Authors & Artists Eligible

A solar flare is short-lived but has a huge amount of energy. Sunspot Lit is looking for the single short story, novel or novella excerpt, artwork, graphic novel, or poem that provides a noteworthy flare of creative energy. Literary or genre works accepted. 

First prize is $100 plus publication. Runners-up and finalists are offered publication. No restrictions on theme or category. Maximum of 500 words for short stories or nonfiction, 12 lines for poetry, and 8 pages for graphic novels, scripts, or screenplays. No size requirements for painting, photography, video stills or sculpture, although each entry is limited to one image.
   Open: Every year on May 1
   Close: Every year on May 31
   Entry fee: $5
   Prize: $100 cash and publication for the winner; publication offered to runners-up and finalists.
All fees are final and nonrefundable. Revised entries can be made by withdrawing the original entry and resubmitting, paying a new fee for the new submission.
Sunspot asks for first rights only; all rights revert to the contributor after publication. Works, along with the creators’ bylines, are published in the next quarterly digital edition an average of two months after contest completion, as well as in the annual print edition.
  Works should be unpublished except on a personal blog or website. Artists offered publication may display their pieces in galleries, festivals or shows throughout the publication contract period.  
  Enter as many times as you like, but only one piece per submission. Simultaneous submissions are accepted. Please withdraw your piece if it is published elsewhere before the winner is selected.
 

Single works of fiction or nonfiction, including scripts and screenplays, between 3,501 and 7,500 words can be submitted here.
Graphic novels should run 11 to 25 pages.
A single poem of 4 to 10 single-spaced pages (30 lines per page) is accepted here.
Please do not mix formats (for example, submitting a graphic novel and a poem in the same file). Also note that collections are not accepted in this open call.
Submissions that do not meet these guidelines will be declined without review.  

We accept all types of fiction and nonfiction including essays, memoir, travel, teleplays, film and stage scripts. Using this form, submit a single work of fiction or nonfiction up to 3,500 words. Graphic novels should run 5 to 10 pages. In your cover letter, please indicate length and whether the piece is fiction, nonfiction, or poetry.
Note that submissions that do not meet the guidelines will be declined without review.
Do feel free to submit in separate categories by using the same form any number of times. 

We accept all types of prose including essays, memoir, travel, teleplays, film and stage scripts. Using this form, submit:
One or two pieces of flash fiction or nonfiction; total length of submission not to exceed 1,000 words
OR
Up to three poems, each poem starting on a new single-spaced page; max 30 lines per page; total submission not to exceed three pages
OR
A graphic novel of 1 to 4 pages
OR
Artwork; total of two images
In your cover letter, please indicate length and whether the piece is fiction, nonfiction, or poetry.
Please do not mix submission formats (for example, provide one poem and one flash piece as a single entry). Mixed submissions will be rejected without review.
Note that submissions that do not meet the guidelines will be declined without review.
Do feel free to submit in separate categories by using the same form any number of times. 

Sunspot Lit's Angel Leya is now offering feedback on genre fiction, with a particular emphasis on novel excerpts. She specializes in fantasy and paranormal, with experience in light sci-fi, contemporary romance, and YA.
For works up to 5,000 words, you will receive a few paragraphs (about half a single-spaced page) of comments intended to strengthen your work. For works up to 12,500 words, you'll receive around a full single-spaced page of comments. NOTE: Please do not request advice on where or how to submit work for publication, as this type of guidance is beyond the scope of the feedback on offer.
Submissions are capped each month, and the form will shut off once the cap is reached.
Angel Leya is the coauthor of the USA Today bestselling book, Shifted (Siren Prophecy series), with over 12 additional novels, novellas, and short stories to her name. She’s been published in  several anthologies, including Fiddlehead Press and The Alliance of YA Authors.
She reads avidly (and writes) in the fantasy and paranormal genres, but she also has a soft spot for a good light sci fi or contemporary romance. Angel specializes in giving practical advice, with a bent toward characterization and dialog, as well as word flow, breaks in logic, and hooks.
Using this form, submit one story or excerpt. Submit as many times as you like using a new submission form for each story or excerpt.