 2015 Payment: One free copy of the anthology Distribution: Amazon.com & Etsy.com Email submissions to [email protected], with the word "revenge" and your last name in the subject line of the email. Via: RoboCup Press.

Deadline: April 17, 2015 Payment: $50 for your story upon acceptance and evenly split royalties among contributors ANNOUNCEMENT! At Burning Willow Press, LLC, we had been struggling with a decision. We were looking to put together a horror anthology, but weren’t sure what to do. Zombies are done all the time with the rush of TWD, and serial killers? Overdone. Well, a decision has been made and you don’t see enough of these gems out there. The inspiration for this anthology is an indie film called “Would You Rather.” No one recognize it? This film is about testing your will to survive against your moral boundaries. If you haven’t guessed it yet, this is what the anthology will be about. Would you sacrifice your morals to survive? Or would you force someone to make that decision? That is all up to you and, in this anthology, anything goes! We will choose 25 of the best submissions to be included. All submissions must be sent to Steven Winfrey, BWP Horror Acquisitions Editor at [email protected] And just for those who have never seen it and need some inspiration: Release date: October 31, 2015 Title: CROSSROADS IN THE DARK Criteria: Entrants must be individuals and not a company or organization. Entrants must submit under their reals names (Pen names can be used upon publication). Entrants must be 18 years of age or older to submit (mostly because of the content). Story must be anywhere between 3,000 to 7,000 words in length. You do not have to be previously published to be included. Only previously unpublished works will be accepted. Deadline: We are taking submissions from the time of this announcement until April 17, 2015. Submission guidelines: Please state the title of your work and that you are submitting for the anthology in the...

Deadline: April 25, 2015 Payment: $0.005 a word Gothic Tales of Terror is now open for submissions. Deadline: April 25, 2015 Poetry: Up to 500 words (Prose poetry is acceptable) Flash Fiction: No Short Stories: 3000-5000 words Payment (monetary payment payable upon receipt of signed contract; printed copy within 60 days of publication): Short Stories:$0.005 a word Poetry: $0.10 a line Illustrations: $20 Reprints: Yes, but they will receive secondary consideration Multiple submissions: Yes Simultaneous submissions: Yes, but please notify me immediately if your story or poem is accepted elsewhere. Target Publication Date: October 1, 2015 I am looking for gothic horror stories in the tradition of classic Victorian horror writers like Edgar Allan Poe, Bram Stoker, and Mary Shelley. Creepy castles, tragic love, and madness are just some of the things that could be included in your story or poem. Think about the elements of classic Victorian gothic horror, and interpret them in your own unique way. Science gone wrong, the search for immortality or control over the destiny of ourselves or humanity as a whole are just a few possibilities. All of these are merely ideas to get your brain churning. Come up with your own version. Make it unmistakably Victorian gothic horror, but also make it uniquely yours. Your submission should also align with Verto Publishing's goal to publish quality stories, poems, and artwork that help the reader relate to someone they previously considered completely different from themselves. We all feel loss and love, pain and passion, victory and defeat. Each of us is unique as well. The things that make us different from each other are countless. At Verto Publishing, we want stories that show us the human experience through new eyes. Show us how someone different from us has a life experience that is both...