BODY SHOTS is once again OPEN for submissions—this time for short fiction and black-and-white photography! Subtle Body Press’s flagship short fiction journal debuted in Fall 2024—and now it’s back for Fall 2025! Volume 2 will continue in the tradition of Volume 1, adhering to its mantra that “Genre is a construct; genre does not exist.” To give you some idea of how diverse our selections can be, the previous issue contained a blend of contemporary realism, transgressive fiction, body horror, comedy, satire, crime fiction, magical realism, and science fiction / slipstream from a mix of established and award-winning authors, emerging voices, and first-time short fiction writers. We’re looking for stories that make us go, “I have got to share this with the world!” regardless of their genre, form, or trope. If you’d like to get a sense of what all did the trick for us last time, we highly recommend you pick up a copy of our first issue here, but doing so is not required.
WORD COUNT:
We are looking for works between 5000 and 7500 words. Shorter and longer works will also be considered, but they are unlikely to be accepted unless it's something we can't say no to. (And remember: it's easy for editors to say no, even to excellent stuff, because page space is limited, and more authors are out there writing well and submitting like crazy than most people realize.)
PHOTOGRAPHY:
Each issue of Body Shots also showcases stunning work by one or more black-and-white photographers. If you are a photographer, please submit your work for consideration. We will choose the photo—or photos—that most resonate with us in the construction of the front and/or back cover of the book.
RIGHTS (WORDS):
Subtle Body Press is acquiring First Worldwide rights for print, e-book/digital, and audiobook with a one-year exclusivity. If your work is accepted by a recognized "Year’s Best" anthology to be published in print form within that timeframe, that is acceptable as long as Subtle Body Press is given appropriate credit as the first publisher within the anthology as detailed in the publishing agreement you will sign upon your story's acceptance.
RIGHTS (PHOTOS):
We acquire nonexclusive worldwide rights and transformative rights for use in the print, e-book/digital and audiobook covers. Previously released work will be considered in this category, but make sure your other licensing agreements are nonexclusive and will not infringe upon our rights to use the photo(s) for Body Shots.
COMPENSATION:
Body Shots pays $150 for works of 5000+ words, $75 for works of 2500 to 5000 words, and $35 for works of 2500 words or less. For photographs, we are paying $150 per photo.
SUBMISSION:
To be clear, we only accept short fiction that has not been previously published in any medium! Please send your words (DOCX/PDF in Shunn format only, please) or photos for consideration to bodyshots (at) subtlebodypress (dot) com. We DO accept simultaneous submissions, but please let us know if your work is placed elsewhere before you hear back from us.
NOTIFICATION:
The first time around, Body Shots received an overwhelming volume of submissions for such a small team—and our editor reads everything, there are no slush readers here. Therefore, we do not offer feedback or send rejection emails for Body Shots!
If your story is accepted, you will be notified by email.
If we begin announcing the authors who were selected for our second issue and you haven’t heard from us yet, it means your story was not accepted.
If your story is not accepted, please don’t take it as a reflection on you or your writing. We are also authors and understand this process—trust us when we say, submissions are a gauntlet of subjectivity and circumstance, so you should never let it discourage you from writing!
Works that are not accepted for Body Shots, Vol. 2 may remain in our queue to be considered for Vol. 3, so unless you let us know that your work has found a home somewhere else, there’s still a chance you might hear from us next year!
GOOD LUCK AND HAPPY WRITING!
