Pink Hydra Press: Novelettes and novellas The Pink Hydra Gold Star Program Gold Star Free Tip Jar Option

We’re looking for character-driven novellas and novelettes with an element of unreality. Any genre goes, but the story needs to have some speculative or unrealistic element. I have a particular love for spicy romance, work with some kind of taboo or "problematic" element, and pulpy genres (sword-and-sorcery, space opera, etc.) with queer characters.

Word count: Between 10,000 and 39,999 words. These are strict limits. If you would like to submit something longer or shorter, please check out our other submission calls.

Please read our full guidelines before submitting, and take note of our payment terms and the rights we acquire.

Send us the full manuscript of your story, formatted as you please; partial submissions or queries will be auto-rejected.

Translations of work previously published in another language are permitted only if the author and translator are the same person. Don’t submit a translation you made of someone else’s work.

Include a cover letter with a short (5 sentences or less) summary of your story’s plot. Try to refrain from using showy, meaningless phrases that have nothing to do with the plot or genre. Examples include “fast-paced adventure,” “sweeping romance,” or “study of the human condition.” If in doubt, keep it simple: just tell us what happens in the story, and what genre you’re writing in or hoping to subvert. No more, no less.

As part of the submission form, you will be asked the following:

• whether you want feedback on the story in case of rejection
• whether we can add your email to the mailing list for our monthly newsletter
• whether you want to provide your own cover art should the story be accepted

None of your answers to any of the above questions will influence our decision on whether or not to accept your work.

If you would like to support The Pink Hydra’s mission of publishing queer, weird, diverse, and liminal fiction, you can support us by giving a small donation with your submission. Again, this will in no way influence our decision on whether to accept your work.

If anything is unclear or you experience any issues with Duosuma, please contact us at [email protected]. Any clown submissions (“I don’t feel like making a Duotrope account so here’s my story anyways”) sent to this email will be rejected unread.

Please don’t be intimidated by the submission process, and don’t self-reject your story if it seems to fit with what we want. We welcome young and inexperienced authors, and we’re happy to assist with any and all submissions made in good faith.

We are an inclusive publisher looking for diverse work from authors of all nationalities and identities. We particularly seek work by and about women, trans people, and anyone who fits anywhere on the LGBTQA+ spectrum.

We can’t wait to read your weird, queer, wonderful stories! Thank you for considering us as a home for your work.