Lit submissions wanted (alien celebrations) | up to 8 cents per word
Added 2025-10-23 23:16:21 +0000 UTCCOMPANY/PUBLICATION: UTOPIA SCIENCE FICTION
Deadline: 30 October 2025
We have a different theme for each issue, so submissions that relate to those themes are more likely to be accepted. For Volume VII (2025-2026), the themes for the issues are as follows:
December 2025 — Alien Celebrations.
Bring us tales of celebrations from the far reaches of the galaxy!
It's also our Special Art Issue. Send us your artwork to exhibit and show the world!
Submit Before 11/01/2025
March 2026 — Weird Science Fiction - Send us your strange, outlandish, outside-the-box stories and poems!
Submit Before 01/01/2026
June 2026 — Cozy Stories-
Show us marvelous, cozy utopias!
Submit Before 04/01/2026
August 2026 — No theme. Anything goes
Submit Before 05/17/2026.
We usually look for stories about 2-4 months out from a themed issue, so don't delay!
SUBMIT!
We welcome solicited and unsolicited submissions for fiction, poetry, non-fiction, and art. Please read and follow our submission guidelines carefully. Incorrectly submitted material may not be read or replied to. Works submitted for themes after the dates listed will not be read or replied to.
We are especially in need of science and non-fiction articles for our Science Corner. Articles can be on any subject in any style, but must be accessible to a non-academic audience.
Our next issue release is December 1st.
FICTION GUIDELINES
We're looking for enthralling stories set in a future we want to believe in, one we would fight to make a reality.
We want:
Captivating world-building
Character-rich, diverse settings
Well-written engaging plots that steer away from common tropes
Tension, conflict that leaps out of the page and grabs us
A good ending.
Hard science fiction, stories based in explained, well researched science
We're open to:
Inventive narrative structures, unusual, but readable writing styles
Non hard science fiction as long as it includes incredible world-building or captivating characters
Longer stories for serialization
Length: 100-4,000 words is preferred. For longer works, please query with the first ten pages.
Pay: We pay 8¢/word for fiction.
Submissions must be in PDF or docx form and in proper manuscript format (our system can't process .rtf files!). Please allow 16 weeks for a response. If you have not received a response by then, feel free to contact us with the word "Query" in the subject line.
POETRY GUIDELINES
We publish science-fiction poetry. There's no style or content we're looking for in particular, though we prefer more lyrical and evocative poetry.
Please submit up to five short poems OR one long poem.
Length: A short poem is one page or less in size 12 Garamond font with 1.5 spacing. If the total length of two (or more) poems does not exceed one-page they will be counted as a single poem.
Pay: $30 for each accepted poem
NON-FICTION GUIDELINES
We're Looking for:
Articles on new discoveries
Articles on new or developing technologies
Science fact sheets or trivia articles
Teach us how to calculate Schwarzschild Radius, tell us about Hubble's Constant or quantum chemistry
Teach us about strange creatures from Thor's Hero Shrew to Detnocaccus radtoduraus
LENGTH: 6,000 words or less
PAY: $30 for a non-fiction piece upon publication
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CONTACT INFORMATION:
Submissions: Via the webform (scroll to the bottom of the page)
Website: https://www.utopiasciencefiction.com
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