Events

Submission Window: February 1st - 28th, 2023 Payment: 1 cent per word for fiction, $5 for poetry, 1 cent per word for non-fiction, $35 for cover art Theme: Speculative fiction It's our goal to publish diverse voices from around the world, and to do that, we are actively seeking stories, poems, and non-fiction pieces by authors from backgrounds that have been historically underrepresented in the science fiction and fantasy canon. Our submission cycle is therefore split into two categories, where every other month is explicitly reserved for submissions by authors of color, members of the LGBTQIA+ community, and other underrepresented groups. The interposing six months remain open to everyone. Guidelines for Fiction We are seeking stories in the English language up to 6,000 words by writers from around the world. We favor submisions that have not been published before (including on your own website), though we do accept a limited number of reprints not currently appearing anywhere online. For our two issues focused on the climate crisis, we're particularly interested in publishing stories from people displaced by or threatened by the climate emergency (see our themes below). For our other four issues, we're open to a wide variety of stories across the SFF and weird spectra. We pay 1¢ per word for fiction, and we try to respond to all submissions within ten weeks. We will also accept a limited number of previously published stories, so please indicate on the form if your submission is a reprint. All submissions must use the Shunn manuscript format (we prefer Courier New) and be either .rtf, .doc, or .docx. We like stories that are subtle in their telling and stick with us long after we've finished. We're more likely to buy stories that balance a sense of wonder with a bold plot and...

Submission Window: February 1st - 28th, 2023 Payment: $100 for the chosen story + 50% of subscription revenue Theme: Any genre, short story Mission = Revive the art of the short story, support artists, and produce something wonderful. Payout = Base Pay of $100 for the chosen story + 50% of subscription revenue to be sent by Paypal, Zelle, or check. Wait, you mean if this substack gets thousands of subscribers, the winner would get thousands of dollars? Yes! The New Yorker pays roughly $7,500 per story and I sincerely hope to go way past that. What does the timeline look like? Submit stories by the end of the month, winner to be announced on the 15th. There is ONE story that wins and receives the full payout. Where do I send submissions? [email protected] What are the rules for submitting? 1. No Fees 2. Send in Microsoft Word or Google Doc form 3. Any genre 4. 6- 10,000 words. Yes, just 6 words, like Hemingway's famous 6-word story "For Sale: Baby shoes, never worn." 5. Reprints are ok so long as you still have the rights to distribute. 6. Acknowledge Distribution Rights on this Substack - You can still sell your story elsewhere but we need to be able to save and publish it here. The goal is to create a library for subscribers. 7. Only the winner will be published and rights will only transfer for the winning story. What do I get for subscribing? One beautiful story every month. The complete library. The joy of supporting artists and doing something interesting. What if I can’t pay right now? That’s ok! If you publish a blurb about this site on your website, blog, or social media, I will send you one full story of your choosing. Best of all, it is...

Deadline: February 28th, 2023 Payment: $100 and a contributors copy Theme: Anything story 'from that future' that includes bitcoin Konsensus Network is accepting story submissions for the world’s first bitcoin short-fiction anthology, 21 Futures: Tales from the Timechain The book will contain 21 short fiction stories from various authors, one of whom could be you! We want to present a broad spectrum of possible worlds all told through the lens of bitcoin. Stories must be fiction and must feature bitcoin in a meaningful way. The book will feature work from some of the most prominent voices in the bitcoin community in addition to emerging short-fiction authors. Primarily, our editors are looking for gripping, human-interest stories with emotional impact. They want strong characters, high stakes, and moments of epiphany and change. The idea is not to predict the future of bitcoin, but to expose the situations it may uncover. We are keen to publish a variety of visions, not just sci-fi dystopias and stories of crime and fraud. Send your story Writers should submit stories between 1,500-3,000 words before the deadline of 28th February 2023. If selected as one of the 21 stories to feature, authors will receive $100 in exchange for Global, unlimited publishing rights.* Yes, you can get paid in sats. You will also naturally get a copy of the book, fresh off the press. Please send submissions in English as a document (odt or doc preferred) to [email protected] along with a 50-word author biography. We only accept one submission per author, so please send us the best one! The small print We don’t want to limit your creativity, but there are some important guidelines that all submissions must follow. Submissions should not feature any other kinds of “blockchain technology”, “Web3” platforms, “cryptocurrencies” or “NFTs”. The accuracy of bitcoin terminology, ethos and technology...

Submission Window: February 1st-28th, 2023 Payment: 10 cents per word, Reprints at 1 cent per word Theme: Stories that deal with death and what comes from death (see below) The Deadlands exists in liminal spaces between life, death, and elsewhere. We are looking for fiction that concerns itself with death—but also everything death may involve. A ghost in a shadowed wood. An afterlife discovered through a rusted door. An abandoned house in the middle of a haunted field. A skeletal figure moving with intent toward something unseen. Death personified. Burials in troubled lands. A raised scythe against a clouded sky. Memento mori. The rivers of the dead. The sprawling underworlds beneath our feet. The Deadlands would love to see stories from a worldwide perspective, different cultures, different approaches to death. We welcome stories from everyone, everywhere. We are particularly interested in works by writers from historically marginalized and underrepresented backgrounds. Stories that feature characters impacted by someone passing away and processing the event of death are fair game, but will likely be a hard sell unless they also do something else. Stories about related subjects—zombies, demons, vampires, apocalypses, and the various undead—are not for us. An apocalypse may be your setting, but it isn’t your story. We are absolutely not interested in seeing weird West stories, steampunk tales, or military fiction. We are not interested in stories involving Lovecraft’s mythos. Humor will be a harder sell than heartbreaking. If your story begins with someone waking up, it is not for us. Explore some influences we’re drawing from. The Deadlands accepts stories up to 5000 words. There is no minimum length. Stories should be original and unpublished (this includes your blog, your website, your newsletter, your Patreon). The sweet spot for length is probably around 3-4k. Please do not submit reprints and originals at the same time....

Deadline: February 28th 2022 Payment: 10 cents per word Theme: Beyond the Veil NOTE: The magazine also runs a monthly contest with a $3000 prize, though the contest is only open to members who pay the $10/month fee How do you feel as you lift the wedding veil? As you lay the burial shroud? When you stand at life’s final doorway, will you look back and say you tried to reveal truth, or to conceal it? Veils obscure what’s right in front of our eyes. The great wizard is only a man behind the curtain. It’s smoke and mirrors—and there’s always another secret. Try to read between the lines and glean the truth wrapped in lies. Disguises, double-meanings, and false trails. Even the sun hides behind the moon. Be wary of peering too closely at the darkness, where unseen creatures shift in the night. But light blinds as easily as shadows, so hold your lantern high and hope the lighthouse pierces the fog. Still, veils keep us safe. Sane. Just ask anyone who’s glimpsed the future and seen their death. Is reality that brittle? But hush now, the masked performers are waiting backstage. The curtain rises, our story begins. All new writers can submit work to the magazine. It’s free. We don’t believe publications should charge authors to be published. However, we have a specific submission process you must adhere to in order to have your work considered. Our submissions window opens on the first and closes at midnight on the final day of each month. Each issue of the magazine is themed according to our monthly prompt. The prompts are designed to inspire ideas but leave room for you to tell the story you want to tell. You can always write in any genre. This month’s prompt can be viewed...

Deadline: February 28th, 2023 Payment: €20 Theme: horror, sci-fi, fantasy and erotica that grapple with the topic of Endings Note: Reprints Welcome Submissions are open from February 01-28 2023 for TOWER VOL. 1: END. We accept all genres and encourage submissions of horror, sci-fi, fantasy and erotica. For VOL. 1: END we’re looking for work that grapples with endings, death, dissolution and finality; sudden, brutal endings; torturously slow breakdowns; how do things come to an end and who gets to decide? Some inspirations: The desperation for an ending to the tortures of Gretchen Felker-Martin’s No End Will Be Found The cyclical violence in “Herbert White” by Frank Bidart The clash between audience and artist’s expectations of an ending in ABC’s LOST The desperate battle against a prophesied ending in William Shakespeare’s Macbeth The incomprehensible disappearance and abrupt end of an internet friendship in Lol Cuthbert’s “This journal has been deleted and purged” How we go on after the end of the world in Gretchen Felker-Martin’s Manhunt, Kentaro Miura’s Berserk and Torrey Peters’ Infect Your Friends and Loved Ones The role of geography and place in predetermining a life as in Cherie Priest’s Those Who Went Remain There Still The endless scroll of Tiktok PAYMENT Payment is €20 per contributor paid via PayPal or Revolut. Co-authored pieces count as one contributor. Issues will be hosted at readtower.itch.io and available for PWYC down to free. REPRINTS We are open to reprints and encourage submissions of self-published materials (EG. an illustration or comic posted to Twitter, a short story published on itch.io). SIMULTANEOUS / MULTIPLE SUBMISSIONS We’re totally fine with simultaneous submissions, just email us withdrawing your piece if it’s accepted elsewhere. Please only submit once per category, making a different submission for each category. We encourage submissions of related works (EG. a story and accompanying illustration). FORMATTING We love pieces with unusual formats, specific layouts or mixed media, for example, “The Pipeline” by...

Deadline: March 1st, 2023 Payment: short story, $25; short-short piece (up to 1000 words), $10; poem, $10, artwork, $25 for cover, $10 for interior page display. Theme: Help from a Stranger ALL SHORT STORIES, ESSAYS, POEMS, PHOTOGRAPHS and ART MUST RELATE TO ONE OF THE PREMISES SPECIFIED ABOVE. NOTE: Previously published pieces are welcome, provided that the submission fits the theme and that the author owns the copyright. The premise (target theme) must be an integral part of the plot, not necessarily the central theme but not merely incidental. NOTE: Fewer than 20 double-spaced typewritten pages preferred. Indicate premise (target theme) on title page. Be sure to Indicate target theme in cover letter or on first page of manuscript. Include self-addressed, stamped envelope (SASE) with each submission. Rejected manuscripts unaccompanied by an SASE will not be returned. Response time: 3 months after premise deadline.  NO READER'S FEE. Mail to: THEMA, Box 8747, Metairie, LA 70011-8747. Outside the US: email [email protected] On acceptance for publication, we will pay the following amount: short story, $25; short-short piece (up to 1000 words), $10; poem, $10; artwork, $25 for cover, $10 for interior page display. Copyright reverts to author after publication. THEMA isn't for everyone. To find out why, click here. New to submitting manuscripts to journals? Click here to download a PDF file of a few basic guidelines. Unlike many publishers, we prefer works submitted by the authors themselves, without the involvement of an agent. Be sure to indicate premise and include SASE for each submission.  BE SURE to include a separate SASE for each premise. No handwritten manuscripts will be considered. NOTE: We do not accept e-mailed submissions EXCEPT from authors who live outside the U.S. For those living outside the U.S., submit manuscript as an email attachment (readable by MSWord ― either as a DOC file or an RTF file), and include the following information on the title...

Deadline: March 1st, 2023 Payment: Royalties through Draft2Digital Theme: Winter Holiday stories of warmth, good cheer, love, and miracles We are looking for Winter Holiday stories of warmth, good cheer, love, and miracles. Please no “dark” stories for this anthology. (Send your darker winter or holiday stories to Particular Passages: Closed For The Season.) Submissions open now until March 1st, 2023. Anthology expected to be published in or around December, 2023. **If you don’t have the patience to wait a year for your story to be published, DON’T SUBMIT.** * *If you are not willing to obtain a Draft2Digital account in order to receive royalty shares as payment, then DON’T SUBMIT.** For this anthology, please no horror or anything more than kissing or implied sex. Please keep content and language limited to the equivalent of a “PG” rated movie. We want to be able to share this with our mothers and children. There are no genre restrictions on this anthology, as long as the story fits the theme. Please remember, Knight Writing Press will not accept a story that glorifies, supports, encourages, or gratuitously includes hate, hate crimes, rape, sex, sex crimes, or any other forms of inhumanity. Please make sure you read and follow all submission guidelines and look over the sample contract before you submit. The sample contract will not exactly match what you will receive, should your story be accepted, but it will give you a good idea of what to expect. In the text of your query letter, include confirmation that you understand we are using Draft2Digital and that you must have an account there in order to receive royalties for your story. Failure to do this may result in an immediate rejection for failing to follow submission guidelines. No reprints. (The reason for this is explained on the Upcoming and Open...

Deadline: March 1st, 2023 Payment: Royalties Theme: Dark, scary, terrible Halloween stories We want your dark, scary, terrible Halloween stories guaranteed to make the reader afraid to answer the door because those just might not be Trick-or Treaters giggling out there… (Doesn’t have to be Halloween themed, but the Halloween holiday is the general aim of this anthology.) Submissions open now until March 1st, 2023. Anthology expected to be published in or around October, 2023. **If you don’t have the patience to wait a year for your story to be published, DON’T SUBMIT.** **If you are not willing to obtain a Draft2Digital account in order to receive royalty shares as payment, then DON’T SUBMIT.** For this anthology, please no “extreme” horror or “graphic” sex. Please keep content and language limited to the equivalent of a “PG-13” rated movie. While we do want this to be a horror anthology, we are not interested in the extremes of the genre. We are interested in thrills and chills horror not shock value/gross out horror. Please remember, Knight Writing Press will not accept a story that glorifies, supports, encourages, or gratuitously includes hate, hate crimes, rape, sex, sex crimes, or any other forms of inhumanity. Please make sure you read and follow all submission guidelines and look over the sample contract before you submit. The sample contract will not exactly match what you will receive should your story be accepted, but it will give you a good idea of what to expect. In the text of your query letter, include confirmation that you understand we are using Draft2Digital and that you must have an account there in order to receive royalties for your story. Failure to do this may result in an immediate rejection for failing to follow submission guidelines. No reprints. (The reason for this is explained on...

Deadline: March 1st, 2023 Payment: $.08 per word Theme: Halloween Kangas Kahn Publishing is seeking unpublished Halloween short stories for an upcoming anthology to be released in September of 2023. We're looking to put together the best Halloween anthology in existence, and that's a tall order because there are a lot of great ones out there. That's why we've hired one of the best to edit it: Kenneth W. Cain. This is an open-themed anthology, but Halloween must be central to the story. Length: 2,000-5,000 words. Make them seep with the Halloween spirit, no matter what month we're reading it. We put out a book called Halloween: The Greatest Holiday of All, so you know we're fanatical when it comes to All Hallows' Eve. We will accept up to three submissions per author. Simultaneous submissions are acceptable but please let us know if it’s sold elsewhere. If a story is accepted or rejected, notification will be within sixty days of submission. If it's in consideration then it could be as late as April 1st, 2023. Please attach your story and email it to [email protected] with the subject "Halloween Anthology Submission". In the body of the email, please give us a short bio with credits, if any. Not having credits doesn't mean anything to us; the story is what counts. Make sure your story is in proper format(Shunn)--you can find details here: https://www.shunn.net/format/ We're buying global first print and digital publication rights for one year exclusively from the date of print(Sept 2023). After that, all rights revert to the author, and we maintain non-exclusive rights to keep the book in print. Note: This anthology will be approximately 60/40 invitation/open-submission. We expect to have some big names in this anthology, so competition will be fierce. Via: Kangas Kahn Publishing.