Taking Submissions: Sun Rising Short Stories

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Deadline: April 7th, 2024
Payment: 8 cents/6 pence per word for original stories, 6 cents/4 pence for reprints
Theme: Modern fiction, folklore and mythology, and ancient tales about the sun
Note: Reprints Welcome

We’re delighted to let you know this new call for submissions is open! Please read through the submission details carefully as we’ve changed some of our guidelines and it could result in your submission not being acknowledged if you do not follow them.

Science Fiction, Fantasy, Folklore and Myth

This will be a feast of modern fiction, folklore and mythology, and ancient tales of the looming, life-giving, eye-burning solar entity that dominates our sky. The sun has inspired many stories – tales of its origins, in the myths and traditions of the ancient world, to modern storytellers who employ technology and deep space exploration to discover the many suns of the universe. For ancient Egyptians, the sun deity Ra was the first Pharaoh; in the ancient Vedic culture the sun, Surya, was guarded against the darkness by Usha and Pratyusha; for the Norse, the beautiful siblings Sol and Mani drove the sun ahead of the snarling wolf Sköll; for the ancient Chinese, it was a demon or dragon who threatened the sun and an eclipse was a sign of near success; for the Cherokee, the Sun was jealous of the moon because the people could only squint during the day, but looked adoringly at the pale moon light of the night. The Maori of New Zealand tell of the sun being ambushed by Maui, and for the Romans, Aurora, the Goddess of the Dawn, brought renewal and relief across the lands. Such stories reveal the foundations of humanity, with modern writers who explore the other worlds and many stars that dispense both life and fear to civilizations on our own and so many other planets. Submissions can thus explore new interpretations and visions of sun-based mythology or interstellar, future and fantastical settings.

Submissions to: [email protected]

Terms:

  • Multiple submissions are fine but must be in separate emails.
  • Simultaneous submissions are fine but you must have the right to license your story in an anthology.
  • For accepted stories we pay Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) rates of 8 cents/6 pence per word for original stories, 6 cents/4 pence for reprints.
  • We will aim to read each story and confirm its status within 4 months of the submission deadline.
  • Payment for the chosen stories will be made within 30 days of the final advertised publication date (see our website flametreepublishing.com for details), although some may be paid earlier than that.
  • Submission does not imply the right to publication. Each story will be read and assessed by the selection panel.
  • Let us know in your submission email whether your story would be a reprint or is currently unpublished.

 

Important Notice about Submissions and Guidelines

We’re always looking for better ways of working so we’ve tweaked our submission process to allow us to read more stories, and spend more time assessing the balance of our books.

  • Submissions must use the dedicated email address.
  • The subject line of the email must be the story title.
  • The file with the story must be attached to the email (.docx, .doc or .rtf format).
  • The name of the file must match the name in the subject line.
  • If submitting more than one story, please submit one story per email.

Other useful tips for a more successful submission:

  • The file name of the submission must be the story name only.
  • Please just use spaces between words in the title (not _ or – ).
  • If the story name starts with A or The, please use it at the beginning of the file name.
  • If you’d like to add some details about the story, confirm if it’s new or a reprint, or add a short bio of yourself, please add to the body of the email not as an attachment.
  • Story length is most likely to be successful at 2000-4000 words, but we will still read stories slightly outside this range.
  • If submitting a story that has recently been submitted to us for consideration to another anthology, please state this in the submission email.
  • Publication will be October 2024.
  • Deadline for submissions is 7th April 2024.

The Flame Tree Gothic Fantasy, Classic Stories and Epic Tales collections bring together the entire range of myth, folklore and modern short fiction. Highlighting the roots of suspense, supernatural, science fiction and mystery stories, the books in the Flame Tree Collections series are beautifully presented, highly collectable and offer a lifetime of reading pleasure.

Thank you, and good luck!

Via: Flame Tree Publishing.

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