A Washington, DC-based small press publishing speculative fiction, rad zines and queer chapbooks. We punctuate our titles with oracle decks, occult ephemera and literary candles. 

Neon Hemlock is a Washington, DC-based small press publishing speculative fiction, rad zines and queer chapbooks. We punctuate our titles with oracle decks, occult ephemera and literary candles. 

Publishers Weekly once called us “the apex of queer speculative fiction publishing” and we’re still beaming. 

Neon Hemlock

Swordspoint meets Star Wars
Ninefox Gambit meets The Devil Wears Prada
Ancillary Justice + An Unkindness of Ghosts + Pattern Recognition
Give us stories of satellites and sewists, terminals and tailors, dandies and dying stars.
Give us gossip wicked and vital, dinner parties salacious and droll, debutantes vile and intrepid.
Give us unforgivable rudeness and oppressive etiquette, scathing asides and dire gaffes.
Check out the crowdfund here.
The compensation level for original stories accepted to this anthology is $0.08/word.
Submit stories on Submittable between January 15th, 2026 and April 15th, 2026. Please contact us if there are any accessibility concerns for any reason and we’ll work with you.
We are looking for:
Wordcount:  Under 6,000 words. 1-4,000 words is probably the sweet spot.
Concept:   Space opera stories involving style, fashion and society.
What we want to see:  Science fantasy stories and elements of horror are very welcome. We’re using the most inclusive definition of queer. Queer, trans, ace, undefinable. Throughout, we’re looking for rich, varied, and nuanced understandings of gender, family, and ethnicity.
What we don’t want to see: Near-future sci-fi will be unlikely to find a home here. We’re not interested in work which focuses on unexamined bigotry or sexual violence.
Further vibe-check notes after getting some questions about what we are looking for: We're not looking for fantasy stories about fashion that don't have space opera vibes.
Guidelines:
Please submit your story in .doc or .docx file, formatted in something approaching Standard Manuscript Format.  Use italics for italics etc.  The editor has a slight aversion to Courier and a fondness for Georgia.
Please include a cover/query letter with the title, length, and a brief bio.  You may include links to your website/social media, and previous publications if any.  Please don’t stress about this cover letter, if we have additional questions about your submission, we’ll ask them.
Translations are welcome; payment will be split between the author and translator unless there is another agreement for such between the two parties.
Simultaneous submissions are fine, please withdraw immediately if you take another offer. Stories should be previously unpublished.
Please no multiple submissions.
Submissions are open to all.  Authors from underrepresented backgrounds and marginalized communities are strongly encouraged to submit.  Please don’t self-reject.
You should receive a confirmation of your submission via email. Please query after 120 days if you haven't heard back from us yet about this project.
We’d love if you tracked your submissions on Duotrope or the Submission Grinder.

What Elegant Stars: Queer Tales of Impossible Style

This is the first half of our submission call for the eighth Neon Hemlock Novella Series. The June window is for trans women and writers of color. The October window will be for all writers. Both windows are for the same novella series.

Novella Series

Submissions are open for all speculative fiction published in 2026 under 17,500 words that deal implicitly or explicitly with queerness. The anthology will be published in Fall 2027 by Neon Hemlock Press. Compensation is $0.01 per word. Editors and authors from underrepresented and marginalized communities are encouraged to submit. No rejections will be sent; selected authors will be contacted in April 2027.
Speculative fiction published in 2026 under 17,500 words dealing implicitly or explicitly with queerness. Authors from underrepresented and marginalized communities are strongly encouraged to submit.

WE’RE HERE: THE BEST QUEER SPECULATIVE FICTION

We are looking for:<div><br></div><div>Length: 7,500 to 12,000 words</div><div>A single novelette of that length, or multiple short stories (flash welcome)</div><div>We are particularly interested in work that explores some element of queer experience, broadly speaking. </div><div><br></div><div>Selected manuscripts will be printed as 5” x 5” chapbooks.  Our standard chapbook contract pays $100 and 25 copies from a limited print run of 100, with an option to discuss a 50/50 split when the initial print run sells out; you can sell your author copies as you like. </div><div><br></div>

Neon Hemlock

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Speculative Fiction Chapbook