Submission Guidelines For Short and Weird
There are plenty of great short-form pubs on Medium. I even write for a few of them myself. The problem is “short-form” is too broad of a category. The miniature stories I like to write are absurd, juvenile, and borderline offensive, and while these other pubs are willing to take them, my stories tend to not fit in with the rest of their content.
That’s why I made my own pub.
But it doesn’t have to be just my pub — it can be your pub, too.
What we’re looking for: Strange and amusing stories that are ≤ 300 words in length. Does that make it technically a “dribble” and not “microfiction?” The internet is unclear on all these definitions. I’m choosing to call what we do here “microfiction” because I like the way it sounds.
Our preference is for fiction, but if your story is absurd enough, then it doesn’t matter if it’s “true” or not. Subject-wise, anything goes — as long as you follow Medium’s rules. Transgressive fiction and/or erotica stories are welcome.
Format The current standard seems to be: image at the top, then the title, then the subtitle, then the story, then your links. Trends change, and I will be flexible. My own microfiction stories rarely have subtitles.
And whatever. It doesn’t really matter. Do whatever you want.
But do I really need an image? In my opinion, an image is the only thing that separates a piece of microfiction from a Tweet. If you really hate images, then don’t include one, but I will probably add one myself unless you specifically tell me not to.
If you do include an image, the usual rules apply: Unless you own it, attribution must be paid, and links provided. Refer back to Medium Rules for clarity on this issue.
Tags I recommend using “microfiction” and “weird humor” or “weird fiction,” but these are just suggestions. When it comes to tags, I say follow your heart.
Other Requirements
- I’d love it if you would follow the pub. I know that sounds desperate, but I’m a needy guy.
- Be weird and/or funny.
What can I expect from my editor? I will read your story and then publish it. If I have questions, I will ask. If there are grammatical and/or spelling errors, I will correct them because I am OCD, so if you’ve made any such errors intentionally for effect, let me know.
I doubt this will even come up, but I’ll only publish one story per writer per day.
If you want to publish here at Short and Weird, leave a comment on this article and you will be added as a writer.