​​

​

​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.

​

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.​

​

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.​

​

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.

​

Optional Add-Ons

Expedited Response – $5

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

​

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

​

Editorial Insight – $10

Curious how your story or poem landed with us?

​

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

​​

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.

​

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.

​

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

Submissions reopen November 19 — and as always, we’re looking for stories that blur boundaries and burn bright.

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.​​​