Events

Deadline: April 30th, 2022 Payment: $100 Theme: Positive Visions of Democracy Note: Authors must be speculative fiction writers from across Africa and the African Diaspora and the stories should be centered around an African experience As we put pen to paper, it was literally raining coups in Africa. From Sudan to Mali, from Burkina Faso to Equatorial Guinea to Niger, one hears either of violent truncation of government or an attempt at seizing the reins of power by gun wielding soldiers who purport to act for the greater good of the country. Democracy, the system of governance that best serves the interest of the individual by allowing them a say in who governs them and how they are governed, is in peril. With this backdrop, Omenana Speculative Fiction Magazine in partnership with the National Democratic Institute (NDI) – a US-based non-governmental organisation that works to strengthen democracy – is calling for submissions for a special themed edition that explores positive visions of democracy. Note that some of the stories in this special edition will form part of a global anthology edited by Dr. Amy Johnson in late 2022. Stories for the anthology will be selected from Omenana and two other great SF magazines from South America (Mafagafo and A Taverna) and an SF magazine based in Asia (Mithila Review). What we are looking for We are looking for 15 speculative short stories that explore the theme “Positive Visions of Democracy”. We are looking for strong, character-driven stories that focus on future or other worlds where society’s bedrock is solid democratic institutions. These future or other worlds can be dystopias, but they should be ones where an entrenchment of universal suffrage holds hope. Maybe democratic principles or institutions shape the events of your story. Maybe your story re-envisions how democracy could work. Or...

Deadline: April 30th, 2022 Payment: $15 CAD upon publication ($10 for reprints) Theme: This chapbook will speak to various experiences of home, with an emphasis on those that are complex or challenging. Note: Reprints Welcome Note: I suspect horror would be a hard sell on this unless it really nailed the topic, read on! “Home: What Is It and How Do I Get There?” Chapbook – Poetry and Flash Fiction Deadline: April 30, 2022 What is home? Is it a place? A feeling? A person? Does it shift and change? Can you point towards it but never quite attain it? This chapbook will speak to various experiences of home, with an emphasis on those that are complex or challenging. Submission Guidelines: Flash Fiction: maximum 1000 words (no minimum). All genres welcome. The more imaginative, the better. Poems: maximum 60 lines INCLUDING BLANK LINES (shorter is preferred – long pieces will need to earn their length) Payment: $15 CAD upon publication ($10 for reprints) All payments through PayPal, Wise, or bank transfer. No submission fee. Multiple submissions: Yes. You can submit as many pieces as you like. Please submit each poem or story as a NEW SUBMISSION. Simultaneous submissions: Yes. Please email [email protected] right away if your piece is accepted elsewhere. Reprints: Previously published pieces will be considered, although we prefer original works. If you do send a reprint, please provide the name of the journal/date of publication, so that we can give proper attribution. Format: We aren’t too hung up on formatting. Just make it easy for us to read. No PAGES files. DOC or DOCX preferred. PDF accepted for poetry. Please title your file as follows: Title – Author Name SUBMIT TO “HOME” HERE Via: Off Topic Publishing.

Deadline: April 30th, 2022 Payment: 10 cents per word. Theme: Science fiction and fantasy that leave the reader with a sense of hope in some way. Note: My apologies on the short window, only recently came across this one so it's going up as a bonus post. Worlds of Possibility is a project I've been working on since the beginning of 2021. My patrons and subscribers' pledges help sponsor original creative Science Fiction and Fantasy works, which I release early to sponsors and then a bit later to the general public. Worlds of Possibility is a series of science fiction and fantasy works released to Subscribers and Patrons of Julia Rios exclusively for a short time before being publicly available. For this project, I am especially excited for works that leave the reader with a sense of hope in some way. Past examples of works I've published for this project are here: https://www.patreon.com/juliarios/posts?filters%5Btag%5D=Worlds%20of%20Possibility   What I want for the April 2022 reading period: Original (not reprint) science fiction and fantasy stories Up to 5,000 words, with no minimum requirement (flash is welcome!) Ideally the stories should leave the reader with some sense of hope   What rights am I asking for? The right to display the work on my Patreon, substack, or other personal site 6 months of exclusivity The right to eventually publish the work in an anthology of Worlds of Possibility works   What am I offering in exchange, and when? $0.10USD per word To be paid once we have agreed on a final version of the work (after edits, but before publication) Via: Julia Rios.  

Deadline: May 1st, 2022 Payment: $25.00 - $50.00 for fiction, $5.00 - $10.00 for poetry Theme: Story must begin with: Thomas hadn't expected to be alive when the town's time capsule was opened. 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 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. And, just to be clear, we do not accept simultaneous submissions. 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...

Deadline: May 1st, 2022 Payment: 7 cents per word Theme: Horror stories that take place in a cemetery/burial place. Horror Anthology Open Call Right now we’re reading stories for an anthology entitled Picnic in the Graveyard. 2000-4000 word horror stories that take place in a cemetery/burial place. No reprints. $0.07/word. Send stories to [email protected] w/ attached doc file. Deadline May 1st or until the graveyard is full. ……………………………………………………. FUNDAMENTAL FORMATTING FOR FICTION SUBMISSIONS Uncategorized No SASE necessary. Always follow the submission guidelines of the call if they’re provided, however tedious they might be. The information above and below works for subs you send us and where there aren’t specific formatting guidelines. How To Write a Publishing Bio with Few or No Credits Sending a submission for a call without saying something about who you are isn’t a deal breaker, but it can certainly help your cause. A brief third-person bio in a sub email has become as common as double-spaced formatting. There’s no reason why you can’t leave an impression on an editor in addition to the quality of your story, regardless of your writing credits. Here are a few examples of how you can dress up your pub bio: After stating your pen name, open with what genre or niche you most like to write. And don’t just say you like to write stories that you know an editor likes; it’s not memorable. Reggie MacReginald crafts contemporary urban legends in his spare time, some have called him a creepypasta aficionado. You might want to avoid humor. I don’t mind a little humor in a bio, but some folks go overboard. If you have a writing credit you can insert it here. Make sure to include a link to it if it can be read for free online. Editors like to learn about...

Deadline: May 1st, 2022 Payment: £30 payment and a contributors copy Theme: Powerful crime fiction short stories In November 2022, we will publish the first Red Dog Press Crime Fiction Anthology. Edited by Stephen J. Golds, this will be a collection of stories under the title GONE. ​ We are looking for powerful crime fiction short stories, of between 3500 and 6000 words, within all sub-genres of crime fiction. ​ GONE will combine stories from world-class, best selling authors, with debuts and as yet unsigned authors. We will open submissions on March 1st and close them on May 1st, so you don't have long to get your story in shape. All that we ask is that what you submit is a unique and powerful piece of crime fiction, clearly related to the theme 'GONE'. ​ Submissions must be sent before closing to [email protected], with the subject line GONE: (Your Story Title) and (Your Name). ​ All selected contributors will receive £30 payment and a contributors copy of the anthology. ​ Stories which don't match the theme, are too long or too short, will be instantly discounted. Successful authors will be alerted by email by 6th May 2022. ​ Good luck, we're looking forward to reading your words. ​ Via: Red Dog Press.

Submission Window: April 1st - May 1st, 2022 Payment: Short Story-2,500 words or less. $0.01 USD per word/$25 USD max, Poems-less than 200 words $10, Flash Fiction-less than a 1,000 words $0.01 USD per word/$10 USD max Theme: Sex works: Exposed, Exploited, and Missing The Summer 2022 Issue’s theme is SEX WORKERS: EXPOSED, EXPLOITED, AND MISSING. This theme’s focus is autonomy, legalization, and equal protection under the law. It is not sex focused, but lifestyle focused. LGC is sex positive and wishes to explore the possibilities of sacred prostitution and social acceptance of a profession that has existed since humans began. All submissions through Duotrope link above. Acceptances will be notified on May 15. The Last Girls Club Magazine is a quarterly feminist horror magazine that publishes international short stories and poems from the female gaze. It is an homage to the scary comics and zines of the late 20th century. Please check on the website for the theme in detail. Submissions will be accepted from Jan 1-Feb 1, April 1-May 1, July 1-Aug 1, Oct 1-Nov 1. Final notifications will be Feb 15, May 15, Aug 15, Nov 15. No more than two fiction stories per author per submission period. Fiction is limited to 2,500 words or less. Flash fiction must be under 1,000 words, no more than two from an author. No more than three poems per poet. Poems are limited to 200 words or less for each poem. I prefer to use PayPal to pay authors, but will work with authors where PayPal is not available. Nonfiction columns will must be pitched to editor in chief before submission. Email your idea to [email protected] Submit at the link below: Via: Last Girls Club Duotrope.

Deadline: May 1st, 2022 Prizes: The top three winners will receive cash prizes of $75, $50, and $25 respectively Theme: A sci fi, fantasy, paranormal or horror LGBTIQA story that has no more than 300 words with the theme of: Clarity Every year, QSF holds a flash fiction contest to create an amazing new anthology of queer speculative fiction stories. We ask authors to do the nearly-impossible – to submit a sci fi, fantasy, paranormal or horror LGBTIQA story that has no more than 300 words. Our 2022 contest launches on March 1st, and closes on May 1st, but we do accept early entries. The theme for 2022 is “Clarity”: 1) Coherent and intelligible 2) Transparent or pure 3) Attaining certainty about something 4) Easy to see or hear The whole world is murky right now. Covid waves, climate change, and right-wing pollution of our airwaves have made even truth suspect and subject to dispute. What we need most is clarity. Clarity about the world around us and the path forward. Tell us about clarity in all its forms and the difference it can make on your characters, the culture, and the world, for better or worse. We’ll be accepting works from across the queer spectrum, and would love to see more entries including lesbian, trans, bi, intersex and ace protagonists, as well as gay men. We also welcome diversity in ability (physical and mental) and in race. We had our most diverse set of entries yet in 2021 – let’s keep up the trend! We always get tons of gay sci fi shorts every year, so if you try your hand at fantasy, paranormal or horror, especially with the other letters of the queer alphabet, you’ll have a better chance of standing out. Try for something unique – take...

Deadline: May 1st, 2022 Payment: 15GBP Theme: Ageing If you think you’ve got what it takes to terrify, scar and haunt our audience of 10,000 daily listeners, then we want your stories! If accepted, we'll get our fantastic narration team to lend their voices, our editor will sprinkle some magic pixie dust on the track, and you could have your story heard by thousands of listeners each week. (Vol 83.) Ageing; deadline 1st May 2022 !!!NEW SUBMISSION PROCESS!!! SUBMIT YOUR STORIES USING THIS FORM If, this form isn’t working, then please email your submission to [email protected] as a last resort. But please let us know why as we’re hoping to use the form going forward. Title your email with the following syntax: SUBMISSION | STORY TITLE | THEME | WORDCOUNT (e.g. SUBMISSION | THE MARTIAN | SPACE | 1,982) It is important that your story complies with our Submission Guidelines. Any stories found not to be in compliance will be immediately discarded. Click HERE for details If you think you’ve got what it takes to terrify, scar and haunt our audience of 10,000 daily listeners, then we want your stories! If accepted, we'll get our fantastic narration team to lend their voices, our editor will sprinkle some magic pixie dust on the track, and you could have your story heard by thousands of listeners each week. HERE'S WHAT YOU NEED TO DO: • Stories must be 2,000 (10% tolerance +/-) • Save stories in a Word document - Times New Roman font, size 12 • Include a 1-2 sentence log line for your story at the end of the document • Ensure that your name and an email address are somewhere on the document • Stories must fit an upcoming theme • By submitting your story to us, you are...

Deadline: May 2nd, 2022 Payment: 5 cents per word and a contributor's copy Theme: Hard sci-fi, soft sci-fi, sci-fi, Speculative fiction, weird fiction, slipstream Planet Scumm accepts submissions from writers across the world. (Our HQ is a roving meteor-sized space station—Earth’s borders mean nothing to us. We want to hear from writers of every race, nationality, and gender identity. WHAT TO SUBMIT Hard sci-fi, soft sci-fi, sci-fi that melts in your mouth-brain not your hand-brain Speculative fiction, weird fiction, slipstream Basically anything that pleases Scummy, our megaphone-toting slime buddy, will be considered for entry to the interstellar archive aboard Scummy’s saucer HOW TO SUBMIT Include submissions as a .doc or .docx attachment to [email protected] along with a brief cover letter in the email body. Please attach only your story (no images, do not put your story in the body text of the email). Stories, or collections of flash fiction, should be no more than 5,000 words in length, and submitted in standard manuscript format. Submit only one previously unpublished short story or flash collection. We will not accept multiple submissions from the same author in one reading period. Simultaneous submissions are okay, as long as you promptly withdraw a story accepted elsewhere. SCHEDULE, RIGHTS, AND PAYMENT Accepted authors receive 5 cents a word and one contributor copy. Our publication operates in print, e-book, and audiobook. Some accepted stories will also be published on our website. We purchase exclusive English language print, audio, and electronic publishing rights for six months, with non-exclusive rights thereafter. Authors will receive payment within 3 months of signing their contract.   Via: Planet Scumm.