PFN – Stillhouse Press Seeking Book-length memoir crossed with anything you like: Open Call for the Absurd

OPEN CALL FOR THE ABSURD — 2024

Stillhouse Press seeks book-length memoir crossed with anything you like.

Fiction, poetry, and disgusting little experiments are welcome here. Please send us your clever observations of the world, from the mundane to the mountainous. Send us your flotsam and jetsam, your sorcery jammed into short spaces. We want your smoke and mirrors, your absolutely bizarre, your weird little nuggets, your fantastical. Your life story as told through an elaborate music video where the entire budget was blown on historically accurate petticoats. Your childhood filtered through the colors of a kaleidoscope. The dissolution of your parents’ marriage through the brands of vodka they purchased. The totaling of your first car after misplacing your ferret in the backseat. Tell the truth, but tell it slanted.

Your cover letter should include
— a short synopsis of the work and a short bio.
— information about your writing background, online presence, and involvement with the writing community.
— any and all relevant content warnings for readers entering your manuscript.

We do not welcome
— manuscripts that graphically center traumatic events such as sexual assault, child molestation, intimate partner violence etc. without significant reflection and consideration.
— manuscripts that include triggering or graphic topics without content warnings.
— submissions that explicitly endorse prejudice, racism, xenophobia, classism, sexism, ableism, fat-shaming, homophobia, islamophobia, antisemitism, or contain gratuitous violence.

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES

• We accept submissions via Submittable. Paper and email submissions are not accepted. There is a nominal $5 fee/submission for regular submissions to cover our own Submittable expenses.

• Only complete, full-length manuscripts will be considered for publication. Our ideal manuscript is between 50,000 – 100,000 words for prose. Please include word count in the top right corner of the first page for all prose submissions.

• Please attach manuscripts in either Word .doc, .docx, or PDF format.

• Simultaneous submissions are allowed. Please notify us immediately if your manuscript is accepted elsewhere.

• All manuscripts should include a cover letter with a short synopsis or overview of the work. Authors are also encouraged to share information about their writing background, online presence, involvement with the writing community, and inspiration for their submission.

• Previously published or forthcoming manuscripts will not be considered; previously published single stories, essays, poems, and chapbooks are acceptable if included in a longer manuscript submission. Please include an acknowledgements page at the beginning or end of the manuscript.

• Stillhouse Press cannot consider work from anyone currently or recently affiliated with guest judges, the press, or George Mason University’s Creative Writing MFA/BFA programs.

• All submissions will be considered for publication.

• We take time in considering all submissions. Expect 6-9 months for a decision. We welcome queries after 9 months have passed. Queries about manuscripts under review can be sent via email to submissions@stillhousepress.org. Queries should include your name, the date of submission, and the manuscript title.

• Please, no AI-generated prose. AI-generated prose and other submissions that do not meet our guidelines will be automatically declined.