Themed Editions
We publish 7 themed editions a year
2026 Themed Editions
January - Deadline: October 31 2025 - Theme: Ember (publishing 30th January)
March - Deadline: January 31 - Theme: Bloom (open now - submit here)
May - Deadline: March 31 - Theme: Current (open now - submit here)
July - Deadline: May 31 - Theme: Compass (submissions open March)
September - Deadline: July 31 - Theme: Echo (submissions open May)
October - Deadline: August 31 - Theme: Shadow (submissions open July)
November - Deadline: September 30 - Theme: Mirror (submissions open August)
WORD COUNTS
Short Stories: up to 3000 words
Flash Fictions: up to 1000 words
Micro Fictions: up to 350 words
We aim to respond within 5 weeks of the closing date for each edition.
We charge a small submission fee (£5) in order to pay writers and cover our production, design and admin costs. We understand that this will be unaffordable for some people so we have 4 free submissions available for each edition. Contact us to get one. No need to provide any explanation or evidence, just ask. They are first come, first served so if you do need one, best to get in touch as soon as possible after submissions open.
If you would like to sponsor a submission so we can increase the number of free submissions available, then you can do that here.
Author Payment
For each edition, the writers we publish will share 50% of the submission fees received (after Submittable fees are deducted). All stories selected for an edition will receive the same payment no matter the length of the story.
We will also nominate stories for prizes (Best of the Net, Best Small Fictions, Best Microfictions, etc.).
Submission Guidelines
All submissions must be sent through Submittable and we cannot accept email submissions. Anything sent via email will not be read.
Please submit no more than one story per category in each submission period. If you are submitting to more than one category then each submission must be made separately and the submission fee paid each time.
Please use a legible, easy-to-read font of at least 12pt or ideally 14pt.
All submissions must be previously unpublished (never published in print or online, including a personal blog) and in .doc, .docx, or .pdf format ONLY.
Simultaneous submissions are fine but please withdraw your submission via Submittable if it is accepted elsewhere.
Our submissions are open to all adult writers worldwide. All work must be written in English.