Basic Markets

for aspiring writers

In order to assist you in making that all-important "first sale" I've searched out speculative markets open to submissions from beginning writers.

For print magazine info, I subscribe to market magazines, such as Scavenger's Newsletter and The Gila Queen's Guide to Markets and have requested writers' guidelines from a number of magazines listed therein.

As I surf the internet, I look for webzines that appear friendly to beginning writers and also include them in these market listings. For more comprehensive guidelines, please check out their respective websites.

Speculative Fiction

Black Petals - D. M. Yorton, Editor, 1319 Marshall St., Manitowoc, WI 54220. H/F/Surreal/Light SF. Fiction to 2500 words. Pays two contributor's copies. Published and unpublished writers invited to submit work. 70% of mss. accepted. Tip -- no romance or children's stories.

Crossroads - Where Evil Dwells - (Ms.) Pat Nielsen, Editor, 911 Haw Branch Rd., Beaulaville NC 28518-9539. Fiction to 3500 words, artwork and poetry. Tip - no email subs.

Gathering Darkness - Nightside Publications, Dan Good, Editor, 608 N. Shamokin St., Shamokin, PA 17872. Pays in cc. Stories must be horror related. Tip - looking for darker works. Update!

Maelstrom - Christine L. Reed, Editor, PO Box 7, Tranquility, NJ 07879. Fiction 2k words or less; no more than five typed pages. Pays one cc. Features short fiction, poetry, art and humor. Excerpt from GL - "We publish new writers alongside seasoned pros. ...We have no bias towards or against any form or genre, we look at everything." Email subs accepted at |Maelstrom@aol.com [[note from LQ - not to be confused with Maelstrom Speculative Fiction which pays $20.00.]]

Mindmares - Tracy Martin, Editor, 18503 NE 158th St., Brush Prairie, WA 98606. "Focusing on H/SF and the bizarre. Especially drawn to those stories with strange twists and mind play, the really psychotic stories." Articles to 1500 words which focus on the true bizarre, the unexplainable, but true. Update!

Moonletters Press - Shauna Skye, Editor, 7210 West 57th Place, Summit IL 60501. Excerpt from GL - "We are open to submissions again and are expanding our GL a bit. We'll now look at stories up to 3k words. We'll still be going with our otherwordly theme, but encourage writers to submit a variety of genre or cross-genre stories: sci-fi, fantasy, horror, and even romance if it has a good otherworldy setting and plot." Tip - send a cover letter and include phone number on submission.

Retro Free Press - Al Svoboda, Editor, 1440 W. Pratt Blvd., No. 1, Chicago IL 60626. SF/F/M, westerns and thrillers. Fiction 1000 to 2000 words. Looking for upbeat stories. Send bio, complete story and SASE. Pays one cc.

The Catbird Seat - Nancy Purnell, Editor, POB 506, Tolland CT 06084-0506. Poetry only. Looking for poems about Nature, human relationships, ...life's mysteries. Prefer 30 lines or less. Excerpt from GL - "TCS is not just Nature poetry. It seeks to examine life & the supernatural to see how there is a connection/interconnection/ disconnection between humankind, Nature & the Universe." TCS is primarily poetry, but now accepting short fiction to 2500 words. Prefers short shorts with TCS themes.
Update!

The Edge - Greg F. Gifune, Editor, Thievin' Kitty Productions, POB 341, Marion MA 02738. Horror/SF/Mystery, suspense and occult. Fiction 700 to 8k words. One-time rights. Originals only, no reprints. Pays one contributor's copy (cc). Tip - send complete manuscript (ms) with brief cover. No electronic or disk submissions. Guidelines (GL) available at website. Critques/comments on rejected ms. Currently open to submissions!
Update!

32 Pages - M. S. Manley, Editor, 32 Pages, Rain Crow Publishing, 2127 W. Pierce Ave., Apt 2B, Chicago IL 60622-1824. Publishes both new and established writers in many styles and genres. FNASR, non-exclusive electronic reproduction rights, etc. Payment $5.00 per magazine page and 2 cc.

Sepulchre - Scot H. P. Drew, Editor, 5037 Worchester Dr., Dayton, OH 45431. Pays in cc. Excerpt from GL - Sepulchre is a 'zine devoted to bringing new writers of df and imaginative horror into the sunlight of the small press literary scene." Tip - No email subs. Include cover letter.

Shadowland - William A. Lester, President and Publishing Editor, Sentinel Publications, Ltd., 6751 River Rd. Ct., Jonesboro, GA 30236. SF/Horror/Dark Fantasy. Fiction 500 to 5k words. Poetry, no length limit. Payment one cc per published piece. Tip - a brief bio is required on all submissions.

Ezines

Fogfire.com - Ron Hoffman, Editor, 15127 NE 24th Ste 123, Redmond WA 98052. Electronic subs preferred - Submissions@fogfire.com. Fantasy/SF/Horror. Fiction 1k to 12k words. Payment 1/4 to 1 cent per word, with a minimum of $5.00 and a maximum of $40.00. Tip - special submission requirements; recommend sending for GL.

Twilight Times - Literary SF/F, slipstream and quirky mainstream fiction, poetry and essays. One fantasy graphic artist showcased each issue. Fiction to 5000 words. Essays to 1000 words. Poetry to 30 lines. Send submissions in the body of an email message, no attachments.Use a blank line between paragraphs. No payment, other than showcasing your work. Open to submissions until 5-15-99.
"I've been on the internet for a few months and have met dozens of unpublished writers on-line who have real talent. Twilight Times was created to present the works of those authors whose stories "blend" genres, are too "literary" for other zines or seem too mainstream or "quirky" in tone." Updated!

Asylum - Literary. Sarah Whedonand Sierra Black, editors. Check their website for current guidelines.

Gothic Net - Darren McKeeman, Editor. Literary webzine. Fiction to 5k words. Tip - "We need well written dark humor, horror, and dark fantastic stories for our literary section each month."

Inner Renaissance - Christopher Davis, Editor. Excerpt from GL - "Anyone may submit their work as long as it is in good standing. With one submission, one becomes a member of the Writers Guild and is given a greater exposure to their work with hopes of soon being published."

Mandrake Fiction Journal - Fiction 1500 to 3k words. Tip - "We accept all types of work, from horror to children's stories." Submission GL at website.

Planet Magazine - Andrew M. McCann, Editor. Accepts original, unpublished short SF/F and horror stories, poems or one-act plays from anyone. No payment, but free publicity.
Tip - send text submissions as plain, unformatted files (either as an email attachment or, if short enough, in the body of an email message) to PlanetZine@bigfoot.com.

Read Me - Angel Simmons, Editor. New ezine. Excerpt from GL - "I am currently looking for good short stories in all areas and non-fiction pieces that tell either how to write or give a writer's personal experience." Submission GL at website.

Stump - Maverick, stump@comnet.ca - Stump is a horror webzine which deals primarily in publishing works of new and rising horror talents...

Thanks to Scavenger's Newsletter for info on The Catbird Seat, Crossroads, Black Petals and The Edge.

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This page last updated 3-18-99.

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