Contributed By S. Kalekar
The calls are for fiction, non-fiction and poetry on various themes. They are as varied as mythological beasts, hiding in plain sight, power, OCD and BDD, stories using imagery of Greek and Roman mythology, blood and squalor, working mothers, power, lost (and rediscovered) objects, athletes and social justice, challenges of parenting, noir fiction, favorite first lines, and interspecies LGBTQ romance. Many of these pay writers.
404 Ink: Power
They want fiction, non-fiction and poetry on Power, be it super power, electricity, or of the political or magical kind. Entries accepted in English, Scots and Scottish Gaelic.
Deadline: 11 September 2017
Word count: 2,500 words for prose, up to three poems
Pay: Unspecified
Details here.
Proximity Magazine: The Mother Load Anthology
They are seeking potential contributors for an anthology about the impact of motherhood on professional lives, and are receiving applications. They invite answers to specific questions like (see guidelines), which will allow them to see writing samples from those interested in contributing, and guide potential contributors about the direction the essay should take.
Deadline: 15 September 2017
Word count: Unspecified
Pay: None
Details here.
Lycan Valley Press: Darkling’s Beasts and Brews – Poetry with a Drink on the Side
They are looking for beast/creature related poetry, including wendigos, chimeras, hellhounds, vampires and skinwalkers. The poems must have a horror or dark element. Each poem will have a
corresponding drink recipe, which authors are not to submit.
Deadline: 17 September 2017
Word count: 5-100 lines for all poetry except Haiku
Pay: $0.25/line, up to $20; $1 for Haiku
Details here.
The Rumpus: Hiding in Plain Sight
They want essays about disguises – including wearing masks to protect one’s vulnerable identities; about hiding, and about what happens when the jig is up. See guidelines for potential topics authors could explore, including what happens when you call someone out as a Nazi; the partner caught in lies; the murderer next door who seemed so normal.
Deadline: 22 September 2017
Word count: 1,500-4,000
Pay: Unspecified
Details here.
Gathering Storm Magazine: four themes
They want short stories and poems; they like stories with conflict. There are four themed submission calls:
– The only thing to fear is fear itself.
– Never take candy from strangers.
– It’s just a bunch of hocus pocus.
– Things that go bump in the night.
They also accept Other Tidbits & Masterpieces, including hard-to-classify short pieces and non-fiction, and interactive fiction.
Deadline: 25 September 2017 for all themes
Word count: Up to 2,000 for fiction
Pay: $25 for short stories, $10 for poems
Details here.
Azure Keep: Tales of Ruma
They want stories set in the world of Ruma: Dawn of Empire (the tabletop roleplaying game), Earth, or another world, which build upon the themes (such as heroism, the gods, and the arcane) and imagery of Greek and Roman mythology. They prefer fantasy over other genres. The audience level is teen and above.
Deadline: 30 September 2017
Word count: 500-5,000
Pay: $0.06/word
Details here.
Dark Cloud Press: Tales of Blood and Squalor
They want horror and psychological thriller fiction for this anthology; atmospheric horror in a squalid setting. Their guidelines have examples of stories they like.
Deadline: 30 September 2017, or until filled
Word count: 2,500-5,000 (3,000-4,000 preferred)
Pay: $0.03/word
Details here.
3Elements Literary Review: Delusion, Blueprint, Fisherman
They want stories, non-fiction and poetry on the theme for their Winter issue. Submissions must incorporate all of the three words: delusion, blueprint and fisherman.
Deadline: 31 October 2017
Word count: Up to 3,500 for prose; under two pages for poetry
Pay: None
Details here.
Spring Song Press: Fell Beasts and Fair
They are looking for short stories on the theme. They want both classic and new interpretations of fantastic creatures. Stories should have a fantasy element. They prefer clean and noblebright (see this post about noblebright as a genre) stories.
Deadline: 1 November 2017
Word count: 1,000-10,000
Pay: $0.01/word
Details here.
The First Line
This magazine aims to jump-start the imagination. All stories must be written with the first line provided. For their Winter issue, the sentence is: “I’m tired of trying to see the good in people.” They are open to all genres in fiction. For non-fiction, they want critical essays about your favourite first line from a literary work.
Deadline: 1 November 2017
Word count: 300-5,000 for fiction; 300-800 for non-fiction
Pay: $25-50 for fiction, $25 for non-fiction, $5-10 for poetry
Details here.
The Canberra Speculative Fiction Guild: A Hand of Knaves
This is a submission call for Australian residents, expats, or members of the Canberra Speculative Fiction Guild. They want speculative fiction about rogues, thieves, pirates and ne’er-do-wells. See guidelines for the kind of stories they lean towards.
Deadline: 15 November 2017
Word count: Up to 5,000 words; submit up to three stories
Pay: At least AUD30 per story and two anthology copies
Details here.
Less Than Three Press: Written in the Stars – LGBTQIA Collection Call
This call is for evocative interspecies romance – specifically, for human/alien LGBTQIA stories.
Deadline: 30 November 2017
Word count: 20,000-60,000
Pay: Royalties
Details here.
Akashic Book Web Submissions: four themes
They have four ongoing web series.
– Sports & Justice invites essays on an athlete or athletes committed to some form of social justice off the field.
– Duppy Thursday calls for short fiction set in the Caribbean location and incorporates some aspect of its folklore.
– Mondays are Murder calls for noir fiction, set in a distinct location of any neighbourhood in any city.
– Terrible Twosdays are for stories about the challenges of parenting; non-fiction will also be considered, with changed names.
Deadline: Currently open
Word count: Up to 750 words
Pay: None
Details here.
Poor Yorick: A Journal of Rediscovered Objects
They want writing about lost objects of material culture, including lost photographic archives and restored films, newly discovered letters or manuscripts, or sculptures and paintings hidden in the back rooms of museums.
Deadline: Rolling
Word count: Up to 10,000 for prose, unspecified for poetry and songs
Pay: No pay, but they publicize work on the website and with the help of museums they work with
Details here.
International OCD Foundation: Stories from the OCD Community
They want personal stories about OCD and BDD. They welcome submissions from people living with these conditions, their family/friends, researchers and medical professionals.
Deadline: Rolling
Word count: Up to 1,000 words
Pay: Unspecified
Details here.
