85 Calls for Submissions in December 2020 - Paying markets

There are more than six dozen calls for submissions in December. All of these are paying markets, and none charge submission fees. As always, every genre, style, and form is wanted, from short stories to poetry to essays.

I post calls for submissions on the first day of every month. But as I am collecting them, I post them on my page, Calls for Submissions. You can get a jump on next month's calls for submissions by checking that page periodically throughout the month. (I only post paying markets.)

Also see Paying Markets for hundreds of paying markets arranged by form and genre.

Happy submitting!

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 Eternal Haunted Summer: Ekphrasis. Genre: Poetry, short fiction about a piece of art. "The work of art must be Pagan/polytheist in some way, or must be interpreted through a Pagan/polytheist lens."  Payment: $5. Deadline: December 1, 2020.

Kandisha Press Women of Horror Anthology Volume 3: THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY. Restrictions: Open to women writers only. Genre: Horror. "Bring us your stalker stories, your tales of unrequited love, the lion you have chained in your wardrobe, or just your average horrific play on words." Payment: Royalties. Deadline: December 1, 2020.

Revolute. Genre: Fiction, poetry, nonfiction, and micro reviews. Payment: $25. Deadline: December 1, 2020.

Arkansas Intergalactic Themed Issue. Genre: Science fiction and speculative prose and poetry.   Payment: $20 a printed page (capped at $250) and copies of the journal. Deadline: December 1, 2020.

Slice. Genre: Fiction, nonfiction, poems on theme of Levity. “We look for work that plays off the theme, particularly in unexpected ways.” Payment: $400 for long stories and essays, $150 for flash fiction, and $100 for poems. Deadline: December 1, 2020.

Artificial Divide. Genre: Short stories between 500 and 8,000 words. "We are looking for own-voice stories featuring blind or visually impaired protagonists, written by authors who are blind or visually impaired. The story need not be about being visually impaired or blind, and can be any genre of fiction.: Payment: 0.06CAD per word. Deadline: December 1, 2020. Will consider some previously published work.

Muse Magazine. Genre: Nonfiction articles for children on theme of Making Predictions.  Payment: Not specified. Deadline: December 1, 2020.

Worldbuilding Fantasy Anthology. Genre: Fantasy; Between 3,500 and 7,000 words in length for short stories and between 9,000 and 15,000 words for novellas. (Shorter or longer works will be considered in cases of exceptional merit.) Theme: “Politics as Story Conflict.” Your story must include as a significant plot element a political conflict that makes up a key piece of the worldbuilding. Payment: $100 per story, $200 per novella. Deadline: December 1, 2020.

Lagrange Books: Worldbuilding fantasy anthology. Genre: Fantasy on theme: “Politics as Story Conflict.” Payment: $100 for short stories, $200 for novellas. Deadline: December 1, 2020.

Bethlehem Writers Roundtable. Genre: Short stories and poetry. See themes. Payment: 20.00 USD for featured authors, or $10.00 USD for stories published on their &More page and $5.00 USD for poems. Deadline: December 1, 2020.

Parabola: Secrets. Genre: Retellings of traditional stories: 500-1500 words, original essays and translations, poetry, reviews. Payment: Not specified. Deadline: December 1, 2020.

FableCroft: The Art of Being Human. Genre: Short stories between 2,000 to 20,000 words long and poetry of any length. Stories must contain speculative elements – science fiction, fantasy and horror and their sub-genres are all welcome. "This anthology seeks to remind readers of the hope and beauty of the Arts, and the way our engagement with writing, music, film, theatre, artworks in all media, and craft of all kinds are at the core of our humanity." Payment: AUD$100.00 for stories of up to 10,000 words (payment for poetry and longer stories accepted will be negotiated with the author) and a contributor copy of the ebook. Deadline: December 1, 2020.

Enchanted Conversation: A Fairy Tale Magazine. Genre: Fairy tales, and essays on theme of Angels. Payment: $100. US dollars only. Essays: $50. Deadline: December 3, 2020.

Fireside Quarterly. Genre: Short stories, nonfiction, art. Payment: 12.5 cents per word. Deadline: December 4, 2020. Opens November 30.

Prairie Fire: For the Love of Animals. Genre: Fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry on the theme For the Love of Animals. “Maybe more than ever, especially since the pandemic uprooted our normal lives, people have been turning to animals for comfort and joy as a way to reduce the anxiety many of us are feeling from isolation and disconnection. Payment: $0.10/word, up to $250 for prose, $40 for poetry (Canadian). Deadline: December 4, 2020. 

Cliffhanger: Amateur Magazine of Adventure and Daring. Genre: Adventure fiction stories. Payment: $10. Deadline: December 5,  2020.

Somewhere We Are Human: An Anthology on Migration, Survival, and New Beginnings. Genre: Personal non-fiction essays and poems from migrants, asylum seekers, refugees and displaced people with experience in the United States. "We are especially interested in essays and poems from those in the midwest and Border towns. We are centering and giving priority to essays and poems from Indigenous migrants, Black migrants, Asian Pacific Islanders, and Arab communities.” Payment: The anthology will be published by HarperCollins in English and Spanish. Contributors will be compensated a min. of $800. Deadline: December 5,  2020.

Havok. Genre: Flash fiction on theme of Red. Payment: $10 via PayPal for each story published in an Anthology. Deadline: December 6,  2020.

Into the Void. Genre: Poetry, fiction. Payment: $10 per poem, flash fiction or visual art piece, and $20 per long-form prose piece. Deadline: December 7,  2020. Submit early in the month to avoid submission fees.

The Other Stories Podcast. Genre: Horror on theme of Secret Messages. Payment: $5. Deadline: December 7, 2020.

Cricket Media: Faces: It's a Small World. Genre: Nonfiction, fiction, games, activities for children 9-14 on theme of Small Places and Things. Payment: Up to 25¢ per word. $75 flat rate for activities and games. Deadline: December 7, 2020.

Funicular Magazine. Genre: "Fiction and poetry that shocks, surprises, moves, and tickles us. Maybe all of those things in a single piece. We are a Canadian magazine and we want to publish Canadian voices, but don't be shy if you aren't Canadian. We love sharing international writers with our readers too." Payment: Short story: $10/printed page (up to a maximum of $100); Flash: $25 per piece; Poetry: $25 per piece. (They only pay for their print publication.) Deadline: December 8, 2020.

Owl Hollow Press: Change the World. Restrictions: Only writers between the ages of 13-19 will be considered. Genre: Fiction on theme of changing the world. Payment: $20. Deadline: December 13, 2020.

Griffith Review 72: States of Mind. Genre: Essays, reportage, creative non-fiction, fiction, visual essays and poetry on theme of States of Mind. "Ask yourself this: What state am I in? And how much is it a reaction to the state of the world today?" Payment: Negotiated. Deadline: December 14, 2020.

Copper Nickel. Genre: Poetry, fiction, essays, and translation folios. Payment: $30 per printed page + two copies of the issue in which the author’s work appears + a one-year subscription. Deadline: December 15,  2020. Submit early in the month to avoid submission fees.

The Great Void. Genre: Speculative fiction. Length: 600 - 2,000 words. See themes. Payment: 30% of profits shared equally among contributors. Deadline: December 15, 2020.

Poetry at the Pottery. Genre: Poetry. Submit up to three poems that are no more than 20 lines each, on the subject of VESSELS, FEASTS, or THE ELEMENTS: AIR, WIND, FIRE, WATER. Payment: $100. Deadline: December 15, 2020.

Sharkpack Poetry Review. Genre: Poetry on the theme of Wretch Citizens. Payment: Honorarium.  Deadline: December 15, 2020.

Catapult. Genre: Nonfiction - pitches only. Payment: Not specified. Deadline: December 15, 2020.

The Journal of Compressed Creative Arts. Genre: Fiction, creative nonfiction, poetry, mixed media, visual arts, "and even kitchen sinks, if they are compressed in some way.” Payment: $50. Deadline: December 15, 2020.

Jaggery. Genre: Fiction/nonfiction/poetry/art/reviews. "Jaggery, a DesiLit arts and literature journal, connects South Asian diasporic writers and homeland writers; we also welcome non-South Asians with a deep and thoughtful connection to South Asian countries, who bring their own intersecting perspectives to the conversation. (By South Asia we mean Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, The Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.)" Payment: $100 for fiction, $25 for nonfiction, poetry, art, reviews. Deadline: December 15, 2020.

Good Mom On Paper. Genre: Essay. "We’re looking for essays from self-identified mothers of all kinds, at all stages of life, career, and parenting, and who are interested in exploring motherhood and art creation in all its many incarnations, both positive and negative." Pitches only. Payment: $200. Deadline: December 15, 2020.

Chicken Soup for the Soul: Angels. Genre: True stories and poems. "We are looking for true personal stories about how an angel has touched your life – stories of true wonder and awe from people who have directly encountered or received help from angels. We’re looking for amazing stories that will make people say “wow” or give our readers chills. Have you experienced something otherworldly or celestial? Or had a personal experience with an angel or divine being? How did your angel manifest himself or herself to you? Were you the only person who saw your angel? How did your angel protect or guide you?" Payment: $200. Deadline: December 15, 2020.

Eye to the Telescope. Genre: Speculative poetry on theme of Travel. Payment: US 3¢/word rounded up to nearest dollar; minimum US $3, maximum $25. Payment is on publication. Deadline: December 15, 2020.

Chicken Soup for the Soul: Preteens. Restrictions: Open to preteens, teens, and men and women under age 35. Genre: True stories and poems. "We’re looking for everything, from serious to silly. What was your experience like as a preteen? Did you fit in with the popular crowd, or were you left behind to eat your peanut butter and jelly in the library? What kind of humorous or embarrassing things happened to you when you were that age?" Payment: $200. Deadline: December 15, 2020.

Chicken Soup for the Soul: Teens. Restrictions: Open to preteens, teens, and men and women under age 35. Genre: True stories and poems. "We’re looking for everything, from serious to silly. What was your experience like as a teenager? Did you fit in with the popular crowd, or were you left behind to eat your peanut butter and jelly in the library? What kind of humorous or embarrassing things happened to you when you were that age?" Payment: $200. Deadline: December 15, 2020.

Women Artists Datebook. Genre: Poems that "promote activism and/or healing" by writers who self-identify as women, to be included in a spiral-bound datebook with original art. Payment: $70.   Deadline: December 15, 2020.

Professor Charlatan Bardot’s Travel Anthology to the Most (Fictional) Haunted Buildings in the Weird, Wild World. Genre: Short stories about fictional haunted houses. Payment: 2 cents per word and one contributor copy in each of all published formats. Deadline: December 15, 2020.

Ancient Paths. Genre: Poetry, flash fiction, photography, and artwork on spiritual themes. Payment: $1.25 (Yes, that's one dollar and twenty-five cents.) Deadline: December 15, 2020.

Middle House Review: Height Chart. Genre: Poetry. Payment: $10. Deadline: December 19, 2020.

Newfound: Inner Spaces. Genre: Fiction, Flash, Creative Nonfiction, Poetry, Translation, and Visual Arts on theme of Inner Spaces. Payment: $25. Deadline: December 21, 2020.

It’s All Fun and Games Until Somebody Dies. Genre: Horror, 3,000-5,000 words about being killed in or by a game. Payment: $10. Deadline: December 21, 2020.

Story Seed Vault. Genre: Microfiction tweets based on science. Payment: Short Fiction (<150CH) $3AUD per story; Long Fiction (>150CH/<200CH) $2AUD per story. Deadline: December  24, 2020. Opens on the 10th.

Antimony and Elder Lace Press: To Live Again… Genre: Fiction on theme To Live Again. Word Count: 1,000-7,500 words. “Tho doesn’t want to live again? The idea of resurrection and conquering death is something that can be seen in many myths and legends of cultures around the world. This anthology will deal with the idea of resurrection, and of course, it’s aftermath.” Payment: $0.01 per word and a percentage of royalties. Payment made upon publication. Deadline: December 25, 2020.

Cemetery Gates Media. Genre: Horror flash fiction, 500-1,000 words. See themes. Payment: 8 cents per word. Deadline: December 26, 2020, or until filled.

Every Day Fiction. Genre: Flash fiction up to 1000 words. Payment: $3. Deadline: December 27, 2020.

Cosmic Roots and Eldritch Shores. Genre: Speculative stories. Payment: 6 cents/word for original work. 2 cents/word for reprints. Deadline: December 28, 2020.

The Great Void. Genre: Speculative fiction. Length: 4000 - 15,000 words. See themes. Payment: 30% of profits shared equally among contributors. Deadline: December 30, 2020.

Inked in Gray. Genre: Speculative fiction on theme of Survival. Payment: $30. Deadline: December 30, 2020.

Bone & Ink Press. Genre: Creative non-fiction, poetry, and fiction chapbooks. Payment: Revenue sharing. Deadline: December 31, 2020.

Adventures in Ideas. Genre: "Ideas-driven travel articles and essays on the theme of movement and stillness." Payment: $75. Deadline: December 31, 2020.

Books by Hippocampus. Genre: Nonfiction books - memoirs, essay collections, journalism, craft of writing. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: December 31, 2020.

Red Cape Anthologies: I is for Internet. Genre: Horror. "We need short horror stories exploring the dark side of the Internet – think online dating gone wrong, killers for hire, cyber bullying etc." Payment:  £10. Deadline: December 31, 2020.

Dead Fish Books: Universe of Attractions. Genre: Fantasy/science fiction/speculative stories featuring a cross-species romance. Payment: $5 + Royalties. Deadline: December 31, 2020.

Lonely Cryptid Media. Genre: Poetry and prose on theme Resist with Every Inch and Every Breath.   Payment: $25 for unpublished writing, $15 for reprints. Deadline: December 31, 2020.

JMS Books: LGBTQ Romance: Sports. Genre: LGBTQ romance stories. "Professional sports, Olympics, X-Games, March Madness ... what games do your characters play? Did they fall in love on a tennis court? Or riding killer waves in Maui? Are they teammates or rivals?" Payment: Royalties. Deadline: December 31, 2020.

WE’RE HERE: THE BEST QUEER SPECULATIVE FICTION 2020. Genre: Queer speculative fiction. Submissions are open for all speculative work published in 2020 under 17,500 words that deals either implicitly or explicitly with queerness. Payment: $0.01/word. Deadline: December 31, 2020.

Perpetual Motion Machine Publishing: Lost Contact. Genre: Horror on theme of Lost Contact.   Payment: $0.05/word. Deadline: December 31, 2020.

Adventures in Ideas. Genre: travel narratives, essays, features, articles, etc. that explore the ideas of movement and/or stillness, broadly understood. "Because travel is as much an intellectual affair as it is a physical one, we believe that travel writing is most enriching when it engages with the world of ideas. We are primarily interested in ideas-driven travel articles and essays. We also accept book excerpts for forthcoming titles and thematic reviews for the journal. We are keen to read experimental writing, photo essays, reported features, and the like. We do not publish listicles, commercial travel writing, or travelogues that do not engage with larger issues and ideas." Payment: $75.   Deadline: December 31, 2020.

Groovy Gumshoes: Private Eyes in the Psychedelic Sixties. Genre: Crime fiction stories set during the 1960s. The ideal submission will be approximately 5,000 words. Payment: Royalties. 

Deadline: December 31, 2020.

Ninth Letter. Genre: Prose and poetry. Payment: $25 per printed page, with a maximum payment of $150, as well as two complimentary copies of the issue in which the work appears. Deadline: December 31, 2020.

Cincinnati Review. Genre: Prose and poetry. Payment: $25/page for prose in journal; $30/page for poetry in journal. Deadline: December 31, 2020.

Existere. Genre: Poetry, prose, postcards, art. Payment: Small honorarium. Deadline: December 31, 2020.

Dragon Soul Press: Spirit. Genre: Shifters. "Any animal shifters, settings, genres, etc are acceptable. All stories must include a main or secondary character that does not have a heterosexual preference." Word Count – 5,000-15,000. Payment:  Royalties. Deadline: December 31, 2020.

Chestnut Review. Genre: Poetry, flash fiction, short fiction, creative nonfiction, essays, visual media (art/photography). Payment: $100. Deadline: December 31, 2020. Submit early in the month to avoid submission fee. 

Branching Realities. Genre: Speculative Fiction and Poetry on theme of The Closet. Payment: Royalties. Deadline: December 31, 2020.

Workers Write! Literary Journal: Stories from the Workplace. Genre: Stories and poems from the workplace. Payment: $5 - $50. Deadline: December 31, 2020.

Podcastle. Genre: Fantasy podcast. Length: Up to 6,000 words. Payment: $0.06/word for original; $100 for reprints, $20 for flash fiction reprints. Deadline: December 31, 2020.

Zombies Need Brains: THE MODERN DEITY’S GUIDE TO SURVIVING HUMANITY, DERELICT, and WHEN WORLDS COLLIDE. Genre: Science fiction and fantasy. Payment: 8 cents/word.   Deadline: December 31, 2020.

Chiral Mad 5. Restrictions: Underrepresented demographics only to submit – POC, LGBTQIA+, female (see guidelines). Genre: Speculative fiction, with all proceeds going to the Black Lives Matter movement. Payment: $0.06/word for fiction, $1/line for poetry. Deadline: December 31, 2020.

Modern Poetry in Translation. Genre: Translations of poetry. Send up to six poems. Payment: Not specified. Deadline: December 31, 2020.

Allegory. Genre: Speculative fiction and nonfiction about the business of writing. Payment: $15.  Deadline: December 31, 2020. Accepts reprints.

Lost Contact: A New Horror Anthology. Genre: Horror on theme of Lost Contact. Payment: 5 cents per word. Deadline: December 31, 2020.

Year’s Best Hardcore Horror. Genre: Horror. They want hardcore horror stories that were published in 2020. Stories should be up to 6,000 words. Payment: $0.01/word, capped at $60. Deadline: December 31, 2020.

The New York Times: Modern Love. Genre: Essay on modern love. Payment: $500. Deadline: December 31, 2020.

Arc Poetry Magazine. Genre: Poetry. Payment: $50 CAD per page. Deadline: December 31, 2020. 

Curiouser. Genre: Poetry and short fiction up to 5,000 words in length. Payment:$25 per poem, and from $50-125 (Australian) for short prose. Deadline: December 31, 2020. 

Emerging Poets Chapbook Series. Genre: Poetry chapbook. "In December only, Newfound accepts unsolicited chapbook-length manuscripts from writers who have not yet published a full-length book. Our open submission period aims to advance the careers of emerging writers by printing their work in beautiful, hand-bound editions." Payment: Royalties. Deadline: December 31, 2020.

Cohesion Press: SNAFU. Genre: Fantasy, Horror, or Science Fiction on theme of Holy War Military Horror. Payment: AU5c/word / 2k-10k words. Deadline: December 31, 2020.

Grace & Victory. Genre: Comfy, cozy, low-fi stories. "Stories with low stakes and small rewards, little triumphs, happy chances. We don’t want world-shattering consequences or dark nights of the soul or single decisions that put it all on the line. We want stories that leave you a little bit better than they found you." Payment: $0.01CAD per word. Deadline: December 31, 2020.

Elevator Stories. Genre: Short stories and CNF on theme of Colors. Audio recording required. Payment: $30. Deadline: December 31, 2020.

A Public Space. Genre: Fiction, essays, poetry, as well as graphic and hybrid work. Payment: Honorarium. Deadline: December 31, 2020.

The Maine Review. Genre: Creative non-fiction, poetry, fiction. Payment: $25 honorarium per published flash (1,000 words or fewer) and a $50 honorarium for work 1,001 words or more, 25 per poem. Deadline: December 31, 2020.

105: Meadowlark Reader. Genre: CNF. “True stories about Kansas written by Kansans." Payment: $10 plus one contributor copy. Deadline: December 31, 2020. 

Introducing. Genre: Fiction from unpublished writers only. Payment: $10. Deadline: December 31, 2020.

The Offing. Genre: Personal essays, memoir, art, enumerate, back of the envelope. Payment: $25–$100. Deadline: December 31, 2020.

And more ... 

Cast of Wonders Podcast. Genre: Speculative fiction for teens. Length: 3,000 words max. Payment: 6 cents/word. Deadline: January 1, 2021.

Dorothy. Genre: Books. "Fiction or near fiction or about fiction, mostly by women." Payment: Royalties. Deadline: January 1, 2021.

Aphotic Realm: Lycanthropy. Genre: Speculative stories about animorphs with a bloody twist.  Payment: $10. Deadline: January 1, 2021.

Bluestem. Genre: Fiction, poetry, nonfiction. Payment: $20/poem and $75/prose piece. Deadline: January 1, 2021.