Upcoming Calls

Re-Enlist

Pole to Pole Publishing is seeking short, re-print fiction for the Re-Enlist anthology to be published in late 2021.  Re-Enlist will join our previous submission calls (now closed) for Re-Launch, Re-Enchant, Re-Quest and Re-Terrify and others in the Re-Imagined Series of anthologies. Re-Enlist requires dark science fiction stories related to the military and war.

Send us military science fiction stories, ones you’ve had published before, for which full rights have already reverted back to you. We have open minds about what constitutes “military” and “science fiction” but we’re insisting on good stories told well. For this anthology, we want stories with engaging characters, thrilling action, rational plot lines, a compelling writing style, and meaningful themes.

Our preference is for hard science fiction. We’re okay if you bend the laws of physics for the sake of the story, but don’t break them completely. It’s unlikely we’ll accept fantasy stories with magic elements.

In keeping with the common element of Pole to Pole Publishing’s other reprint anthologies, Re-Enlist seeks stories that are dark in tone, but not strictly horror tales. Give us fear, death, and the disturbing side of your characters’ natures, but be mindful of the restrictions listed below under “Hard Sells” and, especially, “What We Don’t Want.”

Payment:   Payment is $10 per story, paid on acceptance  (contract must be signed), via PayPal only; plus, one electronic and one print copy of the antho.  (If you do not have a PayPal account, please do not submit your work.)    

Right Purchased:   

– The non-exclusive right to collect the stories into an anthology, published in 2021 and sold thereafter. Re-Enlist may be included in book bundles with the other books in the series.  

– The non-exclusive right to publish the story to the Pole to Pole Publishing Patreon blog (for patron’s eyes only), should we ever start a patreon.    

General: Stories should be 3,000-5,000 words and meet  the central theme of the anthology. Reprints currently available on line  are not eligible. Preference is for stories that haven’t been published in at least a year.  Older reprints will carry more weight than new  ones.  Author must possess the right to offer the story for submission.    

Hard Sells: 

Profane and vulgar language — because we market to both adult and YA  readers. If we are interested in your story, we may ask you to edit  profane and vulgar language as a condition of publication.    

First Person and Present Tense. We’ve published both: when the  stories were very, very good. We want to let you know up front that  we’re going to reject this most of the time. It’s just not our  preference.    

Excessive Gore and/or violence. Blood and guts are fine—as long as they’re part of the story and not the story itself.  

Sex. See above about marketing to a wider audience.    

What We Don’t Want: No rape, torture, etc. of children. No animal abuse. No stories with  characters from a copyrighted world that belongs to someone else.  No Poetry. Only one story from each author will be considered.     

Formatting: 

No tabs. Please format the document with a first line indent.  

Curly quotes, please—no straight quotes.    

If you’re not sure if your story is suitable, don’t query; just go ahead and submit and let our editors decide.     

Opens: February 1, 2021

Deadline: May 31, 2021 or until filled. Be aware that all of  our anthologies have filled before the deadline, so please don’t wait  until the last minute to submit.