The Chance Issue

UPDATE: SUBMISSIONS ARE NOW CLOSED

We have just finished putting together the Fantasy issue (thank you to all who submitted, the magazine will hit newsstands next week), allowing us to open the doors for new submissions. Our next theme is ‘chance’ and all the potential ramifications of taking a chance — as well as those of its bedfellows coincidence and opportunism.

Writers might want to examine what happens when you take a chance, the positive and negative outcomes of doing something extraordinary through luck or coincidence, chance encounters, impossible coincidences, the “fates” aligning to hand over an opportunity. There’s an old creative writing rule of thumb: “Coincidences to get characters into trouble are great; coincidences to get them out of trouble are cheating.” Do you agree? What would you do with your characters given the chance?

Successful submissions must display excellent writing, creative flair and originality. We are looking for a mixture of humour, social commentary, honesty and thrilling storytelling. We welcome all genres and writing styles.

Submissions for the Winter issue are open until 9am GMT on Monday, 2 September.

The Chance issue will be published in November 2019.

Guidelines for submission:

Poems: 12 to 40 lines
Short stories: 1,000 to 3,000 words
Flash fiction: 100 to 1,000 words

Three entries maximum. Entries over the word count will not be considered.

To discover more about Popshot, pick up a copy from WHSmiths or another reputable newsagent. You can subscribe to either hard copy or digital editions. Four issues are published per year showcasing the best emerging fiction writers.

To see your writing published and illustrated, head to our submit page for the full guidelines. Include the issue and form of your work in the subject line (i.e. Chance – Poetry). We are open to original contributions from anyone, anywhere in the world.

At Popshot towers we have just wrapped up the Fantasy issue, which will be on sale from 8 August.

Drop us a line at hello@popshotpopshot.com

Illustration by Shauna Mckeon

To ensure that you never miss a future issue of the print magazine, subscribe from just £24 for 4 issues.