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Submission Window: January 17th - February 28th, 2024 Payment: $10 Theme: Dark genre-bending works in the realms of horror, sci-fi, the weird, the macabre, fantasy, and magical realism. Pyre Magazine is a biannual publication. Issues are released Spring/Summer & Fall/Winter. We are most interested in dark genre-bending works in the realms of horror, sci-fi, the weird, the macabre, fantasy, and magical realism. We want stories that grab us by the throat and ask questions about what it means to be human. Make us feel something long after we are done reading. The Editor is particularly fond of stories in the vein of The Twilight Zone, Black Mirror, Night Gallery, The Outer Limits, and Creep Show. When it comes to literary inspiration, think of Shirley Jackson, Richard Matheson, Ray Bradbury, and Mary Shelley. The Editor also enjoys almost anything produced by A24. Think of Pyre as a bonfire — a place of storytelling and sacrifice. Take a seat near the fire and listen or spin a yarn of your own. Here at Pyre, we worship at the altar of storytelling done well. We love genre work that tells us something about the human condition. Pyre is personally funded and maintained by the Editor. he asks you are patient with him as he gets back to submissions. PYRE WILL CONSIDER MATERIAL BY ANY WRITER AND ARE PARTICULARLY INTERESTED IN AMPLIFYING UNDERREPRESENTED VOICES. FICTION GUIDELINES:  Submissions of fiction should be no longer than 3,500 words Please submit only one piece per submission period. Send submissions as attachments to: [email protected] with the subject line: fiction submission_yourname. Please include your name (or pen name), the title of the story, the word count, and a brief bio in your email. All submissions should be Word files (.doc or .docx), and they should be double spaced, ideally in Times New Roman 12 pt font, with numbered pages, titled as follows:...

Deadline: February 28th, 2024 Payment: 3 cents a word with a minimum payment of $50 Theme: Science Fiction and Fantasy We like to balance each quarterly issue between science fiction and fantasy, dark and light, serious and humorous, hard and soft science fiction, and longer and shorter works. Our readers are not fixated on a single style or tone or genre, but prefer a quality sample of the field. Think tapas or dim sum. Maximum length is 10,000 words. Please keep submissions PG or cleaner. Submission Period New Myths considers submissions between January 1-February 28 and June 1-July 31.  Artwork, requests for book reviews, and other correspondence can be submitted at any time.  Book Reviews NewMyths publishes original book reviews. No reprints, please. Reviews should be between 500-1,000 words. We prefer reviews of novels published within the past year but also consider reviews of older works, and reviews of poetry collections, anthologies, and nonfiction works related to fantasy and science fiction. Pay is $50. Send inquiries to Candy at [email protected].   NewMyths publishes several book reviews per year, and we’d like to publish more. Unfortunately, with several thousand submissions per year, our hardworking editors don’t have a lot of time to review novels. If you are an author, agent or publisher, and have a novel or other work related to fantasy and science fiction that you would like to have reviewed, send an inquiry to Scott at [email protected]. If you don’t receive an answer, please assume that we simply don’t have the staff to review it. A solution might be to find someone who can write a review and submit it to us for consideration. Payment Payment is upon publication. NewMyths.com currently pays 3 cents/word with a minimum payment of $50 for all submissions, fiction, flash fiction, nonfiction and poetry. We purchase book reviews for $50. We...

Submission Window: February 1st - 28th, 2024 Payment: 8 cent per word for fiction, $20 for poetry, 8 cent per word for non-fiction, $125 for cover art Theme: Speculative fiction It's our goal to publish diverse voices from around the world, and to do that, we are actively seeking stories, poems, and non-fiction pieces by authors from backgrounds that have been historically underrepresented in the science fiction and fantasy canon. Our submission cycle is therefore split into two categories, where every other month is explicitly reserved for submissions by authors of color, members of the LGBTQIA+ community, and other underrepresented groups. The interposing six months remain open to everyone. Guidelines for Fiction We are seeking stories in the English language up to 6,000 words by writers from around the world. We favor submisions that have not been published before (including on your own website), though we have historically accepted a limited number of reprints not currently appearing anywhere online. For our two issues focused on the climate crisis, we're particularly interested in publishing stories from people displaced by or threatened by the climate emergency (see our themes below). For our other four issues, we're open to a wide variety of stories across the SFF and weird spectra. We pay 8¢ per word for fiction, and we try to respond to all submissions within ten weeks. We have also accepted a limited number of previously published stories, so please indicate on the form if your submission is a reprint. All submissions must use the Shunn manuscript format (we prefer Courier New) and be either .rtf, .doc, or .docx. We like stories that are subtle in their telling and stick with us long after we've finished. We're more likely to buy stories that balance a sense of wonder with a bold plot and...

Deadline: February 29th, 2024 Payment: $30 Theme: Your queerest horror fiction & poetry Sliced Up Press is looking for your queerest horror fiction & poetry for Slay and Slay Again! An Anthology of Queer Horror. Whether you want to embrace tropes or tear them to pieces, we want to see what queer horror means to you. We’re not looking to fill this book with pieces where the only queer characters die, though we won’t overlook submissions where that happens. What we’re looking for: All submissions must be in the horror genre. Bizarro, splatterpunk and extreme horror are welcome. Preference will be given to submissions from LGBTQIA2S+ and BIPOC authors. If you don’t like this, don’t submit. All submissions must be original. We will not accept reprints, or stories/poetry published elsewhere, including on blogs, social media etc. Please avoid references to real-life persons or situations. No AI/machine generated stories – any AI/machine generated submissions will be deleted without reply, and the submitter will be blacklisted from any future submission calls, grant programmes & other services offered by Sliced Up Press. Submit your best work in modern or classic manuscript format (as outlined on www.shunn.net/format – though we DO NOT require your real name & mailing address), as an MS Word .doc or .docx attachment. Anything sent in a different file type will be rejected without reply. Poems may be submitted in whatever form best suits the piece. You do not need to include your postal/mailing address or full birth name anywhere in your submission. These will only be requested if your submission is successful, to allow for payment & contributor copies (if wanted) to be sent. Authors may submit 1 (one) story and 1 (one) poem maximum for consideration – if you want to send both, please send them in separate emails. Do not send more than one...

Deadline: February 29th, 2024 Payment: $15 + Contributor's Copy Theme: An anthology where queer disabled villains take the stage. An anthology where disabled villains take the stage. Vampires in wheelchairs, necromancers with IBS, blind enchanters--we want it all. We want them visibly queer and irredeemably rotten.  ​ This is not a space for ableist language or themes. We are going to showcase the very dastardliest of villains who are also disabled, not villains who are evil because of or "in spite of" their disabilities.  ​ 2k-6k wordcount limit (but not a HARD limit. It is okay if your wordcount goes a little over 6k, we won't mind.) Simultaneous submissions are OK, but please no multiple submissions.  Payment: $15 + Contributor's Copy  Please submit as a .DOC or .DOCX using Standard Manuscript Format. Send submissions to uncrownedtheseries gmail com.  Please include "Maleficence Submission" in your subject line!  ​ Publication date: September 2024. ​NO Reprints. We are asking for 6-month exclusive first print and ebook publication rights, with non-exclusive rights after.  Submissions are open from Dec. 1 2023-Feb. 29, 2024.  Via: Uncrowned Novel.

Submission Window: January 1st – February 29th, 2024 Payment: $25 and a contributor's copy Theme: Stories that combine crime and horror We are excited to announce At the Edge of Darkness, the sixth edition of our original Shotgun Honey Presents anthology series. At the Edge of Darkness will release October 1st, 2024 right in time for the Halloween Season, featuring stories on that dark, half-lit space where crime and horror simultaneously reside. That’s right, we’re dipping our toe into the dark pool of horror and we’re not doing it alone. Our guest editor, who will be knee deep in the quagmire of submissions, is none other than Keith Rosson, author of Fever House and the Shirley Jackson Award winner for Best Short Story Collection, Folk Songs for Trauma Surgeons. Joining him will be series editor, Ron Earl Phillips. As with the recent Thicker Than Water anthology released last August, At the Edge of Darkness will be a charity anthology. As guest editor, Keith Rosson has chosen to support a Portland nonprofit assisting children entering the foster care system with vital goods and necessities. All profits for this edition will go to benefit this cause. Now, you know the title, the theme, the release date, the editors, the cause, what else would you want to know? Oh, yeah… when and where to submit. Now that we’re fresh off the Halloween Season, many of you getting over your Halloween hangovers, we hope you’ve retained some of that dark spirit and will spend the next two months writing an original horror/crime mashup that is between 1000 to 5000 words. Our open submission for At the Edge of Darkness will open on January 1st and close on February 29th. We will open a special submission page prior to the window. TL;DR Title: At the Edge of Darkness Theme: Crime and Horror Release: October 1, 2024 Guest Editor: Keith Rosson Series...

Deadline: February 29th, 2024 Payment: 0.015 per word Theme: A chronicle of something speculative fiction related (see below for more details!) Note: The pay is a bit lower than what we usually would list, however we don't always see newer podcasts pop up and thought it could be interesting for those who want to get in on the ground floor. A brand new audible zine centering the bizarre, the horrifying, and the what-ifs. New Episodes bi-monthly with an exciting new theme every time. Imagine attending an open mic story-telling night in the cellar of that haunted house on the hill or the canteen of a starship that traverses time and dark dimensions. What stories would you hear? Would they inspire awe or disgust? Hope in the future or existential dread? Genres: Sci-fi, Slipstream, Weird Fiction, Near-Future, Retellings, Folk-Tales, Fantasy, Magical Realism, Surrealism, Cosmic Horror, Dark Fantasy, Speculative… Formats: Mainly Short Stories, Poetry, Flash Fiction, Short Plays/Extracts, (but open to) Personal Stories, Dreams/Nightmares, Songs, Soundscapes, Fictional or Real Mini-Docs, Interviews, and whatever else you can dream up… CURRENT THEME: THE CHRONICLE Imagine the diary of an awakening A.I.'s consciousness, ship logs chronicling a perilous journey through an ominous patch of space, an unearthed time capsule housing century-old audio solving an enigmatic mystery. Does your chronicle unravel the epic tale of a forgotten civilization’s rise and fall or narrate the everyday escapades of a lone passenger adrift at sea? Perhaps your chronicle is a tangible artifact, a relic hidden by a secretive order, demanding protection... or destruction. Think intricate field notes of a planetary explorer, official documents from the desk of a demon, heartfelt letters exchanged between lovers existing in parallel dimensions, and ancient spells encapsulated in a mystical grimoire. Each entry unfolding a unique tale, from the artificial to the mystical…...

Deadline: February 29th, 2024 Payment: $10 Theme: Punchy, genre-oriented short stories that can captivate, intrigue, and entertain a diverse audience.​ Epic Echoes is a digital magazine that reverberates with the pulse-pounding spirit of vintage pulp fiction while resonating with the modern sensibilities of today's diverse readers. Our publication offers a vibrant symphony of genre-oriented tales, each one a short, sweet echo of the epic narratives that have thrilled readers for generations! From the ghost towns of the Old West to the farthest reaches of space, from the mean streets of crime-ridden cities to the shadowy corners of the supernatural realm, Epic Echoes delivers captivating stories that intrigue and entertain readers while showcasing up-and-coming literary talents! WE ARE CURRENTLY ACCEPTING SUBMISSIONS(Jan. 1 - Feb. 29, 2024) We're seeking punchy, genre-oriented short stories that can captivate, intrigue, and entertain a diverse audience.​ ​ Please see guidelines for submission below:​ What We're Looking For Genres: Science Fiction, Fantasy, Mystery, Crime, Adventure, Horror, and everything in between. We love genre-blending stories and unique takes on classic tropes. Grounded, more realistic stories are also welcome. Rating: Our stories should be accessible to a wide range of readers. Think PG-13—nothing gratuitously violent, explicit, or overly disturbing. Seriously, if "shock value" is what describes your story, it's probably not a good fit. Also, profanity and swear words does not a mature and well-written story make; there is a fine line between lazy writing and heightened narrative tension—tread it lightly. Length: We prefer stories between 1,000 and 3,000 words. However, we will consider outstanding stories outside this range with an aim toward serialization. Please note that this is a small publication with minimal payment. We encourage you to save your best work for higher-paying markets. Style: We seek stories with strong, clear storytelling and, most importantly, good characters. Compelling, diverse, heroic, flawed, larger-than-life, and...

Submission Window: February 1st - 29th, 2024 Payment: $100 for the chosen story + 50% of subscription revenue Theme: Any genre, short story Mission = Revive the art of the short story, support artists, and produce something wonderful. Payout = Base Pay of $100 for the chosen story + 50% of subscription revenue to be sent by Paypal, Zelle, or check. Wait, you mean if this substack gets thousands of subscribers, the winner would get thousands of dollars? Yes! The New Yorker pays roughly $7,500 per story and I sincerely hope to go way past that. What does the timeline look like? Submit stories by the end of the month, winner to be announced on the 15th. There is ONE story that wins and receives the full payout. Where do I send submissions? [email protected] What are the rules for submitting? 1. No Fees 2. Send in Microsoft Word or Google Doc form 3. Any genre 4. 6- 10,000 words. Yes, just 6 words, like Hemingway's famous 6-word story "For Sale: Baby shoes, never worn." 5. Reprints are ok so long as you still have the rights to distribute. 6. Acknowledge Distribution Rights on this Substack - You can still sell your story elsewhere but we need to be able to save and publish it here. The goal is to create a library for subscribers. 7. Only the winner will be published and rights will only transfer for the winning story. What do I get for subscribing? One beautiful story every month. The complete library. The joy of supporting artists and doing something interesting. What if I can’t pay right now? That’s ok! If you publish a blurb about this site on your website, blog, or social media, I will send you one full story of your choosing. Best of all, it is...

Deadline: February 29th, 2024 Payment: 0.05 per word, maximum payout of $400 Theme: Fairy tales being retold as science fiction About Once Upon a Future Time, Volume 4 Return to a future full of mystery, magic, and malevolence. How can you tell friend from foe when faced with the cold darkness of outer space? The asteroid belt holds as much danger as the darkened woods, and the huntsman may be just another bounty hunter. The same warnings and concerns that were whispered over baby cradles and guarded by knights in shining armor can be found in the far reaches of space, but just a bit more…alien. The future is as expansive as the universe and full of untold stories. Rumors whispered in the dark of night and legends shared throughout the day. Is Cinderella’s fairy godmother truly a fairy, or is she perhaps a visitor from another world? Perhaps the rings of Saturn are giant gems and the far off supergiant is nothing more than glowing cotton candy. Was the beast transformed by a curse, or is he an offworlder in disguise? There are as many tales as there are stars in the sky and now is your chance to share yours, once upon a future time. This anthology will be the fourth anthology installment based on fairy tales retold as science fiction. Submission requirements: All genres welcome. Submissions must be all ages appropriate. Original, never before published content Submissions are to be 250-15,000 words Based upon a fairy tale or folk tale (Include title of original tale after author name in the manuscript) Standard manuscript format (https://www.shunn.net/format/classic/) No AI generated work No prior submissions No simultaneous submissions Period of exclusivity until three months past publication Author grants non-exclusive global, English language hardcover, paperback, eBook, and audiobook licenses in perpetuity...

Deadline: February 29th, 2024 Payment: $5 Theme: original feminist tales, feminist retellings of traditional tales, and personal essays related to traditional tales We’re looking for original feminist tales, feminist retellings of traditional tales, and personal essays related to traditional tales. Although we started as a magazine of fairy tales, we’re now open to pieces based on or related to fairy tales, folklore, myths, legends, and pop culture. We accept fiction, poetry, creative non-fiction, and pieces that are in-between. For prose, we accept stories of up to 5,000 words. Longer pieces will be declined. Please note that you do not need to be female or femme to submit a piece; writers of any gender identity and expression are welcome. How to submit. To submit a piece, please fill out our submission form. Please submit only one piece per reading period. Multiple submissions will be declined. Our submission form is unfortunately not able to send an automatic response or a copy of your submission; if you aren’t sure if your submission has gone through, please email [email protected]. We’re always happy to check! Wish list. We encourage you to read through the journal to get a sense for the stories that generally speak to us, but here are some specific characters, themes, & forms we’d love to see in this round of submissions! coming soon! Policies. We do accept simultaneous submissions; reprints from defunct blogs, magazines, and presses; and pieces that have been pulled from publication for ethical reasons. We do not accept pieces that are currently still available online. We ask that you include content notes with your piece, and we’ll provide a dropdown list to choose from. We will not accept anything that promotes racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, ableism, or other oppressive and harmful viewpoints; anything that uses sexual violence for shock...

We are looking for amazing stories from any genre that are fun to read and will take us on an adventure of epic proportions. Please download our standards template by clicking here ***NOTE*** We publish genre fiction with aspects of Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror. If your work does not include one of these aspects, we are less likely to pick up the title unless it is of exceptional quality. What we are NOT currently accepting: Poetry Single-author collections of short stories. Hard and fast rules of what not to send: Fan-fiction: Just simply don’t. It will be immediately deleted or tossed into the recycle bin. Gratuitous Sexuality: (i.e. smut, softcore adult content) (Please, we know that there is a market out there for stories in this genre, but it’s not for us. Contact our affiliate, Tanglewood press for submissions in this genre at tanglewoodromance (at) gmail.com Gratuitous Abuse/Violence: While we at Three Ravens Publishing understand that graphic situations can alter or otherwise move the plot forward in ways that the reader may not expect when properly used, these elements should not, however, be the primary focus of the story. (i.e. torture adult content). Discrimination: Again, whether racial, religious, social, etc., when used properly as a plot device can become a powerful tool in the authors arsenal, but should in no way become the focus of the story unless you’re writing something along the lines of “Schindler’s List”, “To Kill a Mockingbird” or “Uncle Tom’s Cabin”. And we do understand that to be perfectly accurate, period pieces will contain such things because historically, that is what happened. It’s sad, but it’s the truth. Message Fiction: While we understand that everyone has their own stance on a myriad of subjects that can become very emotional and heated, we will not publish...

Deadline: March 1st, 2024 Payment: Royalties Theme: Stories inspired by the music of Jethro Tull. Note: Reprints Welcome Love Story Jethro Tull has an amazing discography. Spanning everything from folk music to heavy metal over 50 years - and yes, the flute is indeed a heavy metal instrument! - their music has inspired generations of artists of all types. Including authors! Songs in the Key of Tull is an anthology of fiction that pays tribute to that inspiration. Just as the music of Jethro Tull spans genres, so does out call for stories. While we have a preference for science fiction, fantasy, and horror, any genre - western, romance, MilSF, you name it - is welcome. We are currently planning on two potential volumes, depending on response:  Volume I: Minstrels in the Galaxy (SF focus) Volume II: Tales from the Wood (Fantasy focus) Dot Com Our goal, first and foremost, is to entertain our readers. That's the primary criteria we will use to judge a story. We're looking for stories of between 5k-8k words, though length (shorter or longer) is negotiable for a solid story. Reprints are acceptable, but we prefer new stories. If you submit a reprint, please note that in your submission email. Submissions close at midnight, March 1st, 2024. We hope to have an initial read-through of submissions and final acceptance notices sent by April 1st, 2024. Estimated publication date is third quarter of 2024 (with a target date of August 10th, 2024). If your story is accepted, we will ask you to provide an introductory paragraph (up to 100 words) for your story, describing how a particular Jethro Tull song or songs inspired you. We will also ask you to provide an author's biography (up to 100 words) for inclusion in our end matter, along with a link (Amazon...

Deadline: March 1st, 2024 Payment: short story, $25; short-short piece (up to 1000 words), $10; poem, $10, artwork, $25 for cover, $10 for interior page display. Theme: Bookmarks The Missing Piece of the Puzzle (November 1, 2023) ALL SHORT STORIES, ESSAYS, POEMS, PHOTOGRAPHS and ART MUST RELATE TO ONE OF THE PREMISES SPECIFIED ABOVE. NOTE: Previously published pieces are welcome, provided that the submission fits the theme and that the author owns the copyright. The premise (target theme) must be an integral part of the plot, not necessarily the central theme but not merely incidental. NOTE: Stories longer than 20 double-spaced typewritten pages will not be considered. Indicate premise (target theme) on title page. Be sure to Indicate target theme in cover letter or on first page of manuscript. Include self-addressed, stamped envelope (SASE) with each submission. Rejected manuscripts unaccompanied by an SASE will not be returned. Response time: 3 months after premise deadline.  NO READER'S FEE. Mail to: THEMA, Box 8747, Metairie, LA 70011-8747. Outside the US: email [email protected] On acceptance for publication, we will pay the following amount: short story, $25; short-short piece (up to 1000 words), $10; poem, $10; artwork, $25 for cover, $10 for interior page display. Copyright reverts to author after publication. THEMA isn't for everyone. To find out why, click here. New to submitting manuscripts to journals? Click here to download a PDF file of a few basic guidelines. Unlike many publishers, we prefer works submitted by the authors themselves, without the involvement of an agent. Be sure to indicate premise and include SASE for each submission.  BE SURE to include a separate SASE for each premise. No handwritten manuscripts will be considered. NOTE: We do not accept e-mailed submissions EXCEPT from authors who live outside the U.S. For those living outside the U.S., submit manuscript as an email attachment (readable by MSWord ― either as a DOC file or an...

Deadline: March 1st, 2024 Payment: Royalties Theme: Horror and dark romance novellas and novellas, series or stand alone Eerie is and has always been an inclusive publishing house. We would love to read manuscripts from all walks of life including BIPOC, 2SLGBTQIA and marginalized humans. If you have a horror story, we want to read it. Eerie River Publishing only publishes a handful of novels a year. Regrettably, this means we will have to pass on some fantastic writing. We wish we could publish them all but the truth is we wouldn't be able to put the resources needed behind each project to make them a success. And that is what we are here to do.  ​ We are an inclusive company that accepts submission from anyone regardless of race, gender or sexuality. We accept agented and non-agented submissions during our submission window. What are we looking for?HORROR & DARK FANTASY We are seeking high-quality, novel and novella series in horror and dark fantasy. The series should be two or more books within the same world or following the same characters throughout. At this time we are not interested in short story collections, erotica, strictly religious fiction, YA Fiction, or poetry. ​ We want unique, well-crafted stories with compelling plots, terrifying twists, and entertaining characters, for mature audiences. Give us your grim, heart-wrenching twist. The perfect story would balance the light and the dark pieces of the storyline with humour, alongside the emotional twists and turns. In essence, if you can evoke a gambit of emotion throughout the story then we will be hard-pressed to say no.  ​ Manuscripts should be written in good taste, and be aimed for a mature audience. As this is horror we expect the scary and horrible, and we encourage a step toward darker, more horrific tones...

Deadline: March 1st, 2024 Payment: $30 Theme: Quiet horror Note: Apologies on the short deadline, this just hit our inbox Submission Call! Read veeery carefully. There's a lot of information here. GASPS is an anthology of Quiet Horror ... from splatter authors. Proving our versatility and skill ... this collection sets out to unnerve and chill. No theme other than the requirement that it fit into the "Quiet" category. Meaning no graphic gore or gross out content. Other than that ... you write whatever you want! I want a variety of creative and unique stories, rather than stories that blur together with an overarching theme. Also, of note, just because we're writing more subtle stories doesn't mean I want authors to avoid mature or dark themes. This is going to be a book marketed to adult readers, not children. If you are not familiar with Quiet Horror, seek out the works of authors like Charles L. Grant, Ramsey Campbell, and T.M. Wright. If you're struggling with the definition, the easiest way to describe it is that quiet horror is the exact opposite of extreme horror. Submissions open January 20th and close on March 1st. I'm hoping to have a finished book released by July, but I'm still working on dates. As I've learned from SCRAPS ... anything can happen. 3k to 6k words. Six open spots! Absolutely NO tabs key indents. Size 12, Times New Roman, Double Spaced paragraphs. Double lined too. Anything that doesn't meet these requirements is automatically rejected. Title your emails AND word documents GASPS SUBMISSION. In all caps. If you do not use this title for your email or word document, it will be automatically rejected. Emails must be sent to [email protected]! Invited authors are all splatterpunks, but YOU don't have to be an established or...

Deadline: March 1st, 2024 Prize: Audio narration and $50 Theme: Secret Societies They thrive in the shadowed corridors of history, shrouded in mystery and clandestine pursuits. Unlike cults, secret societies are not defined by coercive ideologies or charismatic leaders, but rather by the allure of exclusive knowledge, shared rituals and covert influence. These clandestine organizations operate beyond the prying eyes of the mainstream, their members bound by oaths of secrecy. Within their hidden chambers, ancient rites and esoteric wisdom are passed down through generations, shaping destiny and the world as we know it. Contest Rules The story must have horror elements and relate to the theme of Secret Societies. Secret societies are distinct from cults in that they don’t operate based on a specific dogma and focus on manipulating outcomes to further their own nefarious agendas. Other than this distinction, how you choose to interpret that theme is up to you, but it must be central to the story. The image included on this page is for interest purposes only and not intended as a prompt. Deadline to submit is March 1, 2024 (11:59pm CST) It must be previously unpublished. Submissions must be in English, but authors from anywhere in the world are welcome to submit. A minimum of ONE winner will be announced on or before May 1, 2024. The top flash piece will be produced for audio narration on Tales to Terrify and receive $50 (USD). Up to four runners up may also be considered for production. Authors retain the rights to their submitted stories. Submission Format up to 1,000 words Microsoft Word or Rich Text Format Double spaced 12 pt. Courier New or Times New Roman font Please include author, title and word count on first page. Stories pasted into the body of an email will be rejected without being read.  ...

Submission Window: March 1st-2nd, 2024 Payment: 8 cents per word for original, 2 cents for reprints, For artwork: $10 for the non-exclusive right to use each image, for as long as the site is online.  If we publish a print collection we will pay a pro-rata share for each image used. 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 8¢ 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...

Submission Window: March 1st – 7th, 2024 Payment: Drabbles and Flash – £5, Short Stories 1001 to 4000 words – £10, Short Stories 4001 to 8000 words – £15 Theme: Stories you’ve poured your soul into but haven’t been able to find the right home for. We’re looking for stories that make us feel something. Note: Only publishes creators from under represented and/or marginalized communities. WE ONLY PUBLISH CREATORS FROM UNDER REPRESENTED AND/OR MARGINALISED BACKGROUNDS AND/OR COMMUNITIES We don’t ask for any proof, we take this on trust with the expectation that anyone not from a marginalised background or underrepresented community wouldn’t take up the space of someone who is. We ask you to consider this before submitting. We’re looking for stories you’ve poured your soul into but haven’t been able to find the right home for. We’re looking for stories that make us feel something. Warmth, love, melancholy, rage. We want it all. All genres, styles and themes will be considered and we especially love stories that are outside the box in their telling. Ambiguous endings? Non-linear storytelling? Antagonist’s point-of-view? A story told in just one scene? We love it all. PLEASE NOTE: We will close submissions early if our cut off point is reached Quarterly Online Anthology Submission Schedule: March 1st – 7th (Summer Issue) or until we reach 70 submissions June 1st – 7th (Autumn Issue) or until we reach 70 submissions September 1st – 7th (Winter Issue) or until we reach 70 submissions December 1st – 7th (Spring Issue) or until we reach 70 submissions ​we do not have set issue themes but feel free to be inspired by the season, seasonal occasions and events. We are unlikely to publish stories with seasonal events out of season – for example a story set in the Winter...

Submission Window: February 15-28 for all authors and March 1-7 for BIPOC creators only Payment: Fiction: $0.05 per word, a minimum of $50.00 USD, Poetry: $50 per poem Theme: MERCURIAL Apparition Lit is a speculative fiction magazine that publishes themed issues four times a year. We publish poems and stories between 1k-5k words in January, April, July, and October. We also hold monthly flash fiction contests between the 1st and 15th of each month. Flash stories must be under 1000 words and be inspired or based on the chosen theme. Read our submission guidelines and submit your work through our Moksha portal. Payment Apparition is a semi-pro rate magazine, paying $0.05 per word, minimum of $50.00 dollars for short stories and a flat fee of $50 per poem. 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. Equity Initiative As Apparition Lit works to create a more equitable publishing community, we recognize that our open submission period is concurrent with some other really great literary magazines where marginalized writers also like to submit. Voices should be heard and we want to help increase that opportunity. Our submission window will remain open for an additional week each quarter for writers who identify as BIPOC and self-identify in their cover letter.  We will also accept simultaneous submissions from writers who identify as Disabled, BIPOC, or LGBTQIA+. Please just note how you identify in your cover letter, that it is a simultaneous submission, and see further details in the menu below on how to submit for each category. Past Contributors Once you are published by Apparition Lit, you join our tiny but mighty family. We love our alumni and will always do what we can to support their...

Deadline: March 7th, 2024 Payment: Royalty Split Theme: Valkyries, mythical female figures from Norse mythology. Submissions should prominently feature valkyries and explore their roles, adventures or interactions with other mythological creatures. Deadline – 7th March 2024 Publication – 30th March 2024 Word Count – 500 words exactly not including title/author details Theme – Valkyries, mythical female figures from Norse mythology. Submissions should prominently feature valkyries and explore their roles, adventures or interactions with other mythological creatures. Genre – Fantasy, Speculative Fiction, Horror Compensation – 30% of royalties split between all authors within the anthology for one year from the date of publication.  Reprints – No Simultaneous Submissions – No When submitting to Iron Faerie Publishing please remember the Submission Guidelines. Each submission should include a brief and polite introduction addressed to the Editor. Please make sure to include the following: Your name, legal name and pen name (if you use one). The title of your submission. The submission’s word count. The title of the anthology that you are submitting to. Author Bio written in 3rd person (150 words or less). Up to three (3) links. No amazon author page links. The following formatting is more or less industry standard, and our preference. Your submission should be in Shunn Short Story Format, and in Times New Roman 12 point font. No tabs. .doc and .docx. only. When sending your submission, please remember the following: All submissions should be sent to: [email protected] All submissions close at midnight of the specified date according to Australian Western Standard Time (AWST; UTC+08:00), unless filled early. Email subject lines should read in the following format: ANTHOLOGY NAME – Title – Author Name (eg. HAWTHORN & ASH – Brid’s Lament – A.N. Author) Responses to submissions will be sent no later than 28 days after the SUBMISSION CALL has CLOSED. We always respond to each and every submission. At this...

Deadline: March 10th, 2024 Payment: $20 Theme: Any genre of fiction Deadline: 2024/03/10 $20 Contributor’s Payment if Accepted No Reprints Submit once per reading cycle If accepted, wait 24 months before submitting again We are a non-genre specific publication. Read our previous issues to get a sense of what we publish. Submission Guidelines Samjoko purchases first worldwide English-language serial and electronic rights from the date the contract is signed and paid for up until 6 months after publication date. After initial publication date, Samjoko Magazine will maintain non-exclusive rights to publication. Paid submissions must not use the intellectual property of any other author or company. Just To Clarify: your work will not appear, and will not have appeared, in any other available format (blogs and public forums included) until 3 months after the release date of the story in Samjoko Magazine. After 3 months, we’ll retain ongoing non-exclusive distribution rights, but you can self-publish your work or sell your story to another paying market. Each piece we acquire will be published on samjokomagazine.com in an electronic seasonal issue. We may also excerpt pieces for promotional purposes. The author retains all other rights. We pay up to 6 months after publication through PayPal only. Payment projected to happen sooner. Current payment is $20 per accepted submission, though we hope to increase this with greater support from readers. Cover letter should have contact information, PayPal email, and author’s bio less than 100 words. Email subject should read: Example - SUBMISSION: The Grey Wolf (FICTION - 3200) by Lauren Hill See below for detailed submission guidelines. Submissions that do not follow the guidelines will be deleted unread. Notification of receipt and rejections will be form letters to save time. There will be no personal responses except in the case of general queries and acceptances. Cover Letter...

Submission Window: January 1st – March 12th, 2024 Payment: $25 Theme: Fantasy, Science Fiction, Horror The Empyreal Tree is a genre fiction magazine. Our main purpose is to share stories, populated in a strange new world, only connected by the similarities of character and emotions that entangles humanity together. Please check out the What We Are Looking For section to see the kind of stories we like. We are looking to release 3 issues throughout the year, each issue containing 5 short stories. The submission period will be between: January 1 – March 12 May 1 – July 12 September 1 – November 12 The anthology will be released within two months after the submissions ended. (For example, if the submission periods ends in November 12, the issue should be released between November 13 and December 31). There will be a theme that ties the edition together, so please be on the lookout for that! In addition, please send a cover letter discussing how the theme ties into your story. Rules:     Word Count: 1,000 – 15,000 words. Be aware that we’ll be strict with the word count, and if anyone sends a story over the word count, we hope the story is incredible, because we’ll unfortunately send in an immediate rejection.     Genre: Fantasy, Science Fiction, Horror     Payment: We offer $25 per short story, although we hope to give more in the future.     Response Time: Depending on the severity of the slush pile, we’ll be hoping to give out responses within 3-4 days. However, if the submission pile grows to difficult to handle, the response time is generally within 12 weeks. Please be patient as we are a small group (and by group, it is one person) working hard to get through these lovely stories. Format: All submissions must...

Deadline: March 12th, 2024 Payment: €175 Theme: Stories that look into unexpected places, or, 'stranger' places From Feb 8 to March 12*, we are reading short story submissions for our new collection, Stranger! We are looking for stories of all genres that respond to our title and/or cover art, and selected writers will receive a flat rate of €175 for accepted submissions. I was of three minds, Like a tree In which there are three blackbirds. Wallace Stevens, Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird Behind the fog, in the tall grass, or even standing in plain sight – there are mysteries everywhere for those brave enough to look. Sometimes, reality might just refuse to behave in the ways we expect it to. It might come in the form of prowling creatures, or in a revelation from someone we knew, or maybe in ourselves; the important thing is that a whole new facet of reality suddenly shines in new light. Truth might be stranger than fiction, but we've decided to look for the strangest fiction for our seventh anthology. We're looking for stories that go beyond the boundaries of the expected – or maybe even those of possibility! Stranger is an anthology for stories that look into unexpected places. We want real or magical, lyrical or experimental, as long as it finds that truth wasn't as simple as once thought. We are looking for stories inspired by our title – Stranger – and/or the cover artwork below, Night is Calling, by James Fenner. All genres of writing are welcome, we want to read any stories that find that there is more out there than we once thought (in a real or metaphorical way)! More than any specific story or style, we want the emotional response the title and artwork evokes...

Submission Window: December 15th, 2023 - March 15th, 2024 Payment: $10 Theme: Stories that constitutes the ever-moving edge of its kind, as a place between light and dark, consciousness and un, today and tomorrow; work exhibiting the strange, the bizarre, that which is not of the world we know, but more of a twilight realm or even altogether alien place. Submission window: We are always open for submissions of art, animation, and music! We are currently closed for fiction and poetry submissions. We are open for fiction and poetry submissions from 15 June to 15 September and from 15 December to 15 March each year. I would love to see submissions representing not only multiple cultures but subcultures, exploring issues of race, ethnicity, gender, orientation, and many things I haven't thought of. Does this mean you have to represent everybody and everything in 1000 words? Of course not. But be aware that we are creating a magazine that overall reaches and represents the true diversity of the world we live in. In terms of genre, I am looking for work that constitutes the ever-moving edge of its kind, as a place between light and dark, consciousness and un, today and tomorrow; work exhibiting the strange, the bizarre, that which is not of the world we know, but more of a twilight realm or even altogether alien place. Not necessarily science fiction, not necessarily fantasy, not necessarily horror, and not necessarily not these things. In short, ideally edgy. Maybe even idealistically edgy. I am NOT looking for porn. Penumbric generally accepts submissions in the following categories: fiction, poetry, illustration, graphic narrative, animation, music, or combinations of these (e.g., a spoken-word version of a poem). If you have something that fits some other category that can be displayed to advantage on the web, try me; I'll take a...

Deadline: March 15th, 2024 Payment: US 4¢/word rounded up to nearest dollar; minimum US $4, maximum $25 Theme: Dragons Eye to the Telescope 52, Dragons, will be edited by J. D. Harlock. Even though no one can agree on what exactly dragons are, nearly every culture has mythologized them in some way. From their size to their design to their abilities to their origins, tales of dragons are as diverse as humanity itself, with some of the earliest poetry in the English language revolving around them, reinventing what dragons were perceived as for the time. In this dragon-themed call, we want your take on dragons. Feel free to draw from traditions outside the predominant Western narrative to develop an original take on these fearsome creatures or introduce under-appreciated interpretations from your own cultures. Not only can you twist the idea of what dragons are as you see fit, but you can place them in genres outside of traditional fantasy, where they have often been underutilized or absent. Poetry that rhymes is more than welcome, and I'm open to a genre approach to submissions as much as I am to a literary one! Submission Guidelines SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS Use the form at  to submit. Please submit 1–3 unpublished poems in English (ideally, attached as .docx or .txt) and include a short bio. Translations from other languages are acceptable with the permission of the original poet (unless public domain). Inquiries only to [email protected] with “ETTT” in the subject line. Deadline: March 15. The issue will appear on April 15, 2024. Payment and rights Accepted poems will be paid for at the following rate: US 4¢/word rounded up to nearest dollar; minimum US $4, maximum $25. Payment is on publication. The Science Fiction & Fantasy Poetry Association normally uses PayPal to pay poets, but can also send checks. Eye to the Telescope is an...

Submission Window: March 2nd - March 15th, 2024 Payment: 2¢ (2-cents) per word , with a $25 minimum and $100 maximum and 2 contributor's copies Theme: Horror and weird fiction from 500 to 5,000 words, firm. OPENS: March 2, 2024 CLOSES: March 15, 2024 We are seeking horror and weird fiction from 500 to 5,000 words, firm. Query first if your story is over 5,000 words. We are a home for the strange, the macabre, the eerie, the esoteric, the fabulist, and the gothic. The darkly numinous. The odd. We are not interested in extreme horror. Do not send science fiction or fantasy. We’ve published established professional authors Brian Evenson, John Langan, M. Rickert, Steve Rasnic Tem, and more. But we are also very supportive of emerging writers, and have twice published first-time authors. Please send 1 story only per reading period. NOTE - We are not considering stories written, co-written, created, or assisted by AI and machine-learning languages such as ChatGPT. Please do not send them. We are seeking first English-language publication rights. Fiction must be in English, and previously unpublished in English anywhere, in any format (including audio), on any platform, including your blog, website, newsletter, Patreon, etc. Please do not query about reprints. We will consider works translated to English, as long as you are offering first English-language publication rights. Simultaneous submissions are welcome. Please inform us if your story is accepted elsewhere. No multiple submissions. Please send 1 story only per reading period. The magazine is free to read online here: Read Weird Horror We encourage you to read some of the stories to familiarize yourself with our aesthetic. We receive about 1,000 manuscripts each period, and accept less than 2% of submissions. Do not be discouraged by a form rejection. Payment is U.S. 2¢ (2-cents)...

Submission Window: March 1st 15th, 2024 Payment: 6 cents per word for flash, 3 cents per word for nonfiction Theme: Horror Dealing With Time Travel We’re looking for content for MONSTROUS #2, our horror comic magazine. FLASH FICTION WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FOR: A horror story dealing with time travel. No Morlock stories. Sorry. Submission Period: March 1, 2024 - March 15, 2024 Payment: 6 cents a word Length: 1000 to 1500 words Simultaneous submissions are okay. Just let us know if you were accepted elsewhere. No multiple subs or reprints. Email full stories to jamesmonstrousbookscom and use this format for the subject heading: Monstrous 2 Flash - Title - Author Name. (If this isn’t correct, we may delete without reading. With the number of submissions we get, things get confusing without the proper heading.) Include a short bio in your email. Use Classic Shunn formatting. ARTICLES WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FOR: Pitches for articles about time travel. It could be about the history of time travel in fiction or you can get more creative with it. Don't send finished articles. The pitches need to be only a short paragraph long. Payment: 3 cents a word Submission Period: Open now until further notice. Email pitches to jamesmonstrousbookscom and use this format for the subject heading: Monstrous 2 Articles - Title - Author Name. Include a short bio in your email. SHORT COMICS WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FOR: Finished black-and-white horror comics from 1 to 4 pages. We are NOT looking for scripts. Comics should deal with time travel in some way and lean toward horror. Size: Digest magazine, 5.5 x 8.5 inches. Email submissions to jamesmonstrousbookscom and use this format for the subject heading: Monstrous Comics - Title - Author Name. Include a short bio in your email. Check out our Kickstarter to familiarize yourself...

Deadline: March 20th, 2024 Payment: Does not say in this call, previous payments were: £100 per article, interview or short story and £50 for poetry and rituals Theme: Sound and Vision Note: Not open to fiction submissions from North America at this time We are open to print magazine submissions. Our next theme is Sound and Vision. Artists have long spoken of the mysterious nature of creation – where do their great works come from? Tell us about found stories, the automatic process, of pictures and songs invoked in séances, of musicians and poets who found magic by unorthodox means, and occult-derived art. Some songs and paintings are like spells, speaking to our unconscious and activating something within us, from war cries to the songs with revolutionary spirit to the secret chords that please gods and the folk songs that invoke lives lead outside the mainstream. Tell us about subliminal messages in advertising and how the aesthetic and auricular world influence us. A pioneering artwork might predict the future, or change the course of history. It might show us a piece of the world and mind we never knew before. Sight is a privileged sense – what is it to see clearly, or to not see at all? Visual aids such as spectacles changed our ways of seeing – so too did the emergence of various -mancies and scrying mirrors that offered an alternative perspective; there is seeing with our eyes and then there is seeing with our other senses. For this issue, we draw inspiration from Hilma af Klint, David Bowie, William Burroughs, Ithell Colquhoun, Leonora Carrington, WB Yeats, William Blake and a whole host of other artists, musicians and writers who had visions. We are looking for interviews with musicians and artists, personal essays, articles, rituals, poetry and...

Deadline: March 23rd, 2024 Payment: 10 cents per word Theme: Speculative poetry and fiction that is uplifting, happy, and/or hopeful. Worlds of Possibility is a project I've been working on since the beginning of 2021. My patrons and subscribers' pledges help sponsor original creative Science Fiction and Fantasy works, which I release early in ebook format to subscribers and then a bit later to the general public online and in audio on the OMG Julia Podcast. Worlds of Possibility celebrates human creativity and is not interested in AI assisted work. Submissions for Worlds of Possibility. Speculative poetry and fiction that is uplifting, happy, and/or hopeful. Poetry: Payment of $50.00USD for right to display the poem online with six months of exclusivity, and eventually (within two years of online publication) publish in an anthology. Fiction: 5,000 word maximum, no minimum. Worlds of Possibility loves flash and drabbles and other short short forms as well as short stories! Payment of $0.10USD / word for right to display the story online with six months of exclusivity, and eventually (within two years of online publication) publish in an anthology. Current window open until March 23rd. View the full guidelines for examples of what I have published in the past for this project. Currently Open to Submissions  New Submission Closes to Submissions on Friday, March 22, 2024 11:00 PM (America/Chicago) Via: Worlds of Possibility Moksha.

Deadline: March 29th, 2024 Payment: $15 USD and 4% royalties for 4 years Theme: Halloween themed horror story that takes place around a carnival Note: Female identifying authors only. This INCLUDES trans women and non-binary/gender fluid. The Sisterhood of the Black Pen is back at it again! Submissions are open for our next spicy Halloween horror anthology! This time, a carnival is home to our nightmares. Female identifying authors only. This INCLUDES trans women and non-binary/gender fluid. Submissions due by March 29th, 2024. Story Requirements -7k-10k words roughly. Give or take. -Majority of setting must take place in or around a carnival. -Carnival must be Halloween themed, or story must take place on Halloween day, or a Halloween world, or any variation of these things. -Must contain at least one spicy scene. Why submit a short horror story to us? -We pay $15 USD to each author chosen PLUS around 4% royalties (depending on our final story count) for 4 years. -Rights returned after 6 months of publication date. -We are NOT a publishing house. We are two indie authors who are women who want to help other women. (trans women and non-binary/gender fluid included) succeed in the indie author world. -Our second anthology Twisted Tales of Halloween Horror sold over 4,000 copies. It was voted Best Indie Horror Book 2023 (hosted by @catiereadsandwrites on IG) Hosted by readers, nominated by readers, voted on by readers! It holds over 4 stars on Goodreads and Amazon. -We handle everything from cover design to marketing and everything in between. BUT we communicate with authors during design and help create something we all love. Simultaneously, we walk authors through what we are doing and how we are doing it so that newer authors can learn the steps of indie publication. -Authors finalize their...

Deadline: March 29th, 2024 Payment: FICTION: £40 per story regardless of length, INTERVIEWS: £60 per interview regardless of length and including accompanying illustrations or photographs., NON-FICTION: £60 per article regardless of length and including accompanying illustrations or photographs. Theme: Mixture of two genres or non-extreme horror Midnight Street Press publishes a variety of fiction anthologies and collections, as print and ebooks, in the spirit of the magazine that inspired it. FICTION I’m looking for stories that have a mix of two or more of these genres:  horror, dark fantasy, sci-fi and slipstream, that explore original themes or traditional themes from an original perspective. There is no specific word limit. Strong language and appropriate sexual imagery is acceptable providing it is in context and important in developing character. Correct grammar, including spelling (English or American English), sentence and paragraph construction and punctuation is very important unless the nature of the piece or the author’s style requires a less grammatical approach, in which case this should be specified in the covering message. I find it very tedious to correct these things! JOURNEYS INTO DARKNESS – DEEP HORROR This will be a section within the magazine that will include two or three stories in this genre. What I’m looking for is any or all of these: fantastic, supernatural, psychological, very creepy and frightening. Please DO NOT send slasher or extremely gory, badly written and constructed stories with no character arc. I hate these! INTERVIEWS These can be in any style and must include contact details for the interviewee. There is no specific word limit. Where possible, include pictures (jpegs please) and author biographies. NON-FICTION This can be on any subject relevant to the content of the magazine. There is no specific word limit. Where possible, include pictures (jpegs please) ARTWORK Please submit a...

Deadline: March 29th, 2024 Payment: 10 cents per word Theme: Stories that are ghoulish or “fun horror that aims to celebrate all things spooky” Yesterday we revealed the table of contents and pre-order information for Ghoulish Tales Issue #2, so we thought today would be the perfect time to announce that we are officially considering submissions for issue #3, which we aim to publish later this summer. First, if you are not already familiar with the style & tone of the magazine, we highly encourage you to read one of our previous issues. What we are after: short stories that fit our personal definition of the word GHOULISH, which is “fun horror that aims to celebrate all things spooky.” Note that we said fun, not funny. Comedic stories are definitely allowed, but it’s not all we’re looking to receive. We want stories that remind us why we love the horror genre. We want to have a perverted little smile across our face while reading. Make us slobber like idiots. Turn us into the Sickos.jpeg meme. We are also interested in non-fiction about the horror genre. GUIDELINES Deadline: March 29, 2024 (11:59 PM CST) Word count: 5,000 max (short stories); 2,000 max (non-fiction) Payment: 10c per word Simultaneous Submissions: Yes Multiple Submissions: No (Please only submit one story per open call. If we reject you, do not resubmit until we reopen for the next issue.) Reprints: No AI Submissions: No. Please note if you are caught sending us an AI story, you will be blacklisted from ever publishing with us in the future. Don’t do it. How to submit: Send all stories & essays to ghoulishsubmissions @ gmail dot com with – – – in the subject line. Please do not copy/paste the story in the body of the email. We prefer Word doc...

Deadline: March 31st, 2024 Payment: $10 Theme: Stories thought of as "the artfully weird" in any genre, ideally from authors from Orlando but will publish from anywhere While we prefer writers with a connection to Orlando or the greater Central Florida area, Olit will accept quality writing meeting our aesthetic and criteria from writers anywhere around the world. What do we mean by aesthetic and criteria? We’re glad you asked. Olit seeks the following: Genres: Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry, Hybrid, Artwork, Photography. Send us all kinds of stuff. We love the artfully weird. Strong preference for Orlando based writers/submissions about Orlando and surrounding areas. We aim to focus primarily on publishing marginalized voices. LGBTQIA+ is a big plus with us. BIPOC voices will always be uplifted here. Disabled? Incarcerated? Low income? Other marginalized voices? Please send us your work. If you do not consider yourself marginalized, your submission is still welcome at Olit if it meets our other criteria. Our aesthetic is best defined as gritty with grace, fast food parking lots in the middle of the night, the underbelly of a tourist city the locals know by memories. We want quality writing with heart and teeth. Give us words that bite back, stories full of verve, and the poems you wouldn’t let Grandma read. We are not the Academy/highbrow lit scene. We are indie and intellectual, raw yet polished. Send us only your best. We welcome simultaneous submissions. We would never ask you not to submit your work to more than one place at a time. Any lit journal still doing that should be banished and left behind. Please send us only previously unpublished works. We welcome multiple submissions. Have a short story perfect for us? Looking to publish some poems at the same time? That is fine with us,...

Submission Window: January 15th – March 31st, 2024 Payment: $0.02 per word Theme: Science fiction, fantasy, slipstream, and everything in between Note: Reprints Welcome We are open to submissions: Jan. 15 – Mar. 31 May 15 – Jul. 31 Sep. 15 – Nov. 30 Before submitting, please read the writer’s guidelines below. Story Guidelines Flash Point Science Fiction wants speculative fiction stories from 100 to 1,000 words in length. Send us your science fiction, fantasy, slipstream, and everything in between, so long as it’s short. We here at FPSF are partial to flash fiction and want to see the flash market grow. So as much as it pains us, please take your 10,000 word tour de force elsewhere. We’re not looking for the next Brandon Sanderson. (Unless you are, in fact, Brandon Sanderson, in which case we’d be delighted!) What we’re looking for: -Fantasy (all kinds—epic, adventure, contemporary, urban, grimdark, fairy tale, magical realism, myths and legends, etc.) -Science Fiction (all kinds—hard, space opera, military, near future, science fantasy, cyberpunk, dystopian, etc.) -Slipstream (make it as weird as you want, so long as it works) -Seasonal (we love stories with holiday and/or seasonal themes, but please submit AT LEAST 3 months in advance of the relevant occasion) -Anything that makes us laugh, cry, think, or smile. What we aren’t looking for: -Horror—it can be spooky or menacing, but we’re not a horror market, so the fright factor should not be the primary appeal. DARK fantasy and sci-fi, however, are welcome. -Literary fiction—this is a genre market, so there needs to be an SF&F element, however slight. -Gratuitous sex or violence—we’re big fans of Love Death + Robots, but don’t be that guy. -Fanfic—original concepts only, please. We know there was a lot going on in Hobbiton while Frodo was away, but that’s not our...

Deadline: March 31st, 2024 Payment: $15.00 flat rate plus equal share of 50% of the anthology’s royalties. Theme: Dragons and what they hoard At WolfSinger Publications, we love all kinds of creatures – especially DRAGONS. Dragons love…well…their hoard. Be it a hoard of gold, gems, books, virgins, whatever your dragon loves to collect and hoard. Or maybe your dragon doesn’t have a hoard—well then WHAT’S WRONG WITH YOUR DRAGON? —All dragons have a hoard—don’t they? If he doesn’t—then explain why not. We’re looking for stories about dragons—their hoard or lack thereof must factor into the story in some way. Since dragons are primarily a creature of fantasy I’m sure we’ll get plenty of fantasy stories; but we’ll take science fiction as well as any other speculative fiction genre, but you MUST be creative. A creative twist on the idea of dragons and their hoards is the most important part of the story. Break the story-writing rules if you want. If you use a tried-and-true plotline, twist it in an original and interesting way. Original stories are preferred. Query for reprints. ALL writers are encouraged to submit. Doesn’t matter if you’re a pro with years of credits, a beginner just starting out, or a teenager - please feel free to send the editor a story. In your cover email, please tell the editor a bit about yourself and a quick one-line synopsis of the story. Include genre. If experimental, please explain the type or how so the editor doesn’t edit out the form or reject it out of hand. Thank you. In the Subject line please put Submission: Dragon Hoard: Title of your story: Your name. Attach as a .rft file, please send to: [email protected] Submissions Open:  Nov 1st (DO NOT SUBMIT PRIOR TO THIS DATE) Submissions Close:  Mar 31st Release Date:...

Submission Window: February 1st, 2024 - March 31st, 2024 Payment: 8 cents per word Theme: Stories that explore "Moving Across the Landscape in Search of an Idea" We are seeking stories for an anthology to be titled Moving Across the Landscape in Search of an Idea. We are looking for stories with long titles (minimum 250 words, maximum 600 words), concise narratives (minimum 250 words, maximum 600 words) and copious footnotes, endnotes, marginalia, indices and glossaries (minimum 250 words, maximum 600 words). Authors are welcome to shift word counts between these three parts of their submission, but they must stay within a range of 1500 words for the total submission (ex. a 500 word title, a 600 word narrative, and 400 words of footnotes.). Stories are welcome to be submitted in any genre. If you have questions we encourage you to email us or DM us on Twitter or Mastodon. Authors may explore any genre with their stories (yes poetry too!) and we encourage a wide variety of ideas and interpretations. Submission Dates Submissions open: February 1st, 2024 Submissions close: March 31st, 2024 Reading/Review begins: April 1, 2024 Reading/Review ends: May 31st, 2024 All authors will be contacted by: June 15, 2024 Download the complete OC submission PDF here. General Submission Information We like to seek out new authors and book ideas ourselves rather than be contacted directly because we are a small, self-funded press, and only publish 4-5 books a year. We usually offer open call submissions on anthologies we decide to do, or we contact authors directly if we have particular needs. We pay $0.08/word for the stories we publish. Most of our books are limited editions of between 100 and 200 copies and we prefer to print physical books over creating ebooks. The Air and Nothingness Press is interested...

Submission Window: March 1st – March 31st 2024. Marginalized authors are invited to submit for an additional week, though April 7, 2024. Payment: Contributors Copy Theme: Literary cannibalism stories We are looking for literary cannibalism stories to fill out our charity anthology, which is raising money for Philabundance. Philabundance distributes food throughout nine counties in Southeastern Pennsylvania and Southern New Jersey. Learn more about their work here. Submission window March 1st – March 31st 2024. Marginalized authors are invited to submit for an additional week, though April 7, 2024. Wordcount 500 – 5,000 words Preferred word count is in the 2-4k range, but we’ll be considering longer stories and flash fiction if you can sell us on the piece. Payment As this is a charity anthology, we are looking for writers willing to donate their words to support a good cause. Payment will be our eternal gratitude and a contributors copy (softcover and ebook). The Cause Tasteful is being created in the hopes of raising funds and awareness for local food shelters. While we’ll be running promotions to support various local food banks, the profits we make from sales will all be donated to Philabundance. You can read more about their good work here. What we’re seeking Curators Cassandra Daucus, Iseult Murphy, and Cat Voleur are looking for literary tales of cannibalism. We seek stories that have a focus on beautiful prose, unsettling metaphors, and transcendent themes. If you can make us question our morals or keep us up at night craving flesh, we’re interested in your work. Finally, we want stories that “punch up”, not ones that “punch down.” While we appreciate both gore and sex, we are not interested in extremes for the sake of shock value. Please don’t send We will reject any offensive materials such as those containing racism, sexism, or...

Deadline: March 31st, 2024 Payment: Original stories: $25.00, Reprinted stories: $7.00, Original poems: $5.00, Cover illustration: $25.00, Original illustrations: $6.00 per illustration. Theme: Tales from the graveyard. Horror fiction written in the third person stands the best chance for acceptance. Potter’s Field 8 An anthology of tales from unmarked graves ​ Writers and Artists Guidelines Open to submission as of 1 January 2024 until 31 March 2024. Hiraeth Publishing is looking for stories and illustrations for Potter’s Field 8, a print anthology of tales from the graveyard. This volume will be the eighth in the Potter’s Field series. This anthology is scheduled to be published in trade paperback format with a color cover, and black and white interior illustrations. Potter’s Field 8 is edited by Christina Sng. Please note that horror fiction written in the third person stands the best chance for acceptance. “They” say that there are no new plots or stories anywhere. “They” may be right, but you are the only you there is, so send us a story as only you can tell it, one that’s atmospheric and highly entertaining, has fascinating characters, one that takes place in a unique location or time period. A potter’s field is the burial place for the indigent and the unidentified. Just about every city has one. Obviously, we’re looking for works that are themed to graveyards in some way. However, it does not have to be a conventional graveyard. Let me give you one example: back during the days of the Black Death, bodies were crammed–yes, literally crammed–into mass graves underneath churches. Even today, in St. Stephen’s Cathedral in Vienna, you can take a walking tour deep under the church and see walls of skeletons and dirt. Such a place would also qualify as a graveyard for the indigent. We do not want gore, blood,...

Deadline: March 31st, 2024 Payment: $150 and a contributors copy Theme: Stories featuring Algernon Blackwood’s ‘Psychic Doctor’ Silence: An Anthology of new stories featuring Algernon Blackwood’s ‘Psychic Doctor’ Edited by Dave Brzeski PLEASE NOTE: For this project, it is essential that you read or have already read all six of Algernon Blackwood’s John Silence stories from 1908. Five of these were published in John Silence, Physician Extraordinary, and are available to read or download free through Project Gutenberg: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/49222. A sixth story from 1914, ‘A Victim of Higher Space’, is included in the Algernon Blackwood collection, Day and Night Stories, which is also available to read or download free through Project Gutenberg: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/45964. All of them can be found in Dover’s The Complete John Silence, edited by S.T. Joshi (this is the recommended option) and in various other collections — do try to avoid the assorted sub-standard POD, or Kindle versions that can be be found on Amazon, as they tend to be somewhat typo-ridden THE CHARACTER Dr John Silence did not consider himself, or describe himself as, an occult detective. He was a ‘psychic doctor’, seeking to alleviate distress, and to free people from unusual and traumatic situations. He operated as an independent consultant, charging no fees, and was helped by various assistants at different times, usually someone who had at least a basic sensitivity to psychic phenomena. Two of these men are mentioned in the original stories, the earliest one — Hubbard — being a sort of ‘Watson’ to his ‘Holmes’. His outlook and his abilities are frequently described by Blackwood, sometimes with specific mentions of his own extensive psychic training (without details), his unusual awareness and abilities, and his view on ‘Higher Planes’, the nature of Good and Evil, and the condition of human soul. Unlike Holmes,...

Deadline: March 31st, 2024 Payment: Fiction: $25.00 for original stories, $7.00 for reprints, $6.00 for each poem, $20.00 for original articles, $6.00 for reprints. $7.00 for reviews and interviews. Theme: Paranormal - this includes ghosts, spectres, haunts, various whisperers, and so forth. It also includes shapeshifters and creatures from various folklores. Submissions are accepted Feb 1 – Mar 31, Jun 1 – Jul 31, Oct 1 – Nov 30. Anything submitted outside those periods will be deleted unread. We no longer accept simultaneous or multiple submissions. ​ No matter how far we move forward as humans, we are still bound by the instincts and ancestral memories of our animalistic past. None of these are so strong as the fight or flight response. However, there are times when we seem to be perfectly safe, completely at ease and comfortable, when that urge to run from something sneaks up on us. What causes these sensations? Is there something lurking in the darkness? Why is that man giving you the creeps, he’s not even looking at you? And yet, there is something odd. Something instinctual, something you know without fully understanding. We may have moved on, we may have forgotten and left behind those old stories and legends of beasts, voracious monsters, and dark spirits... But they have not forgotten or left us... What We Want The subject matter of parABnormal Magazine is, yes, the paranormal. For us, this includes ghosts, spectres, haunts, various whisperers, and so forth. It also includes shapeshifters and creatures from various folklores. PLEASE NOTE: CREATURES LIKE VAMPIRES, GHOULS, WEREWOLVES, AND ZOMBIES ARE NOT PARANORMAL. Shapeshifters, for the purpose of this magazine, refer to the spiritual shift, not the physical. Think Native American shaman. Paranormal activity centers around the human, not the creature. We do not want stories that involve excessive...

Submission Window: March 1st–31st, 2024 Payment: 1¢ per word for accepted stories (with a minimum of $20 regardless of length). Theme: Speculative fiction that explores connection, family, relationships, comfort, and the natural world. Reading periods/When to send Submissions will be open as follows: March 1st–31st (closing at 10pm PST on the 31st), for a June release September 1st–30th (closing at 10pm PST on the 30th), for a December release What to send Hearth Stories publishes speculative fiction slice-of-life stories with a focus on connection, family, relationships, comfort, and the natural world. We accept works from 1,000 words up to 10,000. However, the ideal length may be something in the 1,500-3,500 word range. We do not currently accept poetry, non-fiction, or non-speculative work (there needs to be a fantasy or science fiction element present in the work). Some things we like: Cozy, sweet, cute, kind, hopeful stories Caregiving, parenting, friendship, relationship, and partnership stories Rural/pastoral life and less technologically advanced settings Works that take place in nature Stories involving food and cooking (we are vegan; stories that feature animal products will result in a pass or a request for removal of the animal products) Stories involving hermits, issolated places, or wandering in the woods Bonus points for stories backed by vegan, anarchist, eco-conscious, and anti-capitalist themes (while still fitting the above) You may notice that none of those things have anything to do with science fiction or fantasy. We would like speculative stories with the above themes and settings. We are very into slice of life stories, the ruralism of Richard Jefferies (ruralism in general, extending to so-called “cottagecore”), and stories in general that take place in wooded places. We like witches and magic, new world stories (usually terraformed planets), alien worlds, and the small adventures of daily life. We accept simultaneous submissions (but we do not accept multiple...

Deadline: March 31st, 2024 Payment: AU$5.00 for stories under 3,000 words, AU$10.00 for anything above 2500 words, AU$15.00 between 8,000 and 11,000 words, AU$20.00 for extended pieces between 11,000 and 20,000 words Theme: All forms of speculative fiction. Yabblins is our theme and genre-free collection. This is where you can submit works of any kind, including extended pieces with lengths up to 20,000 words. Consider those pieces that you have sitting on a hard drive somewhere, the ones that have been previously hard to place... 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: Yabblins - Story Title. Word count: 1,000 - 20,000 words Deadline: March 31 2024 Payment: AU$5.00 for stories under 3,000 words AU$10.00 for anything above 2500 words AU$15.00 between 8,000 and 11,000 words AU$20.00 for extended pieces between 11,000 and 20,000 words Submission Guidelines: Please no extreme erotica or stories that feature excessive violence or vulgarity (unless otherwise specified). We are all dog lovers here, so violence against animals is the quickest way to get your story rejected. All stories should be formatted appropriately. Please see here for more details. Ensure that your name, address, and email contact and word count are at the top of your manuscript. Double check your spelling and grammar before sending your work. Please submit all stories in .doc, .docx or .rtf formats. International submissions are accepted. No simultaneous submissions. Multiple submissions are encouraged. Where possible, we will provide feedback on request. No reprints. Please send all submissions to [email protected] Via: Gypsum Sound Tales.

Submission Window: March 1st - 31st, 2024 Payment: 8 cent per word for fiction, $20 for poetry, 8 cent per word for non-fiction, $125 for cover art Theme: Speculative fiction Note: This call is for authors of color, members of the LGBTQIA+ community, and other underrepresented groups It's our goal to publish diverse voices from around the world, and to do that, we are actively seeking stories, poems, and non-fiction pieces by authors from backgrounds that have been historically underrepresented in the science fiction and fantasy canon. Our submission cycle is therefore split into two categories, where every other month is explicitly reserved for submissions by authors of color, members of the LGBTQIA+ community, and other underrepresented groups. The interposing six months remain open to everyone. Guidelines for Fiction We are seeking stories in the English language up to 6,000 words by writers from around the world. We favor submisions that have not been published before (including on your own website), though we have historically accepted a limited number of reprints not currently appearing anywhere online. For our two issues focused on the climate crisis, we're particularly interested in publishing stories from people displaced by or threatened by the climate emergency (see our themes below). For our other four issues, we're open to a wide variety of stories across the SFF and weird spectra. We pay 8¢ per word for fiction, and we try to respond to all submissions within ten weeks. We have also accepted a limited number of previously published stories, so please indicate on the form if your submission is a reprint. All submissions must use the Shunn manuscript format (we prefer Courier New) and be either .rtf, .doc, or .docx. We like stories that are subtle in their telling and stick with us long after we've finished....

Submission Window: March 1st - 31st, 2024 Payment: $100 for the chosen story + 50% of subscription revenue Theme: Any genre, short story Mission = Revive the art of the short story, support artists, and produce something wonderful. Payout = Base Pay of $100 for the chosen story + 50% of subscription revenue to be sent by Paypal, Zelle, or check. Wait, you mean if this substack gets thousands of subscribers, the winner would get thousands of dollars? Yes! The New Yorker pays roughly $7,500 per story and I sincerely hope to go way past that. What does the timeline look like? Submit stories by the end of the month, winner to be announced on the 15th. There is ONE story that wins and receives the full payout. Where do I send submissions? [email protected] What are the rules for submitting? 1. No Fees 2. Send in Microsoft Word or Google Doc form 3. Any genre 4. 6- 10,000 words. Yes, just 6 words, like Hemingway's famous 6-word story "For Sale: Baby shoes, never worn." 5. Reprints are ok so long as you still have the rights to distribute. 6. Acknowledge Distribution Rights on this Substack - You can still sell your story elsewhere but we need to be able to save and publish it here. The goal is to create a library for subscribers. 7. Only the winner will be published and rights will only transfer for the winning story. What do I get for subscribing? One beautiful story every month. The complete library. The joy of supporting artists and doing something interesting. What if I can’t pay right now? That’s ok! If you publish a blurb about this site on your website, blog, or social media, I will send you one full story of your choosing. Best of all, it is...

Deadline: March 31st, 2024 Payment: $100 Theme: Music inspired by Tori Amos Note: Open to authors that identify (now or in the past) as femme in the most inclusive of definitions. Opens: February 1, 2024, midnight est  Closes: March 31, 2024, midnight IDLW Compensation: $100 USD Theme: Adult horror, including genre-chimeras Submissions must be between 3,000 and 5,000 words OPEN to any and everyone that identifies (now or in the past) as femme in the most inclusive of definitions. Expected release: February 2025 Submit to [email protected]   What we are looking for: First exclusive (1 year) US rights for stories inspired by the music of Tori Amos.    Submissions must be between 3,000 and 5,000 words. General Guidelines: Please read carefully. Submissions that don’t meet the guidelines will be rejected. Open to any and all writers, both new and established, unless otherwise noted. ALL horror subgenres and tropes are welcome, including comedy and splatter.  Genre-blending is highly encouraged. Queer retellings and gender swaps are our favorites.  Writers should have a diverse representation of BIPOC, LGBTQ+, gender identities, disability, fat positivity, and neurodivergency. What we are NOT looking for: Submissions cannot contain sexualization of minors (under 18, yes that includes “17 almost 18”). Sexual assaults are encouraged to happen off-page and only if it serves purpose to the plot (revenge, social commentary, etc.) Trigger warnings are encouraged and will be included in the back of the finished work. Here are some common triggers: ableism, abortion, blood/gore, body dysphoria, death of loved one, eating disorder, fatphobia/sizeism, gendered language, graphic medical situations, gun violence, homophobia, incest, intimate partner violence, labor/birth, lack of consent, loss of body autonomy, miscarriage, misogyny, needles, police/military violence, post-partum depression, pregnancy, racism, rape, religion, self-harm, sexual assault, stalking/harassment, stillbirth substance misuse, suicide, suicidal ideation, transphobia. Label email subject line: Last, First - Title - Word count Cover...

Deadline: March 31st, 2024 Payment: $125 - $200 Theme: Weird tales set in the Nordic Region that explore the human (and inhuman) experience through the lens of the weird and the horrific. Sentinel Creatives has opened up for submissions for our “NORDIC HORROR” anthology. Deadline for Submissions: 31 March 2024 Wordcount: 3,000 - 6,000 Remuneration: $125 - $200 Simultaneous Submissions: Yes WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FOR We’re looking for original weird tales set in the Nordic Region that explore the human (and inhuman) experience through the lens of the weird and the horrific. We’re looking for a diverse selection of stories that run the gamut of folklore and history in the region. Of course, this includes Viking Horror. We will, however, only be looking to include 1-2 stories in this vein. Give us your tales of isolation, of windswept tundras, and of what lurks beneath the frozen fjords. Take us through the streets of Reykjavík, Trondheim, and Henningsvær. Show us walls that live and breathe, telling tales of their own history. Guide us to trap streets into other worlds, and the lost gods who wander them; mountains that walk the earth and seas that pulse with sentience. Show us lost maps and found people. Give us your stories of loss and tragedy, of the surreal and the uncanny. If it's Nordic and weird, we want it! Some clarifications: Weird: The term “weird” should be understood to mean a certain sense of breathless and unexplainable dread, of outer, unknown forces present, a suggestion of the defeat or suspension of the laws of nature which have hitherto served to protect our minds and bodies (and souls) from the assault of chaos. By its very nature, weird fiction should invoke in the reader a sense of profound uneasiness and dread, it should hint at the inability of the human mind to comprehend the true nature of existence,...

Deadline: March 31st, 2024 Payment: 4 cents per word Theme: cold/winter horror short stories. Death’s Head Press is putting together an anthology of cold/winter horror short stories. Winter is a setting that lends itself to various horror tales, from survival tales to hauntings to slashers with buckets of blood in the snow. Humans long ago mastered survival in the cold, but what happens when one of the necessities (heat, shelter, food) is taken away? What if that lovely cabin in the woods comes with a helping of the supernatural or otherworldly? The stories can and should cover the wide spectrum of coldness. We aim to explore the what if of the cold. The specifics: Original stories not previously published. Word count per story: 2,500 – 10,000 words Deadline for submissions: March 31, 2024 Pay is $0.04 per word Accepted parties will be notified by April 30, 2024 Submit stories to [email protected] Subject line: Death’s Head Press Cold Anthology Submission (plus story title/author name) Word Document formatted with 1” margins, 12pt font, and 1.5-double spacing Via: Death’s Head Press.

Deadline: March 31st, 2024 Payment: £0.015 per word. Theme: Speculative fiction that deals with The Four Humours (Details on that below.) A brand new audible zine centering the bizarre, the horrifying, and the what-ifs. New Episodes bi-monthly with an exciting new theme every time. Imagine attending an open mic story-telling night in the cellar of that haunted house on the hill or the canteen of a starship that traverses time and dark dimensions. What stories would you hear? Would they inspire awe or disgust? Hope in the future or existential dread? Genres: Sci-fi, Slipstream, Weird Fiction, Near-Future, Retellings, Folk-Tales, Fantasy, Magical Realism, Surrealism, Cosmic Horror, Dark Fantasy, Speculative… Formats: Mainly Short Stories, Poetry, Flash Fiction, Short Plays/Extracts, (but open to) Personal Stories, Dreams/Nightmares, Songs, Soundscapes, Fictional or Real Mini-Docs, Interviews, and whatever else you can dream up… THEME 1.02: The Four Humours When our nature is out of balance; tempers, like fevers, run high. Step into the bewitching world of the Four Humours, where ancient alchemy meets the intricate tapestry of the human psyche. Dividing our episode into four sections: Sanguine, Choleric, Melancholic, and Phlegmatic. Does your tale weave characters with raw intensity and larger-than-life personalities?  Are they charismatic, ambitious, deep thinkers, or cool-headed under pressure?  Or,  instead, impulsive, domineering, pessimistic,  or lazy? ​ Think tales of disease, of body or mind, potions and magic, chaos and order, material change, and personal transformation. Treat us to characters whose flaws are their undoing, whose struggles mirror our own, and whose stories resonate with the raw intensity of big emotions and larger-than-life personalities. Current Deadline: March 31st, 2024 Send Your Submissions Here [email protected] Submission Guidelines: Ethos: ​ The Lost Poetry Club is an audible zine. We aim to create a kaleidoscope of voices and materials. Chosen work will be dramatised, but you are openly encouraged to contribute to our M.A.F.P. (mind-altering frequency protocol) with your own recordings and performances for a fully collaborative...

Deadline: March 31st, 2024 Payment: 10 cents per word Theme: Dark stories that take place in a city during the winter season Thank you for your interest in submitting your work to this anthology. We look forward to reading your short story. Please read the following information to help you to become familiar with the anthology and the submission guidelines. THE CITY Noisy, crowded, ever in motion, the City can be more than a setting—it can be a character, as nuanced and as fickle as a human being, with as many traits and quirks as the best mapped out characters. The City can be the ever-present and constant companion (or foe) to the protagonist and antagonist alike. Winter in the City: A Collection of Dark Urban Stories is an anthology that takes place in different cities around the world during the bleak—sometimes harsh—season of winter. Your story submission must conform to the guidelines listed below and feature the City—in fact, the title of each story will be the City of which you write. We are not looking for vampire/werewolf love trysts. We are looking for fantastical elements within the City itself. Because we all know—deep in our hearts—that nightmares and fairies, monsters and ghosts, and terrors of the real and imagined call the City their home. GUIDELINES: • Short stories (3000-7500 words) that feature something fantastical in a city during winter. Your story will be titled by the city name (i.e. “Boston” or “Sydney”). • In this case a “city” should be considered a large population center (over 200,000 permanent inhabitants. • The “city” should be a real place—no “Gotham City” or “Hogsmeade.” • PLEASE Confirm which city your story will take place in before starting to write. We prefer not want any duplicates. FORMATTING: • We read blind—so remove...

Submission Window: January 1st, 2024 - March 31st, 2024 Payment: Contributor's Copy (Charity anthology.) Theme: A horror story that must include a character named Kai and must reference Dungeons & Dragons in some way Thank you for choosing to submit to the seventh annual Great Lakes Association of Horror Writers (GLAHW) mini-anthology. We are looking for horror fiction, between 2,000 and 5,000 words, along with the following requirements. 1. A character named Kai. The character can be the protagonist, antagonist, monster, victim, friend, etc. As long as he, she, it, or they play a significant, if not pivotal, role in the story. 2. The story must make a reference to Dungeons & Dragons (including its iconic dice!). Whether it is the setting of the story, part of the backstory for a character, or a passing reference, Dungeons & Dragons and Kai should have some importance to the story. We will be editing the stories, but we will not make any changes without first discussing them with you, the writer. We’re writers, too, and we know what it’s like to have our stories altered without our consent. We won’t do that to you. Having said that, however, we will try our best to make each of the stories in this anthology the best they can be. So, if we give you notes, we’d appreciate it if you’d consider them carefully. We’re not saying you have to agree with us (We’ve had plenty of writers argue with us, and sometimes, we see their point and concede the edit). Just that you listen. The cover art for Kai's Recurring Nightmares will be handled by the talented Steve Bejma Submission Please submit all stories to [email protected]  The subject line should read Submission: Kai’s Recurring Nightmares. Stories should be submitted as an attachment in either MS Word (.doc, .docx) or...

Deadline: March 31st, 2024 Payment: ($10) for the first 1,000 words, then a half (1/5) cent per word up to 6,000 words, plus a contributor’s copy. Theme: Short stories and flash fiction with a focus on horror in the American southwest Denver Horror Collective is seeking short stories and flash fiction for its new anthology with a focus on horror in the American southwest, Frontiers of Fright: A Southwestern Horror Anthology. Whether people found themselves in ranches, small frontier towns, saloons, railways, or mines, the American Southwest was a harsh wilderness—a desolate and isolating landscape of deserts and mountains. We want these same people and places with a horror heartbeat, spotlighting the creepy, chilling, and unnerving aspects of when the west was young. For this anthology, we are considering the southwest as places such as Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, western Texas, southern Nevada, California, and northern Mexico. Authors will be paid ten dollars ($10) for the first 1,000 words, then a half (1/5) cent per word up to 6,000 words, plus a contributor’s copy. For inquiries, please contact [email protected]. Submission guidelines Min 1,000 words | Max 6,000 words Deadline to submit is March 31, 2024 Submit to [email protected] Submit stories as a Word Doc – .doc or .docx or .rtf Partial blind submission: Please do not put any identifying information (name, pseudonym, address, email, etc.) on the actual document. This information is okay in the email and subject line. Subject line should be written as: – Submit in Modern Manuscript Format – see here for format details. We accept simultaneous submissions, just let us know if your story is accepted elsewhere. Please, no reprints. Via: Denver Horror Collective.

Deadline: March 31st, 2024 Payment: $20 or Royalties Theme: An form of horror Behind the Shadows II– This is horror. Humor and mystery beats are welcome. Express yourself as the theme moves you. There is no restriction as to how you incorporate the theme into your story as long as the genre falls within Speculative Fiction, including Sci-Fi or Fantasy. We encourage you to weave the theme into an engaging story with well-developed characters and deep emotion. Stories that contain infanticide, rape, or gratuitous gore will not be accepted. Submission Period: January 1, 2024 to March 31, 2024 Submissions: No AI, 1 per author; no simultaneous submissions, no reprints; Submission Cost: Free Word Limit: 2,000 to 7,000 words Submission Guidelines: Anonymous submission with no author name in document; 12 pt Times or Arial; .Doc or .Docx; double-space; first line indent; no tabs used. Genres: Horror Anticipated Pay: Option: Royalty share of D2D sales, or $20.00 If D2D royalty share selected, then each story will receive a share, as will the editor and publisher, from the sales on the D2D platform. This does not include: Kickstarter funds unless detailed in the Stretch goals; wholesale to authors; or non-D2D retail outlets. Links will be available to direct your customers to D2D outlets. Timeline Projections: Submissions close: 3/31/24 Review: April 2024 Acceptance / Rejection: April/May 2024 Edits: June 2024 Production: June 2024 Kickstarter: July 2024 Published: August/September 2024 Upon acceptance, the author is expected to work with the editor on at least one round of revisions in MSWord. Our publication goal will be the summer of 2024; however, the extensive time needed to review and edit submissions may vary depending upon the submitted works and author’s response times. Inkd Publishing LLC will hold first publication rights for four months after publication and the continuing non-exclusive...

Deadline: March 31st, 2024 Payment: $25 Theme: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Music of Boy George and Culture Club Note: Apologies about the short deadline, just found out about this one today. In the 1980s, the world had never seen anything quite like Boy George and Culture Club. English pop met fashion and androgyny to usher in the New Romantic era of music. With dozens of nominations and award wins, Culture Club secured a spot in music history and produced a music legacy still loved today. And, what better way to celebrate them than with outstanding crime fiction inspired by their music? SUBMISSION GUIDELINES 1. Your work must be based on a song that’s an original Boy George and/or Culture Club song and cannot be a cover performed by them. Feel free to reference the list HERE and HERE for inspiration. 2. Your work must relate strongly to the song it’s inspired by, whether that’s by the lyrics or the name. 3. You still must have a STORY and a good crime/mystery. 4. LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC characters and authors very, very strongly encouraged. Be authentic! Remember that this anthology is for Pride Month. 5. All works must be original to this publication and cannot have been published or self-published previously. 6. We’re perfectly ok with simultaneous submissions to other publishers, but please let us know if you’d like your story withdrawn from consideration. 7. Please make sure your song choice is not too obscure. From past musical mystery anthologies we’ve found that readers have a lot more interest if there are songs they immediately recognize. TECHNICAL GUIDELINES 1. We’re not looking for flash fiction, but we’re not against it if it works. Prefer more in the regular short story length (3000-5000 words). 2. All submissions need to be in DOC, DOCX or Pages format....