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​What We’re Looking For

Neon & Smoke is a home for bold fiction. We’re especially drawn to:

• Stories that move. Not just emotionally, but narratively. Give us stakes. Give us story.

• Stories that mean. The kind where a sentence lands and you need to sit with it for a second.

• Stories that sound. Bold voices. Quiet voices with teeth. Characters who command attention.

• Stories that blend. They might wear the clothes of genre—revenge, horror, speculative—but underneath, they’re about something deeper: grief, identity, morality, transformation.

• Fresh perspectives. We elevate marginalized voices, including BIPOC, LGBTQ+, and incarcerated writers—but we welcome all voices.

• Unforgettable characters. Give us flawed humans (or monsters) navigating strange, beautiful, or broken worlds.

• Emotional resonance. We love stories that linger—whether from laughter, heartbreak, terror, or awe.

• Emotional range. Give us sorrow and joy. Stillness and chaos. Anger, love, weirdness, release. We want fiction that reflects the full spectrum of being alive.

• Clarity with depth. We value accessibility. You don’t need to write for a panel of editors. Write for the reader who feels it in their chest.

 

What We’re Not Looking For

• Fiction that relies on harmful stereotypes or gratuitous violence without narrative or emotional purpose

• Work so abstract or insular that it leaves readers adrift—if the meaning is buried under a dozen metaphors and only visible to the writer or a lit journal editor, it’s probably not for us.

• Stories that dwell in a single emotional register without transformation. We've read enough grief without movement, rage without reflection, or sorrow without spark.

 

Submission Categories & Guidelines

 

Flash Fiction

• Submit 1 story up to 1,000 words (1,100 if it earns every word).

• Standard manuscript format (.doc, .docx, or .pdf).

• We do not accept reprints.

• Simultaneous submissions are allowed—just notify us immediately if your piece is accepted elsewhere.

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Payment: $20 flat rate for accepted original stories.

 

Poetry Submissions

• Submit 1–2 poems totaling no more than 60 lines or 600 words.

• We prefer work that fits on 1–2 printed pages.

• The theme is a guide, not a rule—surprise us.

• Submit as a single .doc, .docx, or .pdf file with no identifying information.

• No previously published poems (online or in print).

• Simultaneous submissions allowed with prompt notification upon acceptance elsewhere.​

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Visual Art

• Submit up to 3 original, unpublished pieces.

• Include only high-resolution files.

• Do not include any identifying information in the files or filenames.

• We accept photography, illustration, digital art, collage, and mixed media that fits the Neon & Smoke aesthetic.​

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Rights

For accepted work, we request

• First North American Serial Rights

• First Online Rights

All rights revert to the author or artist upon publication. We ask for credit as the original publisher if the work appears elsewhere in the future.

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Optional Add-Ons

Expedited Response – $5

Want to hear back more quickly? Receive a response within 2–3 weeks by adding $5 at submission.

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Note: Payment does not influence our decision to publish your work.

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Editorial Insight – $10

Curious how your story or poem landed with us?

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For $10, receive a brief, personalized response that includes:

• A summary of your work’s strengths and opportunities

• A Neon & Smoke score breakdown using our five-part rubric

• Light commentary from the editor or reader who reviewed your work

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This is not a developmental edit or line-by-line critique—it’s a candid reflection from our editorial lens. Choosing this option does not influence our publication decision.

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How to Submit

• Submit your work through our online portal: Duotrope.

• Include a brief cover letter (no bio required unless you'd like to include one).

• Expect a response in 6–8 weeks, unless you’ve selected expedited review.

• We evaluate submissions holistically based on character depth, plot, pacing, genre fusion, voice, and impact.

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We can’t wait to read what you’ve been working on.

Check out our stories to see what we like, and then bring us your best misfits.

 

Because we are Neon & Smoke, half-genre/always lit.​​​