Update 9/1/2026: We are OPEN for submissions on the theme "human-shaped"

Our next General Submission period will begin Oct 1, 2026.

For the latest in our submission schedule, you can follow us on Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/cw/flashfictiononline

Or, on Bluesky - https://bsky.app/profile/flashfictiononline.bsky.social

GENERAL SUBMISSION GUIDELINES: >> HERE <<

AI POLICY: We do NOT consider submissions generated or polished by LLMs / AI. 

  • As an arts nonprofit organization, our mission is to uplift humans, and we are committed to publishing stories written and edited by humans. 
  • We reserve the right to reject any submission that we suspect to be primarily generated or created by language modeling software, Chat GPT, chat bots, or any other AI apps, bots, or software. 
  • We reserve the right to ban submissions from accounts, emails, or users who we believe or suspect have submitted AI-generated content. 
  • Because AI-stories cannot be copyrighted, we cannot enter into a contract with submitters (notice I didn't say "authors" here) that use AI to generate fiction.
  • As a magazine, we will never knowingly publish writing or artwork created by AI.

QUERIES: You can check on the status of your submission at any time via your Submittable account. If, after 10 weeks, your submission is still marked as "in-progress," you may email editor@flashfictiononline.com with QUERY in the subject line for an update on its status.

*** We do not reply to submissions sent via this email. Those are deleted unread. ***

COMPENSATION: Our 2026 rate is $100 for each original story. $36 for reprints. Our current contract language:

We will NOT consider stories that promote or affirm hatred, prejudice, or violence toward any group of people based on age, race, nationality, religion, sex, gender, political affiliation, disability, neurodiversity, or other social identity.

Love what we publish? Flash Fiction Online is funded through the generosity and support of our readers! Check out our Patreon here.

SPECIAL CALL -- "Human Shaped"
Ends on This opportunity will close after 1,000 submissions have been received.
Submit to SPECIAL CALL -- "Human Shaped"

Flash Fiction Online is seeking submissions for an issue of speculative fiction themed "Human Shaped." The guest editor for this issue is author and editor Ashlee Lhamon. Selected pieces will be published in our March 2027 issue.

What We’re Looking For

With the recent dramatic leaps in artificial intelligence, the question of what makes us human has never felt more pressing, complex, and relevant. For this call, we're asking for the inverse, stories about what is only "human shaped."

This is not a call for stories about AI. We want you to think more broadly—from recognizable human-shaped creatures like vampires and zombies, to shapeshifting aliens and doppelgangers to, yes, robots, and beyond. Think the imposter, the thing that has slipped on a human skin, or the person who started out human but has become something else—for better or worse. We're looking for unique and creative takes that incorporate a strong speculative element, whether it be fantasy or scifi.

Here are some human-shaped stories that we've loved:

As a reminder, Flash Fiction Online does not take stories that are AI-generated or -assisted in any way. The theme of this call is not an invitation to violate this rule. Any story suspected of being AI-generated or -assisted will be rejected.

All stories submitted through this page must fit the theme. If you have a story that doesn’t fit this theme, please submit during one of our general submission calls (the next one will be in October 2026).

WORD COUNT: 500-1,000 words. Because we are focused on flash fiction, this word count is firm.

GENRE: All speculative fiction genres are welcome, including fantasy, sci-fi, horror, slipstream, and magical realism. Humor is also welcome, but should incorporate a speculative element.

SCHEDULE: This call will be open from September 1-30, or until we reach 1,000 submissions (our cap in Submittable).

FFO reviews stories in two stages—a slush stage and a winnowing stage. In the slush round, first readers vote on stories to be passed forward. These top-tier stories are reviewed by the guest editor. The process generally takes about two months.

Ebook release date: March 1, 2027.

Each story then has its own release day on our website within the month of March.

ANONYMOUS SUBMISSIONS: Do not include your name, address, email, or other identifying information on your manuscript (header, byline, file name, etc). This allows our First Readers to evaluate your story based on the work alone.

SIMULTANEOUS SUBMISSIONS – YES

MULTIPLE SUBMISSIONS – NO, one story per author for this call.

REPRINTS – NO, not for this call.

RESUBMISSIONS – NO, please do not send stories that have been previously rejected by FFO.

PAYMENT & RIGHTS FOR ORIGINAL FICTION: For original (previously unpublished) fiction, Flash Fiction Online pays $100 per story for first electronic rights, with six months exclusivity, as well as a non-exclusive one-time right to publish the stories in an anthology. The author retains all other rights. Original stories must not have been previously published anywhere, including a blog or on Patreon. Payment is made via PayPal (preferred) or mailed as a check.

Flash Fiction Online