What we're looking for:

We are looking for all kinds of new (previously unpublished) human-authored fantasy stories. Stories do not need to feature liches (or other kinds of undead). Epic fantasy and cozy stories are particularly welcome.

We plan to accept one or two longer pieces (2000 to 7000 words) and several pieces of flash fiction or speculative poetry. We also invite submissions of microfiction — many of the Wandering Shop Stories would qualify.

Please submit only one work per submission cycle.

No simultaneous submissions, please. We aim to respond within the month to let you know if we've accepted your manuscript.

We propose to pay $0.03/word.

Submissions Process:

Submissions are currently open. Submissions will close on Oct 14, 2026

Submissions open for a two-week period to publish on a quarterly basis. (Jan -> Mar, Apr -> Jun, Jul -> Sep, Oct -> Dec).

If you have a completed manuscript you would like to submit, please format your document using the Shunn Manuscript Format. We personally prefer the Classic more than Modern format, but either is fine.

Save your document as an ODF, DOCX, or RTF file.

Email a brief cover letter with your document as an attachment to submissions@elegantlich.com. Your cover letter should include the genre and title of your manuscript, the word count, and a brief biography of the author.

We will reply to acknowledge receipt of your manuscript and again when we have made our selections for the current issue. We aim to review manuscripts within two weeks.