54 Paying Markets for Flash Fiction

Pixabay

Updated 8/1/25

Flash fiction is shorter than the normal range of short stories, which are generally 3,000 words or more. The precise length remains somewhat elusive. Some literary journals ask for 2,000 words or less, others set maximum word counts in the hundreds. Each publication has its own style, its own format, and its own needs, so whether your 1,953-word short story qualifies as "flash" is entirely up to the editors.

Flash fiction is very popular. There are dozens of sites where you can read flash fiction on a daily basis. This is perfect for people who are commuting on a train, waiting to see a doctor, or have other brief, potentially interrupted periods of time to fill.

Below is a list of paying markets for flash fiction. I have included links to submission guidelines, payment information, and word counts where available. Make sure you follow their guidelines carefully. (Editors don't consider submissions that fail to follow guidelines.) None of these magazines charge submission fees.

For my excellent list of paying markets, nicely organized by genre and form, see Paying Markets.

Journal	Submission Guidelines	Payment	Notes
Confrontation	https://confrontation-magazine.org/submit/	$150 - $200; more for commissioned work.	Reading periods 500 words max
The Good Life Review: "Micro Monday" (online)	https://thegoodlifereview.com/submissions/	$25	Flash fiction and CNF (under 500 words) and poetry See submission periods
Fabula Argentea	http://www.fabulaargentea.com/ index.php /submissions/	$5	Accepts all genres
Flash Fiction Online	https://www.flashfictiononline.com/submission-guidelines-flash-fiction/what-were-looking-for-and-not/	$80; reprints $.02 (two cents) per word	500 to 1000 words
The Fabulist	https://fabulistmagazine.com/about/submissions/	$100	Has submission periods Fantastical and speculative fiction up to 1,000 words
Every Day Fiction	https://everydayfiction.com /submit-story/	$3 CAD	Up to 1,000 words
Stupefying Stories	https://stupefyingstories.blogspot.com/p/submission-guidelines_1.html	$15 $5 for reprints	Science fiction, fantasy, and horror, in that order Has submission periods
Longleaf Review	https://longleafreview.com/submissions/	$20	Horror 1000 words max See submission periods
Chestnut Review	https://chestnutreview.submittable.com/submit	$120	All genres 1,000 words max See submission periods
Manawaker Studios	http://www.manawaker.com/ffp-submissions/	1 cent/word	Flash fiction podcast Ideal length is around 800 words, but stories as short as 250 or as long as 1500 may be considered
Craft	https://www.craftliterary.com/submit/	$100	Reprints accepted (no pay)
Baltimore Review	http://baltimorereview.org/index.php /submit	$40	You can submit up to 3 pieces of flash fiction See submission periods
The Cafe Irreal	http://cafeirreal.alicewhittenburg.com/	1 cent/word	Magical realism 2000 words max
The Orange & Bee	https://theorangebee.substack.com/p/submission-guidelines	$80	Has submission periods Also accepts poetry and nonfiction
The Cincinnati Review	https://www.cincinnatireview.com/submission-guidelines-2021-2/	$25/page	500 words maximum Submit up to 3 pieces
Electric Lit	https://electricliterature.com/submit-ebdd3b73083a	$100	Electric Lit has short, infrequent submission periods
Odyssa	https://odyssamagazine.com/submit/	$30	Travel themes 700-1500 words
Chestnut Review	https://chestnutreview.submittable.com/submit	$120	All genres 1,000 words max
Bayou Magazine	https://bayoumagazine.org/submissions/	$25	Submission period September 15- May 15
Okay Donkey	https://okaydonkeymag.com/submissions/	$20	They like the odd, the off-kilter, and the just plain weird 1,200 words max
Tales and Feathers	http://www.augurmag.com/submissions/	11 cents CAD/word	Cozy slice-of-life fantasy short stories 2,500 words max Has submission periods
Ruminate	https://ruminatemagazine.submittable.com/submit	$20/page for prose	Also accepts poetry and art
The Journal of Compressed Creative Arts	https://matter.submittable.com/submit	$50	"We accept fiction, creative nonfiction, poetry, mixed media, visual arts, and even kitchen sinks" See reading periods
Funny Times	https://funnytimes.com/about/ submissions/	$60	Humor 500-700 words
Futures	http://blogs.nature.com/futureconditional/ 2015/04/19/how-to-write-for-nature-futures/	$130	Science fiction 850 - 950 words
Monstrous	https://monstrousbooks.com/submissions	$15/page	Horror comics
Wallstrait	https://www.wallstrait.com/submissions	$25	Flash fiction, longer stories, hybrid, and experimental stuff you can't quite define. Has submission periods
The Aesthete	https://theaesthete.blog/submissions/ CLOSED?	$5	“For the radicals and impressionists, those deemed aged, too classic, and out of touch.”
Variant Lit	https://variantlit.com/submit/	$10	Poetry, fiction, flash fiction, art
PseudoPod	http://pseudopod.org/submissions/	$20	Horror Podcast
THEMA	http://themaliterarysociety.com /submissions.html	$10	Accepts reprints Each issue has a theme
The Temz Review	https://www.thetemzreview.com/submissions.html	$20	If your pieces are fewer than 1000 words each, feel free to submit several pieces at once See submission periods
Carmen et Error	https://carmenerror.com/?page_id=19	£5	Poems, 40(ish) lines max. Fiction, 400(ish) words max
Curiosities	https://gallerycurious.com/p/submissions-1599834174/ TEMPORARILY CLOSED	$50 for stories under 1000 words 5 cents a word USD for original fiction and a penny a word for reprints	Steampunk, dieselpunk, dreadpunk, bronzepunk, others that haven’t even been invented yet punk
The Ex-Puritan	https://ex-puritan.ca/submissions	$75	See submission periods Submissions are free on a limited basis
Teach. Write.	https://heymrswinkler.com/about/teach-write/teach-write-submission-guidelines/	$15	Fiction, nonfiction, flash fiction, poetry, CNF. "I prefer writing that is either written by composition teachers and writing students or about teaching and learning."
Gordon Square Review	http://www.gordonsquarereview.org/submit.html	$25	1,000 words max See submission periods
Variety Pack	https://varietypack.net/submissions-2/ HAS BEGUN TO CHARGE A FEE FOR SUBMISSIONS	$20	Fiction, flash fiction, poetry, CNF, art
Banshee	https://bansheepress.org/submit	"small"	Poetry, essays, flash fiction, short stories See submission periods
Wyldblood Press	https://wyldblood.com/submissions-2/	£0.01 per word for print and digital rights (to a maximum of £75)	1000 words max for flash fiction See submission periods
New Myths	https://sites.google.com/newmyths.com/newmyths-com-home/submissions	3 cents/word with a minimum payment of $50	Speculative fiction (no horror) See reading periods
The Fantastic Other	https://fantasticother.com/submissions/	$5	Fiction, flash fiction, poetry, art on themes See submission periods
matchbook	https://www.matchbooklitmag.com/guidelines	$20	Short fiction, creative nonfiction, and indeterminate prose 1000 words max See submission periods
Brilliant Flash Fiction	https://brilliantflashfiction.com/submissions/	$20	1,000 words or fewer All genres
Three-lobed Burning Eye	http://www.3lobedmag.com/ submissions.html	$30 for flash fiction	Horror and dark fantasy, magical realism, slipstream, cross genre, or weird fiction See submission periods
Paranoid Tree	https://www.paranoidtree.com/	$50	Up to 400 words
Points in Case	https://www.pointsincase.com/submissions	$10 for lists, $35 stories under 1,000 words	Humor under 1000 words, lists
The Bureau Dispatch	https://www.bureaudispatch.com/submissions	$50	"Our stories often contain a hint of the speculative, a dash of the intriguing."  500 - 1,500 words See submission periods
Mithila	http://mithilareview.com/submission-guidelines/	$10	Under 2,500 words Speculative fiction
Daikaijuzine	https://daikaijuzine.org/guidelines	$5	See reading periods Up to 1,000 words
Timber Ghost Press	https://www.timberghostpress.com/submissions.html	$5	1000 words max Horror Opens from the 1st to the 10th of every month
The Arcanist	https://thearcanist.io/a-call-for-submissions-244f646d25a4	$50	Medium-based publication, weekly 1000 words max Speculative fiction
Smokelong	https://smokelong.submittable.com/submit /128/smokelong-general-submissions	$50	1000 words max
Flash Fiction Magazine	https://flashfictionmagazine.com/submissions/	$40 Only pays for stories selected for anthologies	300–1000 words
Die Laughing	https://dielaughingmag.com/about-2/	$10	Horror comedy 1000 words max
Fractured Lit	https://fracturedlit.com/submit/	$50 for original micro fiction and $75 for original flash fiction	400-1000 words See submission periods
Middle House Review: Height Chart	https://middlehousereview.submittable.com/submit	$25	Up to 1000 words See submission periods
Baffling Magazine	https://www.bafflingmag.com/submissions	8 cents/word	Under 1,200 words We are looking for speculative stories that explore science fiction, fantasy, and horror with a queer bent. We want queer stories and we want trans stories and we want aro/ace stories. We want indefinable stories. We welcome weird, slipstream, and interstitial writing.
Short Circuit	https://short-edition.com/en/contest/short-circuit-short-circuit-02/guidelines	100 euros for short stories, 50 euros for poems	Short stories and poems of maximum 7,500 characters (spaces included) or children's works of maximum 7,000 characters.
Vast Chasm	https://vastliterarypress.org/submissions/	$50	Bold work that explores the expansive human experience, including flash and short fiction, creative nonfiction, poetry, and other nonconforming work 1200 words max
Iron Horse	https://www.ironhorsereview.com/submit	$50	Has submission periods Has one free submission day during submission period
Over/Exposed	https://overexposedlit.uvic.ca/submission-guidelines/	$15 CAD	"We prioritize the work of graduate students, so please indicate in your submission if you are a graduate student, including your university, and department." 1000 words max Has submission periods
Memezine	https://www.memezinelit.com/submit	$5	Maximum of three (3) pages Send any work (traditional or hybrid) that engages with our participation in the digital landscape. Send us your best…oh screw it, send us your worst too. Has submission periods
Flash Point Science Fiction	https://flashpointsf.com/submissions/	$15	Speculative fiction stories from 100 to 1,000 words in length Has submission periods
Orion’s Belt	https://www.orions-belt.net/submissions	8 cents/word	Speculative fiction up to 1,200 words
The Masters Review New Voices	https://mastersreview.com/submissions/	$100	Open to new or emerging author who has not published a work of fiction or narrative nonfiction of novel length. 1,000 words max
Litomosphere	https://www.charlottelit.org/litmosphere/	$50	See submission periods
Flash Frog	https://flash-frog.com/submit/	$25	1,000 words max
The Forge Literary Magazine	https://forgelitmag.com/submit/	$75	Open to all genres and voices  "We love flash and micro prose."
Scrawl Space	https://scrawlplace.com/submit/	$35	CNF, Fiction, Poetry, Hybrids Must be connected to a specific place 900 words max
Havok	https://gohavok.com/submission-guidelines/upcoming-themes/	$10 for each story published in an anthology	Mystery, scifi, comedy, thriller, and fantasy 300 - 1000 words See themes
Aphabet Box	https://alphabetbox.com/submissions/	$20	Fiction, poetry 900 words max See submission periods
Cast of Wonders	https://www.castofwonders.org/submissions/	$20	Open to young authors YA Speculative fiction podcast See submission periods
Tales From Between	https://talesfrombetween.wordpress.com/submissions/	£15 plus a physical copy of the issue. REPRINT: £5 plus a physical copy of the issue.	Horror  Has submission periods
MetaStellar	https://www.metastellar.com/write-for-us/flash-fiction-story-submission/	8 cents/word	Science fiction, fantasy, horror up to 1000 words See submission periods
A Velvet Giant	https://www.avelvetgiant.com/submit	$20	"We are open to work that takes the shape of basically any format: words, recordings, visual art, hybrid forms, etc. We are open to translated original work."
The Lorelei Signal	https://www.loreleisignal.com/guidelines	$5	Fantasy with strong female characters 1000 words max
Factor Four	http://factorfourmag.com/submissionsinfo/	11 cents/word	Science fiction, fantasy, supernatural, super hero, or any combination up to 1000 words
U.S. Kids Humpty Dumpty Jack and Jill	https://uskidsmags.com/writers-guidelines/	$20 - $40 and up	Flash fiction and nonfiction for children
Aquila	https://www.aquila.co.uk/contributors-guidelines.htm	£105	Short stories between 1,000 and 1,150 words; Nonfiction articles of 800 words for children
Ecotone	https://ecotonemagazine.org/submissions/	$200	Fiction that is deeply rooted in place, and/or that engages similarly with ecology, natural history, climate crisis, et al. Has free submission periods
The Colored Lens	http://thecoloredlens.com/?page_id=137752	$10	Speculative fiction 500 words and up
Crepuscular	https://www.patreon.com/posts/submission-85137677	$5	Microfiction stories exploring places, characters, and questions buried in the gray areas between
101 Stories	https://101words.org/submit-your-stories/#gf_17	$10 for print, no payment for online publication	101 words See submission periods
The Waking	https://ruminatemagazine.submittable.com/submit	$10	Fiction and nonfiction, image text/hybrid work up to 1500 words
Abandon Journal	https://abandonjournal.com/submissions/	$15	Writing and artwork that has been created with abandon  Has submission periods 1000 words max
Theme of Absence	https://themeofabsence.com/submission-guidelines/ ON HIATUS	$3 - $5	Speculative flash fiction and short stories
Rough Cut Press	https://roughcutpress.com/submit/	650 words max; $25	Experimental poetry, fiction, nonfiction, art LGBTQIA writers only Themed issues
Split Lip	https://splitlipthemag.com/submit	$75	See website for free submission periods
Cincinnati Review’s miCRO feature	https://www.cincinnatireview.com/submission-guidelines-2021-2/	$25	500 words max
Unnerving Magazine	CLOSED	$15 for flash fiction	Horror and suspense 400 - 1,500 words See submission periods
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