These magazines pay $50 to $600 for short fiction; one magazine pays more for longer work. A few also accept other genres, like non-fiction and poetry. They’re open now, or will open soon for submissions. Deadlines are approaching quickly. – S. Kalekar

Mythaxis Magazine (UK)
Their X (formerly Twitter) bio says, “Speculative fiction without distraction”. Their recent social media post says, “We are particularly eager to see #CrimeFiction to fill out an upcoming All Crime issue…”
Deadline: 30 October 2023
Length: 1,000-5,000 words
Pay: €0.01/word
Details here.

Neon Hemlock Press
They are open for speculative fiction novellas from all writers for their 2025 series. “Genres: Science Fiction, Fantasy, Horror, Supernatural, Slipstream, & Weird. Hybrid work or difficult to categorize novellas are also welcome. … We are particularly interested in work that explores some element of queer experience, broadly speaking. “ Details of that, and all their calls, are on their guidelines page.
Deadline: 30 October 2023
Length: 17,500–40,000 words
Pay: Unspecified
Details here (scroll down) and here.

Banshee Literary Journal
This journal, from Banshee Press, welcomes fiction (including flash), non-fiction, and poetry from Irish and international writers. They are reading submissions for their 17^th issue (spring/summer 2024).
Deadline: 31 October 2023
Length: Up to 5,000 words for prose, up to 4 poems
Pay: €250 for a story/essay; €75 for flash fiction; €50/poem
Details here (also click on ‘We believe in paying writers’ for rates.)

Water Dragon Publishing: Dragon Gems
They want short speculative fiction; there is no theme. They also ask you read this announcement about their recent changes in the Dragon Gems publishing program. Submission is via a form.
Deadline: 31 October 2023
Length: 2,000-6,000 words
Pay: $0.02/word
Details here and here.
 

Kenyon Review: Forough Farrokhzad Folio
This is a submission call for a special folio on Iranian poet, translator, and filmmaker Forough (or Forugh) Farrokhzad. “In celebration of her ninetieth birthday in December 2024, this winter issue folio will newly gather translations by multiple translators of her original Farsi poems (whose rights are in the public domain), alongside writing across genres about, for, and after Forough: essays, stories, poems, and hybrid writing engaging with her through various modes. The folio seeks to complicate rather than complete, to share unusual permutations and under-acknowledged histories. From criticism to personal history, imagined interactions to visual bursts, the prompt is as open as the poet’s distinctive force.”
Deadline: 31 October 2023
Length: Up to 7,500 words for fiction and essays, up to 6 poems, up to 30 pages of plays or larger works
Pay: $0.08/word for prose up to $450, $0.16/word of poetry up to $200
Details here and here.

(And The Kenyon Review will open for the Patricia Grodd Poetry Prize for Young Writers from 1^st to 30^th November 2023; it is for poets who are sophomores and juniors in high school. The poems by the winner and runners-up will be published in The Kenyon Review, and the winner receives a full scholarship to the Kenyon Review Young Writers workshop. Details here.)

MetaStellar
They are accepting flash speculative fiction submissions during October. “We’re looking for your best enthralling, imaginative, or bone-chilling original fiction stories, as long as they’re 1,200 words or fewer.” They pay for flash fiction; they also welcome unpaid submissions and pitches all year round — in the form of reviews, essays, excerpts, and reprints.
Deadline: 31 October 2023 for flash fiction
Length: Up to 1,200 words
Pay: $0.08/word
Details here, here, and here.

FIYAH
They publish speculative fiction by Black writers of the African Diaspora. They also accept poetry, nonfiction, and art. They are reading submissions for an unthemed issue.
Deadline: 31 October 2023
Length: 1,000-15,000 words for fiction, and up to 1,000 words for poetry
Pay: $0.08/word for fiction, and $50/poem
Deadline: 31 October 2023
Details here.

Nightlight
This horror podcast only accepts fiction submissions from Black writers – one or both your parents must be Black. They are only open for short fiction submissions now. Flash fiction is closed.
Deadline: 31 October 2023
Length: 3,000-6,000 words
Pay: $200
Details here and here.

(And Love Letters to Poe is open to submissions from all writers, for original Gothic short stories and poems inspired by Edgar Allen Poe’s ‘The Tell-Tale Heart’ till 1^st November 2023. Pay is $0.01/word for stories up to 4,000 words. Their Kickstarter has funded. Details here.)

The First Line Journal
They want fiction (all genres) and poetry that begins with pre-set first lines, one for each quarterly issue. For nonfiction, they want critical articles about your favorite first line from a literary work. For fiction and poetry, for the Winter issue, the first line is:
‘It was the farthest north they had ever been.’
Deadline: 1 November 2023 for the Winter issue
Length: 300-5,000 words for fiction; 500-800 words for nonfiction
Pay: $25-50 for fiction, $25 for nonfiction, $10 for poetry (less postage fee for international writers – see guidelines)
Details here.

The Suburban Review
This Australian literary magazine is reading fiction, non-fiction, and poetry on the Tenacity theme. Or things featuring the number ten, as the journal is now ten years old.
Deadline: 1 November 2023
Length: Prose submissions of 500-2,500 words
Pay: AUD150-275 for prose, AUD125-275 for poetry
Details here and here

Fusion Fragment
Fusion Fragment is a Canadian magazine, and they publish science fiction and SF-tinged literary fiction. They will open a very short submission window, 3^rd to 5^th November 2023. Their pay rates have increased.
Reading period: 3^rd – 5^th November 2023
Length: 2,000-15,000 words
Pay: CAD0.04/word, up to CAD350
Details here. (The submission portal will open during the reading period.) 

Book XI: A Journal of Literary Philosophy
Book XI publishes personal essays, memoir, fiction, science fiction, humor, and poetry with philosophical themes. They want submissions on the ‘Books, reading, and being read’ theme. They want prose of 2,000 and 7,000 words, but will also consider shorter and longer works (see guidelines). They are affiliated with Hamilton College’s Arthur Levitt Center for Public Affairs. Please note, they will close earlier than the deadline if their submission cap is reached.
Deadline: 10 November 2023, or until filled
Length: 2,000-7,000 words for prose (see guidelines), up to 5 poems
Pay: $200 for prose, $50 for poems
Details here and here.

Spooky
This is a new cozy horror magazine, and they have opened submissions for their inaugural issue. “Cozy horror. Fun horror. Classy horror. Dare we say, wholesome horror? … perhaps the easiest way to understand what we mean is to read stories by some of the old masters we love: Ray Bradbury, Charles Beaumont, Richard Matheson, Robert Bloch, Roald Dahl. Watch classic episodes of Thriller, The Twilight Zone, and Night Gallery. Read old horror comics. Listen to radio dramas like Suspense, Quiet, Please, and Inner Sanctum Mysteries. … In short, we’re looking to provide a space for a type of storytelling that has largely gone out of style – dark and scary, but playful and approachable with an emphasis on plot.” They have a detailed list of things they like (including high concept settings and situations reminiscent of the pulps — Androids, ghosts, aliens, old castles, vampires, dinosaurs, deals with the devil, mad scientists, Wild West gunslingers), and what they don’t. They plan to have two submission periods a year, October-December for the spring/summer issue, and May-July for the fall/winter issue. Issues will be available in print and electronic copies.
Deadline: 31 December 2023
Length: Up to 5,000 words (prefer 2,500-3,000 words)
Pay: $0.01/word
Details here.

Apex Magazine
This popular, award-winning magazine of science fiction, fantasy, and horror is open for short fiction submissions now, as well as translations.
Deadline: Open now for short fiction
Length: Up to 7,500 words
Pay: $0.08/word; additional $0.01/word if the story is podcast
Details here.
(For their monthly flash fiction contest, Apex Magazine wants submissions up to 1,000 words, and pays $0.08/word to the winner. Submissions are based on a new theme/prompt every month, open to non-Patreon writers from 7^th to end-month; for this month, the theme is ‘Botanist’, details here – scroll down, and here, submit here, and the deadline is 31^st October 2023.)

Bio: S. Kalekar is the pseudonym of a regular contributor to this magazine. She can be reached here.