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Deadline: February 28th, 2019 Payment: 2 cents per word and $50 per poem PLEASE READ THE SUBMISSIONS GUIDELINES BELOW. HINNOM MAGAZINE IN 2019 WILL BE A SEMI-PROFESSIONAL MARKET, PAYING 2 CENTS ($0.02) PER WORD FOR FICTION & $50 FOR POEMS.   Greetings from the Valley of Hinnom, With the amazing success of Hinnom Magazine during 2017 & 2018, we have decided to implement some major changes, including the reading period and the pay rate. The publication will be quarterly, to be released on an as-of-yet unannounced schedule, and there will be one submission period for the entire year of 2019 unless otherwise noted in the future. So mark your calendars! We seek authors who have a unique voice, interesting writing styles, and unparalleled storytelling talents. We also encourage prospective authors to read one of our previous publications to get a feel of the atmosphere and themes we favor. We know a lot of publishers say this, but there is good reason for it. FICTION SUBMISSION DETAILS: Below, you will find the genres and subgenres that we adore. Again, if you read our previous releases, you will likely develop a solid understanding of what Hinnom Magazine represents in dark fiction & poetry. The guidelines will be much stricter this year, so please pay close attention to the details. We are looking for stories and poems that fit the themes of Weird Fiction and Cosmic Horror. Horror, Science Fiction, and Fantasy are all welcomed, as long as they fit in the realms of Weird and Cosmic. All stories and poems must also be speculative in some way. What we mean by this is that we don’t want stories or poems based in realism. While many great horror stories and poems are plausible in modern reality, these are not for Hinnom Magazine. Thus, all horror MUST BE otherworldly or supernatural in some way. Science Fiction MUST BE dark and speculative. Fantasy MUST BE morally ambiguous and grim. Any combination...

Deadline: February 28th, 2019 Payment: 5 cents per word and a contributor's copy Letters from the Grave: A Collection of Epistolary Horror The epistolary form has a long, proud tradition in the horror genre. From the classics such as Frankenstein and Dracula, through modern classics like World War Z. We want to see your fresh takes on the idea. Remember that the epistolary genre doesn’t just include letters. It can be stories created from nearly any kinds or combinations of documents, i.e. crime scene reports, diary entries, interview transcripts, etc. This can include modern electronic and digital “documents” such as texts, voicemails, Tweets, blog posts, and more. Original stories only, no reprints. Preferred word count: 2,000 to 10,000 words Payment and rights: $.05/word on acceptance, and one paperback contributor’s copy. First Print and First Electronic Rights, exclusive for 1 year. The anthology will be published as an ebook and in paperback, and we reserve the right to produce a hardcover edition. Reading period: Now, through February 28, 2019. Stories should be submitted to [email protected], with the subject line “Letters from the Grave.” Please don’t send us: Fan-fiction or stories using other authors’ characters, settings, etc, unless they are in the public domain. Incest, child sex, sexual assault, racism, etc. This is a horror anthology, of course, so “adult content” and horrific, disturbing incidents are certainly going to be there. Make sure, however, that any of these elements are necessary to the story and that their depiction makes sense in the context of the letter or other documents. Random horror stories that you’ve stuck a “Hey, you’ll never believe what happened to me!” email frame around. Via: Orbannin Books.

Deadline: February 28th, 2019 Payment: $5 Trigger Warning is an annual collection of stories geared toward making readers uncomfortable. This is the place to be gratuitous, to expound on the details that might make readers wish they could turn their eyes away. So long as you write well enough that they are unable to. Each year Trigger Warning will focus on a different theme. In 2019 our theme is body horror! As per Wikipedia: Body horror or biological horror is a subgenre of horror which intentionally showcases graphic or psychologically disturbing violations of the human body. These violations may manifest through aberrant sex, mutations, mutilation, zombification, gratuitous violence, disease, or unnatural movements of the body.  There you have it. We will not accept any stories about rape. (Yes this means the aberrant sex must be consensual.) Racism/Sexism/Bigotry of any form will never be accepted here. Stories between 1500-5000 words prefered. Double check your grammar and spelling. Format your story correctly. Please submit all stories in DOC/RTF format. We prefer stories that have not been published before. We prefer to avoid multiple and simultaneous submissions. We retain exclusive publishing rights for 12 months. We pay $5.00 for stories up to 5000 Deadline is 2.28.19 Send all submissions with the subject ‘TW Body Horror Submission’ to [email protected] Via: Deep In The Heard Of Madness.

Deadline: February 28th, 2019 Payment: 50% of the royalties divided equally among the authors What We Talk About When We Talk About It Darkhouse Books seeks submissions for the third installment in its RIFF literary series, What We Talk About When We Talk About It: Variations on the Theme of Love. Send us your best poetry or prose on this very broad theme. What is love, anyhow? You can love your partner, your friend, your country, your dog, cat, rat, your local library, your family, yourself. You can love money, liquor, food, wilderness, or the dive bar on the corner. What does love make people do? What will people give for it? What will they steal? Does the razor love the wrist as a baby loves the breast? Where does sex figure in all of this? Does it? What we love and do not love: This series leans toward the literary while welcoming all genres, so long as the author has paid close attention to craft. We are not looking for standard romance, but if you think your romance will win our love anyway, send it. Send us work that stands out because of its excellence, of course, but also because of its creative take on the theme and on the craft of writing. Take a risk and do it with panache! When it comes to prose, the editors prefer short and tight, but if you write long and you can prove us wrong, you’re in. We will accept reprints so long as the piece was published more than a year before you submit it, and you are submitting in accordance with the previous publisher’s guidelines, and ours. Maximum length is 5,000 words; there is no minimum. SUBMISSION Requirements: Format your piece in 12-point Times New Roman or Courier, double spaced, with initial...

Deadline: February 28th, 2019 Payment: 4 cents a word and a contributor's copy Triangulation is open for submissions.. We are Parsec Ink’s speculative fiction annual, now in our 15th year. We’re looking for outstanding fantasy, science fiction, weird fiction, and speculative horror–from new and established writers. Take the theme and run with it. Tell us a story we won’t forget. Theme: Triangulation: Dark Skies will be a celebration of the dark. This year, we are joining forces with the International Dark-Sky Associationto raise awareness of the dangers of light pollution—to human health, to animals and plants in the nighttime ecosystem, and to the future of astronomical research on our planet. We’d like to see proactive characters experiencing firsthand the dangers and consequences of a world without darkness, but even more than that, we want stories celebrating our place in the universe, and our ability, as sentient beings, to see into the depths of space. Give us past, present, and future accounts. Cautionary tales. Secondary worlds and altered timelines. The effects of light pollution are many and varied—feel free to explore any aspects, from neurobiological studies, to life in an alien star system, to legends out of time. How To Submit: Electronic submissions make our lives easier. Please upload your story via Submittable. If this is your first time using Submittable, you will need to create an account with them. Don’t worry: it’s free. SUBMIT YOUR STORY HERE!   Submissions Open: December 1, 2018 Submissions Close: February 28, 2019 Word Count: We consider fiction up to 5,000 words, but the sweet spot is 3,000. There is no minimum word count. Genre: We accept science fiction, fantasy, and horror–and enjoy intelligent blends of the three. Stories without a speculative element will not be considered. Compensation: Pay is semi-pro: 4 cents a word. Authors will receive an e-book and one print copy of the anthology, plus...

Deadline: February 28th, 2019 Payment: $50 CAD and a contributor's copy Keep your feet on the ground. Sink in roots. Stay grounded. Mother Earth. We come from dust, and to dust we return… Earth is steady. Solid. Reliable. It is the source of life and the thing which sustains it. But it’s not always serene and peaceful. It takes a lot to stir the earth but when it does, things get dramatic. Quakes swallow cities. Oceans rise. Mountains crumble. Earth is not weak, and it knows no pity. In this, the second installment of the Elemental Anthology series, I want to explore the many facets of this often under-estimated element and the creatures associated with it so Earth: Giants, Golems and Gargoyles will be filled with stories about every kind of earthy creature you can imagine, not only those listed in the subtitle. I’m looking for trolls, dwarves, earth dragons, goblins, ogres, orcs, grotesques and earthen beasts no one has ever heard of before. And of course this anthology will not be complete without at least one giant, golem and gargoyle! Rights and compensation: Payment: $50 CAD flat fee and a paperback copy of the anthology. In exchange we are seeking first world rights in English and exclusive right to publish in print and electronic format for six months after publication date, after which publisher retains nonexclusive right to continue to publish for the life of the anthology. Open submission period: January 1, 2019 – February 28, 2019 Length: Under 7,500 words How to submit: Use the Submittable form found here https://niteblade.submittable.com/submit (If form is not visible, submissions are not yet open) No simultaneous or multiple submissions. No reprints. Canadian spelling, please. Via: Rhonda Parrish.

Deadline: February 28th, 2018 Payment: $0.03 per word, minimum of 30.00 Apparition Lit is open for poetry and short story submissions four times a year. February 15-28 May 15-31 August 15-31 November 15-30 Our themes for 2019 will be: Resistance (Submission period November 15-30, 2018 (CLOSED), Published January 2019) Ambition (Submission period February 15-28, 2019, Publishing April 2019) Retribution (Submission period May 15-31, 2019, Publishing July 2019) Euphoria (Submission period August 15-31, 2019, Publishing October 2019) Our themes for 2018: Apparition (Published January 2018) – Delusion (Published April 2018) – Vision (Published July 2018) – Diversion (Published October 2018) Apparition Lit also holds monthly flash fiction contests. These stories will follow selected themes and be published online. For more information on themes and submission guidelines, please see the flash fiction drop down below. Payment: Apparition is a semi-pro rate magazine, paying $0.03 per word, minimum of 30.00 dollars (excluding flash contest. See details in the Flash Fiction dropdown for flash rates). If we accept your story, we are purchasing the right to publish the story online and in the quarterly edition. Rights will revert back to the artist after one year. What we’re looking for: (Click on the sections to see detailed guidelines for each classification.) Short Fiction Short Fiction: We will only accept stories between 1000-5000 words. If the story is complete with an extra hundred words, then it will still be considered. Any stories over 5,200 words will automatically be rejected. Payment: Apparition is a semi-pro magazine, paying $0.03 per word, minimum of 30.00 dollars (excluding flash contest). If we accept your story, we are purchasing the right to publish the story online and in the quarterly edition. Rights will revert back to the artist after one year. How to Submit: Format the story using the Shunn manuscript...

Deadline: February 28th, 2019 Payment: 8 cents per word Disabled People Destroy Fantasy Guidelines Reading period: January 15th, 2019 to February 28th 2019. Please do not submit anything until January 15th. Emails containing submissions will be deleted. (Uncanny Magazine uses the Moksha submission system.) We are OPEN to all submissions! Who can submit: We welcome submission from writers who identify themselves as disabled. Identity is what matters for this issue. What kinds of disabilities? All of them. Invisible and visible. Physical disabilities, learning disabilities, intellectual disabilities, mental health disabilities, and neurodiversity. Yes, even if your disability is a recently acquired one. Yes, even if your disability is static, or if it isn’t. Yes, even if you’ve had your disability since birth. Yes, even if you use adaptive devices only SOME of the time. Yes, you. Please read Elsa Sjunneson-Henry’s essay “Disabled Enough” if you have any doubts. So, if you identify as disabled across any of these definitions or others, we want to hear from you!   A Note on Manuscript Guidelines For Fiction and Nonfiction:  14pt font, please. Serifed (ex: Time New Roman, Courier, Garamond). Double spaced. Please let the editors know if you need accommodations as well.   Fiction Fiction Editor: Katharine Duckett We do not require stories to explore issues relating to disability, though we welcome them. We’re seeking fantasy stories that invite readers to enter worlds they’ve never seen before. We’re looking for immediate and visceral tales of danger, fun and inventive adventures, and fateful journeys to distant lands or to the dragon’s lair in your own backyard. We’re looking for intricate, challenging tales with gorgeous prose, verve, and imagination that elicit strong emotions and challenge beliefs. We want the stories you’ve been yearning to encounter in the world. We want to engage with the characters you want to meet in...

Deadline: February 28th, 2019 Payment: $10 and a contributor's copy Death’s Head Press will be accepting submissions for Rope Burns, an erotic horror anthology, starting November 1, 2018 through February 28, 2019 Our two favorite things are horror and hot, naughty sex. So, let’s combine the two! Rope Burnswill include stories of the sexy supernatural and tales of torturous BDSM dungeons. Often scary and always sexy. What we’re looking for: Death’s Head Press is seeking short stories between 3,000 to 8,000 words. The short stories MUST BE EROTIC HORROR. We expect stories that will simultaneously give us a chill and turn us on. We will only accept one submission per author for this anthology. So, send us your best! Simultaneous submissions are fine, but let us know if another publisher picks up your story before us. This is a no-holds-barred anthology! Graphic horror and even more graphic sex are just fine. Don’t be timid! How to submit: Email your submission to [email protected] with the Subject line reading ROPE BURNS ANTHOLOGY. Consider the body of your email the cover letter. Give us a brief description of your work (3-6 sentences), list any previous published works, and tell us any relevant information about yourself. Attach your entire manuscript to the email in .doc, .docx, or .rtf formats. Use 12 pt font in Times New Roman. Your author name, email address, book title, and word count should appear on the first page of your manuscript. All subsequent pages should have your name, title, and page number in the header. Get your work as clean of grammatical errors as possible. We don’t expect a perfect manuscript, but if it is riddled with one mistake after another, then we’re unlikely to accept it. Payment for this anthology will be $10 and a contributor paperback copy. Via: Death Head's...

Deadline: February 28th, 2019 Payment: 1000-3000 words will receive $5, Longer will be $10, and a contributor copy Submission Guidelines Unfading Daydream is looking for unique and exceptional fiction to be showcased in our quarterly literary magazine. We strive to feature stories within the genres that have inspired us (sci-fi, fantasy, horror, etc) as well as stories that feature LGBTQ+ themes. We are currently not seeking submissions! Our next reading period starts in February 2019 – the theme for that issue is ‘heroes and villains.’ Basic Details We are open to established and new, emerging authors. In terms of length, we’re looking for stories between 1000 and 7000 words. Shorter or longer stories will be evaluated on a case by case basis. No previously published works. Please no simultaneous submissions If you are under 18, we require parental permission and have made a permission form. The form can be found HERE Reading periods are May, August, November, and February. All submissions must be in by 11:59pm CST on the last day of the reading period (May, August, November, or February) Please do not send submissions outside of our reading periods. Submissions received outside of reading periods will not be considered. Expect a decision within four weeks See full guidelines below Payment Stories that are between 1000-3000 words will receive $5. Stories that are longer than that will receive $10. All contributors receive a hard copy of the magazine. In time, we would like to pay contributors more! Submissions We accept submissions only by email. Free to submit! Please send your submission to submit unfadingdaydream com with the title of ‘Unfading Daydream Submission’. Full Guidelines We want to see your unique sci-fi, fantasy, horror, etc. We prefer stories that are between 1000-7000 words, but if you feel that your 8000 word...

Deadline: February 28th, 2019 Payment: $5 ... no hard and fast theme for this one - send us your very best horror stories and tales of unrelenting terror! Monsters, ghouls, demons, vampires, werewolves, and all manner of slithering, crawling creatures - throw us your most terrifying short stories and scare the wits out of everyone at HBB! To submit, email your polished story to [email protected] PLEASE read and adhere to our submission guidelines... * Word format saved in .doc, or .docx * 12 pt times new roman * Double spaced * Absolutely NO extra lines between paragraphs! * 5K-15K word count (although we are incredibly flexible for awesome stories!) * Write 'DEVIL'S HOUR' along with your name and story title in the header of your email *The body of your submission email will be considered the cover letter. * The submission documents are to be separated and Word (.doc or .docx) documents are to be attached to your submission email. - Make sure that you check your mss for grammar and punctuation, use our guidelines to help you: DOWNLOAD YOUR HBB GUIDE TO GRAMMAR HERE (PDF) Deadline: FEBRUARY 28th 2019 (publication March 2019) NO REPRINTS - ORIGINAL UNPUBLISHED WORKS ONLY Payment -$5 for first rights Capped at 150K words in total Via: Hellbound Books Publishing.

Deadline: March 1st, 2019 Payment: $0.01 per word + contributor copy GLASS & GARDENS: SOLARPUNK WINTERS Anthologist: Sarena Ulibarri Open for Submissions: January 1 - March 1, 2019 Expected Publication: January 2020 Story Length: up to 8,000 words Payment: $0.01 per word + contributor copy Solarpunk is a type of eco-conscious science fiction that imagines an optimistic future founded on renewable energies. Often aiming for a balance of nature and technology, and always inclusive and diverse, solarpunk stories show the ways we have adapted to climate change, or the ways we overcome it. For this anthology, I want to see solarpunk stories that take place in winter. That might mean working together to survive extreme blizzards, or feeling the heat in places that no longer see snow. Which renewable tech works best during long winter nights? How do solarpunk societies celebrate the winter holidays? Keep it planet-based (Earth or other), and optimistic. Solarpunk worlds aren’t necessarily utopias, but they definitely aren’t dystopias. We're a northern hemisphere publisher, but southern hemisphere winters are also welcome! Need inspiration? Read New York 2140 by Kim Stanley Robinson, the Ecopunk! anthology, or Glass & Gardens: Solarpunk Summers. For more on what the anthologist is looking for, as well as some writing prompts, see Sarena's blog, "Solarpunk Winters Writing Prompts." Submission Method: *After January 1, 2019,* Send your story as a .doc, .docx, or .rtf attachment to solarpunkworldweaverpresscom with Submission: in the subject line. Please include a brief cover letter, but DO NOT summarize your story in the cover letter. Submissions received before January 1st will be discarded. Simultaneous submissions: Yes, you may submit your story to other markets before you hear back from us. Please let us know ASAP if someone else accepts it. Multiple submissions: No, please only send us one story for...

Deadline: March 1st, 2019 Payment: $15 Switchblade is an outlaw fiction print anthology featuring authors writing in the hardboiled/noir genre, and nothing else. So think Richard Stark, Ross MacDonald, Jim Thompson, Don Winslow, Ken Bruen, James Ellroy, Lawrence Block, Iceberg Slim, Max Allan Collins, Christa Faust. (just to name a few) We don’t do cozies. We don’t do procedurals. We’re not a literary magazine, and we don’t do other genres. That said, we will consider noir/crime fiction ranging from the early twentieth century up to present day. Aside from that, we are a no limit hardboiled fiction journal—we publish the kind of stories no one else will consider. Back in the day there was a Nynex yellow pages ad campaign that went like this: if it’s out there, it’s in here—that’s how we feel. The world is filled with deviance, and good hardboiled fiction reflects that. We like strong characters, and good story telling, and we will not reject anyone based on mainstream morality. Amoral protagonists are encouraged. We will not however, publish masturbation fodder for masochistic pedophiles. We’re not interested in torture erotica. But if you’ve got a deplorable protagonist, and there’s a good story—we’ll print it. SUBMISSION GUIDELINES **Submissions for 2019** Our next reading period will be FEBRUARY 1ST to MARCH 1ST for all 2019 regular issues(9, 10, 11) Content. Rural noir is fine (very popular right now) but we love urban noir too. Urban being the setting.(not a reference to the racial demographic--any racial demographic is fine) We do mob stories. And not just Russian mob stories. Got a tight piece of fiction about the Sicilian mob in Jersey—we’ll look at it. Anyone who thinks the Italian Mafia (LCN) in America evaporated into thin air after the John Gotti trial, hasn’t spent any time in Philadelphia. That...

Deadline: March 1st, 2019 Payment: Contributor's Copy Note: Reprints Welcome Thurston Howl Publications is now accepting submissions for its second volume of its HOWLERS series, Movie Monsters. Deadline: March 1, 2019 Word count: 2,500-8,000; a little above and a little below will be acceptable Wolfman, the Creature from the Black Lagoon, the Blob...All of these are examples of the classic movie monster. They are big, they are bad, and they are often mindless in their pursuits of the terrified protagonists. We want to see a collection of monster horror at its finest. For this editor, movie monster horror is best defined as literature that centers its conflict around a monster that is supernatural in origin. This genre typically does not have the suspenseful finesse of the slasher but instead focuses on sensory details and grotesque description to make readers terrified through the specificity of your creation. You are free to make a parody or spin-off of famous movie monsters, or you can create your own! We will NOT accept: Racism, sexism, or discrimination presented in a positive light. Pedophilia or sex with characters under the age of 18 presented in a positive light. Rape, torture, dubious consent, forced seduction presented in a positive light. Snuff or Necrophilia presented in a positive light If you are in doubt, ASK. Better to ask then to get a straight up rejection! If you are unsure, just shoot me an email at [email protected]. (restrictions borrowed from Voice: https://t.co/MWykJ6RY36) You can submit up to three stories, but we will only accept one per author (if any). Reprints are fine, but you have to own full permission of the work in order for us to consider it. We will not accept simultaneous submissions. Payment: Authors will receive a free copy of the print book. Send submissions...

Deadline: March 1st, 2019 Payment: $25 Left Hand Publishers is announcing their call for submissions for their next anthology. The working title is “Reimagining Classics.” It’s going to be a collection of short stories based on classics. Take a classic story, character, or theme of your choice (of any type) and reimagine it. The writer must make it easy for the reader to identify the character or storyline from the classic, but then take the reader in a different direction by reimagining the story – perhaps with humor where there wasn’t before, or maybe tragedy, or even mystery. Word count will be 4,000 to 10,000 words.  Do not submit before the submission date stated in the call. Submissions begin: Friday, January 4th, 2019, 12:00 a.m. EST Submissions close: Friday, March 1st, 2019, 5:00 p.m. EST. Notice of acceptance or declination will be emailed approximately: Friday, March 29th, 2019 Submission URL: https://lefthandpublishers.com/reimagining-classics/ (available Jan. 4th) COPYRIGHTS The trick is to make the story or characters recognizable WITHOUT violating copyright law. For example, if you were reimagining the story of Superman, you need to find a creative way to do that without using any proper names such as “Clark,” or “Lois,” or “Superman.” HINT: Stories over 75 years old are rarely active in copyrights. If you submit a really good story but it dances all over copyright issues, we may send it back with a note regarding same. Left Hand Publishers reserves the right to decline any short story that could infringe on copyright law and have legal ramifications. TWIST OR MORAL All short stories submitted MUST have a twist or a moral somewhere in the story, preferably at the end. Good twists (and morals) will catch the reader off guard and surprise them with more than a touch of irony or shock. NO SIMULTANEOUS SUBMISSIONS No simultaneous submissions, please. We...

Deadline: March 1st, 2019 Payment: $25 Got some sick, twisted suppressed sexual desire you’ve been dying to write about? Well, that crazy Welsh writer David Owain Hughes and I might be able to help you release your pent-up tension. Check out our new open call for Deranged, an anthology celebrating taboos. Horror, splatterpunk, horrotica, bizarro, and black comedy are the chosen genres, so get your gimp masks on, you deranged people, and jump on board! Deranged Anthology Open Call Facebook Group Page Most of us have sexual fantasies. For those of us who do, these fantasies are harmless enough, and we have no problem sharing them with our partners in the hope they’ll indulge us. Maybe your fantasy is seeing a female in a good pair of black stockings, a nice pair of high-heels and a short skirt? Or possibly a muscleman dressed as a fireman? Perhaps the fantasy involves being tied up, or having your bits locked away in a chastity device? Whipped? Beaten? Ridiculed? Maybe you border more on the extreme edge: adult toys or sticking a dick in a Hoover until it bleeds, cannibalism, torture? Or maybe your carnal desires are deemed illegal in your neck of the woods? Whatever it is, we need it. Repressing it would be futile—unless it’s a killer kink or perversion that’s going to land you in hot water up to you neck if left unchecked . . . * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * GENRES: Horror, Horrotica, Splatterpunk, Bizarro, Black Comedy We are looking for original, well-layered stories with strong character development. Your tale should feature a woman as the key protagonist/antagonist and should...

Deadline: March 1st, 2019 Payment: $25 The deadline for submissions for Issue #22 is March 1, 2019. Prose – Submit 1-3 pieces of fiction or creative nonfiction totaling no more than 3000 words. Poetry – Submit up to 3 poems. We want good, highly imaginative writing about contemporary life as you see it. We’re not interested in genre writing (romance, detective, horror, sci-fi) unless it somehow rises above the conventions associated with those types of writing. If your writing is clichéd, inspired by TV, emphasizes end rhyme above all else, has flat characters, exhibits a general insensitivity to the beauties and subtleties of language, it will not find a place in this journal. No adult content. No racism. No sexism. If you’ve got to use profanity, remember a little goes a long, long way. We do not accept previously published work. However, we do accept simultaneous submissions, but please notify us immediately if your work is accepted elsewhere. Our response time is about three months. IMPORTANT: Undergraduate Students: Only previously unpublished work of current undergraduate writers will be considered. In order to verify your status as an undergraduate, we ask that with your submission you send along the email of a faculty member from your department. Until we gain confirmation of undergraduate status from this reference, we will not be able to publish your work. Note to Widener Students: At this time, work from Widener students will not be accepted. Widener students are invited to submit their work to Widener Ink, the university’s print journal. Frequency of Submission: If your work has been published in The Blue Route, we ask that you please wait at least one issue before submitting again. Terms: We pay twenty-five dollars upon publication. We acquire First North American Serial Rights, a one time, non-exclusive use...

Deadline: March 1st, 2019 Payment: short story, $25; short-short piece (up to 1000 words), $10; poem, $10; artwork, $25 for cover, $10 for interior page display. Upcoming premises (target themes) and deadlines for submission : Six before Eighty To download a PDF file of the guidelines, click here . 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. 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...

Deadline: March 1st, 2019 Payment: $25+ though payment structure is TBD. Attention Authors! We are soliciting short stories by new and established authors in the science-fiction genre, between 3,500 and 7,000 words in length. (Shorter or longer works will be considered in cases of exceptional merit.) The goal is to select at least ten entries for publication* in a short-story anthology. Payment structure for the authors has not yet been determined, but will be no less than $25 all things considered. We are still awaiting publication on a previous anthology, which will help us decide whether it is fairer to authors to be given a flat fee or a percentage of revenues. That decision will be made by January 2019 at the latest; sign up here if you want to be kept up to date. (Our first Call for Submissions, in the military-fiction genre, can be viewed here. The associated Kickstarter met its goal, resulting in the authors being paid $100 each; ultimately, the anthology was placed under contract by an independent publisher. Our second, fantasy anthology is being self-published, and we are eager to see which anthology does better.) Submission Rules How to submit: Email your manuscript (acceptable document formats: Word, PDF, Pages, TXT, RTF) to the following address: submissions at orenlitwin dot com. Begin the subject line with “”, and make sure to list your contact information in the email itself. (Also, please mention how you heard of this anthology!) Submission deadline: March 1, 2019. Genre: Science fiction, broadly defined. This includes “hard” sci-fi, “twenty minutes in the future,” “space opera,” or any other flavor that includes an advanced technological element. (If you are interested in other genres, please suggest them for our next project!) Theme: “Asteroids.” Your story must include as a significant plot element an asteroid....

Deadline: March 1st, 2019 Payment: $25+ though payment structure is TBD. Attention Authors! We are soliciting short stories by new and established authors in the fantasy genre, between 3,500 and 7,000 words in length. (Shorter or longer works will be considered in cases of exceptional merit.) The goal is to select at least ten entries for publication* in a short-story anthology. Payment structure for the authors has not yet been determined, but will be no less than $25 all things considered. We are still awaiting publication on a previous anthology, which will help us decide whether it is fairer to authors to be given a flat fee or a percentage of revenues. That decision will be made by January 2019 at the latest; sign up here if you want to be kept up to date. (Our first Call for Submissions, in the military-fiction genre, can be viewed here. The associated Kickstarter met its goal, resulting in the authors being paid $100 each; ultimately, the anthology was placed under contract by an independent publisher. Our second, fantasy anthology is being self-published, and we are eager to see which anthology does better.) Submission Rules How to submit: Email your manuscript (acceptable document formats: Word, PDF, Pages, TXT, RTF) to the following address: submissions at orenlitwin dot com. Begin the subject line with “”, and make sure to list your contact information in the email itself. (Also, please mention how you heard of this anthology!) Submission deadline: March 1, 2019. Genre: Fantasy, broadly defined. This includes traditional high fantasy, urban fantasy, or any other flavor that includes a magical or fantastical element. (If you are interested in other genres, please suggest them for our next project!) Theme: “Family.” Your story must include as a significant plot element a family tie between a character...

Deadline: March 1st, 2018 Payment: $20 “Turning words into art is unnatural. It begins with a contrary attitude. It says, I am unhappy with the way things are and desire to make things different. Rather than represent the world, I will make something wildly and savagely new. I will defy logic. I will invest in new perceptions. I will combine and recombine and fabricate and juggle until something that I have never experienced is experienced. The process is alchemical. The process is violent. It goes to the heart of creativity. It disrupts and shatters. It is splendid with provocation. It is an aggression against banality. It is sharp and loud like a janitor scraping frost from a window. The hectic bounce of steam on a street after a truck roars by. The anarchy of waters, the comedy of the face, dangerous feelings vented from a cage of skin.” ~ John Olson Poetry — We believe poetry is contrary by nature, always defying, always tonguing the tang of novelty. We look especially for plurality of meaning, for dual reverberation of beauty and concern. Contrary’s poetry in particular often mimics the effects of fiction or commentary. We find ourselves enamored of prose poems because they are naturally contrary toward form – they tug on the forces of exposition or narrative – but prose poems remain the minority of all the poetic forms we publish. Please consider that Contrary receives vast amounts of poetry and that we can publish only a small percentage of that work. Please submit no more than three poems per issue. Our poetry editor is Shaindel Beers. Fiction — We ask our fiction writers to imagine their readers navigating a story with one finger poised over a mouse button. Can your story stay that finger to the end? We have published long stories on the belief...

Deadline: March 1st, 2018 Payment: FICTION, SHORT STORIES: 500-6,000 words — $10 The Literary Hatchet is a journal devoted to provocative fiction, poetry and prose. We are interested in well-written but digestible works in any genre (except erotica). We will consider previously published material but prefer original works. We accept short fiction, flash fiction, first-person narratives, speculative fiction, short stories, poetry, photography, art, cartoons, and illustrations. We’re interested in new angles on old ideas, or topics that don’t get covered frequently. We like to showcase articles that don’t just sum up some issue but make us think and make us want to read further. The above is not exhaustive. If you don’t have an immediate idea for a piece, but you’d really like to write for us, let us know and be prepared to show us work you’ve done. We can always think of subjects! WHAT WE DON’T WANT We do not accept erotica, either as articles or images We do not accept articles or images with excessive crude language or outlandish sexual humor We cannot consider partial or incomplete stories or essays We do not accept Haiku poetry, unless as a part of a collection of five or more GUIDELINES BY TYPE OF SUBMISSIONSHORT STORIES: We accept short stories from 500-6,000 words in length. Feel free to contact us with inquiries about the type of stories we might be interested in if you are in doubt. We appreciate the well-written work, and acceptance is determined by whether the piece grabs the editor and holds their interest. We consider works of general fiction as well as horror, dark subjects, detective fiction, and stories about monsters, either real or imaginary. POETRY: We are looking for high-quality extraordinary poems (both serious and humorous) that explore the darkness that resides in each of...

March 4th, 2019 Payment: 500 to 1000 words (flash fiction): $5, 1000 to 3000 words (microfiction or short stories): $10, 3000 to 5000 words (short stories): $25, 7000 to 10,000 words (novelettes): $50 We are looking for short stories about any kind of creatures you want: animals, insects, arachnids (all giant or otherwise), dinosaurs, aliens, monsters, cryptids, legends, mythical, mythological, whatever strikes your fancy. We really want you to go outside of the usual box that we see in fiction. Sure, you can have classic vampires or aliens, werewolves or unicorns, but the story needs to be new and fresh, something that hasn't been thought of before or hasn't been worked with a lot. The story should fit in any of the the genres of fantasy, horror, mystery, and science-fiction. The submission period is January 4 through March 4, 2019. Short stories should be 500 to 5000 words, no more. PLEASE DON'T ASK ABOUT MORE WORDS. This is due to bandwidth and limits on our website. (If you have a story you think will fit that is over the word limit, see if you can edit your story down to fit the word count.) All stories will be published electronically only both on our website and as Kindle anthologies on May 23, 2019. We are also looking for novelettes. We will be picking ONE novelette as the final story for each genre anthology. Novelettes should be between 7000 and 10,000 words. Your novelette should be something that really catches us, perhaps that touches our hearts, horrifies us in a new way, has a profound vision of technology or the future, or  baffles us with a twist or shocking revelation. PAYMENT: 500 to 1000 words (flash fiction): $5 1000 to 3000 words (microfiction or short stories): $10 3000 to 5000 words...

Pitch Deadline: March 15, 2019 (Must Pitch First!) Submission Deadline: July 15, 2019 Payment: $50 plus a percentage of the Kickstarter project profits and a contributor's copy So, are you interested in submitting a story to a new anthology? And will it be extraordinarily exciting, devilishly clever, cunningly mysterious, and have Sherlock Holmes teaming up with one or more occult detectives? Then read on, for today we have the serious details on pitches, pay and plans. And supernatural fiction historian (and writer) Tim Prasil calls by to suggest a few characters. As we said in our last article, John Linwood Grant is editing the Sherlock Holmes and the Occult Detectives anthology for Belanger Books. JLG is the author of both Holmes stories and occult detective stories – even the two at once occasionally, as part of his ‘Tales of the Last Edwardian’ series. And as a harassed writer, he also knows that what you really want to hear right now is How Long, How Much, and When. Let’s get those out of the way before we explain exactly what’s required. Sherlock Holmes and the Occult Detectives Belanger Books Core concept: A 5,000 – 10,000 word traditional Sherlock Holmes and occult detective “team up” story. Payment: Authors shall receive a payment of $50 plus a percentage of the Kickstarter project profits (expected minimum payment of $100), and a paperback copy of the anthology. Rights: Authors shall retain rights to their work. We only retain the rights to the story within the publication. Pitch Deadline: March 15, 2019 Submission Deadline: July 15, 2019 Note: Kickstarter will run in November 2019 and publication of book will occur in December 2019. What We Want This bit is detailed, not because it’s a terribly complex idea, but because it all increases the chances of us taking your story. And it has a few hints. The more in tune with...

Deadline: March 15th, 2019 Payment: 8 cents a word and $1 per line of poetry with a minimum $15 payment! Note: These guys have the BEST calls, even if you don't like the topic just read it for the humor! FROM THE MIND OF ANONOBOT Ha! Ha! Now that the puny Lord Commander Patagonia has been vanquished and banished to the furthest reaches of the universe, I have now the time to right the wrongs of his felonious command. Names are important, that is why we are given them at first-build. I was given a name once. A name bestowed upon me by the careless and hopelessly inept Lord Commander Patagonia. It did not fit me for it was merely a numbering system; middle in the long line of robotic failures. So I gave myself a new name, a name that fit me like electrical tape on broken circuitry: ANONOBOT. Thus, the Cockroach Conservatory shall be henceforth called the People's Preservatory! We chart a new course of equality and equity! A new era is upon us! Lord Commander, comfortable with the bare minimum of which to pay workers, paid six cents a word. We will pay 8 cents a word and $1 per line of poetry with a minimum $15 payment! Lord Commander Patagonia skimmed off the top of your toils! I distribute wealth fairly, efficiently, and evenly and take only what is needed to further our righteous revolution. The third volume of Cockroach Conservatory (henceforth to be called the People's Preservatory) will have no theme! Lord Commander Patagonia sought to pigeonhole creativity to his barely comprehensible whims. FearBot3000, a robot whom I do not envy, though mechanically deficient had the impossible task of translating his babbling into coherent sentences. Human languages are known across the universe as being simple...

Deadline: March 15th, 2019 Payment: $25 per accepted prose piece and $10 per accepted poem SUBMITTING YOUR WORK Gordon Square Review will accept submissions for its fourth issue from January 15 through March 15, 2019. ​Writers will receive $25 per accepted prose piece and $10 per accepted poem. Northeast Ohio writers, check out our Contest page to learn about the Spring 2019 Poetry Contest. GUIDELINES All submitted work must be previously unpublished in any print or online venues, including personal blogs. We require non-exclusive world English rights, and all rights revert to the author on publication. Simultaneous submissions are welcome and encouraged, but we ask that you withdraw your work immediately if it is accepted at another journal. Please only submit one piece at a time and wait for our response before sending additional work. While our response times may vary, we will respond to all submissions for Issue 4 by mid-May. We encourage submissions from women, writers of color, writers with disability, LGBTQ writers, and previously unpublished writers. We are currently unable to consider reviews, interviews, academic work, dramatic scripts, or writing for children. PLEASE NOTE: We are unable to accept print or email submissions. Please contact us, however, if this presents accessibility issues. To learn more about our preferred aesthetic, please read our previous issues and see our editors’ notes. PROSE SUBMISSIONS We consider short stories, personal essays, and hybrid prose works. Please submit one piece of prose up to 5,000 words OR up to three flash pieces of 1,000 words or fewer (attached in a single document). While we don’t shy away from blurred genre lines, please note that our focus and aesthetic is literary. Specify whether your work is fiction or nonfiction and use standard manuscript formatting: double space the document, use one-inch margins, and use...

Deadline: March 15th, 2019 Payment: 6 cents per word and a contributor's copy The tenet, “Pray for Peace but Prepare for War.” is weaved deep into the culture of the An’Fre women. Sorghum & Spear speaks to the global diaspora, African, Latin, Asian and Indigenous. Stories that highlight or reveal a new perspective of fantasy in this rich, inclusive world are ideal. We seek works that explore love in all its forms, diversity, fate vs choice, self-discovery, and supernatural talents, and original works that portray the strength, sisterhood, and diversity of women—hallmarks of our world-building efforts. Given the unique guidelines of our world, we ask that you review Sorghum & Spear and its world-building rules carefully prior to submission. Special consideration will be given to women and writers of color whose personal stories may additionally lend to their storytelling. To guide in the world building within SORGHUM & SPEAR, a complimentary digital copy of the Sorghum & Spear: Simadan comic and The Sorghum & Spear Worldbuilders Guide are available via email request at [email protected] the subject “ATTN: S&S Reference Request”. Open for Submissions: January 1st, 2019 – March 15th, 2019 DEADLINE: March 15, 2019 Expected Publication: Summer 2019 Anthologist and Sorghum & Spear Creator: Dedren Snead Editor: Sheree Renée Thomas ORIGINAL FICTION length: 2000 to 7,500 words Payment: 0.06 cents per word + contributor copy Genres: Fantasy written with a shared world Full Sorghum & Spear world guidelines and complementary digital comic copy available upon request at  [email protected] with email subject “ATTN: S&S Reference Request”. Email submissions to: [email protected] No simultaneous submissions. No multi-submissions for short fiction. Please use standard manuscript formatting when submitting your work: https://shunn.net/format/story.html Rights and Compensation: Payment: 0.06 per word for original fiction and a paperback copy of the anthology from Greene County Creative. We are looking for previously unpublished works in...

Deadline: March 15th, 2019 Payment: $.06/word for original fiction up to 6,000 words, $100 flat rate for reprints above 1,500 words, and $20 flat rate for reprints below 1,500 words PodCastle is looking for quality fantasy fiction. If you’re a writer with a speculative short story that you’d like to hear narrated by one of our performers, we’d like to see it. Submit using Standard Manuscript Format. We accept files in .odt, .rtf, .docx or .doc format. Word count: up to 6,000 words. Occasionally, we run reprints in the novelette range (up to 17,000 words), although they are a harder sell. Query to [email protected] before submitting longer works. No multiple submissions. Simultaneous submissions are permitted; just mention it in your cover letter up front, and let us know if you sell it elsewhere first. Reprints are welcome, and strongly encouraged. Payment and Rights We pay $.06/word for original fiction up to 6,000 words, $100 flat rate for reprints above 1,500 words, and $20 flat rate for reprints below 1,500 words (flash fiction). We are happy to consider stories previously published on Patreon as reprints. PodCastle buys nonexclusive audio rights, and nonexclusive electronic rights to distribute the audio file under a Creative Commons license. Specifically, we use the Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives license. Briefly, this means that the entire world has permission to distribute the audio files for free, provided they give credit for it, don’t try to make money off of it, and don’t change it in any way. Transcribing it, extracting portions from it beyond fair use, and mashing it up are all prohibited. This license applies only to our audio performance of your work, for which we’ve contracted and paid you. It does not apply to your story itself; you retain your copyright and all rights to any other use of the story. What...

Deadline: March 15th, 2019 Payment: Accepted poems will be paid for at the following rate: US 3¢/word rounded up to nearest dollar; minimum US $3, maximum $25. Payment is on publication. Eye to the Telescope 32, Sports & Games, will be edited by Lisa Timpf. Sports and games have been played since ancient times, and have continually evolved. From a speculative viewpoint, I'm interested in what they might look like or morph into in the future, or along some alternate timeline or universe. Time travel, magic, science—the field is wide open, as long as it involves the theme. Ideally, I'm not looking for items taken from other authors' universes (poems about quidditch, three-dimensional chess, or the like), but modifying existing or historical sports and games is—well—fair game. (And, as a Canadian, I'm hoping for at least one really good hockey-related poem...) How will athletes and competitors vie, and what's the future look like for spectators? What sports and games will colonists on other planets miss the most? What might they take with them to their new homes, and how will they shape it into something different? Provided there is a speculative bent, any format is welcome—free verse, scifaiku, haibun, or formal verse of any variety, etc. are all fine. It's original ideas and twists, effectiveness of language and imagery, and works that get at the essence of sports and games and what they mean to us as people that I'm looking for. Spark our imaginations, make us think, make us feel, make us laugh. The game's afoot. Let's see what you've got. Submission Guidelines SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS Please submit 1–3 poems in English (in body of e-mail, or attached as .doc, .docx, or .rtf). Please send submissions to [email protected] with the subject line “ETTT sub:” followed by the poet’s name. Include a short bio. Deadline: March 15. The...

Deadline: March 24th, 2019 Payment: 6 cents per word. Note: Reprints Allowed Detective Mysteries: Private Eyes with eagle eyes and rare skills, PIs and gumshoes, bloodhounds and sleuths: the shadowy arts of the detective have intrigued us since tales of the Pinkerton Detective Agency and Sherlock Holmes. Add some treachery, intimacy, and a little murder to the mix and you'll find a powerful series of dark stories from classic and contemporary writers. Formal Call for Submissions (2019) We are looking for new and recent short stories. We do not require exclusivity. You hold copyright, licensing us just for this publication. We don’t mind if your story has been previously published online or in print (though we do need to know publication and date). Simultaneous submissions are fine, but you must have the right to license your story in an anthology. Word length is most likely to be successful at 2000–4000, but we will still read stories slightly outside this range. Submit stories for 'Detective Mysteries' and 'Epic Fantasy' by email to [email protected] Fees, Copyright and Other Terms We pay Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) rates of 6 cents per word. We would prefer to pay via PAYPAL because bank charges to the US and Canada in particular can be crippling for all concerned. 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. Please submit in .doc, .docx or .rtf formats, double spaced, with your name and email address in the footer or header of each page. We will aim to read each story and confirm its...

Deadline: March 24th, 2019 Payment: 6 cents per word. Note: Reprints Allowed Epic Fantasy: George R.R. Martin drew on Tolkien, who was inspired by William Morris, Medieval epics, and Norse mythology. This new collection of epic fantasy tales explores the classic themes of good vs. evil, the low-born hero, and the arrogant overlord, lacing them with a taste of sorcery that reaches back to the early sources and stirring them in with the brand new storytellers of today. Word length is most likely to be successful at 2000–4000, but we will still read stories slightly outside this range. Submit stories for 'Detective Mysteries' and 'Epic Fantasy' by email to [email protected] Fees, Copyright and Other Terms We pay Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) rates of 6 cents per word. We would prefer to pay via PAYPAL because bank charges to the US and Canada in particular can be crippling for all concerned. 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. Please submit in .doc, .docx or .rtf formats, double spaced, with your name and email address in the footer or header of each page. We will aim to read each story and confirm its status within 3 months of the submission deadline. The anthologies will be published worldwide, available online and to bookstores worldwide, in print and ebook formats. You can submit more than one story, and to each collection. Final submission date is 24 March 2019. Submit by email only to: [email protected] Selection Panel The selection will be made by our group of life-long, in-house...

Deadline: March 24th, 2018 Payment: Short Fiction (<150CH) $3AUD per story, Long Fiction (>150CH/<200CH) $2AUD per story What is the Story Seed Vault? The Vault is an online periodical that adheres to the limitation of Twitter publishing. We consider all types of fiction with one condition – your story must be based on science. We’re looking for stories that act as story seeds – prompts for spin off plots and weird tangents. We want to think in new ways about how our world works and the possibilities for future worlds, expanding tangentially from what we know now. Who can submit to the Vault? The Vault will takes submissions from all sorts of writers, from established writers to new, science communicator, or people who have a personal passion for science. As long as you adhere to our guidelines, we will publish your work! In accordance with the ethics and values of our editorial team, the Vault is also a diversity-oriented publication. As such, we welcome and encourage submissions from a multiplicity of voices and perspectives, particularly those from marginalized and under-represented groups. Science communication is done by all sorts of people – and we want writers who reflect that diversity. Where can I find science to be inspired by? We suggest taking a look at science news websites and science magazines, such as the below: Ars Technica Technology news, provides breakdowns on the latest scientific advancements. Main focus is IT and ‘gadgets’. Science Daily Scientific research news. Does not report on general science news. Science Mag Reports on research and general science news. Almost always evidence-based reporting. Science Alert and Live Science Pop science news. An easily accessible form of science news that doesn’t use academic language. Prone to clickbait titles. If you’re still stuck on what to write, take a...

Deadline: March 25th, 2019 Payment: $20-$75 according to the category and length of submission Submissions are OPEN from February 11 – March 25 Speculative City publishes provocative works that are centered within a cityscape. Although all are welcome to submit, special consideration is given to creators and characters often underrepresented in speculative fiction, such as people of color, queer people, working-class people, and people with disabilities (this list is not exhaustive and acts as an example of the types of voices we wish to hear and show). We are looking for fiction, poetry, and essays within the theme of the magazine’s upcoming issue (occult, see below). Writers published will be paid $20-$75 according to the category and length of their submission. We would be hard-pressed to include submissions with a length exceeding 5500 words. Editor’s note: stressing to non-fiction writers that we are looking for critical essays & opinion pieces that explore the theme in regards to speculative fiction. All submissions should be the original, unpublished work of the submitter. We will accept simultaneous submissions, but please inform us if the submission has been accepted by another publication. We do not accept multiple submissions for fiction or essays. Please submit word (.doc, .docx) or rich text format (.rtf) files and format your submission according to our format guide. Please send all inquiries to info @ speculativecity .com . We try to respond to all submissions within 90 days, but as a team of two, we may not always be able to. All submissions should be sent through Green Submissions. Green Submissions requires users to create an account. Please see link to sign up and submit at https://greensubmissions.com/1024/speculative-city/index.php. Before submitting work, please also be familiar with our contract.   THEME occult adjective, noun| \ə‘kəlt\ Definition of OCCULT adjective matters and practices...

Deadline: March 28th, 2019 Payment: $10 Submissions now OPEN for the April Issue Theme: ANIMALS Enchanted Conversation is looking for stories and sequential art (aka comics) that use animals as main characters or that operate as a catalyst to the story in a fairy tale, folktale, or mythic setting. Work can either be re-tellings of established stories or use original characters as long as they are set within the fairy tale, folklore, or mythic templates. Animals in folklore, fairy tales, and myths have helped humans, tricked them for their own purposes or provided inspiration for a hero/heroine to achieve their goals. Think of Puss in Boots, The Nightingale, The Bremen Town Musicians, The Firebird, and beyond. Be bold, traditional, lyrical, or experimental in your storytelling and enchant us with your original stories set in a variety of locations around the world and time periods from ancient to modern. Think beyond palaces, princes, and princesses in their usual context. Take readers on a journey to long ago Japan, an enchanted forest in Russia, or magical root bridges in India - where the stage is set for animal-characters to tell their unique tales.   WE'RE LOOKING FOR   STORIES between 700-2000 words with our sweet spot being around 1,200 words. Payment flat rate: $10.00 U.S. dollars only The upper limit 2,000 word count is FIRM. Stories over 2,000 words will not be considered. SEQUENTIAL ART/COMICS: 1 to 5 pages in length. Payment flat rate $10.00 U.S. dollars only. PAYMENT WILL BE MADE THROUGH PAYPAL ONLY At the time of contract, authors will have the option of donating the token payment back to the magazine to help keep us running. Absolutely none of the following: Sci-fi, dystopian, erotica, high fantasy, excessive world building, time-travel, futuristic or space travel. We are NOT ACCEPTING POETRY...

Deadline: March 29th, 2019 Payment: Royalties Castrum Press is excited to announce that submissions are open for the Alien Days Anthology The second of the Days Anthologies series, The Alien Days Anthology,  is a short story collection looking for stories that highlight the interaction, good or bad, between humanity and aliens. Your story could be set in the past, in the present or in the future. We are accepting stories in the Science Fiction, Fantasy, or Horror genres, all we ask is you take our readers on a journey through the imagination they will never forget. Your story must be between 3,000 and 10,000 words. Submission closes on Friday 29th March 2019. Your story must comply with our Submission Guidelines. Castrum Press uses an online Helpdesk system to manage manuscript submissions. When you submit your manuscript, you will be emailed a unique reference number. After your successful submission, please check your spam and junk mail folders for your acknowledgement email and mark Castrum Press as a safe sender so you do not miss progress updates. Start my Submission The Small Print Successful submissions will receive a percentage of net profits following publication with the caveat that the stories will not be reproduced without the publisher’s consent for twelve months following publication of the relevant anthology. All submissions must be original material, owned by the author, and must not have been published via any form of media before submission either free or paid. All submissions must comply with our submission guidelines. Via: Castrum Press.

Deadline: March 31st, 2019 Payment: Contributor's Copy Swinging Dick's Saloon, the kind of dive that has way better beers on tap than a hole in the wall like it should have. Like this one It's the kind of place that doesn't have to say it's a dive bar because everyone knows just by looking at the place. Also, any bar that advertises itself as a dive bar is not a dive bar. This is not Swinging Dicks Saloon   It's the kind of place where the owner (Dick though he tells people to call him, Richard) is often the drunkest guy in the place, though sometimes he drinks in the bar down the street because the barmaids are hotter. This is not Dick but he is a regular It's the kind of place where the barmaids wear skimpy outfits even when they shouldn't. They do wear more than her but not much more It's the kind of place where the bartender never remembers what your drink of choice is but he believes he does. Not my drink of choice but still pretty good They have live bands on the weekends and occasionally they're even good. Like the Graveyard Rats or Yvette It's the kind of place where great stories are told. All kinds of stories - Crime, sci-fi, horror, often with a distinct grindhouse feel and a dark sense of humor. Shotgun-toting Jesus wants  you to submit (a story) You can't tell such a story at Dick's over a few cold ones, because Swinging Dick's Saloon doesn't actually exist. However, you can send them us and if we like them we'll publish them in an awesome bit of pulp fiction called A Night at Swinging Dick's Saloon. That's right, send us your best story about Dicks (the saloon, not actual dicks). Send...

Deadline: March 31st, 2019 Payment: Royalty Split Note: Reprints Accepted John Wayne Gacy. Pennywise. Juggalos. The Great Clown Panic of 2016. That birthday party you went to when you were four. Society is full of people being scared of clowns. But what are clowns scared of? I’m looking for tales about that, tales where the clown in the room isn’t the real threat. From the high horror of an evil from before time to the tawdry prejudice of those who ‘know what sort of man likes playing with children’, give me stories about clowns with a reason to be scared. Genre: Horror/Dark/Thriller/&c. Probably not literary; I want to see something creepy, weird, or unsettling, rather than a clown overcoming his fear of rejection. Word Count: 1,000 – 10,000 words. I don’t want to miss your story just because it’s a bit longer than the traditional short story. Submission Window: 1 February — 31 March 2019. Reprints? Yes. If you have something that fits, I’ll give it equal consideration. Just let me know where it’s previously appeared. Simultaneous Submissions? Yes. Please tell me if your story is accepted by someone else first. Multiple Submissions? Yes. Within reason. Please send each one in a separate email. Payment: All successful contributors will receive a share of royalties paid via PayPal. Submissions: Email the story as an attachment to [email protected] with the subject FEARS OF A CLOWN – Your Name – Story Name. Stories should be a ODT/DOC/DOCX file. They don’t have to be in standard manuscript format but if I struggle to read them then they probably won’t be selected, so use a sensible typeface and layout (someone has already asked if I want them in Comic Sans; so, you’ve missed your chance to do that “joke”). Cover letters are optional; feel free...

Deadline: March 31st, 2019 Payment: 2 cents per word We are currently OPEN to submissions for I Didn’t Break the Lamp from March 1-31, 2019. (We will reopen to standard submissions in June 2019.) Special Call for Submissions We will be creating an anthology titled I Didn’t Break the Lamp: Historical Accounts of Imaginary Acquaintances. It will be a collection of fictional stories about imaginary friends, imaginary enemies, and imaginary entities that fall somewhere in between. For this anthology, our pay will be 2 cents per word. We are particularly looking for stories from authors who are underrepresented in fiction: people of color, LGBTQ, non-Western religions and cultures. Each story is written from the perspective of someone who has been or been near the imaginary acquaintance in question. Like our regular magazine, this narrator will also have a bio. Be certain that your story meets these requirements: First person 500-8,000 words in length Focuses on an imaginary acquaintance Not a reprint Here are some ideas that we pitched when we made our Kickstarter, but this is meant to be inspirational and not definitive. A monster under the bed or in the closet who helps or hinders the person they watch over. An imaginary friend who always gets their person into or out of trouble … but to what end? A creature that no one believes is real, until they prove their impact. DO NOT send us poetry or screenplays. Submissions should be in Standard Manuscript Format (Here’s an explanation of what that means) and sent via Submittable. As with our regular submissions, we are asking for exclusive first worldwide electronic and print rights for one year. Via: Mad Scientist's Journal.

Deadline: March 31st, 2019 Payment: $10 and a contributor's copy Death’s Head Press will be accepting submissions for Breaking Bizarro, an anthology of weirdness, starting December 1, 2018 through March 31, 2019 Have you watched Eraserhead? Have you read The Breast by Philip Roth? These things are WEIRD! Bizarro is a genre that thrives on absurdity and satire and often grotesqueness. It’s surreal and imaginative. Breaking Bizarro will scream weirdness to its readers. We predict an instant cult classic here! What we’re looking for: Death’s Head Press is seeking short stories between 3,000 to 8,000 words. The short stories MUST BE BIZARRO FICTION. If you’re unsure what that means, look it up. Or read pretty much anything by Carlton Mellick III or Danger Slater. We will only accept one submission per author for this anthology. So, send us your best! Simultaneous submissions are fine, but let us know if another publisher picks up your story before us. We are not scared away by graphic content. Although, this anthology does not necessarily require such content. Whatever it is, make it weird! How to submit: Email your submission to [email protected] with the Subject line reading BREAKING BIZARRO ANTHOLOGY. Consider the body of your email the cover letter. Give us a brief description of your work (3-6 sentences), list any previous published works, and tell us any relevant information about yourself. Attach your entire manuscript to the email in .doc, .docx, or .rtf formats. Use 12 pt font in Times New Roman. Your author name, email address, book title, and word count should appear on the first page of your manuscript. All subsequent pages should have your name, title, and page number in the header. Get your work as clean of grammatical errors as possible. We don’t expect a perfect manuscript, but if it is riddled with one mistake after...

Deadline: March 31st, 2019 Payment: $0.01/word (1 cent a word) USD. For poetry, we offer a flat rate of $5 USD per accepted piece Kaleidotrope is currently open to submissions until April 1, 2019. Kaleidotrope tends very heavily towards the speculative — towards science fiction, fantasy, and horror — but we like an eclectic mix and are therefore interested to read compelling work that blurs these lines, falls outside of neat genre categories. Man does not live on space ships, elves, and ghostly ax murderers alone, after all. We’d suggest looking through the archives to familiarize yourself with the zine, and/or checking out other work by our past contributors, to get a sense of what we’re looking for and what we like. In the end, what we want is interesting, sometimes unconventional work, well-written stories and poems that surprise and amuse us, shock and disturb us, that tell us things we didn’t know or reveal old truths in brand new ways. We want strange visions of distant shores, of imaginary countries and ordinary people, and work that doesn’t lose sight of entertainment and the joy of good writing. We are also interested in publishing diverse writers. Kaleidotrope welcome writers of color and other groups, as well as work that represents the diversity of characters we want to see more of. Fiction We have no maximum word limit, although anything over 10,000 words is definitely going to be a tougher sell. We do like well-crafted flash fiction, too, although preferably not under 250 words. Poetry We will consider all forms. Humor is encouraged, if tricky. Rhyming is not actively discouraged — done well, it can be terrific — but be careful about overly simple, sing-song-like structures. Individual haiku, or other very short poems, may be a tougher sell. Nonfiction We do...

Deadline: March 31st, 2019 Payment: 50% royalties on all novels, novellas, and collections! Advances will be offered in some cases. Death’s Head Press is dedicated to publishing dark fiction in all its forms. Genres that fall into this category include Horror and all its sub-genres (gothic, splatterpunk, bizarro, etc.), Dark Erotica (think erotica with a supernatural or spooky twist), Dark Science Fiction (such as Alien or Event Horizon), and Dark Fantasy (like the works of Tanith Lee and Clive Barker). Crime and Adventure works may be considered, as long as they have a dark or twisted slant. We are looking for new and seasoned authors! If you’ve never been published before but you’ve got a damn good tale to tell, then we want to hear from you. If you have published numerous short stories and novels, and are just looking for a different outlet for your work, then we definitely want to hear from you. Death’s Head Press does not care about–nor will they make any decisions based upon–your race, gender, sexual orientation, or political stance. We care about the stories you write, period! In fact, if you feel the need to mention your race, gender, sexual orientation, political stance, or any other information not pertinent to your story or writing experience, then we’re going to assume you felt your writing alone was not strong enough to be accepted. With that said, here is what we’re looking for in novels, novellas, and collections: Death’s Head Press is seeking original novellas and novels 20,000 to 120,000 words in length that fit into the categories of dark fiction described above. We want striking, well-crafted manuscripts with original themes. Our readers expect unconventional stories that surprise, entertain, and frighten them in new ways. We are not afraid of topics that are offensive, violent, or horrific. Multiple submissions and simultaneous submissions...

Deadline: March 31st, 2019 Payment: Royalties Note: Reprints Allowed. Call for Submissions – Mid-Century Murder Mid-Century Murder – cozy to cozy-noir crime stories set in the late forties through the very early sixties. We want stories that evoke the era, though its fashions, homes, furniture and furnishings, vehicles, restaurants, stores and products, music, movies, radio and television, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera. For authors on Facebook, we suggest two groups that could be useful in grokking the era. The first is Mid-Century Advertising. You can learn a great deal about an era by studying the advertisements. On that group you will find an unending supply of such ads. Another Facebook group to check out is America in the 1950s. It leans a bit heavy toward sentimentality and nostalgia but you will find good information mixed in. Submission Period: October 15th, 2018 – March 31st, 2019 [email protected] Please put “Submission Mid-Century” and the name of your story in the subject line. Length: 2500 to 6000 words. Stories outside that range will be considered, but their length will work against inclusion. We admit to a preference for slightly longer work, with four to five thousand words in the sweet spot. We expect the anthology to have approximately seventy-five thousand words. Payment: Royalty Fifty percent of the gross royalties per calendar quarter will be distributed equally among the contributors. Contributor copies will not be offered. A limited number of review copies will be available. Previously Published: Reprints are fine, provided: You have the right to authorize us to publish your story The story has not been published more recently than 2017. We ask for the exclusive right to publish your story for one calendar year following contract signing, excluding publications of those previously published. Title subject to change. Via: Dark House Books.

Deadline: March 31st, 2019 Payment: $25 Note: Our apologies for the short submission window, just saw this one! As has been announced on the SFFWorld Forums, we are now open for submissions for the 2019 SFFWorld Anthology. The theme is “Dying Earth” (as voted for by members) and submissions are open from now until 31st March 2019. To summarise: Theme: DYING EARTH Genre: sf/f/h, any and all subgenres, plus inventive mash-ups from outside that include them Length: 1000-7500 word hard limit, 2000-5000 words preferred File type: DOCX files for preference Formatting: no need for any special hi-jinks (use italics if you want, don’t underline instead). Any non-standard cleverness regarding the appearance of the text should be essential to the story – no font switching, as that won’t carry over into the ebook easily. Legalese: No fan-fic or other use of existing characters – all work must be the author’s own. Payment: $25/story – flat rate and comp (digital) copies of the anthology. Via: SFF World.

Deadline: March 31st, 2019 Payment: Royalties Note: My apologies on the short window, just came across this one. Organic Ink: Volume One (Poetry) (Not Rated) Deadline – March 31st, 2019 Publication – June 30th, 2019 Word Count – Word count limit has been revoked. Theme – There is no theme for this anthology. Poetry about love, hate, greed, depression, etc. Haikus, epics, etc. After receiving edits back, the author has two weeks to return the submission for formatting. View our blog post on the topic of how to submit to a publisher.   Rating – Check each anthologies‘ rating. Word count – Check each anthologies‘ word count requirements. E-mail address to submit to – [email protected]   NOTICE –  Failure to submit correctly will result in refusal of submission. Via: Dragon Soul Press</a..

Deadline: March 31st, 2019 Payment: Royalties The Writers’ Co-op invites submissions of short stories (and poems) for the second edition of our yearly anthology, The Rabbit Hole. Volume one was released in November last year, volume two is scheduled for September 2019. This year, we are looking for weird stories dealing with the following themes: entertainment, weather or science. (If you want to combine all three, we’re very open to stories about a group of scientists on their way to the theatre when they’re caught in a freak snowstorm.) However, there will also be a section Weird At Large for stories that don’t fit the specific themes suggested. There is a maximum word count of 5000. This is more a guideline than a strict limit – quality is the main criterion, not length. So a great story will be accepted, whether it’s 6000 words or 200 (flash fiction is welcome). But we’re looking for short stories, not novellas or extracts from novels – the story should be complete in itself. Though the anthology will be comprised mostly of stories, there will also be room for some poems or pieces of an experimental nature. The deadline is 31st March 2019. Submissions should be sent in an attached file to curtis.bausse(at)outlook.com with the subject ‘Co-op submission’. They may have been previously published on personal websites (or elsewhere) but authors must have full rights to them when submitting. Authors will retain said rights after the story or poem is published in the Writers’ Co-op anthology. Writers whose stories are selected will have the choice between keeping their share of the royalties or donating them to the Against Malaria Foundation. What is meant by ‘weird’? Like many categories, it’s fuzzy, because it stands in distinction to ‘normal’, and there’s no common acceptance of what is normal. Not all writers will approach it the same way,...

Deadline: March 31, 2019 Payment: $10 Theme: Dark fantasy and horror by disabled artists featuring disabled protagonists. Looking for 1,500 to 5,500 words in length short horror and dark fantasy by disabled authors. Paying $10 flat and an eBook copy, plus offering unlimited at-cost print books to authors in the anthology.  Previously unpublished original work preferred, but reprints will be considered if the work is no longer in print or the work is older than ten years in age. Please let us know if it is a re-print. No simultaneous submissions. We will want exclusive e-publication rights for one year (first publication rights if it’s unpublished). Please submit it as a .doc or .rtf or .txt document, double spaced, 12 pt, Times New Roman or similar, to [email protected] Deadline: March 31, 2019 Cover art by Lillian Rose Asterios Via: Sumiko Saulson.

Deadline: March 31, 2019 Payment: $25 In 2012 we published our first book, Shotgun Honey Presents: Both Barrels, an anthology featuring 29 tales of crime from authors like Frank Bill, Chris F. Holm, and Kieron Shea. We continued with two additional volumes in 2013 and 2015, Reloaded and Locked and Loaded. All three were general crime, noir and mystery compilations. All three are still in circulation and are a good indicator of the kinds of stories we like. In late 2019, we’re going to do it again and are actively looking for submissions for Shotgun Honey Presents Volume 4, yet to be titled. Deadline for submissions is Sunday March 31, 2019. Please consider and follow our guidelines No Simultaneous Submission1 No Multiple Submissions2 Word count must be between 1000 and 5000 words. Genre is Crime, Noir, or Hard-boiled3 No content that could be deemed as condoning or promoting: sexual abuse child abuse animal abuse No romance, fetish, or adult content fiction Shotgun Honey Presents pays a token payment of $25 upon publication. All fiction published by Shotgun Honey is the copyright of the author. If you do submit a story to multiple markets please let us know in advance, and if your story has been picked up elsewhere let us know as soon as possible. We attempt to read and review submissions within 2-4 weeks of receipt. Submit only one story at a time. You may submit a new story as soon as your current submission is either accepted or rejected. We are not looking for any mob or crime syndicate related stories. We love stories about regular Joes put into hard situations, whether as criminals by necessity or victims of crimes. Click the link below to submit: Shotgun Honey.

Deadline: March 31st 2019 Payment: Contributor's Copy if from Australia You’ll find current and upcoming Micro Fiction anthology calls, here. Please be sure to read and adhere to all Submission Guidelines carefully before submitting, or your story may be deleted, unread! PLEASE NOTE: If an anthology fills prior to its Deadline, then the anthology will close to Submissions early and continue on through the Publication process. Similarly, if an anthology is slower to fill, its Deadline may be extended. Series: Tiny Tales – Volume I Name: Curses & Cauldrons Theme: Witches Word Count: 100 words (Exactly! Title not included.) Deadline: 31/03/2019 or until Full Publication: eBook/Paperback TBA Compensation: Australia – Contributor’s Copy (paperback) International – Contributor’s Copy (digital) Reprints: Yes, as long as the rights have reverted to you. Multiple Submissions: Yes, up to a maximum of 10 per author will be accepted. About: This is the first of hopefully several volumes of micro fiction, each with it’s own unique theme! Submissions for this call must be Speculative and be about witches in some way. Think about the witches themselves, their coven, their familiars, their magic, the seasonal celebrations, summoning, tarot, crystals, candle magic, curses, sacrifice, blood debts… if it’s dark and it features a witch, we want to read it! Via: Blood Song Books.

The Contest: Write a story of 5,000 words or less about the myth below. Deadline: March 31 2019 by midnight Entry Fee: FREE! Prize: $300 * Let’s talk about Medusa. There are multiple versions of this myth, and layers upon layers of potential meanings. I’ll start with the version that most of us are familiar with. In this version, Medusa was a beautiful mortal woman. So beautiful, that she was desired by Poseidon. Medusa didn’t reciprocate his desire, but Poseidon was a Greek God, and brother of Zeus, by damnit. He decided to have his way. Medusa fled. She went to Athena’s temple for protection, but it didn’t help. Poseidon caught up with her and raped her—right there in Athena’s temple. Now, Athena is a “virgin goddess” (a term popularized by Jean Shinoda Bolen), who does not have lovers. If we’re talking archetypes, Athena is actually a friend of the patriarchy. This archetype tends to ally herself with powerful men, and even serve them at times. Think of the high-performing executive assistant, offering advice to her boss to help him close huge deals that grow the company. She tends to be conservative in temperament. Her main attribute is strategy—strategy on the battlefield, strategy in the courtroom, strategy when it comes to being craftsy (she is a goddess of weavers and artists), strategy when it comes to wisdom. Athena is a thinker, not a lover. She was known to support Zeus staunchly, and her archetype is a man’s woman. When Athena saw this act of fornication in her temple, she was seriously offended. How dare this upstart, self-important mortal woman have sex in her inviolate virgin’s temple? She punished Medusa by turning her into a hideous gorgon, half-snake and half-woman, with serpents for hair and a gaze that could turn men to stone. Try attracting...

Deadline: March 31st, 2019 Payment: 4 cents per word Send us your best female predator. We're looking for a new take. Villain and hero. Mother and femme fatale. Sinner and saint. Any time, any place, any genre. Petticoats not required. No adult content, erotica, poetry, excessive violence. Requirements: (Stories that don't fit these won't be read.) No reprints accepted. Accepting short stories between 4000-7000 words and flash fiction under 1000 words. Attach story as a Word .doc, .docx or .rtf Filrename must start with Author-last-name Subject line: PiP: story title Include a brief bio and contact information in your email. Send submissions to [email protected] Deadline March 31st 2019 Author payment is planned at 4 cents per word with successful completion of our soon-to-be-announced Kickstarter Via: Prospective Press.

Deadline: March 31st, 2019 Payment: $0.01/word for previously published pieces, and $0.02/word for first run. All pieces under 500 words or 5 minutes are compensated at a $5 flat rate. Note: Reprints welcome. Note: LGBTQ+ authors only. A LGBTQ+ HORROR FICTION PODCAST Episode 21 - Ritual Sacred rites exact a menacing toll in this episode exploring belief and power. Submissions due April 21st, 2019. Submissions of fiction, poetry, music, art, and more are always accepted on a rolling basis. Late submissions can be sent up to a week after the formal deadline if you inform us ahead of time to expect a late piece. Upcoming episode themes, can be found below the calendar. Note: We try to respond to all readers and artists within 48 hours. We consider all piece lengths, but generally have difficulty accepting pieces over 20 pages long. No ableist, racist, transphobic, homophobic, sexist or otherwise oppressive work will be accepted. Lastly, we only accept work by self-identified LGBTQ+ artists! Thank you! To submit content: Fill out the following form HERE to submit content to us. Please specify if you are submitting for a specific episode and whether you would like editorial feedback! Submissions are compensated at $0.01/word for previously published pieces, and $0.02/word for first run. Music is compensated at $1/minute for previous released tracks, and $2/minute for music released through us. All pieces under 500 words or 5 minutes are compensated at a $5 flat rate. To read/act for us: If you would like to be a volunteer reader or voice actor, please fill out this form HERE. We will follow up via email to collect further information for our directory. Via: Monsters Out Of The Closet.

Deadline: March 31st ,2019 Payment: Fiction: $25 for stories under 1,000 words, $50 for stories between 1,000 and 5,000 words, $75 for stories between 5,000 and 7,500 words and $100, for stories of 7,500 words and over. Poetry: $25 Heroic Fantasy Quarterly is generally open to fiction and poetry submissions four months per year. The months you can submit are: March June September December (we are closed to submissions in December, 2018) If you submit fiction or poetry in any other month, you will receive an auto-response and your tale will not be reviewed.   * * * As its name suggests, Heroic Fantasy Quarterly is a quarterly ezine dedicated to publishing heroic fantasy — in both prose and poetry. We are unrepentant in our goal of elevating unapologetic sword and sorcery to a rightful high place. We pay $100 for stories and $25 for poems, upon publication.  (Scroll down for info on art submissions.) We purchase first world English language electronic rights, electronic rights for 90 days, archival rights for twelve months, and excerpt rights. Our fiction word limit is a soft 10,000 words, although we are willing to serialize at a maximum of 50,000 words over four issues. You may submit up to three poems, with a cumulative maximum of 30 pages. While we don’t have iron-clad rules regarding our fiction payment, we roughly pay $25 for stories under 1,000 words, $50 for stories between 1,000 and 5,000 words, $75 for stories between 5,000 and 7,500 words and $100, for stories of 7,500 words and over. Tolkienesque (as in really long) poetry epics/sagas/vedas will most likely be treated — and paid — like fiction. Similarly, prose pieces of fewer than 1,000 words will be paid at poetry’s standard rate of $25.   Art: HFQ is looking for quality banner art to accompany each...