10Flash is now open to unsolicited submissions for the April 2010 issue only.
The theme for the January 2010 issue is: An encounter at dusk on a lonely road. The January 2010 issue has been filled and is now closed to submissions.
The theme for the April 2010 issue is: The planting may be a disappointment this Spring.
10Flash publishes genre flash fiction stories — fantasy, horror, science fiction, suspense or slipstream — between 600 and 1,000 words.
Each quarterly issue will feature ten stories, all written around a common thread. These threads are not intended to be restrictive, but rather to provide a thread to pull the issue together. However, the thread is important. Its minimalization (or absence) suggests to me that an author has sent me a trunk story with the thread stuck on.
However, as authors, you are encouraged to freely interpret the thread and use the genre of your choosing. Write what you are familiar with or experiment with a tale that is outside your usual genre.
I am open to new ideas and reinterpretations of genre — as long as your work is well written.
What I am looking for are stories that have been crafted with care and an eye for detail, that offer characters and a plot free of cliche and that proceed to a conclusion that is both emotionally and intellectually satisfying.
Most of all, I am looking for stories that are fun to read.
I know that’s why I was drawn to genre fiction as a young reader; I suspect that is true of all of us who still read such fiction.
Even so, 10Flash is not intended for a juvenile market; I will consider work that includes content of a mature sexual nature, as well as moderated use of profanity and violence — as long as I am convinced that such elements are not hard core and are integral parts of the story.
Please, no simultaneous submissions.
Stories should be submitted via e-mail, to keelycball@gmail.com, with the story attached as a Word or RTF document. Each submission should include a cover letter, in the body of the e-mail, with preferred method of contact , a brief (60-word maximum) author biography and a link to the author’s web site or blog, if you wish a link from 10Flash.
I am willing to work with writers on story ideas, but please don’t send first drafts. I expect submitted work to be in standard manuscript format, and edited and proofread prior to submission, but I do understand that the occasional typo slips past us all. I will correct such errors as I find them.
I may also come upon individual words or short phrases that I believe need to be changed to strengthen the story. I will not make such changes without the explicit approval of the author and will provide the author with written notice of all requested changes. I may also ask for a rewrite, if I believe the story concept warrants it and there is sufficient time before publication to do so.
Whether or not changes are made, I will provide notice of acceptance or rejection, via e-mail, within four weeks of the receipt of a story. I also will provide a publication contract for author signature for each accepted story and will require return of the agreement prior to publication. The contract will ask for first-time print and electronic publication rights.
Payment for an accepted story is $20. Payment will be made upon publication, either by Pay Pal or a check sent via snail mail. Authors choice.
Details may be added or edited from time to time. If you have questions, I can be reached via e-mail at keelycball@gmail.com.
I look forward to reading your stories.
K. C.
