9 Pro-Rate Sci-fi Literary Journals

When we talk about “pro-rate” paying markets in writing, that means that certain literary journals pay somewhere around eight cents per word. For sci-fi journals, this rate was laid down by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America a few years ago. So which journals pay this rate? Check out the list below and get ready to submit!

Clarkesworld

One of the most well-known literary journals, Clarkesworld publishes fiction, nonfiction, and art. For fiction, they have an online submission system that you need to submit through, rather than email. Besides, science fiction, they also take fantasy. They look for stories between 1000 to 22000 words. Clarkesworld also pays 14 cents per word, so it’s slightly above pro-rate!

Find their full submission guidelines here.

Analog

Another well-known magazine, Analog looks for sci-fi stories and poems. On their website, they say “Analog pays 8-10 cents per word for short fiction (up to approximately 20,000 words), 6 cents per word for serials (40,000-80,000 words), 9 cents per word for fact articles, and $1 per line for poetry.” They also look for articles, and they have an online submission form for submitting your work.

Find their full guidelines here.

Strange Horizons

This magazine looks for speculative fiction, which could mean sci-fi, fantasy, and other genres. They look for stories up to 10000 words. On their site, they have lists of what they look for in a submission, what they dislike, and what they’re OK with.

Note: their site says they’re closed for submissions right now, but this should open again sometime this year.

Find their full guidelines on how to use their submission system here.

Abyss & Apex

Abyss & Apex looks for flash fiction and poetry, but they both have specific reading periods (fiction in August and poetry in May). They look for sci-fi, fantasy, and dark fantasy, but not horror. They pay a pro-rate of eight cents per word for flash fiction, then $5.50 per poem for poetry, which is considered pro.

Find what they’re looking for, how to submit, and more here on their guidelines.

Apex Magazine

This magazine looks for short fiction up to 9000 words, with specific reading and submission periods, and they pay eight cents per word. Also, if your story is selected for their podcast, they will pay an additional $0.01 per word for your story. They also look for flash fiction up to 1000 words, which also pays eight cents per word.

Find their full guidelines on how to submit here.

Asimov’s Science Fiction

A literary journal named after author Isaac Asimov, this journal “pays 8-10 cents per word for short stories up to 7,500 words, and 8 cents for each word over 7,500.” They look for science fiction short stories. They also pay one dollar per line for poetry, which is also pro-rate.

Find their full guidelines and how to format your manuscript here.

Lightspeed

Litespeed looks for both science fiction and fantasy, but for sci-fi, they look for “near-future, sociological soft SF, to far-future, star-spanning hard SF.” Besides fiction, they take nonfiction, reviews, and reprints. They look for short stories as well as novelettes between 1500 to 10000 words (though they do prefer shorter works).

Find their full guidelines here.

Escape Pod

This magazine is a podcast magazine, which means that, while they publish short stories like a literary journal, they also narrate each of their accepted stories. They specifically look for sci-fi, saying they “are fairly flexible on what counts as science (we’ll delve into superheroes or steampunk on occasion).” They look for short stories between 1500 and 6000 words, reprints 1500 to 7500 words, and novelettes 7500 to 18000 words.

Find their full guidelines here.

Factor Four Magazine

This magazine looks for fiction and art, with fiction up to 1000 words. They pay a pro-rate of 11 cents per word. According to their site, they look for “flash fiction in the genres of speculative fiction, specifically science fiction, fantasy, supernatural, super hero, or any combination of these.”

Read how to submit here.

Thanks for reading! Just a note, I won’t be posting next week because I’ll be out of the country for my graduation. See you all in March!

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