Mothership Zeta - Opens Submissions Tomorrow

Mothership Zeta has a very short reading period which opens tomorrow May 1 and runs through to May 7, 2016.  They are looking for short stories up to 6000 words and flash fiction up to 1000 words.  The genres are "science fiction, fantasy, and horror stories that are fun".  They don't have to be funny just stories with a different spin on the old tropes, and they have examples in the guidelines.  Payment is 6cents a word.  You can find the details here.

U.S. Concealed Carry Association - Call for Non-Fiction Articles

The U.S. Concealed Carry Association is looking for "practical, informative articles on all subjects related to concealed carry by ordinary citizens".  They want queries first.  Articles should be 1500 to 2500 words and will be written on spec.  If your story is accepted they will send a payment offer.  You can check out the details here.

280 Steps Publishing - Open for Novel Submissions

280 Steps Publishing has opened for novel submissions of 45,000 to 80,000 words in the genres of crime, mystery, noir, and thriller.  You can find the details here.  I believe they're a royalty paying press but the pay specifics are not listed.  They've changed their website a bit so the link will take you to the home page you can scroll down to the guidelines or just click on their submission button at the top of the page.

Strigidae Publishing - Anthology Call

Strigidae Publishing has posted an anthology call for "Ceto's Brine".  They're looking for ocean themed horror stories of 5000 to 12,000 word.  The genres for this one are Horror, Dark Fantasy, and Horror Erotica.  The deadline is July 31, 2016 and payment is $30.  You can find the details here.

Dark Toronto - Anthology

From the lovely Michael Bracken come a submission call for the anthology "Dark Toronto".  They're looking for fictional horror stories of 3000 to 6000 words set in Toronto.  The deadline is January 30, 2017 and payment is 3cents a word (CDN).  You can find the details here.

The Dark City - New Issue

The third issue of The Dark City is now available for your Kindle or to read online.  Check it out here.

Blueberry Lane Books - Anthology Call

Blueberry Lane Books has posted an anthology call for "In the Spaces Between".  They're looking for science fiction mysteries of 1750 to 5000 words in length.  Yep, you get to mix the genres of science fiction and mystery.  The deadline is May 31, 2016 and payment is 1/2cent a word with $12 minimum and $20 maximum payment.  You can find the details here.

Hat tip to Paperback Writer.

Cowboy Jamboree - Call for Submissions

Western markets are few and far between but today I found "Cowboy Jamboree" which is currently seeking submissions for their Fall issue titled "With Alacrity!".  They're looking for flash fiction, short stories, creative non-fiction, and vignettes.  The deadline is August 1, 2016.  There is no mention of payment.  You can find the details here.

Just for Fun

Sometimes when searching for markets I run across sites like Project Gutenberg which today gave me a page for an audio selection of Short Mystery Stories.  You can check it out here.  The stories are in the public domain and free to listen to online or to download.  Happy listening!

Alban Lake - Anthology Call

Alban Lake Publishing has posted an anthology call for "Potters Field 6".  They are looking for stories of 2000 to 8000 words that are themed to graveyards in some way.  The deadline is June 30, 2016 and payment is $25 for original stories and $7 for reprints.  You can find the details here.

Horroraddicts.net - Anthology Call

Horroraddicts.net has posted a call for their sixth horror anthology, this one titled "Clockwork Wonderland".  They want horror stories of 2000 to 5000 words set in Wonderland and there must be a clock involved.  "Following the rabbit down the hole is the easy part.  Whether you're trying to get back home or struggling to survive in Wonderland, your stories must be horrifying."  The deadline is October 31, 2016 and payment is $10.  You can find the details here.

The Patchwork Raven - Anthology Call

The Patchwork Raven has posted an interesting anthology call titled "Twelve Days".  The Twelve Days of Christmas gifts are being used as titles for your stories and must incorporate the gift into the story.  They are looking for stories of 2000 to 10,000 words in any genre.  The deadline is May 20, 2016 and payment is $50.  You can find the details here, just scroll down a bit as a novel call is the first listing.

8 Unstoppable Rules for Writing Killer Short Stories by Charlie Jane Anders

The lovely Michael Bracken emailed me a link to a great essay by Charlie Jane Anders called "8 Unstoppable Rules for Writing Killer Short Stories".  While the piece is about writing science fiction the rules can also be applied to any genre you're writing in.

Wayward Ink Publishing - Anthology Calls

Wayward Ink Publishing is a GLBT romance publisher.  At this time they have two open anthology calls.

The first is "Beyond the Infinite".  They're looking for science fiction themed stories of 3000 to 15,000 words.  The deadline is September 9, 2016 and payment is between $50 and $80 depending on length.  You can find the details here.

The second is "Age is Just a Number".  Here they're looking for stories of 3000 to 15,000 words that pair a young man and an older man romantically.  Any genre is welcome for this one.  The deadline is June 3, 2016 and payment is between $50 and $80 depending on length.  You can find the details here.

They are also open for novel and novella submissions in a variety of genres including mystery/thriller.  This link is where you'll find the pay scale for all the calls.

WolfSinger Publications - Anthology Calls

WolfSinger Publications has several anthology calls posted for this year.  There are two that are of special interest here:

"Love 'em, Shoot 'em" is looking for stories of 1000 to 6000 words that use the theme "I ain't afraid to love a man.  I ain't afraid to shoot him either."  This is open to a variety of genres which include Western and Mystery.  The deadline is June 30, 2016 and payment is a $5 advance plus royalties.  You can find the details here.

The second is "Incarceration".  The stories must feature incarceration in the future and while they're looking for speculative fiction this is a good one for mixing in crime fiction.  Stories should be 1000 to 6000 words.  The deadline is August 31, 2016 and payment is $5 plus royalties.  You can find the details here.

Sword and Sorceress - Open for Submissions

Sword and Sorceress #31 opened for submissions today.  They are looking for sword and sorcery stories up to 9000 words with a strong female protagonist.  The deadline is May 13, 2016 and payment is a 6cent a word advance against royalties.  You can find all the details here.

Angie's Desk - Anthology Calls

Angie has posted her April list of anthology calls.  Thanks, Angie!!

Ashland Creek Press - Anthology Call for Writing Articles

Ashland Creek Press has posted an anthology call for "Writing for Animals".  First off, they're NOT looking for essays about animals.  They're seeking "a collection of instructional articles about the craft of writing about animals".  There is a list of topics that they are interested in posted with the guidelines.  There is no deadline posted and payment is $100.  You can find the details here.  Submissions are through Submittable.

Arkham Ad Co. - Market Resource

Just ran across Arkham Ad Co. which is a site that posts all types of genre markets from sci-fi to mystery.  They look fairly new but they're set up so that publishers and others and submit open calls for them to post.  You can take a look here.  And it's all free.

Best Horror of the Year Volume 9 - Submission Call

Ellen Datlow has posted a submission call for "Best Horror of the Year Volume 9".  She wants horror stories that were published in 2016 for consider in the Best of anthology.  The deadline is December 15, 2016.  You can find the details here.

Bad Apple Zine - New Market - YA

Bad Apple Zine is based in the UK.  They are seeking speculative fiction stories of 2000 to 5000 words for a YA (ages 16 to 21) audience.  Payment is 15pounds.  The first issue will go live on June 1.  You can find the details here.

Flame Tree Publishing - Anthology Calls

Flame Tree Publishing has posted anthology calls for "Murder Mayhem" and "Crime Mystery".  The first is looking for hard-boiled/noir stories and the second is looking for stories more on the cozy side.  They're taking both new and reprints stories of 2000 to 4000 words.  The deadline is April 29 and payment is 6cents a word.  You can find the details here.

Trigger Warning Short Fiction - Open for Submissions

At the end of March I posted a non-paying market called Trigger Warnings and now we have a market called Trigger Warning Short Fiction which is looking for stories of 1000 to 5000 words in the genres of sci-fi, fantasy, horror, and noir.  Payment is a stipend ( no amount stated ) plus a signed copy of the illustration that accompanies your story.  There are five issues available to read so you can get an idea of what they're looking for.  You can find the details here.

Hat tip to horrortree.com

Phobos - Call for Submissions

Phobos has posted the theme for their next submission call for "Phobos Four:  Deep Black Sea".  Submissions open of May 1 and end July 31.  Do not submit before May 1.  They're looking for flash to 1000 words and shorts to 2500 words.  Payment is 5cents a word.  According to their FAQ page they want "short pulp fiction that could have fit between a story by Robert E. Howard and HP Lovecraft in a 1927 issue of Weird Tales".  They also note that flash pieces have a better chance of acceptance as they'll be publishing more of those than the longer pieces.  You can find the details here and be sure to check out their FAQ page for more details.

Lawyerist 3rd Annual Short Fiction Contest

The Lawyerist has posted a call for submissions to their 3rd annual short fiction contest.  They're seeking stories up to 5000 words that feature a lawyer as a prominent character.  There is no fee to enter.  The top stories will be published on their website.  First prize is $200 and second is $100.  The deadline is June 1.  Now, they have 2015 as the deadline date but the call was posted on April 6, 2016 and they have the 2015 and 2014 winners posted on site for you to read so I'm thinking it's a mistake.  You can find the details here.

Inklings Press - Anthology Calls

Inklings Press has posted an anthology call for "Tales From Alternate Earths".  They're looking for stories of 3500 to 6000 words.  The deadline is April 30 and payment is a royalty split.  You can find the details here.  While this is basically a spec fiction anthology you mystery writers can do alternate histories of famous crimes.  Perhaps Sherlock Holmes solves the Jack the Ripper crime?  Just let your imagination take you where it will.

Less Than Three Press - Anthology Call

Less Than Three Press has posted an anthology call for "Heart of Steel".  They are looking for LGBTQIA "stories about knights and all they are willing to do and endure for the sake of those they love and protect".  The stories can be in any genre so long as they follow the theme of knights.  Stories must to 10,000 to 20,000 words.  The deadline is September 30, 2016 and payment is $200.  You can find the details here.

Dark Minds Press - Call for Novellas

UK based Dark Minds Press has an open call for novellas up to 30,000 words in the genres of Horror or Dark Fantasy.  They will be published in both paperback and Kindle formats.  Payment is a 40pound advance against a 50/50 royalty split.  There is no deadline listed.  They are especially looking for work from female authors as the ratio of male to female submissions is woefully small.  You can find the details here.

Minotaur - PWA First Novel Competition - Update

I was just informed that this competition has been discontinued until the PWA can find a new sponsor.  You can find the notice here.  Please be advised that Minotaur has not removed the call from their website.

Fireside Magazine - Open for Submissions

Fireside Magazine is open for submissions of stories in any genre, just tell a great story.  They want flash to 1000 words and shorts up to 5,000 words.  The deadline is April 30 and payment is 12.5cents a word.  You can find the details here.

Bracken Magazine - Open for Submissions

Bracken Magazine has opened submissions for their second issue.  They're looking for short stories up to 2500 words that are "born out of the wood".  Payment is 2cents a word.  You can find the details here.  Their first issue has been published and is free to read online so you can get an idea of what they're looking for. 

EMP Publishing - Anthology Call

EMP Publishing's quarterly anthology series "Creepy Campfire Quarterly" has opened for submissions.  For this issue they're looking for tales of extreme horror.  Stories should be 1200 to 5500 words in length.  The deadline is June 1 and payment is $35 for original stories and $25 for reprints.  Submissions are through Submittable.  You can find the details here and on their Submittable page.

Dark House Books - Anthology Call

Submissions open today for Dark House Books' new anthology "Cozy Noir".  They're looking for stories of 2500 to 6000 words that combine cozy and noir.  The deadline is June 30 and payment is a royalty share.  You can find the details here.

Flash Bang Mysteries - New Issue and Submissions are Open

Issue #3 of Flash Bang Mysteries has hit the virtual streets.  It's free to read and I'm proud to say that I have a story in this issue.  Also submissions are now open for the next issue.  This is a paying market.