Here’s this month’s list of the most interesting open submissions calls for writers I’ve found!
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Mmeory
I love this sound of this new anthology from air and nothingness press, with its theme of memory manipulation, which allows for my favourite trope: unreliable narrators.
Word count: Up to 2000 words
Payment: 8 cents per word
Deadline: Open 7 July – 15 August 2025
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Romantic Fantasy
Flame Tree Publishing are delving into this popular subgenre with two new anthologies titled A Breath of Time and Of Love & Dragons.
Word count: 2000–4000 words
Payment: 8 cents per word
Deadline: 20 July 2025
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Unseen Agreements
This anthology from Beaches and Trails will contain SF stories about ‘hidden bargains, mysterious contracts, and eerie agreements’.
Word count: 3000–5000 words
Payment: $50 (Canadian)
Deadline: 15 August 2025
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Common Bonds
This second volume in the series will feature aromantic SF stories – that is, stories focused on platonic relationships.
Word count: Up to 7500 words
Payment: 8 cents per word
Deadline: 15 August 2025
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Posthuman Press
This publisher’s upcoming anthology on the theme of ‘Neurodiversity and the More-Than-Human’ will feature some speculative fiction alongside academic works.
Word count: Up to 5000 words
Payment: $50 (Australian)
Deadline: 31 August 2025
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Diabolical Plots
This long-running submissions listing site also publishes science fiction, fantasy and horror fiction, and pays very well!
Word count: Up to 3500 words
Payment: 10 cents per word
Deadline: Open 7–21 July 2025
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EnDROIDS
This short story contest is run by Engineering Data Structure Organoids, and stories should relate to the theme of DNA data storage. Thankfully, there are explanatory videos on the submissions page.
Word count: 2000–3000 words
Payment: Prizes of £750/£500/£250
Deadline: 15 July 2025
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Slugger
This new webzine specialises in body horror, and seeks ‘stories that hit you in the mouth’.
Word count: 1000–4000 words
Payment: $25
Deadline: 15 July 2025
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Quills & Tales
The publishers of this new fantasy zine are seeking ‘high fantasy, cozy fables, dark folklore, or wild sub genre mashups’.
Word count: 500–1000 words
Payment: 1 cent per word
Deadline: Ongoing
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Carnyx Press
The first anthology from this new publisher dedicated to the work of authors from the north of England will be on the theme of folklore.
Word count: 2000–10,000 words
Payment: £20
Deadline: 30 September 2025
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Myths, Gods and Immortals
Two more submission calls from the excellent Flame Tree series, this time seeking stories featuring either Odysseus or the Valkyries.
Word count: 3000–4000 words
Payment: 8 cents per word
Deadline: 24 August 2025
Find out more here and here

Horrific Scribes
This magazine from Horrific Scribblings features dark fiction of all descriptions.
Word count: 1500–5000 words
Payment: $25
Deadline: Ongoing
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Penumbric
The editors of this well-established PDF zine are on the lookout for edgy SF.
Word count: Up to 10,000 words
Payment: $10
Deadline: Open 15 July 2025, closes after 200 submissions
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Cemetery Songs
Here’s a fun prompt: horror stories submitted to this anthology must feature a cat, a cemetery and a song.
Word count: 1500–4500 words
Payment: $10
Deadline: 1 September 2025
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Weird West
The Editors at Shacklebound Books are looking for stories mashing up the western genre with speculative or horror elements.
Word count: Up to 1000 words
Payment: 2 cents per word
Deadline: 31 July 2025
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Keyed
This very specialised anthology from Iron Faerie will be a tribute to Buffy actress Michelle Trachtenberg.
Word count: 2500–7000 words
Payment: Royalties
Deadline: 3 August 2025
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The Daily Tomorrow
Stories accepted by this publication are sent out to its subscribers in 500-word serialised segments.
Word count: 2100–3500 words
Payment: None
Deadline: Ongoing
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Bullet Points
A witty title for a magazine of dark military SF!
Word count: Up to 5000 words
Payment: $30
Deadline: Ongoing
Find out more

Good luck if you submit a story to any of these venues! And remember, you can sign up for my email newsletter for monthly open submission calls direct to your inbox.

Image from Wikimedia Commons.