General Neon Hemlock Submission Notes:
- Unless the editors are otherwise specified, you can address cover letters to “Dear editors” or “Dear dave.” Please avoid “Dear Mr. Ring.”
- Please submit your story in .doc or .docx file, formatted in something approaching Standard Manuscript Format. One of the editors has a slight aversion to Courier and a fondness for Georgia.
- Please include a cover/query letter with the title, length, and a brief bio. You may include links to your website/social media, and previous publications if any. Please don’t stress about this cover letter, if we have additional questions about your submission, we’ll ask them.
- Simultaneous submissions are always fine; please withdraw immediately if you take another offer. Stories should be previously unpublished.
- Please no multiple submissions. If you receive a rejection within the submission window, you may submit another story.
- If you joke about how straight white men are underrepresented in speculative fiction, it will not win you any points.
- Thanks for thinking of Neon Hemlock for your work.
- Please don't self-reject!
Swordspoint meets Star Wars
Ninefox Gambit meets The Devil Wears Prada
Ancillary Justice + An Unkindness of Ghosts + Pattern Recognition
Give us stories of satellites and sewists, terminals and tailors, dandies and dying stars.
Give us gossip wicked and vital, dinner parties salacious and droll, debutantes vile and intrepid.
Give us unforgivable rudeness and oppressive etiquette, scathing asides and dire gaffes.
The compensation level for original stories accepted to this anthology is $0.08/word.
Submit stories on Submittable between January 15th, 2026 and April 15th, 2026. Please contact us if there are any accessibility concerns for any reason and we’ll work with you.
We are looking for:
- Wordcount: Under 6,000 words. 1-4,000 words is probably the sweet spot.
- Concept: Space opera stories involving style, fashion and society.
- What we want to see: Science fantasy stories and elements of horror are very welcome. We’re using the most inclusive definition of queer. Queer, trans, ace, undefinable. Throughout, we’re looking for rich, varied, and nuanced understandings of gender, family, and ethnicity.
- What we don’t want to see: Near-future sci-fi will be unlikely to find a home here. We’re not interested in work which focuses on unexamined bigotry or sexual violence.
- Further vibe-check notes after getting some questions about what we are looking for: We're not looking for fantasy stories about fashion that don't have space opera vibes.
Guidelines:
- Please submit your story in .doc or .docx file, formatted in something approaching Standard Manuscript Format. Use italics for italics etc. The editor has a slight aversion to Courier and a fondness for Georgia.
- Please include a cover/query letter with the title, length, and a brief bio. You may include links to your website/social media, and previous publications if any. Please don’t stress about this cover letter, if we have additional questions about your submission, we’ll ask them.
- Translations are welcome; payment will be split between the author and translator unless there is another agreement for such between the two parties.
- Simultaneous submissions are fine, please withdraw immediately if you take another offer. Stories should be previously unpublished.
- Please no multiple submissions.
Submissions are open to all. Authors from underrepresented backgrounds and marginalized communities are strongly encouraged to submit. Please don’t self-reject.
You should receive a confirmation of your submission via email. Please query after 120 days if you haven't heard back from us yet about this project.
We’d love if you tracked your submissions on Duotrope or the Submission Grinder.