Events

Submission Window: September 15th through October 15th, 2024 (Sept 15-21 is reserved for writers of color) Payment: 3 cents per word Theme: Speculative Fiction in the science fiction or fantasy variety We are open annually for submissions from March 15th through April 15th for our August issue, and from September 15th through October 15th for our February issue. The first week of submissions (March 15-21 and Sept 15-21) is reserved for writers of color. The remainder of the window will be for general submissions. If you’re a writer of color who submits during that first week and you hear back from us before the general window closes, you’re welcome to send a second submission during that time. We are not interested in machine-generated (AI/LLM) characters, plots, or text of any kind. Spellcheckers and grammar checkers that run off machine learning are absolutely fine by us (though we also don’t want you to let a machine strip out your natural writing voice in the name of someone else’s idealized grammar!) HOW TO SUBMIT SUBMIT YOUR STORIES HERE WHAT TO SUBMIT The short version: We pay $0.03 per word with a minimum of $20 in exchange for first world electronic rights in English. We ask for an exclusivity period of 3 months from date of publication. Maximum 5,000 words. Your story must contain speculative elements: that means science fiction or fantasy. We do not accept nonfiction. No simultaneous submissions. Only one submission per writer per open period. We aim to make our final decisions within a month and a half of the close of submissions (i.e. by May 31st for the spring period, and by November 30th for the fall period). You will often receive a response much sooner. If you haven’t heard from us by that time, please query at the above address. The long...

Submission Window: September 22nd to October 22nd 2024 Payment: $50 upon publication Theme: Stories about how we seek out, discover, and grasp onto connection in all genres with a particular fondness for anything that moves beyond realism in form or content or spirit At Astrolabe, we’re looking for work about how we seek out, discover, and grasp onto connection. Into the woods. Across a line. Beneath the ocean. Along a seam. Into the branches of an alternate present or the crevasse of an alternate future. Across the rifts between one another. And then, once we find one other, the myths we make. We’re excited to see as many interpretations of this broad theme as there are stars in the night sky. We’re open to work of all genres, with a particular fondness for anything that moves beyond realism in form or content or spirit. Read about Astrolabe for details on our mission and what we’re doing with the Universe. The details We pay a $50 honorarium upon publication of one or more pieces from your submission. To help fund those payments, we alternate between free and paid submission periods throughout the year. Our free periods begin the day we publish new work—on the spring equinox, summer solstice, autumnal equinox, and winter solstice—and stay open for a month. Here are the next free periods: September 22nd to October 22nd December 21st to Jan 21, 2025 Some additional details: We currently accept three types of work: fiction, creative nonfiction, and photography & art. See below for genre-specific instructions. We’re not a market for lineated poetry at the moment. We do accept simultaneous submissions, but please let us know if your work was accepted for publication elsewhere—we’ll be thrilled for your good news! No multiple submissions—and if we don’t accept your work, please wait until our next submission period before...

Deadline: October 27th, 2024 Payment: 8 cents/6 pence per word for original stories, 6 cents/4 pence for reprints. Theme: Afrofuturism Note: Reprints Welcome In 2025 and 2026 Flame Tree will publish two new books in the Gothic Fantasy series, following the groundwork of our successful Black Sci-Fi Short Stories, African Ghost Short Stories and First Peoples Shared Stories. First is Afrofuturism Short Stories, followed a year later by Africanfuturism. The National Museum of African American History and Culture characterises Afrofuturism as expressing "notions of Black identity, agency and freedom through art, creative works and activism that envision liberated futures for Black life." This is Africa, based in Kenya, defines Africanfuturism as located in "the African point of view, experience, culture, themes, and history with technology based in Africa, not the diaspora". The publication of these two books offers a dialogue that explores tradition and influence, and fresh insights both about our past, and visions of our future. So, our first call, is for Afrofuturism. Please bear in mind the specific definition above for this title, as distinct from that for Africanfuturism. Authors must be writing from an authentic perspective of the Black experience, whether based in the diaspora or in Africa. Submit to: [email protected]   Terms: Multiple submissions are fine but must be in separate emails. Simultaneous submissions are fine but you must have the right to license your story in an anthology. For accepted stories we pay Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) rates of 8 cents/6 pence per word for original stories, 6 cents/4 pence for reprints. We will aim to read each story and confirm its status within 4 months of the submission deadline. Payment for the chosen stories will be made within 30 days of the final advertised publication date (see our website flametreepublishing.com for details), although some may be paid earlier than that. Submission does not imply the right to publication....

Deadline: October 27th, 2024 Payment: 8 cents/6 pence per word for original stories, 6 cents/4 pence for reprints. Theme: Were Wolves Note: Reprints Welcome We are seeking stories about werewolves, shapeshifting humans, rivalries and alliances between vampyr and werewolves. The word werewolf goes back more than a thousand years, coming directly from the Old English wer, meaning Man, and wolf. Also of interest is folklore and mythology which plays on such legends as Fenrir (born of Loki) defeating Odin at Ragnarök, and early Slavic myths and rituals in which were wolf skins are removed and stolen. Stories can explore wolves which might have been human, changing by choice at the howl of the moon, or people cursed and damned to be wolves for all time. Is that why the lone wolf is alone? The wolfish grin is a little shy? Is that why we wolf down our food? Is there a wolf inside us all? In the forests around us? Hunting us, haunting us, protecting itself and its kind. Submit to: [email protected]   Terms: Multiple submissions are fine but must be in separate emails. Simultaneous submissions are fine but you must have the right to license your story in an anthology. For accepted stories we pay Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) rates of 8 cents/6 pence per word for original stories, 6 cents/4 pence for reprints. We will aim to read each story and confirm its status within 4 months of the submission deadline. Payment for the chosen stories will be made within 30 days of the final advertised publication date (see our website flametreepublishing.com for details), although some may be paid earlier than that. Submission does not imply the right to publication. Each story will be read and assessed by the selection panel. Let us know in your submission email whether...

Deadline: October 30th, 2024 Payment: $25 Theme: Australian and New Zealand authors who identify as neurodivergent telling tales of characters accepting and embracing their neurodiversity Last year a press in Australia made a call for neurodivergent voices and their short stories, but only if they had a medical diagnosis. In this country it can take two years to find the truth about ourselves – and at great cost – so Deadset Press wanted to provide an alternative for the neurodivergent writers of Australia. We made a call for those voices, and E. J. Dawson joined in, helping us create a neurodiverse apocalyptic anthology, EMBRACE THE SILENCE, open to anyone self-identifying as neurodivergent. But like many ND folk we had other commitments. We are now re-opening our submissions call on a wider scale for apocalyptic, dystopian and scifi short stories which focus on neurodiverse characters. There are not enough of these in fiction and we are hoping by broadening our submission call we can hear more of these voices. We welcome submissions from all Australian and New Zealand authors who identify as neurodivergent, and will also encourage submissions from neurodivergent Indigenous and LGBTIQ authors. EMBRACE THE SILENCE will be assembled – from the cover to the footnotes – by a team of neurodiverse individuals, including the wonderful E. J. Dawson and the sleep deprived Austin P. Sheehan. The idea behind the title EMBRACE THE SILENCE refers to characters accepting and embracing their neurodiversity, as well as adapting to a changing and challenging new world. We encourage you to be as creative as you like in your approach to the theme. Our preferred length for short stories is between 4,000 and 6,000 words, however this is just a guideline, we won’t auto-reject stories based on word count alone. Submissions are currently open until October 30th, and we...

Deadline: October 30th, 2024 Payment: $25 Theme: Australian and New Zealand authors who identify as LGBTIQA+, from any gender identity, and ally authors sharing stories that feature LGBTIQA+ characters of any gender identity across the wide universes of speculative fiction. Swashbuckling pirates, mischievous necromancers, charming elder gods, dashing bounty hunters, anything goes! We are excited to announce a new anthology, REVOLUTIONS & RAINBOWS: An Australasian Queer Speculative Anthology. The anthology is to celebrate Pride and will be open to all Australian and New Zealand authors who identify as LGBTIQA+, from any gender identity, and ally authors. We want stories that feature LGBTIQA+ characters of any gender identity across the wide universes of speculative fiction. Swashbuckling pirates, mischievous necromancers, charming elder gods, dashing bounty hunters, anything goes! As REBELS & RAINBOWS is a celebration of Pride and the incredible and incredibly diverse LGBTIQA+ community, we want stories that celebrate love, acceptance, strength and community, and also stories that reflect the challenges, danger, and reality of being one’s true self in a hostile world. The anthology will be edited by Leanbh Pearson, Alistair Ott and Austin P. Sheehan. Submissions will be open from 14th June to 30th October. We will not be accepting AI-written stories. All contributors will receive a payment of $25 per story. Our preferred length for short stories is between 4,000 and 6,000 words, however this is just a guideline, we won’t auto-reject stories based on word count alone. If you have any questions, or are interested in supporting this project, please feel free to reach out to us at [email protected] with ‘Rebels’ in the subject line. Via: Dead Set Press.

Submission Window: October 23rd-30th, 2024 Payment: €0.01 per word, with a €20 minimum. Theme: Diverse sci-fi and fantasy fiction. We are open to submissions within the following periods: January 23rd-30th April 23rd-30th July 23rd-30th October 23rd-30th Submissions received outside of these dates will unfortunately be lost and therefore not responded to. When open, we seek and offer the following: Length: 1,000-5,000 words. These are firm limits. Shorter or longer works will be considered, but the further a story goes outside these bounds the more it will need to impress. Compensation: €0.01 per word, with a €20 minimum. Please be aware that payment is via PayPal only. If you do not receive an acknowledgment within 24 hours of submission, please get in touch. We aim to accept or reject within 14 days of acknowledgment, but rl (real life) and rl (reading load) can get in the way. If you do not hear from us after 30 days, feel free to query. REQUIREMENTS Mythaxis seeks speculative fiction (sf/f/h) of all stripes for our first three issues each year. We are also interested in submissions of crime fiction for our end-of-year “all crime” issue. All these genres are equally welcome in each submission window. We acquire First Print, Digital, and Audio rights with a six month period of exclusivity from the date of publication. We also ask permission to potentially include accepted pieces in future anthologies; in event of agreement, an additional compensation will be offered. All other rights remain entirely with the author. See here for an overview of our editorial process. Simultaneous submissions are not only accepted, they are encouraged. Please tell us if you sim-sub, and we merely ask that you notify us of acceptance at another market as soon as possible. In the event that we accept first, we expect a positive and timely confirmation. Therefore we recommend sim-subbing...

Deadline: October 30th, 2024 Payment: $100 – $150 (depending on the length & story itself) Theme: Weird and strange horror Note: This will be distributed into a free ebook to start with and possibly released as a chapbook down the line which would include royalties at that point. WE WANT YOUR SUPER WEIRD HORROR SHORT STORY! Firstly, we want to take this opportunity to thank you for considering us to represent you and your work. Secondly, we are so excited to have you here checking out the requirements for this submission! Please follow us on social media to be up to date on any future submission calls. REQUIREMENTS Story has never been published before. 2,500 – 3,500 Total Words Make it WEIRD or STRANGE! It can be horror adjacent, comedic, gory, fantastical. Please don’t send me stories with any type of sexual assault, rape, child death, transphobia, homophobia, animal death/cruelty. Word doc or PDF. Double spaced with 12 font — any font style that is legible. At the top of the document — your name, email, social media handles, number count. Send to: [email protected] Email: In subject line put your story title and “SS Submission” WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO WITH YOUR STORY? Truborn Press is putting together their first newsletter and would like to offer a free ebook copy of a short story when folks sign up for it. Depending on the story itself and how well it does, there is a possibility of turning it into a chapbook as well in the future. WHAT DO I GET FROM THIS OPPORTUNITY? At Truborn Press we fully believe in paying people for their work in every aspect (author, designer, editor, etc). We want to also continue to support the indie horror community and especially shine a light on authors that...

Deadline: October 31st, 2024 Payment: $50 Theme: A novelette featuring detectives in a steampunk setting solving peculiar crimes. Deadline: October 31st, 2024 The genre of mystery is designed to get the cogs cranking, but let's not forget that steampunk is all about cogs too! Why not bring them together? Steampunk Sleuths will be an anthology of four novelettes (15 - 20,000 words) featuring detectives in a steampunk setting solving peculiar crimes. The only requirements for submission will be that the means of committing the crime (murder, theft, kidnapping...) must be clearly steampunk and the reader must be given the tools to crack the case before the solution is revealed. Think Agatha Christie and Jules Verne getting kinky together... um, actually, please don't. ;) * Previously unpublished only * Double the standard rate for this one: $50 USD Due to increasing numbers of submissions for our anthologies, we will no longer be sending rejection messages. We appreciate your understanding with regards to this decision. We will announce the table of contents via social media once it has been finalised. If you are not on social media, please consider your submission unsuccessful if you haven't received an email from us within two weeks of the end of the submissions period. We regularly post news on our Facebook page. You can also get a feel for what we like by buying our previously published titles. Publishing quality fiction is an expensive passion, so the more we sell, the more we can publish. It's that simple. Our cherished Patreon patrons also provide us with the means to keep producing quality books. # Rates: We use PayPal to pay our contributors. If your submission is successful, you'll need an account. Alternatively, we can pay with an electronic Amazon gift coupon. Payment is made upon publication. $25 USD  for original stories and $10 for reprints...

Deadline: October 31st, 2024 Payment: $10 and $5 for reprints Theme: Poems inspired by games or game culture (Ideally video games, tabletop also accepted.) Note: Reprints Welcome Submissions are now open for “Dangerous to Go Alone! 2”, the sequel to Manawaker Studio’s anthology of gamer poetry, edited by CB Droege. The guidelines follow. POETRY ONLY Unlike many other Manawaker anthologies, DtGA is only for poetry. Sorry, fiction writers and visual artists. We’ll do another multi-media anthology next year. ;D We are looking for poems inspired by games or game culture. Most of the selected poems will be about video games and the culture surrounding them, but some will be about tabletop games. (We don’t want any poems about field sports or casino games). For legal reasons, poems about games with specific IP should be somewhat abstract. We feel that poetry is pretty well protected by fair use in this case, so specific characters and situations can be mentioned, but it’s still better if they are only alluded to. SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS Poems (no more than five, please) should be included in the body of an e-mail (see below). If your poem requires special formatting not available in an e-mail, attach an RTF file. Previously published work is okay, as long as you let us know where it was published previously, so we can credit them in the book. It’s the submitter’s responsibility to ensure they have the rights to their work before submitting. If the work is self-published online in a public setting (like in a personal blog, forum, facebook, deviant art, etc.) this counts as previously published If your work is accepted, you will grant Manawaker Studio the right to non-exclusively publish your work as part of this project in perpetuity. The work or parts of it may also be used for promotional purposes in print or online....