Submission Status: Closed. Open to themed submissions for Saros #2 October 21st through November 4th.
What We Want
Fiction
Important note: The guidelines for fiction below are for Saros #2 only! Each issue’s guest editor will have their own set of guidelines, so be sure to read this section closely even if you’ve submitted in the past!
- Original speculative fiction between 1,500 and 5,000 words, and drabbles of exactly 100 words. (We will not be accepting reprints for this issue.)
- This is a themed issue, so all stories must heavily feature cocktails of some form (this could be alchemical, poisonous, tavern barreled, alien-secreted, whatever is imbibed in a similar nature to modern cocktails). Get weird with it, and don’t self reject!
- We are happy to see any and all subgenres of fantasy, horror, and science fiction, but especially love stories with a touch of the weird or surreal. Our preference is towards focused stories that are character-driven with a strong sense of place. Genre bending and blending is welcomed and encouraged.
- Specific topics that would be harder to place: vampires, zombies, time travel, super heroes, or child narrators. That said, we are seeking quality above all else, so do not self-reject if you think it’s a good fit for our theme and style.
- We are not seeking gratuitous anything, nor will we accept any bigoted, AI-written, or overtly political stories.
- Absolutely no AI written stories. All work must be created by humans.
Art
- Original cover art should feature both cocktails and speculative elements.
- We are open to all styles, but have a deep affection for moody vibes.
- As with fiction, we absolutely do not accept artwork created by AI.
- Any art should be able to be comfortably formatted as cover art for a 5″x8″ paperback.
Payment and Rights
- Payment is $36 CAD per short story, $40 CAD for cover art, and $4 per drabble.
- Our preferred method of payment is PayPal. If you live in a region where PayPal is not available, we’ll do our best to work with you to find an alternate method of payment.
- For fiction, we purchase first world electronic and print rights in English, with an exclusivity period of 30 days from the date of publication
- For art, we purchase non-exclusive electronic and print licensing, to be used as cover art
About the Editor
C. A. Kane is an author of speculative fiction with a penchant for rich descriptions and dark endings. She holds a B. A. in Creative Writing and has spent years gleaning stories from behind the bar. Her flash fiction story “The Noodle Truck” is available at Apparition Literary Magazine. Currently, she resides in Southern California with her partner and her cat, where she avoids the ocean and sunshine in favor of death metal concerts and tabletop roleplaying games. You can often find her at random breweries and coffee shops, working on her cyberpunk mystery novel or reading for Fusion Fragment.
How To Submit
- Stories can be sent in RTF, DOC, DOCX or ODT file formats. Standard manuscript formatting is nice but not necessary. No one’s going to get accepted or rejected based on manuscript formatting, so don’t stress about it.
- All stories will be read anonymously by the issue’s guest editor. Please ensure that identifying information is removed from your story.
- Feel free to include a cover letter, but as noted above, submissions will be read blind until stories are shortlisted and reviewed by our publisher, Cavan. (Note that the submission system requires you to enter something in the cover letter field–if you don’t want to include one, just write “Blank” or something like that.)
- Simultaneous submissions are fine, but please be sure to withdraw your submission from us if accepted elsewhere.
- You may submit only one story at a time. However, if your story is rejected during the reading period, you are welcome to submit again.
- You’re welcome to submit any pieces that have been considered and rejected for previous issues of Saros, or by Fusion Fragment.
- Art can be sent in JPG/JPEG, PNG, or SVG file formats. Ideally, send a low-res screenshot instead of any print-ready files. If you have multiple pieces you’d like to submit, choose the artwork you think best represents your style and provide a link to your portfolio in the cover letter field, along with any further details about which pieces are available for licensing.
- You will receive an automated email confirming receipt of your submission that will include a link where you can check your position in the queue. If you do not receive this email, you should query at ckane@sarossf.com to make sure that your story has been received. (In some cases, you may need to whitelist moksha.io in your email settings.)
- Send your work to us through the Moksha submission system, which you can access by clicking here or on the image below. (Please do NOT submit stories directly via the email above.)
