Blog - Uncharted

Uncharted Magazine Short Story Award: The Aftermath

We invite writers to submit to the Uncharted Magazine Short Story Award: The Aftermath from June 1 to August 6, 2023. This award is for all three genres: SF/F, Thriller/Horror, and Mystery/Crime. Guest Judge A. C. Wise will choose three winning stories from our shortlist. We’re excited to offer the winner of this prize $2,000 […]

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Voyage YA by Uncharted Anthology Contest

Thank you to everyone who submitted short stories!  Check back in mid-July for the results! Big changes are at work for Voyage this year! We are moving all of our prize opportunities to two biannual anthologies dedicated to top-notch YA writing. We want to give our incredible contributors a chance to see their name in print! We […]

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AI Flash Challenge

This contest is now closed. Thank you to everyone who entered! We’ll have a longlist in around ten weeks! We’re challenging writers to create 1,000-word-max flash genre stories in ten days or fewer! You’re invited to submit to the AI Flash Challenge from May 04 to May 14, 2023. We often find that the blank […]

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The Power of Language: An interview with Author Ai Jiang

Ai Jiang is a Chinese-Canadian writer and an immigrant from Fujian. Her debut novella, Linghun, will be published this spring, as will her collection, Ai Jiang’s Smol Tales From Between Worlds. She also recently announced a new novelette, I Am Ai, coming in June. Her stories have appeared or are forthcoming in The Magazine of […]

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Unexpected Threads: An Interview with Dr. Phoenix Alexander

Dr. Phoenix Alexander is a speculative author, scholar, teacher, and curator. His work has appeared in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, Escape Pod, The Dark, Deadlands, Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Black Static, and Science Fiction Studies, among others. He is a full member of the Science Fiction Writers of America (SFWA), and served as […]

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2023 Uncharted Magazine Thrilling Story Award

This contest is now closed. Thank you to everyone who entered! We’ll have a longlist in around ten weeks! We invite writers to submit to the Uncharted MagazineThrilling Story Award from January 1 to February 28, 2023. This Award is for all three genres: SF/F, Thriller/Horror, and Mystery/Crime. Guest judge Gabino Iglesias will choose three […]

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The Theoretical Possibilities:An Interview With Kristen Loesch

Kristen Loesch’s newest book, The Regeneration of Stella Yin, will be released November 30, 2022, from Ad Hoc Fiction. This novella-in-flash tells the story of two women inextricably linked in a technological quest to overcome grief and trauma. Through precisely crafted prose, Loesch explores artificial super intelligence, the singularity, and the human drive for survival. […]

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Short Story Prize Winners & Writers Shortlisted

And the three co-winners are… 1. Men Will Die by Celeste Kallio 2. I Will Never Be Alone by Alejandro Gutierrez 3. Jacaranda Park by Kate Maruyama The Runners-Up are… 1. God fall by Kira Sutherland 2. Parts Girls by Nina Simon Comet Wine by Ken Altabef Us and Them by Siobhan Chesson Men Will […]

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Writing Saturnalia: Revelation for your Character and Reader

Writers spend a lot of time thinking critically about beginnings and ends. These are crucial moments in creating a satisfying story, but they’re also the easiest turning points to consider. What’s the first moment of trouble, the first moment of choice? What’s the final confrontation, the culmination of the character’s desires and needs? Execution, of […]

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Ripple of Unease: An Interview with Jasmine Sawers

Jasmine Sawers is a writer, editor, and teacher. Sawers’s fairy tale flash collection, The Anchored World: Flash Fairy Tales and Folklore, was recently released by Rose Metal Press. From the publisher: The Anchored World: Flash Fairy Tales and Folklore “Drawing on both Western fairy tales and Thai legends, these flash fictions combine the myth and […]

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Writing Saturnalia: A Story Launch Thrives on an Easy Target

I’ve been writing and submitting fiction for nearly two decades now, and while I don’t have an itemized list, I believe I’ve received about one trillion rejections. One particular criticism appeared again and again: The opening is too slow and the stakes are too low. This complaint began to wear at me like a stone […]

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Short Story Prize judged by Lincoln Michel Longlist

Comet Wine Us and Them Lotus Eater Men Will Die I Will Never Be Alone The Painted Child Appetite A Life Never Lived A Stroke of Luck Together Forever B. waterways The Stain Beast in the Fog Almost Heaven or How I Unraveled in the Mortaverse Jacaranda Park Made You Look Retrieved: Notes from Diver […]

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The Spare Moments: An Interview with Isabel J. Kim

Isabel J. Kim is a Korean-American science fiction and fantasy writer based in New York City. An attorney by day, she also co-hosts Wow If True, a podcast about internet culture. Her stories have been included in the Locus Recommended Reading List, as well as TOR.com’s Must Read list. Her work has been published in […]

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Choosing Joy: An Interview Gwen Kirby

Gwen E. Kirby’s recent collection Shit Cassandra Saw (Penguin) is filled with lightning-bright characters in unexpected situations. The stories, which have won too many awards to list, span centuries, centering women in their challenges and triumphs. Gwen has a lot to say, and she does so with elegance and wit. Thanks to Gwen for taking […]

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Uncharted Magazine Short Story Award

Add to Calendar We invite writers to submit to the Uncharted Magazine Short Story Award from May 1 to July 31, 2022. This Award is for all three genres: SF/F, Thriller/Horror, and Mystery/Crime. Guest judge Lincoln Michel will choose three winning stories from a shortlist. We’re excited to offer 3 winners of this prize $1000 […]

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An Unexpected Dragon in the Sky: An Interview with Maria Haskins

Maria Haskins is a Swedish-Canadian writer, translator, and reviewer of speculative fiction. She’s well known in the community for her tireless support of genre work, publishing a monthly roundup of speculative fiction for her newsletter, as well as a quarterly roundup for Strange Horizons. She consistently profiles the very best new stories, and her Behind […]

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Here’s How Your Favorite Authors Get Their First Draft Down

A few drafts in, we get so familiar with our YA manuscripts that the story begins to feel like an old friend. We know it backward and forwards, where each scene is and what happens in each scene. But we also smooth out the edges in our minds and it becomes harder and harder to look at our manuscripts with a critical eye. We get to a point where we go over all our pages only to discover we don’t know how to push them forward. To help out when that happens, we’ve compiled a few prompts to help you get fresh eyes on your story

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An Interview with Chris Panatier, Author of Stringers

Chris Panatier’s second novel, Stringers, releases on April 12. Publisher’s Weekly gave the book a starred review, and the American Library Association called it “a rip-roaring space adventure” and a “touching exploration of what sentient beings owe to one another.” The author himself says Stringers is “a heartfelt sci-fi vehicle for potty jokes.” I’m a […]

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Online Classes for YA writers

As a YA writer, you might be located in any part of the world. At one point, your resources for writing might have been limited by how far you could travel. However, with the internet and the spread of online learning, it’s become more common to take writing courses from your computer.

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How to Budget for YA Writing Competitions

You’ve written your first draft, second draft and perhaps a few more. You’ve gotten your book as far as you can and you’re thinking about the next step–sharing your work. Placing your words in the hands of beta readers is a daunting task. It can be scary to share your story–but feedback from others can really make your manuscript shine.

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Uncharted’s Horror/Thriller Short Story Contest Long List

We’re so excited to announce the 35 titles of our long list! The submissions we received were so chilling, thrilling, and memorable that we’ve had a hard time narrowing down the list! We’ll announce the shortlist titles next week! Thank you for your patience! The Gunfighter and the Undertaker Potashe Preserve To Serve With Both […]

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How to Set Daily Writing Goals as a YA Writer

With a daunting task like writing a book, It’s hard to see the finish line. That can often be difficult and demotivating. That’s why it’s helpful to set daily writing goals. You’ll start feeling accomplished at the end of the day, and before you know it, all of your little moments of word count will add up to a whole book.

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Uncharted’s 2021 Crime/Mystery Short Story Award Short List

We’re so excited to announce the 14 titles of our Short List! The submissions we received were so chilling, thrilling, and memorable that we’ve had a hard time narrowing down the list! We’ll announce the winners in the next 2-4 weeks! The Pull The Assassin’s Portrait You Seen Our Girl? Self-Preservation The Man in the […]

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How to Find an Agent for Your YA Novel

If you want to get traditionally published, finding an agent is often the next step after you’ve finished revising your manuscript. It can be really helpful to have a collaborator, a partner and new eyes on something you’ve worked on for so long, but it’s important to find the right person.

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Prompts to Help You Get Fresh Eyes on Your YA Manuscript

A few drafts in, we get so familiar with our YA manuscripts that the story begins to feel like an old friend. We know it backward and forwards, where each scene is and what happens in each scene. But we also smooth out the edges in our minds and it becomes harder and harder to look at our manuscripts with a critical eye. We get to a point where we go over all our pages only to discover we don’t know how to push them forward. To help out when that happens, we’ve compiled a few prompts to help you get fresh eyes on your story

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An Interview with Nick Olson, author of Afterglow

Nick Olson’s newest book, a speculative novel-in-flash titled Afterglow (Alien Buddha Press), will be released in June. Nick is a freelance editor and author of both literary and speculative fiction. His previous novels, Here’s Waldo and The Brother We Share, are available now. He is the editor of lit zine (mac)ro(mic). Nick let me take an early peek at Afterglow and I loved the complex future history he has envisioned.

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Uncharted’s 2021 Crime/Mystery Short Story Award Long List

We’re so excited to announce the 26 titles of our longlist! The submissions we received were so chilling, thrilling, and memorable that we’ve had a hard time narrowing down the list! We’ll announce the shortlist titles next week! Thank you for your patience! The Sixth of October Help, Satan! Storm in a Teacup Bad Beat […]

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Uncharted’s Summer Sci-Fi/Fantasy Short Story Award Short List

We’re so excited to announce the 15 titles of our shortlist! The submissions we received were so creative, thrilling, and deeply envisioned that we’ve had a hard time narrowing down the list! We’ll announce the winners in early January! Thank you for your patience! From this list, Ken Liu will select 3 winners! The Organic […]

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Announcing the 2022 Voyage YA Novel Excerpt Contest Results

It’s the moment you’ve been waiting for! Today, the Voyage Team is over the moon to announce the winners of our 2022 Novel Excerpt Contest! We were all in agreement that it’s the talent for us! A huge round of applause for the writers who submitted and took a chance on themselves. No matter the […]

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Fifty Thousand and the Truth

The Park Charlotte, Joaquin, and Ginny stare at the envelope laying on the splintered picnic table. It’s nothing special. Just the plain white legal-size kind you can buy at any grocery or office supply store. Fifty or one hundred to a box for less than five dollars. “Where do you think it came from?” Charlotte […]

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5 Questions for Lauren Thoman

Born and raised in the suburbs of Philadelphia, PA, Lauren Thoman studied music education, though soon realized that the life of a band director was not for her. Her passion for pop culture and watching and analyzing movies and TV shows led her to become a frequent contributor to a number of prominent online pop […]

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