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Thursday, June 15, 2023

Freeze Frame Fiction seeks drama

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Deadline: June 30, 2023

We are currently open to submissions for volume 0.2. If you submitted a piece to our last volume and have not yet received a response, it is still under consideration, and we will get back to you shortly.

For more information about what we want and expect, see our editor’s interviews with Jim Harrington at Six Questions For… and on Duotrope (visible to non-members). Also, take a look at 5 Tips for Writing Twist Endings at Flash Fiction Chronicles.

What are we looking for?

Good flash fiction is like a freeze frame—a snapshot of a real story about real characters. The word count is low, so many of the details are left to the reader to fill in, but they’re there. Flash fiction is neither a vignette nor a character sketch. Something must happen, and there must be an ending, whether explicit or implied.

So first and foremost, we want a story. A complete, interesting story. 1000 words or less, any genre, no content restrictions. We want your science fiction, fantasy, horror, mystery, drama, literary works, satire, bizarre fiction, or anything else you can come up with or mix together. The more original, the better. The weirder, the better.

The best way to find out what we’re looking for is to read what we’ve already published! Check out our current volume, free to read at https://freezeframefiction.com/.

What are we NOT looking for?

We are 100% okay with explicit content, so long as it serves a purpose to the story and/or characters. Profanity for the sake of profanity—or the same thing for sex, violence, or gore—does not impress us. Also, animal cruelty. Please just send that somewhere else.

We do not publish fan-fiction, i.e., stories based in worlds or using characters created by other authors. All content must be original.

The following things might be accepted, but will be a very hard sell:
  • stories involving vampires, zombies, or werecreatures (read an exception here)
  • pure romance with no other significant elements
  • the now-ubiquitous young adult paranormal romance
  • military fiction or stories of battles or wars
  • stories with a religious message or theme
We’re also pretty tired of reading about straight cis white guys, honestly. We get it; they’re everywhere. Give us some diversity, please.

What is our policy on revising and resubmitting?

In general, if we want you to revise and resubmit the same piece, we will tell you so when we decline your story. That said, if you’ve made significant changes to the piece, per our comments in the rejection note, feel free to give it a go. If the piece is similar to its original form, please do not re-submit it to us. If you like the story how it is and are hesitant to change it, that’s a good sign we’re probably not the right fit for that particular flash. That doesn’t mean we’re not a good fit for you, though. Try sending us something else instead.

What is our submission and publication schedule?

We publish online semi-annually. Our open submission calls will be from 1 August to 31 December, and from 1 February to 30 June. The months of January and July will be spent making sure we’re all caught up and getting the new issue set up on our website. Publication will occur online 1 August and 1 February.

Special volumes may be published annually. Announcement coming soon about our next themed submission call!

How do you submit?

We use Submittable to manage electronic submissions. Please be sure to remove your name and any contact information from the uploaded document before submitting.This is very important, as we review submissions blind. Your contact information will be available to the editors.

We do not accept email submissions. Email submissions will be ignored.

Our formatting guidelines are very simple: Text should be double-spaced, in Courier New (preferred) or Times New Roman (okay) size 12. Include word count on the top right of first page. Submissions that do not follow our guidelines will be automatically declined, with the exception of experimental forms.


Will we pay you?

Yes, $10 per accepted piece.

How will your work be published?

All work will be published initially online, free to read. After six months, work will be published in an ebook to make room for next issue’s flash fiction.

How and when should you query?

Expected response time will be updated on an on-going basis. Please feel free to emailsubmissions@freezeframefiction.com with the subject “Query” if you have any questions about a submitted work. Before emailing, please be sure to check the status of your submission on Submittable.

We are currently responding to pieces within one to three weeks.

What rights will we be purchasing?

For unpublished works, we are purchasing worldwide First Publication rights in multiple electronic formats, exclusive for one year from first publication. Work will remain archived on our website, and can be removed at the author’s request.

For reprints (solicited only), rights will be negotiated upon solicitation and acceptance.

Do we accept simultaneous submissions?

Yes, we just ask that you inform us of this fact upon submission, and withdraw your piece immediately if it’s accepted elsewhere.

Do we accept multiple submissions?

No, not at this time. Please wait for your piece to be accepted or declined before submitting further work. Also, only include one flash piece per submission.

Do we accept previously published work?

No, unless solicited. ‘Previously published’ also includes anything that has been publicly available online (such as on an open writing website or forum, or a personal blog).

Do we publish creative non-fiction?

If the piece reads like CNF, we probably will not publish it. If you tell us a well-written, interesting story that just happens to be true, you’ve got a good shot.

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