"There's a healthy dose of surreal scifi and cross-genre slipstream shorts between the covers, and a variety of poetry and prose poems. But it's the quirky humor...that really comes through in [the] magazine and makes it different than a lot of other small press cross-genre 'zines, which take themselves far too seriously." - Bill Ward

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Kaleidotrope tends heavily towards the speculative -- towards science fiction, fantasy and horror -- but we like an ecclectic mix and are therefore always eager to read interesting work that falls outside those categories. Man does not live on space ships, elves and ghostly axe murderers alone, after all. We'd suggest picking up a recent issue to familiarize yourself with the zine, or at least reading some of the other work by our past contributors to get a sense of what we're looking for and what we like. (They're talented people, so you won't regret it if you do.)

In the end, what we want is interesting and unconventional work, well-written stories and poems that surprise and amuse us, shock and disturb us, that tell us things we didn't know or reveal old truths in brand new ways. We want strange visions of distant shores, of imaginary countries and ordinary people, and work that doesn't lose sight of entertainment and the joy of good writing.
Fiction

We will consider stories up to 10,000 words. For anything beyond that, we would appreciate a query first. We like well crafted flash fiction, too, although preferably not under 250 words.

Poetry

We will consider all forms, although generally we prefer poems under 100 lines. Rhyming is okay. Humor is encouraged.

Nonfiction

We want essays, memoirs, creative nonfiction, thoughtful criticism. In past issues, we have featured essays on popular culture -- from Transformers to fembots to Doctor Who -- interviews with working authors, and short book reviews. If you have an idea for something and don't know if it would fit, just ask.

Artwork

We are looking for sketches, comics, cartoons, photography, et cetera. All work must be in black and white, and preferably in JPEG format.

Reprints

We will consider reprints, but there a few things we need to know at the time of your submission -- namely:

  • Where has the work previously appeared? Include paying and non-paying markets, as well as any websites where you may have posted the work yourself.
  • When did the work appear, and is it still readily available elsewhere?
  • Has it been modified at all since these earlier appearances?
All of these will factor into the decision on whether or not to reprint. Just keep in mind that reprints will be a tougher sell.

Rights

For original work, we buy First Serial Rights. For all reprints, we also ask that the work not appear anywhere else until publication. All rights revert to the author upon publication.

Payment

Not much, presently, but better than a sharp stick in the eye. (Unless it's one of those high-quality imported sticks from Sweden or Denmark or someplace like that.)

Final payment will vary with the length of your submission. We typically pay $5 per piece, on publication, with 2-3 complimentary copies of the zine. For shorter flash fiction and reprints, we only offer gratis copies. This isn't a reflection on the quality of your work, just the reality of what we can afford.

Response Time

Typically 1-3 months. Feel free to query if you have not heard from us after that.

Submitting

We prefer submissions to be sent as e-mail attachments to kaleidotrope@gmail.com. You may, if you prefer, paste the text of your submission into the body of the e-mail itself -- although this is less advisable for longer pieces (and obviously not possible for artwork). Please follow standard format for all manuscripts. Your name and contact information must be included. We'd also like your cover letter to include a little information about yourself -- namely where else your work has appeared recently and where you heard about Kaleidotrope.

If you are unable to submit via e-mail, please send your submissions to:

Fred Coppersmith, Editor
Kaleidotrope
P.O. Box 25
Carle Place, NY 11514
Please include a SASE if you would like a written response and/or your manuscript returned to you.

Please keep multiple submissions to a reasonable minimum (i.e. no more than 3 at any one time). We do not accept simultaneous submissions.

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Kaleidotrope P.O. Box 25 Carle Place, NY 11514
kaleidotrope@gmail.com