Submission Guidelines

Short Fiction
Short fiction submissions accepted at Tropes of Sci-Fi & Fantasy are… sci-fi and fantasy.  Horror is also acceptable, as long as it features a science fiction or fantasy element.

Theme: 
As this is a themed blog, any submissions must feature an overused or cliché plot device or character archetype – in other words, a trope of sci-fi or fantasy.

Characters: 
A good story should always focus on the characters involved.  If your chosen trope is a piece of machinery, like an FTL drive, that’s fine – but your readers will care more about the people using it than the device itself.

Length: 
Short fiction should fall between 2,000 and 10,000 words.  Fiction of lesser or greater value may be accepted, but I ask that you query before you submit a story outside of these guidelines at the following email address listed below.

Style: 
Style should be a nice prose with enough clarity to be readable.  If it requires a machete to cut through your poetic license, it will probably not be accepted.  Likewise, if your manuscript is a bland, barren, straightforward wasteland, it will likely be rejected.

Grammatical Accuracy:
I can both understand and appreciate a stylized writing structure – I do it myself.  However, while you might be able to get away with some inventive clause connections and the like, not knowing simple grammar rules, like the difference between you’re, your, and yore will likely hurt your chances of acceptance.

Originality:
Even though this blog focuses on tropes, short fiction still needs to be an original work.  Fan fiction and derived works will not be accepted – I don’t need that kind of legal headache.

If your story has been published by another media in the past (magazines, anthologies, blogs, or websites included) please let me know in advance.  Remember that it is your responsibility to know if any rights of the previous publication are still in play.

Extremeness:
Gratuitous use of sexual themes, morbidity, sadism, or unnecessary cursing (especially in the narrative) will most likely earn you a rejection letter.  Extreme themes for the purpose of shock value – or even worse out of sheer ignorance – are not in the least bit impressive to me.

I do however understand that some sexual and violence tropes exist.  Just remember that allusion is often the better part of drama.

Serial Novels:
At this time, Tropes of Sci-Fi & Fantasy does not accept serial novels or novel excerpts.  Stand-alone short fiction only.

Poetry:
Poetry will be considered – not my favorite medium for sci-fi and fantasy tropes, but if it is done well any length will be considered… any length within reason, that is.

Non-Fiction:
Non-fiction will be accepted on a subject-matter specific basis and should be circa 500-2000 words.
Subject Matter: Science fiction & fantasy tropes… duh.

Art:
Works of art will be considered so long as they are on-theme with the blog, original, and does not feature extreme or gratuitous subject matter.  Only still submissions will be considered in .gif .jpeg  or .png format.  Bitmaps and editable program-specific files will not be accepted.

Compensation:
Unfortunately, at the time being, no monetary compensation can be made.  In time, I would like to be able to offer semi-pro or even pro rates, but as of right now you’ll have to settle for the limited exposure you and your work will receive from this blog’s audience.  Sorry.

Multiple Submissions:
Multiple submissions will not be accepted.  Please wait to hear back about your current submission before submitting another work.

Simultaneous Submissions:
Due to more potential legal headaches, simultaneous submissions – submissions to Tropes of Sci-Fi & Fantasy as well as other publications – cannot be accepted.

Rewrites:
Please do not rewrite and resubmit a rejected story unless it has been requested that you do so.  Alternately, you may inquire for the solicitation of a rewrite by email address listed below.

Editing:
If the story is golden but spelling and grammar errors are present, you may be asked to re-edit your work before resubmitting.  I may also do small line-edits myself, in which case you will have the opportunity to review and discuss any edits before it is posted.

Display:
For now, I plan to feature any accepted works as a page on the WordPress Blog for 30-90 days before placing it as a normal post for archival purposes.  This time may be subject to change (more or less) based on the number of approved submissions awaiting publication.

All works will be fully credited to the author/submitter with a © (copyright) notice in THEIR NAME as it appears in the submission email.  Please do not use pseudonyms, as they are often a headache for writers and may present copyright issues in your future – just a warning.

Works will also be preceded by a short note on the trope or tropes that are used in the work.  In the event that a trope appears as a surprise twist or ending – as so many tropes do – this note will be omitted.  And as the creator, of course, you will have final say on this note before publication.

I would also ask that you allow me to save your submission for archiving purposes.  In the event that I dip into the realm of domain names and e-magazines, I may wish to keep your work on permanent display.

However, of course, if at any time you wish me to remove your work, a simple e-mail with your request will result in COMPLETE erasure of the work from archives, hard drives, blog pages, blog posts, or websites.  Your work is yours alone, and I will not keep any submission on file ANYWHERE without your consent.

Rights:
Tropes of Sci-Fi & Fantasy is a free market.  As the creator of your story, poem, artwork, article, etc. you will retain all rights to your original work.  You are merely allowing Tropes of Sci-Fi & Fantasy to “borrow” the rights to display it.  So… thanks.

Also, keep in mind that by publishing any work on this blog, you may not be able to submit it to other venues (including paying venues) if they refuse to publish second-run material.

Submission Format:
Please submit any written material by email in .doc or .docx format as an attachment to the email listed below.  NO OTHER FILE FORMATS WILL BE OPENED!  If you do not have access to .doc or .docx formatting, you can copy in paste it in the body of your email.

Please include a cover page listing your name and the title of your material, as well as any contact information you wish to include – especially email address.  Name and story title should also appear in the header of each subsequent page (if applicable).

Please use a standard, readable font (such as Times New Roman or Calibri) at a reasonable size (11 or 12).

Otherwise, I don’t particularly care about double-spacing, right-line justification, bold and italics, or what-not.  Anything that needs to be fixed can be fixed in the editing process.

Cover Letter:
In the body of your email, let me know a little about your submission.  I don’t need a whole outline, just notes on your style and storyline if you would like to include them.  Please also include any direct inspirations.
Example:  You’ve written a story about an intrepid crew on a peaceful mission of exploration… so, Star Trek.

I would also like to hear a little about you in the cover letter, such as age, name, country of origin, etc.  If you wish to omit any of this information, that’s acceptable, but please let me know why you came to that decision.  Also, please let me know if you’ve ever been published before – paid or unpaid on any media, and if you have had any professional training or experience.

Please note that omitting personal information or having no past publications, education, or experience will in no way effect the consideration of your work.

Response Times:
Absolutely no idea.  I promise to get back to you as quickly as possible, but I have no precedence to give an average time before response.  Rejections, for now, will come personally – no automated rejections – and I will try to provide any useful feedback that you may use in future endeavors.

Email To:
Email submissions to tropesofscifiandfantasy@outlook.com
Subject:  “Submission: (title of your work)”

Questions:
Any questions or queries can also be sent to tropesofscifiandfantasy@outlook.com

Submission Guidelines Last Updated:  8/21/2013