Get Published in The New Flesh

Do you want to get flash fiction published, but your work is slightly out of the ordinary? You should seriously consider submitting your work to The New Flesh! The New Flesh is a relatively new online literary magazine specialising in "odd flash fiction" – with flash fiction being defined as 1,000 words or less, and odd being defined as "SciFi, horror, fantasy, bizarro, et cetera." Have a read of The New Flesh, and you'll see what they mean by "et cetera".

I interviewed William Pauley III, editor of The New Flesh, and asked him all about his journal, and how to get published in it. Mr Pauley's answers are essential reading for anyone looking to get flash fiction published anywhere, not just in The New Flesh

[The interview appears below. The questions are appear in bold, followed by Mr Pauley's answers].

What are your motivations for running The New Flesh – why do you do it?

As a writer of odd fiction, I often find it difficult to find a place to submit my writing where it seems to fit and doesn't stick out like a sore thumb. If you read the average horror fiction site on a daily basis then every once in a while you will come across a story that is really strange and eerie more than it is straight up horror. Those are the stories that we want for The New Flesh.

How did you come up with the name The New Flesh?

I am a huge fan of David Cronenberg. The New Flesh is from his film Videodrome. "Death to Videodrome... long live the new flesh!"

Authors published at The New Flesh don't get paid, but your journal suggests that they may pick up some dedicated readers. Can you expand on this?

The New Flesh is still a baby - It is only four months old. However, it isn't unusual for a story to get 30 or more comments in just a day or two. I could be wrong, but I haven't seen so many dedicated readers to many other flash fiction sites out there. A lot of sites post stories day after day and don't receive a single comment. At The New Flesh, that is a rarity. I promise that if you have a story accepted for The New Flesh, then you will have a good number of people reading your work.

Do you think that publishing credits with online journals like The New Flesh help a writer get published later in print?

Yes and no. I think that having your work published on an online journal is a great way to build not only a fan base, but it's a great way to build your self-esteem as a writer. Confidence is important in the writing world.

The reason why it would not matter? Well, any wise editor will read the story first and then go back and read the cover letter and bio. I always let the story speak for itself. If it's good, then I'll be really interested in knowing more about the author. If you've got a great story, then your publishing credits won't matter.

Your journal publishes a flash fiction piece every weekday. Can you give us an idea of how many submissions you get in a typical week? How big is that slush pile?

I get about 15 submissions a week. Five of those stories are accepted for that week's New Flesh. I'd say that the acceptance-rejection ratio is about 50 / 50. We always respond ASAP. We've never taken longer than ten days to respond to a submission.

What do you hate to see in a submission - what makes you press delete the quickest?

I absolutely hate when an author summarises their story in the cover letter. Let the story speak for itself. I can't stress this enough. Of course, like any editor, excessive grammar and/or punctuation errors is always a turn off. You'd be surprised at the amount of submissions that I have received that don't have any punctuation at all.

Also, don't send your story as an attachment unless the editor prefers it that way. Use the submission guidelines! Also, avoid stationery backgrounds and photos.

I love weird stories, but I hate stories that are weird only for the sake of being weird. I want emotion, I want to think, I want to care about your characters while I'm reading your story. Don't send me your story about a girl with a marshmallow for a head and fly swatted arms unless there is some substance to it. Don't make your story pointless or meaningless.

What do you love to see – what makes you want to publish a story right away?

Something I've never seen before. Something that makes me want to call up a friend and share it with everyone I know.

If a story is rejected, do you recommend revising it, trying it somewhere else, or trying something different?

Well, that all depends on the story. If the problem is with excessive grammar and/or punctuation errors or just a poorly written paragraph or two, then I will suggest the author rewrite it and send it back to me. But if it's something I am not interested in publishing whatsoever, then I will wish them the best of luck getting it published somewhere else.

Do you have any specific pointers for writers preparing submissions to The New Flesh that you'd like to share?

Really, just go by the submission guidelines. That is the only advice that I have. Nothing turns an editor off of your story faster than a submission that fails to abide by the submission guidelines.