IMPORTANT NOTICE
We will be closed to submissions during the month of July.
Any submissions received July 1-31, 2025 will be deleted unread.
If your submission was made before July 1, it will be processed normally.
We will be closed to submissions during the month of July.
Any submissions received July 1-31, 2025 will be deleted unread.
If your submission was made before July 1, it will be processed normally.
Submission Guidelines
Please read and understand these guidelines. Submissions that do not follow the guidelines will be returned unread.
- We are looking for original fiction and nonfiction of 600 words or less, and will also consider much shorter microfiction including dribbles (50 words) and drabbles (100 words) - or stories that fall somewhere in between. We occasionally publish longer essays on the craft of writing, and editorial content, which may be longer.
- Our readers are adults. Most themes are acceptable; however, we are not interested in erotica, children's stories, fan fiction, bigotry, sadism and gore, proselytizing, extremism, cheap political potshots, or stories with living public figures as characters.
- You grant us the nonexclusive right to publish your work online and to keep it archived on our website. Beyond that, all ownership and rights remain with the author. If your work is subsequently published elsewhere, please acknowledge Sudden Flash as the site of first publication.
- You affirm that you are not submitting AI-generated text or AI-modified text.
- We are unable to offer payment at this time, but authors are always credited, and we promote your story on social media. We do not charge submission fees.
- REPRINTS: We will consider previously-published work under the following circumstances: (1) It has been at least a year since the piece was published. (2) You have retained all rights in the piece following its publication. (3) You advise us of where and when it was published, so that we can credit the original publisher.
- We urge you to CAREFULLY PROOFREAD your manuscript before submitting. Your word processor's spelling and grammar checkers may be helpful, but nothing beats the human brain for finding those annoying (and potentially embarrassing) little errors. One helpful technique for finding odd mistakes is to read the story out loud.
- Email submissions to yoursuddenflash@gmail.com with "Submission" as the subject line, and include the title and story in the body of the email. No attachments, please. FOR SECURITY REASONS, WE WILL NOT OPEN ATTACHMENTS. Just paste your story into the body of the email. And please, do not submit your story as an image - that just makes it hard for us. Simply paste the PLAIN text into the body of your email. Thanks!
- Include your name or pen name as you'd like it to appear with the story, and a brief, third-person biography (under 50 words). Feel free to include the link to your website or Bluesky account. The name you use as author of the story should be the same name that appears in your bio. Note that if you do not include a bio, we'll just make something up (it might not be flattering).
- If you submit more than one piece, please give each one its own, separate submission.
- Simultaneous submissions are fine, but if your story is accepted elsewhere, please let us know IMMEDIATELY.
- We know it's hard to wait for a response, so we make a sincere effort to read submissions and make decisions within a reasonable timeframe. Email and life being the unpredictable forces that they are, expect a response any time from one hour to three weeks.
- Remember, we are editors, and sometimes we edit. We are free (but not required) to correct punctuation, spelling, and small bits of grammar. If a piece needs major changes, however, we won't just do it without consulting the author.
- Questions or Problems?
If you use Duotrope, please report your submissions and response times there (for both acceptances and rejections).
Dear authors, we know how hard it can be to wait for a response. Please understand that sometimes our mailbox is flooded, and it takes more time than one might expect to read every submission. Hang in there! If you haven't heard from us after four or five weeks, please inquire.
