Publisher’s Spotlight: March 2019 Roundup

In lieu of a traditional Publisher’s Spotlight post, I thought I’d highlight a few publishers who have deadlines at the end of the month.  Some are new, and a few I’ve covered before on Publisher’s Spotlight.  I’ll link below any relevant info so you can get your last minute entries in before the end of the month.

Cosmic Roots and Eldritch Shores

I covered them last year on their own Publisher’s Spotlight if you want to hit up the highlights of what they’re looking to buy.  Be sure to double check their submission guidelines in case any information has changed.

Schedule: Opens tomorrow 3/21, deadline is 3/28/19.

The Arcanist

While this one is open year-round, they’re currently running a short story competition (5,000 words maximum) centered around the theme of “Magic.”  They also have rolling submissions for speculative flash fiction stories and non-fiction articles.  They were also featured on Publisher’s Spotlight if you want a quick run down on what they like.

Schedule: $15 entries end on Friday, 3/22.  Contest open for $20 entries through 3/29/19.

Flametree Publishing

This one I haven’t done a full spotlight on because they have specific calls that aren’t generally open very long.  Currently, Flametree Publishing is taking stories for their upcoming Detective Mysteries and Epic Fantasy anthologies.  Stories should fall between 2,000 and 4,000 words, pay rate is $0.06 per word.  More information can be found here.

Schedule: Open now, deadline is 3/24/19.

Pseudopod

Another market I’ve yet to tackle; Pseudopod is part of the Escape Artists publishing group that specializes in audio fiction via podcast format.  Pseudopod in particular is interested in horror: send dark, weird, stories in any flavor.  Check out their submission guidelines for more info.  Something of note: they’re one of the few markets that accept reprints, so if you’ve already got something published feel free to send it over to them.

Schedule: Open now through 3/31/19.

Mythic Beast Studios

Lastly we’ve got The Medusa Contest by Mythic Beast Studios.  Mythraeum hosts four short story contests a year, each one about a mythological archetype or character.  As of this point, the contests are free and the winner receives $300, but this is the last contest which will be free to enter.  Find out more about the contest here.

Schedule: Open now through 3/31/19.

Happy submitting!

Publisher’s Spotlight: Ellery Queen and Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazines

Hello genre lovers!  You all know how much I love speculative fiction, but what magazines are out there for other genres?  Today we look at Mystery stories in the sister publications,  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine and Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine!  Their guidelines are almost identical, but EQMM is more specific, so I’ve included their info below.

• In their own words: “Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine welcomes submissions from both new and established writers…  Almost any story that involves crime or the threat of crime comes within our purview… With the exception of a regular book review column and a mystery crossword, EQMM publishes only fiction. We are especially happy to review first stories by authors who have never before published fiction professionally. First-story submissions should be addressed to EQMM‘s Department of First Stories.“
• Genres they accept: “We publish every kind of mystery short story: the psychological suspense tale, the deductive puzzle, the private eye case—the gamut of crime and detection from the realistic (including the policeman’s lot and stories of police procedure) to the more imaginative (including “locked rooms” and “impossible crimes”). We need hard-boiled stories as well as “cozies,” but we are not interested in explicit sex or violence. We do not want true detective or crime stories.“
• Word count limit: EQMM uses stories of almost every length. 2,500-8,000 words is the preferred range.  (But they’re open to almost anything.) AHMM suggests anything  less than 12,000.
• Payment: $0.05 – $0.08 per word, sometimes higher for established authors.
• Simultaneous Submissions*: Don’t submit to both at the same time:

Stories submitted to AHMM are not also considered by or for Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, though we share the same address. Submissions to EQMM must be made separately.

Please do not simultaneously submit the same story to AHMM and EQMM. If we reject your story, for whatever reason, you are then free to submit it to EQMM (and vice versa).

As for whether you can sim-sub to other publications, they don’t say.

• Multiple Submissions**: Unknown
• Schedule: Open.  EQMM responded in about 3 weeks.  AHMM is longer, with a 6 – 8 month queue for their slush pile.

*This means whether they will allow you to submit this story to another publisher at the same time or not.

**This means whether you can send them more than one story at at time.

Reminders when submitting:

Read the publications:  You’ll need to purchase an issue of the magazines to see what kind of style gets their attention.  It will also give you an idea of what’s been done before so you don’t end up sending them something too similar to a recently published story.

Read the guidelines: I don’t post everything required for their submissions, just the basics.  Furthermore, this is a static post.  Publishers change their submission requirements at will so it’s always a good idea to read and re-read them, even if you’ve submitted to them before.

• EQMM guidelines are here
• AHMM guidelines are here

Follow the rules: Do I really need to say this?  Don’t send pieces over the word count.  Don’t send content they specifically warn against.  Don’t send weirdly formatted manuscripts if they give you specific instructions.  “But Liz, I–” Nope!  No, no, no.  If you do not follow the rules you risk being a pariah to that magazine – and worse, editors can exchange notes on who’s being a pain.

Happy submitting!