short story

Call for Submissions: The First Line
Run By: The First Line
Genre: Short Story
Payment: $20.00 (US) for fiction and $10.00 (US) for nonfiction.
Spring Issue Deadline: February 1st
Summer Issue Deadline: May 1st
Fall Issue Deadline: August 1st
Winter Issue Deadline: November 1st

We love the fact that writers around the world are inspired by our first lines, so here is what we are looking for.

Fiction: All stories must be written with the first line provided. The line cannot be altered in any way, unless otherwise noted by the editors. The story should be between 300 and 3,000 words. The sentences can be found on the home page of The First Line's Web site, as well as in the prior issue. Note: We are open to all genres. We try to make TFL as eclectic as possible.

Non-Fiction: 500-800 word critical essays about your favorite first line from a literary work.

All Stories: Writers should include a two- to three-sentence biography of themselves that will appear in the magazine should their story run.

Multiple Submissions: We don't mind if you want to submit multiple stories for the same issue. However, it is unlikely we will use more than one of your stories in the same issue.

Four-Part Stories: If you think you are up to the challenge, you can write a four-part story that uses the spring, summer, fall, and winter sentences. However, all the parts must be submitted at once (a single e-mail or snail mail) before the February 1st deadline. (Each part will be published in its respective issue.)

Further details here.

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