Flash Fiction from the Garden State, edited by James Blakey

What We Want:
New Jersey Fantastic invites you to explore the Garden State through strange, wondrous, and speculative flash fiction. From the boardwalks of the Jersey Shore to the mysterious Pine Barrens, from the gritty streets of Newark to the quiet suburbs and industrial ruins — we want stories that make New Jersey feel magical, eerie, or otherworldly.

Give us the Jersey Devil reimagined, a time-slip at a Turnpike rest stop, haunted diners in Asbury Park, sentient tomatoes in South Jersey farms, alternate realities in Hoboken, or whatever wild, wonderful, or terrifying vision you have of the Garden State.

What We Hope to See:
We especially love stories that draw on New Jersey’s unique history, landmarks, culture, and quirks. Here are some places, events, and icons we’d be thrilled to see reimagined through a speculative lens.

This is a list of suggestions. It’s not exhaustive. You can write abut any place, person, event, etc. in New Jersey.

If you see a strike through, that means we accepted a story on that subject. You can submit on that idea, but the odds are against you.

• Cowtown
• NJ–NY Line War (Write a half way decent story and it’s almost certain to get accepted)
• East-West Jersey Line
• Battleship New Jersey
• Princeton, Rutgers, Rowan, and Stockton Universities
• “Trenton Makes, The World Takes” Bridge
• Cherry Hill Mall (America’s first indoor mall)
• Bergen County Blue Laws
• Delaware Water Gap
• Brigantine Castle
• Lucy the Elephant
• Cape May–Lewes Ferry
• Classic Jersey boardwalks
• Miss America Pageant
• Atlantic City casinos
• The Jersey Devil (cryptid)
• NJ Devils (hockey)
• MetLife/Giants Stadium
• Action Park & Great Adventure
• Lincoln Tunnel, Holland Tunnel, George Washington Bridge
• Absecon, Barnegat, and Cape May Lighthouses
• Long Beach Island (LBI) – Surf City, Ship Bottom, Harvey’s Cedars, Beach Haven
• Sandy Hook
• Other shore towns: Avalon, Stone Harbor, Ocean City, The Wildwoods, etc.
• Pine Barrens
• Revolutionary War battles (Monmouth, Princeton, Trenton)
• Raritan Canal
• Pulaski Skyway
• The Hindenburg
• Fort Dix/McGuire AFB/Lakehurst NAS/Joint base Dix-McGuire-Lakehurst
• Drumthwacket
• Campbell’s Soup
• Batsto
• Secaucus Junction
• Carranza Memorial
• Tucker’s Island
• 1967 US-Russia Summit in Glassboro
• “War of the Worlds” Radio Broadcast

Submission Window:10/1/26 – 12/31/26  or until filled

Requirements:
Stories must contain a speculative element (Fantasy, Horror, Science Fiction, Slipstream, Magical Realism, etc.) and take place in New Jersey.Feel free to mash genres. The only thing we won’t accept is erotica.

Sex, Violence & Language:
We’re aiming for a PG-13 feel. No extreme gore or explicit sex. Watch the lnaguage.

Word Length:
700 to 1,000 words. Strict limits.

Original Stories Only:
No reprints.

Format:
Shunn Standard or Modern Manuscript Format.
Use three asterisks *** for scene breaks.
Italics for italics. Curly quotes and apostrophes. DOC or DOCX only. Do not use the Tab key.

We are doing blind submissions. Follow Shunn Format but remove your name and identifying information.

Eligibility:
Writers from anywhere in the world are welcome. You must be 18 years of age by January 31, 2027 (or have parental/guardian permission).

Simultaneous Submissions:
Please do not send simultaneous submissions.

Multiple Submissions:
You may submit up to five stories. Maximum of two stories per author will be chosen.

Generative AI:
No.

Submissions to the Whitaker Lyon open call may be screened using Pangram AI detection software. Per Pangram’s Privacy Policy (https://www.pangram.com/privacy-policy), submitted content is not used to train, develop, refine, or improve Pangram’s AI or machine learning models. Detection results are for informational purposes only and are not the sole basis for any final decision regarding a submission.

Payment:
$5 flat payment per accepted story

• eBook copy of the anthology
• Right to buy unlimited author print copies at 40% discount off the retail price.

Rights:
Exclusive worldwide English-language rights (print + electronic) for one year after publication, and non-exclusive rights in perpetuity thereafter.

Ready to Submit?

Use this link.

Questions:

Email us at WhitakerLyonPress [at] Gmail.com