Terra Incognita: Guidelines for Writers

Terra Incognita--a full-sized, quarterly science-fiction magazine--publishes a broad range of science-fiction stories, non-fiction articles, and includes an extensive section of reviews of written science fiction works.

This grand sweep is united by a common theme: the earth, both today and in the future.

We have included with these guidelines, as well as notes on art and subscriptions.

Fiction

Here's the challenge:

1. Write a science-fiction short story--
(it can be up to 15,000 words in length--and not a word longer; we will not consider poetry)
a. using beautiful prose,
(your writing must be lucid, literate, graceful, nuanced, and not entirely devoid of poetry)
b. with vivid characters,
(we don't care if all the humans are dead--but there must be characters!)
c. a real protagonist,
(the protagonist--who need not be the viewpoint character--must try to accomplish something)
d. a plot that resolves,
(do not end the story where it actually begins)
e. and an appropriate, fully realized setting--
(that is, present or future earth)
f. which addresses the magazine's theme.
(read the introduction, above)

2. Make sure your story is appropriate.
(here's some of the stuff we like:
cybertechnology, apocalypse and post-apocalypse settings, sociological extrapolations and alternative social systems, gender and race issues, biotechnology, information technology, human evolution, alien visitors, ecological disasters or triumphs, oceanography and the settlement of the ocean, non-Western cultures in the future, the natural and applied sciences; just make it fit our theme; we are not interested in sword & sorcery, high fantasy, splatter-horror, fantasy-based horror, purely psychological horror, alternative history, formula SF, space opera; if it's not earth-based then it's not for us)

3. Send it to us
(our address is: Terra Incognita, PO Box 30759, Philadelphia PA 19104-0759; we accept neither electronic nor simultaneous submissions)
a. using proper manuscript format,
(there is an industry standard format; please use it when you submit)
b. with a self-addressed, stamped envelope
(non-disposable manuscripts require a big enough envelope and adequate postage; disposable manuscripts [which we do recycle] require a #10 SASE for our response; please affix the postage to the return envelope; if you live outside the US, please enclose appropriateIRCs)
c. and a cover letter, if you wish.
(we like to hear about our writers, but you don't need to write a cover letter if you don't want to; please! no form letters; and, above all, do not give a synopsis of your story in your cover letter)

4. Wait six weeks or less.
(probably a lot less; generally, we read and respond to all submissions on the very day they are received; if you haven't heard from us within six weeks, either the manuscript got lost in the mail or you didn't include an SASE)

5. Look in your mailbox.
(if your story grabbed us and dragged us right through to the end, or dazzled us, or moved us deeply, or even merely impressed us, you just might find an acceptance; otherwise, you'll find your manuscript [if you asked for it back] and a letter explaining why we didn't buy it--we always comment on rejected manuscripts)

Non-Fiction

We do not accept unsolicited non-fiction articles. When you query us, please be sure to include a #10 SASE so we can get back to you. Alternatively, you can query us by e-mail at TerrIncog@aol.com and save yourself the postage. If we do want to see your article, please see step 3 of the Fiction guidelines, above, for instructions on submitting a manuscript.

Book and story reviews

Did you read an sf novel (which fits our theme) that changed your life? Or one that you wanted to throw across the room?

Send us a query-letter telling us about the review you'd like to write, and we'll let you know if we think it's something we can use. We like both in-depth, critical essays and sharp, short reviews. We try to publish several diverging reviews of the same book together, so that our readers can find differing perspectives in one place.

We're not interested in reviews of any media other than print.

Science-fiction related essays and articles

If you have something to say about the genre, perhaps you'd like to share it with our readers. Tell us what you're thinking of writing about, and we'll tell you if we want to see it. Remember: the best way to avoid an instant "No" is to make sure that your idea relates to our theme.

Right now, we'd really like to see skillfully written articles exploring the social-science (sociology, anthropology, politics, etc.) aspect of the genre.

Science articles

Intelligently written and well-researched science articles are most welcome--especially if they explore the potential impacts (positive or negative or, preferably, both) of new technologies or the possible nature of science and technology in the future. We are also very interested in articles which discuss the philosophy of science.

Some areas of science which we find intriguing are: biology, neurobiology, and cognitivescience; cybertechnology; computers and other information technologies; experimentalphysics.

Please! Don't get too technical. We'd never ask you to sacrifice truth or complexity, but do try to make your articles accessible to readers of all levels of technical knowledge.

If you have an idea which you think might fit this category, query us!

Any other ideas?

If you think of something we haven't mentioned (and we hope you do), why don't you query us to see if we're interested?

Artwork

We do need illustrators. To learn more about what we're looking for, take a look at our guidelines for artists.

Payment & Rights

We pay 1 to 2 cents per word for stories and articles, $5 to $25 for book reviews. In addition to the cash payment, all contributors receive a year's subscription to Terra Incognita, plus two extra copies of the issue in which their contribution appears. We buy First North American Rights only. All rights revert to the author upon publication.

A note: We, the publishers and editors of Terra Incognita, are not doing this to make money. We are doing this because we want to create a place in which wonderful stories and interesting articles can be found. We have chosen to pay our writers as much as we can afford to without going broke--and we will continue to upgrade our pay rates as money becomes available. Please contact us for the latest pay rates--they may have gone up!

Subscriptions and Sample Copies