This trying to be a writer stuff is so odd sometimes. I go through cycles of things. Like, the last month has been a month of rejection after rejection as all my stories came back with a “no, thank you.” I like to think that I get better at handling this with time, but when they all pile up into a mass… And they inevitably all pile up that way, no matter how spaced out I send them. I have packaged them all up again, given them a polish, and sent them back out. Hopefully this time (my fingers are crossed) the news will be better.
Being a fantasy writer isn’t easy. And it’s not just the writing part (although that’s some of it. Writing is always hard). It’s also the fact that a lot of journals don’t take fantasy or speculative things. I have spent hours upon hours researching places to send my work to. I thought it might be helpful to others if I threw down a master post of journals that take this sort of thing, so you can benefit from all the free time I seem to have. Not all of them accept submissions all of the time, so you will still need to keep your ear to the ground. The other thing I’ve found handy is this site: http://writingcareer.com/. They have a Tumblr blog I can follow, and fancy reminders just show up in my feed. They advertise for all genres, but they definitely cover fantasy too.
The list I put together is of stuff that looked good for my own writing. I know there are other Canadian magazines and Aussie magazines out there (among others), but they don’t all want my American stuff. Nor do places who print mostly horror. I also didn’t include any contests, no matter how prestigious, that required an entry fee. Just say no, kids. The chances of winning are so tiny; why pay for someone to reject your story when you can get that service absolutely free?
Now on to the list of Journals:
Paying Professional Rates:
- Clarkesworld Magazine (response time: a few days/2 weeks) – http://clarkesworldmagazine.com/submissions/
- Lightspeed Magazine (response time: a few days/2 weeks) – http://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/about/guidelines/
- Uncanny Magazine (response time: 2 weeks) – http://uncannymagazine.com/submissions/
- Fantastic Stories of the Imagination (response time: 2 weeks) –http://www.fantasticstoriesoftheimagination.com/submission-guidelines/
- The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction (response time: 2 weeks+) – http://submissions.ccfinlay.com/fsf/
- Apex Magazine (response time: 1 month) – http://www.apex-magazine.com/submission-guidelines/
- Heliotrope Magazine (response time: 1 month) – http://www.heliotropemag.com/submission-guidelines/
- Strange Horizons (response time: 3-5 weeks) – http://www.strangehorizons.com/Guidelines.shtml
- Beneath Ceaseless Skies (response time: 4-6 weeks) – http://www.beneath-ceaseless-skies.com/submissions/
- Asimov’s Science Fiction (response time: 5 weeks, takes fantasy if it’s not sword and sorcery) – http://www.asimovs.com/contact-us/writers-guidelines/
- Intergalactic Medicine Show (response time: 3 months) – http://www.intergalacticmedicineshow.com/cgi-bin/mag.cgi?do=content&article=submissions
- L. Ron Hubbard’s Writers of the Future Contest (response time: 3 months) – http://www.writersofthefuture.com/enter-writer-contest/
- Podcastle Magazine (response time: 3 months) – http://podcastle.org/guidelines/
- Unlikely Story Magazine (response time: 3 months+, themed) – http://www.unlikely-story.com/submission-guidelines/fiction-submissions/
- Cicada Magazine (response time: 3-6 months, but pays a TON) – https://cricketmag.submittable.com/submit/17820
- Tor.com (response time: 3-7 months, but pays a TON) – http://www.tor.com/submissions-guidelines/
- Evil Girlfriend Media (response time: unknown) – http://www.evilgirlfriendmedia.com/submissions/
- Weird City Magazine (response time: unknown) – https://weirdcitypress.submittable.com/submit
- Urban Fantasy (response time: unknown) – http://urbanfantasymagazine.com/submission-guidelines/
Paying Well:
- Betwixed Magazine (response time: 2 weeks) – http://betwixtmagazine.com/submissions/
- Shimmer Magazine (response time: 3 weeks) – http://www.shimmerzine.com/guidelines/fiction-guidelines/
- Fantasy Scroll Magazine (response time: 2 months) – http://fantasyscrollmag.com/submissions/
- Abyss and Apex Magazine (response time: 6 months) – http://www.abyssapexzine.com/submissions/
- Leading Edge Magazine (response time: “several months”) – http://www.leadingedgemagazine.com/?page_id=31
- Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine (response time: unknown) – http://www.andromedaspaceways.com/submissions/submission-guidelines/
- Fantastic Frontiers Magazine (response time: unknown) – http://www.fantasticfrontiersmagazine.com/submissions.html
- On Spec Magazine (response time: unknown) – https://onspecmag.wordpress.com/submissions/
Paying Not a Lot:
- Ideomancer ($40/story – response time: 1 month) – http://www.ideomancer.com/?page_id=20
- Hub Magazine (£25/story – response time 4 months) – http://www.hubfiction.com/submissions/
- Another Realm ($25/story – response time: unknown, but could be lengthy) – http://anotherealm.com/guidelines/
- Sybil’s Garage ($20/story – response time: 6 weeks) – http://www.sensesfive.com/submissions/
- Tales of the Talisman ($10/story – response time: 2 days-1 month) – http://www.talesofthetalisman.com/gl.html
- The Lorelai Signal/Mystic Signals ($5/story – response time up to: 2 months) – http://www.loreleisignal.com/Guidelines.html
- Lakeside Circus ($.02/word, 2500 words MAX – response time: 2 months) – http://lakesidecircus.com/submissions/
- Fey Publishing (varies, but $5/story usually – response time: 2 months) – http://www.feypublishing.com/submissions.html
Paying Nothing/Unknown:
- Bewildering Stories (response time: 4 weeks) – http://www.bewilderingstories.com/submissions.html
- Interzone Magazine (response time: unknown) – http://ttapress.com/1710/interzone-now-open-to-online-submissions/
- Othergate Magazine (response time: unknown) – http://othergate.umwblogs.org/faq/
- Planet Magazine (response time: unknown) – http://www.planetmagazine.com/blog/submission-guidelines/
Casey E. Hamilton 