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Deadline: January 1st, 2021 Prizes: Grand Prize: $100 USD, First runner up: $50, second runner up: $25 Theme: Inclusion and representation for under-represented characters. The Non-Binary Stars anthology is about all kinds of inclusion and representation for under-represented characters. We are looking for excellent speculative fiction stories containing a character or characters that are representational of oppressed/under-represented groups, whether that be due to issues of gender, orientation, mental/physical health, body size, skin color, etc., in which the characters are just at home in the stories and they are accepted by those around them, and the storytelling itself is the focus. We want people to feel like there are characters out there that represent them and feel "normal". Note: this does not mean the story cannot mention the adversity such figures might face. Note: In order to have as broad an audience as possible, keep in mind that we cannot consider erotica or sex scenes unless they are only hinted at. Sorry for the damper this may put on some entries. HOW TO ENTER Submit your story to [email protected] with the words "Non-Binary Stars contest submission" or similar in the subject line. There is no entry fee. RULES Deadline is January 1st, 2021 and winners will be announced by February 1st, 2021 or as soon as possible after that. We will hang onto your story until the contest is finished, so please keep that in mind. LENGTH: 3,000-7,000 words SPECIFICS: One entry per contestant. Word count limits are absolute. No exceptions. Entries must be written in English. Entries must be new pieces, no reprints. Entries must be exclusive to this contest for its duration. No fan-fiction will be accepted. Include a short bio and your paypal payment address so we can distribute prizes promptly. JUDGING Each entry will be blind judged on a point system encompassing four factors: Creativity, Technique,...

Deadline: January 1st, 2021 Payment: £5 per accepted story. Theme: "Commuting" and what that means for you in Horror, Sci-Fi or Fantasy Flash Fiction Note: So this is a completely unique opportunity. Editor Max Green is looking to expand his experience in quite an interesting way. This isn't a publishing opportunity though it would likely mean your work would end up online as a reference which could cause it to be a reprint. Mr. Green is hoping to build a portfolio of edited stories and is willing to pay you for them. If you're a new writer looking for feedback or have a story that just never lands, this could be a beneficial way to get insight and keep the story around for a future collection of your own or anthology which accepts reprints. Also, not every anthologist will see this available in a portfolio as a reprint. Deadline: January 1st, 2021 Overview: An opportunity to send in a flash fiction piece and have it edited as part of a 2020 Creative Writing graduates portfolio. Payment: £5 per accepted story. It’s for a non-profit cause so no further money will be made once approved (either for myself or for you) but you will retain all the rights to your story and receive free editing on the submission if it’s approved. This is a good chance to have your work fine-tuned by a 3rd party who has a degree in Creative Writing and offers further potential to have your work posted online. It would be a great outlet for work that hasn’t been accepted in the past, or old stories that never saw the light of day!  Theme + Word Count: The theme or prompt for these short stories is “Commuting”. I leave this open ended for you to take it...

Deadline: January 1st, 2021 Payment: $100 plus a one-year subscription to the magazine Theme: Goddesses, Nymphs and Supervixens Sexy Fantastic Magazine features the absolute highest quality of fiction, comics, book and movie reviews, articles, photos of sexy fantastic heroines, and other cultural delights by top professionals and award-winning authors and artists. We are currently accepting prose fiction submissions for issue 2. CURRENT ISSUE GUIDELINES The theme of Issue 2 is Goddesses, Nymphs and Supervixens. This theme should be interpreted loosely. We are currently looking for stories that loosely relate to that theme. What We Want The absolute best literature possible in the field of fantastic stories. The greatest emphasis of this magazine is the quality of writing. Whether an orthodox narrative tale, a dreamlike vignette, or a poetical prose scene, a story should be comprehensible on some level, stay truthful to the literary world that the author has created, and be pleasing or satisfying. Any type of story with fantastic elements is acceptable, such as a metaphysical or surreal modern tale, magic realism, a dark fantasy thriller, science fiction satire, historical legend, an imaginary world fantasy adventure, etc. The fantastic element may be blatant or only perceived or hinted at. We hope for stories that are either fantastic with at least a hint of eroticism or erotic stories that have at least a hint of the fantastic. In terms of quality and style, some examples would be stories by Jorge Luis Borges, Fritz Leiber, Catherine Lucille Moore, Gore Vidal, Lawrence Durrell, John Fowles, Harlan Ellison, Ray Bradbury, Michael Moorcock, Jody Scott, Robert Heinlein, Carlos Fuentes, Anne Rice, Robert Aickman, Jack Vance, Conrad Aiken, Italo Calvino, Giovanni Boccaccio, Chaucer, Voltaire and Shirley Jackson. Comics would be work by creators such Moebius, Manara, or Esteban Maroto.  In TV or film, examples are...

Deadline: January 1st, 2021 Payment: Small advance + royalties Theme: Horror and Crime fiction Hi, folks! Max Booth here, co-owner and Editor-in-Chief of Perpetual Motion Machine. I’ve decided to reopen novel & novella submissions for our 2021/2022 lineup. Long-time fans of our press might notice we haven’t opened to full-length manuscript submissions in quite a while. Seems like a pretty good time to change that, right? And also, full transparency, while in recent years we have managed to publish more diverse authors in our horror magazine, Dark Moon Digest, I fully recognize we haven’t been the best at diversity on the book side of things. If you take a look at our novel roster, the pure whiteness might blind you. Please use caution. Obviously this wasn’t intentional, but I do take total blame in my laziness to seek out non-white voices. I screwed up there and I would like to do better. I love this press. I love the books we’ve published. I’ve dedicated the last eight years of my life to PMMP. But it’s never going to really evolve without making a significant step forward. Which is why, beginning immediately, Perpetual Motion Machine is reading novel & novella submissions from POC writers only. Sorry, white folks, but you gotta sit this open call out. Some general guidelines: Word count: 20k-150k Genres: Horror & Crime Deadline: January 01, 2021 Payment: Small advance + royalties Send all stories to [email protected] with “NOVEL/NOVELLA SUBMISSION_TITLE_LAST NAME_WORD COUNT” in the subject line. Please include a brief author bio in the cover letter. Via: Perpetual Motion Machine.

Deadline: January 1st, 2021 Payment: One cent U.S. per word ($2 minimum) Theme: Fantastic Fiction You really NEED to read the description below. The Cafe Irreal is a quarterly webzine that presents a kind of fantastic fiction infrequently published in English. This fiction, which we would describe as irreal, resembles the work of writers such as Franz Kafka, Kobo Abe, Clarice Lispector and Jorge Luis Borges. As a type of fiction it rejects the tendency to portray people and places realistically and the need for a full resolution to the story; instead, it shows us a reality constantly being undermined. Therefore, we're interested in stories by writers who write about what they don't know, take us places we couldn't possibly go, and don't try to make us care about the characters. We would also suggest you take a look at the current issue, archives, and theory (especially the essay, "What is irrealism?") pages on this web site. We accept unsolicited fiction up to 2,000 words in length. Translations are welcome. There is no minimum length. We accept only electronic submissions via e-mail at [email protected]. We cannot, due to the various computer viruses and worms, accept attachments anymore, so please paste your story into the body of the e-mail. Also include your name, address, e-mail address, and a short bio in the text of the submission; please put the word "submission" in the subject heading of the e-mail to ensure that your submission doesn't get lost among all the spam. We pay an honorarium of one cent U.S. per word ($2 minimum) to buy first-time internet rights (the story will then be archived). Payment is made upon publication. PLEASE NOTE THAT WE DON'T ACCEPT SIMULTANEOUS SUBMISSIONS and are only interested in reprints in unusual cases (e.g., the story has appeared in print but...

Deadline: January 1st, 2021 Payment: $20 Theme: Killing your... Family Note: Reprints welcome We want you to kill off those family members. Grandma, brother and sisters, even the pet bird. Make it good, make us squirm. Length: 3-10k Single spaced TNR 12pt Word or dox files Re-prints accepted Pay: $20/accepted story Send subs to: [email protected] Via: Terror Tract's Facebook.

Deadline: January 2nd, 2021 Payment: 6 cents per word for original, 2 cents for reprints Theme: Well written original work in science fiction, fantasy, myth, legend, fairy tales, and eldritch, in written, podcast, video, and/or graphic story form, and from around the world. Note: Reprints welcome     Submissions Schedule We have a new submissions schedule as of June 1, 2020: The first and second day of every month, 12 am of the 1st to 12 am of the 3rd, E.S.T. Only one submission per person. For reading impaired individuals, our submissions manager and ‘forget password’ have a captcha compatible with screen readers. We pay 6¢ per word for new fiction, 2¢ per word for fiction reprints, 2 – 6¢ per word for new fact-based work, 1- 4¢ per word for reprinted fact articles. For new poetry, we pay $1 a line, reprints would be 50¢ a line, up to 40 lines. We’ll look at longer poems but that would be a hard sell, and words over 40 lines would be paid at 6¢ per word. We began The Kepler Award to recognize and encourage writers of excellent science fiction and fantasy stories that creatively extrapolate on known science in constructive and exciting ways. You can learn about The Kepler Award here. You can read a copy of our standard contract here.   It can be varied as needed to include the rights of translators, voice actors, etc. Writers Guidelines We accept new work as well as reprints, prose and poetry, anywhere from 1000 word flash fiction on up, but all else being equal, shorter pieces will be favored.   We have tough standards but only care about the quality of the writing, storytelling ability, characters, plot, and ideas, not whether you’re new or established.  Submit only work you are proud of —...

Deadline: January 3rd, 2021 Payment: $100 via Paypal Theme: Explore a world where gods reign as gods must, but this is not a happy story. It is the story of how a god fell from grace. The Fallen Gods Anthology is your invitation to explore a world where gods reign as gods must, but this is not a happy story. It is the story of how a god fell from grace. Specifically, we are looking for stories with gods in same-gender relationships where one deity dies by some means and the surviving god falls from their immortal reign. Maybe they gave in to anguish and lost their divine spark. Perhaps they sought revenge and were exiled from the celestial realms. The fall is yours to tell. This anthology is the first of ours to only include LGBTQIA+ stories. We will be accepting the eight best submissions for inclusion in this anthology. These stories can be of any genre, but the main character and their partner must be members of the LGBTQIA+ community, and we ask that you keep your stories to YA standards. Please carefully consider your submission before you send it to us. Check for simple errors. Have a beta reader comb through it. Do everything you can to make us say yes. We are looking forward to reading how your god fell from grace. Submission Guidelines 1. Submissions are due on or before 12:00 p.m. PST on January 3, 2021. Please submit all stories to [email protected] with Subject Line: JHP Fallen Gods Anthology and the title of your work. 2. All submissions must be in English and double spaced with 12-point Times New Roman font. 3. Please submit your story as a .docx file. Your name, the work’s title, and the work’s word count must be on the front page. Please also include a 50- to 100-word...

Deadline: January 3rd, 2021 Payment: $50 Theme: Healers, Midwives and Cunning Folk Note: This magazine is only open for submissions from January 1st to 3rd of 2021 for this call so I wanted to give you more time to pen something to submit Hi there! I’ll no doubt write more about this later in the next year, but for now, what follows below will tell you all you need to know. And the theme? It’s “Healers, Midwives and Cunning Folk.” (No more submissions are being accepted for publication in December of 2020–but we will be publishing stories that have already been accepted.) The following is relevant to all submissions for 2021, and the first submission window opens Jan. 1. More below.   Writing opportunities for 2021 include:   New Fairy Tales: Fairy tales that are almost or entirely new or are just new takes on old tales are all welcome. Mashups of existing fairy tales are welcome as well. Submissions must follow the theme below to be considered.   Essays: Nonfiction articles about any aspect fairy tales and folklore are being sought. The term “essay” just means you’ll be writing about fairy-tale related matters in a nonfiction article.  Creative nonfiction is welcome. You do not have to stick to the theme, but you can.   Poetry: Poetry inspired by fairy tales and that follows the theme is also welcome.   Please read the following in its entirety before submitting.   Want to know what is likely to get published here? There are well over 10 years of stories, essays and art on this current site. It’s the best place to start if you want to be published here.   HERE IS HOW YOU SUBMIT AND FORMAT   Only the kind of submissions outlined below will be accepted at EC in...

Deadline: January 5th, 2021 Payment: $50 Theme: sci fi, fantasy, horror, and crime. Use the following guidelines to submit fiction content for publication consideration: email [email protected] put the words Fiction Submission in the subject line along with the submission call, story title and word count (example: Fiction Submission – Winter Blues – This Crazy Story I Wrote – 1972 words) Email Format: include a brief bio of no more than 80 words in the body of the email (do not include a list of all your publication credits) in the email state if this is a simultaneous submission in the email verify that first worldwide English publication rights are available verify you have Paypal and understand payments will only be made using Paypal File Format attach your submission as a .doc or .docx file – PDFs, RTFs and other formats will not be open, reviewed, or responded to use Times New Roman or Arial 12 pt font in black text do not have track changes on – do not send a file showing comments from beta readers or revisions double-spaced text, with the first line of each paragraph indented half an inch (using the format tool – not manually spaced by hitting the space bar 5 times) and one space after the end of a sentence word count: stories should be no less than 1,000 words and no more than 2,750 words *we do not accept reprints at this time*   The current submission call theme is redemption. All submissions should fit into one of the genres Dark Dispatch covers. We do not accept multiple submissions. We do accept simultaneous submissions. If you are simultaneously submitting it should be noted in the email with your submission, and you should withdraw your story immediately if it is accepted for publication elsewhere. We will not respond to submissions that do not follow...

Deadline: January 7th, 2021 Payment: 8 cents per word Theme: Original fantasy and dark fantasy stories. All types of fantasy and dark fantasy are welcome. Instructions for submitting to Fantasy Magazine follow. Please read everything on this page and read the magazine before submitting. SUBMISSION PROCEDURES Submission Periods: Fantasy is open to submissions the first week of every month (1st-7th). Please do not query about submitting outside our open submission periods. Anonymous Submissions: Fantasy only accepts anonymous submissions. Do not include your name, address, phone number, or other similar identifiers on the manuscript. All original short fiction, flash fiction, and poetry submissions will be read anonymously on first read: moving out of slush depends on the merits of the story alone. Please make sure the title is on the manuscript. Simultaneous and Multiple Submissions: We do not accept simultaneous submissions or multiple submissions. Please do not submit more than one set of poems at a time, more than one piece of flash fiction at a time, or more than one story at a time. You may, however, submit a single entry in each category at the same time: you can submit one batch of poems, one flash fiction piece, and one short story all at the same (or overlapping) time, and each category will be considered a separate submission. If we are already considering work in any given category, please wait until you have received an acceptance or rejection before submitting again in that same category. Instructions: All fiction must be submitted through our Moksha online submission system. Please do not email your submissions. If one of the Submission Type options is grayed out, that means we are currently closed to that Submission Type. Questions/Problems: Email [email protected] for all submission-related inquiries, or if you have any trouble using our online submission system. Please do not email your submissions to this address. All submissions must be submitted...

Deadline: January 8th, 2021 Payment: $75 Theme: Gothic horror and romance stories take on new depths and terrifying outcomes when happily ever after is no longer an option Love can be a curse. True love can have dark depths. “Till death do you part” might be prophetic. And beware the unrequited, shunned, and spited romantics. In the Twisted Love Anthology, gothic horror and romance stories take on new depths and terrifying outcomes when happily ever after is no longer an option. Jazz House wants to read your twisted, dark, and despairing stories about romantic and gothic horror and the people who find love to have a bitter aftertaste. This is a Valentine’s Day-themed anthology, so please incorporate this holiday’s themes and aesthetics in your twisted tales. We encourage every interpretation of this theme, including supernatural, magical, Victorian, and contemporary settings and characters. Submission Guidelines 1. Submissions are due on or before 12:00 p.m. PST on January 8, 2021. Please submit all stories to [email protected] with Subject Line: JHP Twisted Love and the title of your work. 2. All submissions must be in English and double spaced with 12-point Times New Roman font, paragraphs must be tab-indented, and manuscripts must have Shunn formatting (click here for an example) and use the Chicago Manual of Style. Any edits we make will enforce both Shunn and Chicago formatting to include grammar, punctuation, and layout. 3. Please submit your story as a .docx file. Your name, the work’s title, and the work’s word count must be on the front page. Please also include a 50- to 100-word author’s bio with your submission. If you have a social media account, such as Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram, please also include your handles. 4. Story length is 7,000 to 9,000 words. Your story must meet the minimum word count. Submissions below 7,000 words and above 9,000...

Deadline: January 9th, 2020 Payment: 10 cents per word for fiction, $50 – $100 for poems, reprints: $0.01 per word for these Theme: Everything should in some way relate to merfolk! Note: Reprints Welcome are. What don’t you want? Submissions that are longer than we ask for in our guidelines. We have made these lengths our limits so that we can afford to pay fairly for your work, and we cannot commit to taking longer pieces. Work that promotes homophobia, transphobia, racism, fascism, ableism, misogyny, bigotry, or other attitudes that harm people and go against our love of inclusivity. We are very particular about stories containing violence, child abuse, and sexual assault. We may publish pieces that refer to or depict this kind of thing, but we want it to be justified within the context of the piece, and not there for the sake of sensationalism or shock value. We will place content warnings on any piece we publish containing these. Things that aren’t in some way related to our mertheme. How should I format my submission? For prose, we suggest Word documents, but we will read other kinds. If for some reason we can’t read your document, we’ll email you to let you know. Please use a format that you personally find comfortable to read. We’d like it to be in a widely available font, and at a size that is not too small (12pt is always a good default if you aren’t sure). For poetry, we’d like to see it as you intend it to look on the page. If your poetry has special shaping, we’re okay with a PDF. For comics and art, please send jpeg image files. If we accept a piece we will ask for a higher quality version, but a compressed file is fine...

Deadline: January 10th, 2021 Payment: 2 cents a word and 3 contributors copies Theme: Hard sci-fi, soft sci-fi, sci-fi that melts in your mouth-brain not your hand-brain. Speculative fiction, weird fiction, slipstream Note: This issue is only open to cisgender women, transgender women, transgender men, non-binary people, and genderqueer people. On Planet Scumm, we want to read stories that are different and unexpected. Stories that introduce new ideas, or that look at old ideas with a fresh perspective. And while we like to think that Planet Scumm is a space where historically marginalized writers can be heard, we also know there's always more work to be done to support representation in sci-fi and speculative fiction. That's why, for Planet Scumm #11: Snake Eyes, we're asking for submissions from cisgender women, transgender women, transgender men, non-binary people, and genderqueer people.  We kindly ask authors who don't identify along those lines to not submit to this call. Joining the Good Ship Scummy as guest editor for this issue is Hailey Piper. Hailey is a regular contributor to Planet Scumm—"Reptile" appeared in Planet Scumm #7, and her story "Brain Trust" will be in the upcoming Planet Scumm #9: A Bloody Pulp. Hailey's work has also appeared in Daily Science Fiction, The Arcanist, Flash Fiction Online, and Year's Best Hardcore Horror, and she's the author of horror novellas The Worm and His Kings, Benny Rose, The Cannibal King, and The Possession of Natalie Glasgow. And gracing the hallowed halls of the “Scummy Memorial Gallery & All-Ages Foodatorium” is Maura McGonagle, who will spearhead art direction for Planet Scumm #11. Maura is a sequential artist carrying on the tradition of story telling as best they can. They have participated in numerous anthologies including the Prism award nominatee ‘Being True’ and produce a monthly Webtoons series...

Deadline: January 10th, 2021 Payment: $10 and a contributors copy Theme: Winter horror or any story concerning the cold. Note: Reprints welcome Served Cold edited by R. Saint Claire and Steve Donoghue. Seeking submissions from authors with active BookTube or AuthorTube channels for the next HorrorTube Anthology. Our first release, Local Haunts, has been very successful so far, reaching Amazon’s number #1 bestseller rank in Canada and Australia and garnering excellent reviews. Again, we are looking for a diverse group of authors with active BookTube and/or AuthorTube channels (no channel too small) so please do not hesitate to submit. Genre: Horror, including suspense, mystery, and weird fiction. Sci-fi and fantasy are fine as long as there are some horror elements. Theme: Winter horror or any story concerning the cold. No overt erotica or anything too hardcore. Contact Regina at [email protected] with any questions. Length: 1,000 – 7,000 words Deadline: January 10, 2021 Details: Please submit your story and other materials as separate attachments along with a link to your YouTube channel to [email protected]. Please use the standard submission format. For guidance see https://www.shunn.net/format/story.html. Please submit only your best, most polished work. Reprints are okay. The terms include the nonexclusive right to display, copy, publish, distribute, transmit and sell digital and print reproductions of your story worldwide. English language only. Pay for accepted submissions: $10 honorarium, print and digital copy. All proceeds will be donated to the literacy charity First Book. Deadline: January 10, 2021 Release Date: February 2021 Cover Design: Cameron Roubique Via: R. Saint Claire.

Deadline: January 10th, 2021 Payment: $75 for Short Stories for the journal and $50 for Short Stories accepted for publication on the website Theme: Speculative Fiction/Horror ONLY Note: Black women writers only We are looking for previously unpublished, character-driven, speculative short stories written by Black women writers Speculative fiction is a broad genre encompassing fiction with certain elements that do not exist in the real world, often in the context of supernatural, futuristic, or other imaginative themes. This includes, but is not limited to, science fiction, fantasy, superhero fiction, horror, utopian and dystopian fiction, fairytale fantasy, and supernatural fiction. Please submit your short story no later than January 10, 2021. Stories must meet our minimum 1,400 word count requirement.  Please include the word count at the top of your submission. All submissions will be considered for publication on a rolling basis on midnightandidigo.com or in our annual Speculative fiction special issue (online and/or print - October 2021). We offer $75 for Short Stories accepted for publication in our literary journal (eBook, print, and/or audiobook) and $50 for Short Stories accepted for publication on midnightandindigo.com. We accept only previously unpublished work. Responses will be provided by February 23, 2021. ***** Optional Add ons We DO NOT charge a fee for submissions, but do offer optional add-ons should you wish to participate. Again, these fees are optional - you are not required to pay to submit your work. Standard Submission ($0) You are not required to pay for submission. You will be notified of acceptance/decline by February 23, 2021. Expedited Reading option ($20) If you choose this option, we'll put your work at the very top of our reading pile for review. Choosing this option will not influence whether your submission is accepted for publication. This only grants a quicker accept/decline response; guaranteed by January 26, 2021. For extended feedback options, please contact us directly via your Submittable account for details....

Deadline: January 11th, 2021 Payment: 10 for every 1,000 words prorated, $50 for every 5,000 words prorated, and so on. Theme: Short horror stories with a focus on ghosts, the supernatural, paranormal, monsters, and dark tales. Scare Street is accepting submissions for short horror stories with a focus on ghosts, the supernatural, paranormal, monsters, and dark tales. Unpublished short stories must be 3,000-7,000 words and will be included in our Night Terrors anthologies consisting of ~65,000 words each. These stories will be published in e-book, print, and audio formats in English within 6 months after the submissions close date. Based on reader reception, we may also publish them in e-book, print, and audio formats in German and Spanish. WHO ARE WE? Scare Street is a horror publishing company dedicated to helping fellow horror lovers experience sleepless nights. We’ve been around since September 2015 and have published 200+ e-book and paperback titles along with 150+ audiobooks (and counting!). WHAT’S IN IT FOR YOU? Get visibility from thousands of horror readers. We will promote your work on our email list (12,000+ subscribers), Facebook Page (26,000+ followers), Facebook Group (11,000+ members), Pinterest (145k+ monthly views) and the rest of our social media channels. Afterwards, thousands of readers on Amazon and other retailers will organically find your stories. Our first few volumes clenched the top 3 new release spots in horror anthologies category and continue to be found on the first page of various horror categories. Work with an experienced publisher. We’ve been publishing high-quality manuscripts, non-stop for 5 years. We’ve ironed out the kinks and know what it takes to bring stories to the masses, operationally. And we know a few things about getting your stories read, too! Distribution in e-book, print, and audio formats, in various languages. You’ll also receive a complimentary digital e-book and audio...

Deadline: January 11th, 2021 Payment: $5 Theme: Lost Civilisations. 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 64.) Lost Civilisations; deadline 11th January !!!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 • Title your email with the following syntax: SUBMISSION | STORY TITLE | THEME | WORDCOUNT (e.g. SUBMISSION | THE MARTIAN | SPACE | 1,982). Failure to do this...

Deadline: January 15th, 2021 Payment: $10 USD for reprints and $20 USD for previously unpublished Theme: Moonlight & Misadventure Note: Reprints allowed Call for Short Story Submissions     Anthology Title: Moonlight & Misadventure: 20-22 Stories of Mystery & Suspense   Genre: Short story/mystery/suspense   Publisher: Superior Shores Press   Editor: Judy Penz Sheluk   Deadlines: The deadline for submission is January 15, 2021 or until 100 submissions have been received, whichever comes first. Starting December 2020, the website page will be updated periodically with the number of submissions received. Late submissions and/or submissions after 100 entries have been documented will not be considered.   All submissions will be acknowledged within 7 days. If you do not receive an acknowledgment within that time, please Contact Me.   Acceptance/rejections will be emailed to all submitting authors on or before April 1, 2021. Please, no simultaneous submissions.   Publication Date: *June 2021 (trade paperback/Kindle; Kobo, Nook, Apple, and other e-book markets to follow at the publisher’s discretion)   *The Publisher reserves the right to postpone and/or cancel due to unforeseen circumstances or if an insufficient number of qualified stories are submitted/accepted.   Description: A multi-author anthology of 20 to 22 short stories of mystery and suspense, with an overarching theme of Moonlight & Misadventure. Estimated length: 250-300 printed pages in trade paperback format. An introduction, acknowledgments, and author bios will be included.   Submission Guidelines: Both previously published and unpublished authors are welcome to submit. There is no entry fee.   Authors may submit 1 (one) reprint or 1 (one) previously unpublished short story, ideally ranging between 1,500 to 5,500 words (though great stories falling “slightly” outside this range will be considered). Preference will be given to new material; reprint material will not exceed 25% of the collection.   Note: Authors of new...

Deadline: January 15th, 2021 Payment: $0.08/word Theme: Speculative stories of queer witches, occult rituals and dark hunger Neon Hemlock's next anthology will be called Unfettered Hexes: Queer Tales of Insatiable Darkness and edited by dave ring. We'll be looking broadly for speculative stories of queer witches, occult rituals and dark hunger. We are currently running a Kickstarter to fund this project. The compensation level for original stories accepted to this anthology is $0.08/word. Please submit your stories using this form. If you are unable to use the submission form for reasons of accessibility or anything else, please email us at admin at neonhemlock dot com for alternate submission instructions. We are looking for: Wordcount: Under 6,000 words. 1-4,000 words is probably the sweet spot. Concept: Unfettered Hexes: Queer Tales of Insatiable Darkness will be a speculative anthology that explores the boundaries between queer witches, the profane, and infinite darkness. Unfettered Hexes asks you to sling salt in a circle, call the corners, and breathe life into the unutterable cadences that call forth the void. Find your coven, craft new rituals and hex your enemies. For this anthology, we use the term "witch" in the broadest sense, paying homage to ritual practices, razor-sharp intent, and connections to the eldritch, the numinous and the otherworldly. We welcome tensions and alignments within those practices, and particularly look forward to non-Western and non-white interpretations. We acknowledge the challenges and strengths of #ownvoices work, while also asking that authors to be careful to avoid cultural appropriation if their writing includes genuine cultural practices. What we want to see: We are looking for speculative stories of witchery with queer narratives. We want queer stories and we want trans stories and we want indefinable stories. We welcome a broad interpretation of speculative genres; give us space witches...

Deadline: January 15th, 2021 Payment: $10 and a contributor's copy Theme: Edgy, fearless, and experimental subject matter and styles great weather for MEDIA seeks poetry and prose for our annual print anthology. Our reading period runs October 15, 2020 to January 15, 2021. Our focus is on edgy, fearless, and experimental subject matter and styles. We highly recommend reading one of our previous collections to see the type of work we are interested in and the design of our books. Our latest anthology is Escape Wheel. Let us know in your cover letter how you found us and what you like about us. We are based in New York City and welcome submissions from both national and international writers. https://www.greatweatherformedia.com/ Guidelines: Surprise us with your fearless best!  We do not consider previously published work, whether print or online. This includes limited edition chapbooks and personal blogs. If your work appears in our most recent anthology, please wait a year before submitting again in any genre. Please submit only once in each genre (poetry / prose) and do not submit again until you have received a response. Simultaneous submissions are fine - just notify us with your good news immediately.  If you wish to withdraw individual pieces from consideration, click on the title of your submission, click on Active, and add a note listing the title(s) to be withdrawn. If you need to withdraw your entire submission, please use the Withdraw button.   Please don't send revisions. You can always add a note to your submissions if there is something you need to let us know about. Payment: One contributor copy, plus $10 for writers based in USA. International writers receive one copy. We aim to respond in 1-4 months. If you have not heard from us after five months, please email [email protected] Copyright: great weather for MEDIA holds first serial rights for material that we publish....

Deadline: January 15th, 2021 Payment: $20 per story Theme: Electric Spec prefers science fiction, fantasy, and the macabre, but we're willing to push the limits of traditional forms of these genres. Please don't query us about your story submission. We don't have the manpower to answer such queries. An editor will email you back as soon as possible with the decision about your story. This can take a few days, or, up to three months. We make every effort to get back to authors in a timely manner but we get a lot of submissions so sometimes it's not possible. A note on our editorial policy: before publication we may edit the story for length or readability. However, we always remain true to the spirit of the story. Issues are published at the end of February, May, August, and November. We reserve the right to shift publication date slightly, as necessary. We have reading periods for each issue, though we never close to submissions. February closes January 15 May closes April 15 August closes July 15 November closes October 15 Please do not submit the same story more than once, and please submit only one story at a time. We consider any story between 250 and 7000 words with speculative fiction elements. We prefer science fiction, fantasy, and the macabre, but we're willing to push the limits of traditional forms of these genres. We do not consider poetry, stories with over-the-top sex or violence, serials, novels, fan fiction, or non-fiction. We don't accept multiple submissions; in other words, only submit one story at a time and wait for a response before submitting another. We accept simultaneous submissions as long as you let us know up front and tell us as soon as it's accepted elsewhere. We do not publish reprints, including anything...

Deadline: January 16th, 2021 Payment: $20 Theme: Fantasy Note: My apologies for the short submission period, just ran across this. Flash Fiction Wanted! After closing open submissions for longer stories and novellas, EXTERUS is looking to round out our magazine with some flash! We’ve got a few blank pages that could be used for advertising space, but we would prefer to see them go to authors instead. If you have a piece or two of fantasy themed flash fiction burning a hole in your computer please send it on over. We will pay a flat fee of $20 for each story of 500 to 2,000 words. The story MUST be fantasy related. It can be funny, grimdark, or anything in between. As far as content is concerned, anything up to R rating is fine, just so long as the ‘adult’ material serves a purpose and is not gratuitous. No animal cruelty or torture, if you please. If you submitted a story that we turned down before, please feel free to submit another one. Just because we declined to print one of your pieces doesn’t mean we don’t like you. Sometimes all it takes is the right story at the right time. Submissions will be open until January the 16th. Please send all submission to [email protected] as an attachment plus a brief summary in the body of the email. We will accept DOC, DOCX, RTF, and PDF files. Payment will be made via Paypal. Via: Exterus Magazine's Facebook.

Deadline: January 17th 2021 Payment: AU$5.00 for stories under 2500 words / AU$10.00 for anything above 2500 words Theme: Underground Colp is our 'anything goes' genre-free anthology collection. Expect to see a little bit of this and a little bit of that.   Current theme: UNDERGROUND Beneath the earth, beneath all the hustle and bustle of the big city, there are endless possibilities. Stories waiting to be told about mysterious creatures or forgotten cultures. Tunnels that shouldn't be followed and doors that should probably remain shut. For this collection, we would like stories in which a large proportion of the narrative takes place under the ground. Colp is for everyone and therefore we are willing to read stories that fall into any genre. So, no matter whether your story is a horror, adventure, romance, sci-fi or historical fiction piece, please send it on through. Be original. We also encourage new and unpublished writers to take the leap and get in touch. Please ensure that you read through the general guidelines and format your submission accordingly. If you have any specific questions please contact us using the form on the home page or via the listed social media accounts. To help make sure that your submission gets to the correct place, please include the following in the subject line of your email: Colp - Underground - Story Title. Word count: 1000 - 5500 words Deadline: January 17 2021 Payment: AU$5.00 for stories under 2500 words / AU$10.00 for anything above 2500 words Via: Gypsum Sound Tales.

Deadline: January 18th, 2021 Payment: $.10 per word Theme: Intricate, experimental stories and poems with gorgeous prose, verve, and imagination that elicit strong emotions and challenge beliefs. Uncanny Magazine will be open to poetry submissions from January 4 to January 18. Please follow us on social media or sign up for our newsletter to get all submission updates.  Editors-in-Chief: Lynne M. Thomas and Michael Damian Thomas Uncanny Magazine is seeking passionate, diverse SF/F fiction and poetry from writers from every conceivable background.  We want  intricate, experimental stories and poems with gorgeous prose, verve, and imagination that elicit strong emotions and challenge beliefs. Uncanny believes there’s still plenty of room in the genre for tales that make you feel. Uncanny Magazine is a Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) Qualifying Professional Market. Fiction Guidelines Uncanny is looking for original, unpublished speculative fiction stories between 750-6000 words. Payment is $.10 per word (including audio rights). We will reject any story that doesn’t follow our guidelines and procedures. You may not resubmit a rejected story. If you aren’t sure if your story counts as unpublished, please query us. Submission procedures: 1- NEW! Please submit your story via Uncanny‘s Moksha submission system. 2- All stories should be in Modern Manuscript Format and attached in .RTF, .DOC, or .DOCX formats. Please feel free to include your pronouns (optional) along with your name and email address in the upper left corner of your manuscript. Note, you do not need to add your mailing address or legal name to your manuscript. We will only ask for that information if your story is chosen for publication. 3- Your cover letter should contain the length of your story, your significant publishing history and awards, and information that might be relevant to that specific submission. 4- Please do not send multiple submissions at once. 5- We try to respond to all submissions in 30 days. Please feel free to query uncannymagazine gmail...

Deadline: January 25th, 2021 Payment: $5 Theme: Government Experiments 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 65.) Government Experiments; deadline 25th January !!!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 • Title your email with the following syntax: SUBMISSION | STORY TITLE | THEME | WORDCOUNT (e.g. SUBMISSION | THE MARTIAN | SPACE | 1,982). Failure to do this...

Deadline: January 25th, 2021 Prize: 2 prizes. ¢.5 per word (half a cent), with a max of $15 plus a one-time royalty bonus and inclusion in a "Best Of" yearly anthology Theme: MONSTERS (or Creatures) MONTHLY HORROR OPEN CALL Submissions Open: 1st - 25th of the Month Responses will be completed by the 15th of the next month. Example: January theme opens January 1 and closes end of day Jan 25. You will have a response back by February 15th. Theme: HORROR - Although the monthly theme will change, the running theme for this year’s monthly contest will be MONSTERS (or Creatures)! January: Faeries February: Wendigos March: Djinn Word count: 1500 - 3000 with some wiggle room above the limit. Not under. Top Two Stories: Will be accepted into the "Best Of" Anthology released early 2022 Payment: Flat rate payment ¢.5 per word (half a cent), with a max of $15 plus a one-time royalty bonus payment after one year of sales. Runner Up: Will have their story and bio featured on our newsletter and blog. Payment: One time $5.00 (USD) payment Who can submit? Open to the public Reprints? No Multiple Submission? No  Only one submission per month per author Formatting: Put your name, email, and title on the top of the manuscript. Please use a standard font, either 11 or 12 pt, double spaced, and indent paragraphs. Title your manuscript "Title of Story - Theme and month" Example "The Ring of Death - Faeries January" How to submit? Submit via the FORM - Which will open on January 1, 2021 IF you have issues with the form, please email your manuscript to [email protected] Title your email the same as the manuscript Submit your manuscript via the Form on our submission section here: https://www.eerieriverpublishing.com/open-submission Although we are a horror publisher we are...

Deadline: January 31st, 2020 Payment: 10 cents per word Theme: Science fiction, fantasy, horror (everything must have speculative element, even horror). Note: This does NOT open until January 1st, do not submit before this time. Diabolical Plots will be open for submissions for the entire month of January 2021. David Steffen is the editor, who you may also know from using the Submission Grinder writing tool or reading the Long List Anthology series.  Diabolical Plots is a SFWA-qualifying market, so if you have a personal goal to join SFWA, making a sale here would help you toward that goal. This year Ziv Wities will be in the role of assistant editor.  He will be handling much of the first round of the submission process, as well as helping to write personal rejections when we provide personal rejections. For the most part we expect the process will generally be the same–but the biggest difference is that in past years David read at least part of every submitted story, which is not expected to be true this year because of time constraints–thankfully Ziv is willing to step in and lend a hand! FICTION OVERVIEW Genres: science fiction, fantasy, horror (everything must have speculative element, even horror). Word count: 3500 words or less. This is a firm limit.  If you submit a longer story, it will be rejected unread and that will count as a submission. Do not query to ask permission to submit something longer–the answer will be no. Pay rate: 10 cents per word (more than the minimum professional rate as deemed by SFWA) Multiple submissions: A total of TWO submissions per author during this submission window.  You don’t have to wait for one response to send the second one–you can just send both whenever you want during the window. Simultaneous submissions: No.  We understand we are tying up...

Deadline: January 31st, 2021 Payment: $0.01 cent a word and a contributors copy, $20 for reprints and a contributors copy Theme: Diverse sci-fi and fantasy fiction. Note: Reprints accepted MYTHIC is seeking diverse sci-fi and fantasy fiction. We publish both new, original fiction and reprints. Authors are encouraged to submit their stories during the specific reading periods listed below. Reading Periods June 1 through July 31 December 1 through January 31 Guidelines Works should be between 2,000-6,000 words. (No wiggle room above or below.) 1.) Submit in Standard Manuscript Format We prefer Times New Roman or Courier and 12 point type. Double-spaced pages. Do not have tabs in your manuscript; please set first line indents. Please include your name and contact information at the beginning of the story. Submit in .doc, .docx, .rtf format. 2.) Please NO simultaneous or multiple submissions. Rights Purchased: For NEW/UNPUBLISHED FICTION, We are purchasing World English Rights For REPRINT FICTION, We are purchasing Reprint Rights. Following an exclusivity period, all other rights revert to the author. MYTHIC retains a nonexclusive right to keep stories in the issue they appear for as long as the issue remains in print. Compensation: At this time, we pay $0.01 cent a word for NEW short fiction. At this time, we pay a flat rate of $20 for REPRINT short fiction. We provide authors with one free copy of the issue in which their story appears. Payment made upon publication via PayPal. (We are not responsible for any transaction fees). To submit fiction: Send all stories to [email protected]. Your story should be attached. Put “New Submission: Title of Your Story” in the subject line for NEW/UNPUBLISHED short stories. Put “Reprint Submission: Title of Your Story” in the subject line for REPRINT short stories. Please include your name, title, word count, and contact information in the body of the email. Note on nonfiction: All articles and other content are chosen in-house. Please do not...

Deadline: January 31st, 2021 Payment: 3 (Euro) cents per word for original fiction and 1 (Euro) cent per word for translations of fiction into English. Themes: End(ing)s of the Universe – from Entropy to Eschatology. OR Comparative Alien Sociology and Xeno-anthropology. Note: My apologies on the short window, I was just notified of this one. **** Happy New Year! Sci Phi Journal is open for submissions from 1 to 31 January 2021. PLEASE NOTE that this is a THEMATIC call for submissions. We primarily* invite short fiction (the 2000-word hard limit continues to apply) on the follow subjects: End(ing)s of the Universe – from Entropy to Eschatology. Comparative Alien Sociology and Xeno-anthropology. (*We’ll read stories that are not directly focused on these topics but ‘speak to them’. If your piece has no relation to either theme whatsoever, though, it is unlikely to be accepted.) For reference, we encourage you to check out our 2020 thematic issue on Immortality. **** There are plenty of amazing print and online journals out there for ‘character-driven’ fiction, and we encourage you to read them. SPJ is not one of them, though. Hence, we are not interested in stories predominantly about the sentiments and subjective experiences of fictional people. We want hard SF that zooms out of the personal and lifts off into the structural, the systemic, the epic. We yearn for carefully crafted philosophical speculation that puzzles over the questions of the future and alternate pasts. And we have a soft spot for stories created as ‘artifacts’ (fictional, ‘in-universe’ non-fiction). So here are SPJ‘s quests: – Campbellian hard SF. Reaching back to the roots of classic sci-fi, these rigorous tales take themselves seriously and push the boundaries of our scientific imagination, scaling from the nano to the meta. The cast, if any, is functional and disposable. It’s the sociological, technological and indeed cosmic developments that...

Deadline: January 31st, 2021 Payment: 8 cents per word Theme: Fantasy, sci-fi, horror, and any genre in between or around it, as long as there’s a speculative element. Note: You must identify as an immigrant or member of a diaspora in the broadest definitions of the terms. This includes, but is not limited to, first- and second-generation immigrants, refugees, asylum seekers, undocumented migrants, persons who identify with one or more diaspora communities, persons who have been displaced or whose heritage has been erased due to colonialism/imperialism, and anyone whose heritage and history includes ‘here and elsewhere’. khōréō is a quarterly publication of stories, essays, and art: fantasy, sci-fi, horror, and any genre in between or around it, as long as there’s a speculative element. We’re especially interested in writing and art that explore some aspect of migration, whether explicitly (themes of immigration, colonialism, etc.), metaphorically, or with a sly nod and a wink. Most importantly, we’re a new magazine and we’re still finding our identity: therefore, please don’t self-reject because you’re not sure if your work is a good fit. We won’t know until we see it, so please give us a chance to look! See submission requirements & how to submit at the following pages: Fiction Non-fiction Art Voice actors Who can submit? khōréō is dedicated to diversity and amplifying the voices of immigrant and diaspora authors and artists. We welcome, but do not require, a brief description of the author’s/artist’s identity in their cover letter. We invite you to submit if you identify as an immigrant or member of a diaspora in the broadest definitions of the terms. This includes, but is not limited to, first- and second-generation immigrants, refugees, asylum seekers, undocumented migrants, persons who identify with one or more diaspora communities, persons who have been displaced or whose heritage...

Deadline: January 31st, 2021 Payment: 10 cents per word Theme: Speculative Fiction of all types What we Publish: Original fiction and poetry, all of which must be broadly “speculative fiction” (science fiction, fantasy, alt-history, magical realism, slipstream, or in some other way altered reality). Length: 12,000 words or less preferred, but you may submit stories up to 20,000 words. 30 lines or fewer for poetry. Rights Purchased: First worldwide English-language rights. Payment: $0.10/word up to 3,000 words for fiction. $300 flat rate above that. $10/poem flat rate for poetry. Simultaneous Submissions: Accepted. Please let us know immediately if your work sells elsewhere. Multiple Submissions: Accepted on a trial basis. Please do not dump your entire trunk on us or this will change. For fiction, please submit each story separately. For poetry, please submit up to 10 poems in a single file. If you receive a rejection during a submission window, you may submit again with another story or another batch of poems. Reprints: By solicitation only. Query if your work was previously published but obscurely enough that you think it should not count. Translations: Accepted for first worldwide English publication. Response Time: We strive to respond to all submissions in less than 90 days. Query Address: departuremirror gmail Submission Portal: Moksha Departure Mirror Quarterly stories are: Current. Astute readers should be able to see how your story addresses the world we live in right now. Well written. Accessible to a mainstream American audience. Diverse. We mean this not only in terms of the types of stories we publish, but also in terms of the types of authors we publish. Writers from historically underrepresented and oppressed groups are especially encouraged to submit. We particularly like stories that take the outsider’s perspective. Anti-violence. We do not publish anything that promotes or glorifies violence, including threats of violence and coercion. (Minimum necessary force in self-defense can be acceptable if...

Deadline: January 31st, 2021 Payment: Contributors copy Theme: “Strange and darksome” literary horror Note: N. is currently OPEN to submissions. (Submission period: January 2021.) Nightscript is published annually, during grand October, in both trade and electronic editions. It is an anthology of “strange and darksome”  literary horror. If you feel that your work has been inspired in no small part by authors such as Robert Aickman, Shirley Jackson, Dennis Etchison, Flannery O’Connor, Clive Barker, Lisa Tuttle, Thomas Ligotti, or Arthur Machen, then N. is probably the venue for you. Authors are asked to submit their original tales (between 2,000 and 7,000 words) via the email provided below and should allow 4 to 8 weeks for a response. Submit .doc files to: [email protected] (Please send only one story per reading period.) Payment is one contributor copy. Nightscript is a labor of love, and as such I shall endeavor to produce an aesthetically pleasing product for which all contributors can feel proud. That said, I look forward to reading your work! Thank you kindly for your interest. C.M. Muller, editor & publisher Via: Chthonic Matter.

Deadline: January 31st, 2021 Payment: Royalties Publication – May 2021 Word Count – 5,000-15,000 Theme – Female samurai are rarely written in books and are shrouded in mystery. With no limitation on genre, the only special requirement for this anthology is that a female samurai be the main character in each of these stories. * Introduction of yourself should be a short biography in 3rd Person between 100-200 words. Upon acceptance, this will be used within the anthology. Send a bio with every single anthology submission. We work with hundreds of authors and will not take time to retrieve yours from a previous anthology. * Poetry submissions: All poetry needs to be contained within a single e-mail. Each poem should be in a separate document. Haikus may be grouped together. * All e-mails should be addressed to “Dear Editor.” After receiving edits back, the author has two weeks to return the submission for formatting. All submissions will be reviewed within thirty (30) days of the anthology’s submission deadline. This ensures submission calls do not close early and gives everyone a chance to submit. You will know your submission has been received for consideration by receiving a generic response. Whether accepted or rejected, you will always receive a response. View our blog articles on how to submit to a publisher and how to write a proposal.   Failure to submit following all of the guidelines will result in an immediate refusal. You are able to submit again before the submission call deadline.   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.

Deadline: January 31st, 2021 Payment: 1 cent per word, a flat rate of $20 if under 2,000 words. Theme: Speculative fiction, whatever that means to you, be it Science Fiction, Fantasy, Steampunk, Magical Realism, Slipstream, or an as-yet-unnamed genre. Note: Reprints welcome if not previously published in audio The Overcast is currently open to submissions! We will be open to submissions for the entire month of January 2021.   What We Want We are interested in speculative fiction, whatever that means to you, be it Science Fiction, Fantasy, Steampunk, Magical Realism, Slipstream, or an as-yet-unnamed genre.  Anything that looks at the world and life from an unexpected angle.  We want the original vision of William Gibson and N.K. Jemison.  The magic and beauty of Erin Morgenstern.  The uncompromising voice of Margaret Atwood.  The technical brilliance of Ted Chiang.  We want to read stories that transport us to places that we've never imagined.  We want to still be thinking about a story days after reading it.  Be original.  Be amazing. We are based in Portland, OR, and shine a spotlight on writers hailing from, living in, or connected in some way to the Pacific Northwest, as loosely defined by the bioregion of Cascadia.  We feel there is an exceptionally strong talent pool of speculative writers in Cascadia, and we want to celebrate and promote them to a larger audience.  Roughly half the stories we publish are by PNW writers.  That said, we are not exclusive, and the other half of our stories come from authors all over the globe.  So no matter where you live, send us your stories.  If they make us laugh, cry, or turn cartwheels of astonishment, preferably all at once, we will find a place for them on The Overcast. This is an audio format publication.  We...

Deadline: January 31st, 2021 Payment: 8 cents/word and 4 cents/word for reprints Theme: Speculative stories--science fiction, fantasy, horror--with Christian themes, characters, or cosmology We are looking for speculative stories--science fiction, fantasy, horror--with Christian themes, characters, or cosmology, and for artwork for this site. Fiction Guidelines Technical details Stories can be up to 9000 words (thanks, Patreon supporters!). This is a hard limit--our submission system will enforce it. We pay 8 cents/word for original stories (or original translations of stories that have not previously appeared in English), and 4 cents/word for reprints (thanks again, Patreon!). Authors are paid once we've agreed on edits and signed a contract, prior to earliest publication (generally on our Patreon page). We are seeking 6 months' exclusive worldwide publication rights for original works (with exceptions for established Best of the Year anthologies), and non-exclusive worldwide print and electronic rights thereafter for both original works and reprints. We want to publish your story online in our webzine and keep it there indefinitely. We're also acquiring the right to offer ebook versions of the stories we publish, as Patreon rewards or for purchase; and to publish a print and ebook anthology of all the stories that appeared in the webzine over a given 1- or 2-year period. For original fiction, we want to be the only place publishing it for the first 6 months; after that, you're welcome to publish it anywhere else in any format you like. No multiple or simultaneous submissions. If multiple writers co-write a story, we consider each distinct group of writers a different submitter. In other words, if two people co-write a story, and they submit the co-written story, and each of them also submits a story written on their own, that would not violate our no multiple submissions policy. Submitting two stories co-written by the same two...

Daedline: January 31st, 2021 Payment: 1p per word, plus a copy of the book Theme: Stories featuring monsters! Monsters are many things. They come in all forms, shapes and sizes: from to the tiny to the titanic; from amorphous blobs to many limbed (or tentacled) monstrosities; from supernatural demons to man-made terrors. They come from any place and time: from under the bed to the woodshed; from the icy wastes to the darkest jungles; from the depths of the ocean to outer space; from the past, the future, the now! Many things. Any things. We are looking for stories featuring monsters for The Alchemy Press Book of Horrors 3: A Miscellany of Monsters to be edited by Peter Coleborn and Jan Edwards. To get a flavour of the type of writing we prefer, we suggest you check out volumes 1 and 2 of the series, available in print and eBook formats from Amazon and other sellers. This is a loosely themed anthology. Just use that word – monster – and run with it. Avoid gratuitous sex, violence and gore. No overt religious themes. We are not fans of zombie stories, psychopathic killers, and we rather not see too many vampire tales. Submit your story (3000-6000 words ) to [email protected] during the submission window (1st  January to 31st January 2021). Do not submit anything before 1st January 2021 unless there is a specific reason and you ask beforehand.  We are not after reprints in the first instance. No multiple submissions. If you submit but subsequently your story is accepted elsewhere let us know as soon as possible. Publication will be in the latter half of that year. We pay a one-off fee of 1p per word, plus a copy of the book. Ensure your manuscript is formatted to the usual standard style (we...

Deadline: January, 31st, 2021 Payment: $50 Theme: Stories that are "scary, disturbing, unsettling, and sad" What We Publish At 34 Orchard, we like dark, intense pieces that speak to a deeper truth. We’re not genre-specific; we just like scary, disturbing, unsettling, and sad. We like things we can’t put down and things that make us go “wow” when we’ve finished. But our main goal here at 34 Orchard is to publish the stuff we like to read, and you’re not in our heads. So don’t over think it. Just submit. We are an international journal and welcome submissions from everyone, all over the world. Word Counts Short fiction from 1000 to 7500 words Poetry any style or length When We Publish We publish two issues per year, one in the spring (April) and one in the fall (November). Issues are hosted on this site as PDFs. Reading Period Our reading period for the Spring Issue is January 1-January 31. Our reading period for the Fall Issue is July 1-July 31. We only accept submissions, therefore, during January and July. Anything submitted to us outside those months will be deleted unread, and no response will be sent. Simultaneous Submissions Yes, we welcome and encourage them! Just notify us at [email protected] if it’s been accepted elsewhere as soon as you know. Multiple Submissions No. We only consider one piece of fiction per writer at a time. Poetry: you may send up to three at once as three separate documents attached to one email. Reprints No. We don’t accept anything from our open submissions call that has been previously published. How to Submit and Formatting The usual: Times New Roman 12 point font/Double spaced Send as a .doc only (no docx, rtf, pdf) attachment to [email protected] Please note that if you send us anything but a .doc, your story will be automatically rejected unread. We will not be reading...