Submission Guidelines
Ray Gun Revival (RGR) is an e-zine (electronic magazine) publication that is targeted to a particular kind of story and not a specific age group. With that said, we assume that those who will find the most interest in these stories will be readers aged 14 to adults.
Fiction
Poetry
Serials
Who Can Submit?
Publication Format & Rights
Simultaneous Submissions
Submission Process
Editorial Process
Publication Process
Fiction
Genre
Ray Gun Revival is all about space opera and golden age science fiction.
Acceptance CriteriaRay Gun Revival is a publication of fiction. Our criteria for acceptance are simple:
- Did we enjoy it? Was it interesting?
- Was it well written, excelling in both the art and craft of creative writing?
- Was it compatible with a PG-13 rating?
- Original Ideas / No Fan-Fic
As much as space opera and golden age sci-fi flirts with derivative ideas and characters, all work must be original (by which we mean "original characters in original settings"). Ray Gun Revival does not publish fan-fic.
Content Guidelines
It is possible to tell rarin' good stories without gratuitous...anything. It may be helpful to imagine the film industry’s PG-13 rating and apply it to fiction when considering if your submission is a good fit for Ray Gun Revival.
Regarding explicit violence: although science fiction often relies on combat, the basic impact can be retained without excessive description. Saying, "The morf wielded his sword deftly, slaying the zags in his path without breaking stride" is sufficient for moving the plot along. A good, "He ran the beast through with the spear" now and then is fine, too. Gore for the sake of gore is not going to score any points here. Focus more on the story and your characters. Battle scenes, be they in space or on some ethereal plain, are frequently more interesting to write than to read!
Regarding sexual content: if your story relies on the depiction of such actions, please tread carefully. We aren't looking for graphic scene depicting specific actions. Instead, the same plot movement can be achieved with treatment such as, “Roland's desires for Caitlin were too strong to resist, and he yielded to his temptation and her favors.” Finally, keep the age-old adage in the back of your mind, “When in doubt, leave it out.”
It is not our intention to offend, however, if you find yourself challenged by some of the ideas presented, you will have gotten your money's worth. (This is financial pun - the e-zine is free.)
Formatting Guidelines
All submissions should be in English and follow standard grammar rules as listed in the Chicago Manual of Style. Submissions with grammatical errors that detract from the enjoyment of the contribution will be rejected regardless of whether the effects were intentional or not.
Manuscripts should be in standard format. Due to the fact we publish electronically, we copy/paste your story for the magazine, and so the least amount of formatting we have to do, the happier our cranky Lord High Editor is. So we suggest (that's spelled "command") the following exceptions:
- you may use Courier or Times New Roman 12 pt font
- do NOT put your title in ALL CAPS
- do NOT double-space after each sentence
- do NOT double-space after a colon
- do NOT use underlining to indicate italics. If you want something in italics, use italics; the same rule goes for bold. Additionally, use italics for emphasis not ALL CAPS
- use the em dash character (Alt+0151) or two hyphens--just type the last word of the first section, two hyphens, and the next word--no spaces before or after the two hyphens
A few reminders (mostly to placate our grumpy Lord High Editor):
- use exactly one-inch margins all around (note: Word defaults to 1.25 inch side margins, please check)
- double space your manuscript (no additional blank line before or after the # separating scenes: hard return, #, hard return, begin typing again)
- indent your paragraphs (no additional blank line between paragraphs hard return, indent, and begin typing again)
- turn off Widows & Orphans
- turn off all the "smart" stuff: curly quotes, superscripts, fraction characters, one-space ellipses - basically anything that replaces what you type with something else
Standard Manuscript Format Exceptions:
If your word processor does not support "headers" do NOT use a running header. Microsoft Word supports headers and footers. Do NOT manually insert running headers. This messes up the process of setting the manuscript up for final publication.
If your word processor does not center-justify text, do NOT space or tab to center. Just leave the title, byline, and any scene-change lines on the left margin.
If you aren't sure about such things as how to set up a document's headers or page margins, this article entitled Formatting Submissions might help.
Please note that a properly formatted manuscript will bring happy smiles to our Slushmasters. They will think of you as a professional and begin reading your story with joy, or in the case of some, at least without grumbling.
On the other hand, a story submitted without regard to guidelines (and one with typos, spelling and grammatical errors as well) will automatically prejudice our illustrious Slushmasters against you. Why? you ask. Isn't it my most-fantastic story that counts, not how it is presented? Um. No. Not following our guidelines is the same as showing up for a job interview for a CEO position in a pretigious company wearing falling apart sneakers, torn jeans and a t-shirt, wearing three-day stubble, and obviously not having utilized a shower or deodorant for about a week. Think we're kidding? Ask our slushmasters yourself in our forums!
Style Guide
When in doubt, follow the Chicago Manual of Style. To aid our writers, we have compiled our own Style Guide, which lists clarifications and style preferences (some of which are reiterations from above - and yes, that's on purpose). We also have a section listing a some SF terminology.
File Format
We only accept text manuscript submissions in Rich Text Format (.rtf). Save As .rtf before you submit your manuscript file. Sending submissions in the wrong format may warrant the immediate and indiscriminate vaporization of your digital manuscript. You have been warned.
Do not use any punctuation or spaces in the file name, as our automated system will not accept it. Oh yes, it might tell you it's been accepted, but it lies. In truth, what the system will do is atomize your story without a blink of its eye. Again, you have been warned.
Word Length
We have no specific word length requirements. Having said that, shorter stories (~ 3500 words) will likely have a better chance of being picked up. Tell your story, then stop, then edit the dickens out of it until you've got something gleaming and pure. Then take another pass.
Keep in mind that the longer your work, the more riveting it will need to be in order to justify publication.
Reprints
We prefer original works, but will consider exceptional reprints. Authors should be sure they have the right to sell reprints. If your work is a reprint, include any necessary reprint information at the bottom of the work, such as "First appeared in XYZ, May 2005."
Payment
Ray Gun Revival is a for-pay publication that pays $5.00 for up to 1500 words and $10.00 for works longer than that for one-time electronic rights. We currently offer payment exclusively through PayPal.
That's just for starters.
We also have a tip jar and funnel any contributions back into the publication with the idealistic notion that enough readership and eventual corporate sponsorships and donations will pay the way for primo author's rates.
You gotta start somewhere.
If you believe in space opera and would like to see this genre surpass its prior glory, give us a shot and we will remember you when we're rich and famous, or at least when we have enough pesos in the tip jar to adopt a better paying scheme.
The Bottom Line
Our standard is to publish good stories, with compelling characters, in interesting settings, that are well told. If you have any questions, feel free to contact the RGR staff.
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Poetry
We are open to the scenario where the odd piece of space opera poetry crosses our virtual desks, wows us, and demands to be published. Short of that, we don't expect to publish much poetry. Perhaps that's not strong enough. Pigs will fly before we publish poetry.
Of course, this being a sci-fi rag, anything is possible, and we haven't automatically ruled poetry out. Just understand that it will be very difficult, and your work will have to wow us, change the world, and bring about world peace to even be considered. It is possible, just not remotely likely, so don't take it personally if we don't pick it up.
Payment
We are currently paying $5.00
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Serials
We love serial works. However, economic realities have derailed our former pipeline. Serial submissions are closed in the interim as we scout out other alternatives. Thanks for your patience.
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Reprints
We prefer original works, but will consider exceptional reprints. Authors should be sure they have the right to sell reprints.
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Who Can Submit?
New Authors and Illustrators
We welcome quality submissions from authors and illustrators, regardless of publication history, and will work with you to let you know what our submission standards, practices, and eclectic tastes are. Keep in mind that our formatting practices may not be standard compared to other publications.
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Publication Format and Rights
Ray Gun Revival is published as an Internet magazine. Ray Gun Revival, therefore, will contract with the author to secure One-time Electronic Publication Rights, for publication in the English language. (Internet format)
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Simultaneous Submissions
RGR will not accept simultaneous submissions. If we accept your submission, we expect to be able to publish it. If you have submitted to more than one publication and are accepted in more than one place, then what? If you have submitted elsewhere, wait for a response before submitting here.
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Global Guidelines and Submission Process
We rely on on-line submissions. The process is fairly easy.
- Register for the Forums.
- After you have registered, and received notice you have been activated, log in to the Forums.
- Click on “Author - Artist Tools.” That will take you to a page that allows you to manage your profile. Overview of Author - Artist Tools.
- Once you have updated your profile for the first time, you will see a button labeled “Add a new Submission.”
- Click the “Add a new Submission” and complete the following form.
Submission is easy. Just format your contribution (SEE "Formatting Guidelines" ABOVE), click the “Add a new Submission” link from the Author-Artist Tools menu, and follow the instructions.
No simultaneous submissions. If we accept your submission, we expect to be able to publish it. If you have submitted to more than one publication and are accepted in more than one place, then what? If you have submitted elsewhere, wait for a response before submitting here.
Payment upon acceptance. We are buying electronic rights to publish your work on the www.raygunrevival.com website.
We have no word length requirements. Tell your story, then stop. Since our medium is electronic, word length is not a limiting factor. Keep in mind that the longer your work, the more riveting it will need to be.
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Editorial Process
A pool of editors reviews all submissions. As writing is a combination of skill, talent, natural ability, and ongoing hard work, Ray Gun Revival will try to let you know
- If we like something, and would like to publish it as/is,
- If we like something enough to request revision,
- If we can't use something for our publication
- We do not promise to read entire submissions. For example, if grammar is prohibitively flawed, we might just remark on a couple of paragraphs and send it back. We will clearly note if we want you to revise and resubmit.
Finally, remember that taste, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder. If RGR doesn't pick up your submission for publication, we might just have different tastes. There's nothing wrong with that, and we will wish you all the best and hope that your work is picked up elsewhere.
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Publication Process
Ray Gun Revival Internet magazine will feature a new issue every month. As each new issue is published, the previous one becomes part of our archives.
The archives appear in the Vault within the forums of Ray Gun Revival.
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Conclusion
Life is hard. Fiction is easy. Bring some adventure back into your life. It's time for a little Ray Gun Revival, and we're packin' heat.
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