CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS
Things Left Unsaid: A Flash Fiction Anthology

Silence. Regret. The conversation that never happened.

Submission Deadline: August 20, 2026
Acceptance Notifications: August 25, 2026
Submissions: specialanthologyfreshwordsmag@gmail.com
Website: https://sites.google.com/view/freshwordsmagazine/announcements

There are things we meant to say. Words swallowed before they could land. Letters never sent, calls never returned, confessions rehearsed in the dark and abandoned by morning.

Fresh Words invites writers from around the world to submit original flash fiction for Things Left Unsaid, an anthology exploring the vast, aching territory of silence: what we withhold, what we lose to it, and what, sometimes, it protects.

We want stories where the unspoken is the heart of the matter. Stories that live in the pause, the turned back, the unsent message. Stories that make readers feel the full weight of what was never said, and why.

SUBTHEMES WE LOVE
Your story does not need to fit these exactly, but they are sparks to inspire:

1. The Apology That Never Came: Estrangement, pride, the moment that passed and never returned.
2. Last Words: Deathbeds, farewells, the final conversation that was not, or the one that was and should not have been.
3. Draft Saved, Never Sent: The email, the letter, the text, written, revised, and deleted. Digital silence in the modern age.
4. The Eloquence of Objects: A gift that said everything. A returned ring. The book left on the doorstep without a note.
5. What Children Know: The things adults whisper around them, and what the child understood perfectly.
6. The Translator's Silence: Language barriers, cultural codes, the word that has no equivalent, and the chasm it creates.
7. I Should Have Said: Retrospect, replay, the moment reimagined at 3 a.m.
8. The Witness Who Said Nothing: Injustice, complicity, bystanders, the silence that becomes its own act.
9. Love, Unannounced: Feelings carried for years without declaration. The risk never taken.
10. Silence as Survival: When not speaking was the only way to stay safe, or sane.

Note: These are invitations, not requirements. Surprise us.

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES

1. THEME AND CONTENT
- Must engage meaningfully with the theme of silence, the unspoken, regret, or the unsaid, interpreted as broadly or literally as you wish.
- Stories may be contemporary, historical, speculative, or surreal. Genre is no barrier, theme is.
- No explicit content, graphic violence, or hate speech.

2. LENGTH
- Strict maximum of 300 words (title not included).
- Must be a complete narrative with emotional weight, a revelation, or a twist, not merely a mood piece.
- Minimum 100 words.

3. ORIGINALITY AND RIGHTS
- Must be unpublished in any form (print or digital).
- Simultaneous submissions are allowed. Please withdraw immediately if accepted elsewhere.
- Authors retain full copyright. Fresh Words requests one-time non-exclusive publication rights, reverting to the author upon publication.

4. FORMATTING
- Submit as .doc, .docx, or .pdf.
- Use 12 pt standard font (e.g., Times New Roman, Arial, Georgia).
- Include your legal or pen name, email address, story title, and word count in the document.
- Paste your full story in the body of your email as a backup.

5. HOW TO SUBMIT
Email: specialanthologyfreshwordsmag@gmail.com
Subject line: Things Left Unsaid Submission - [Your Story Title]

6. DEADLINE
August 20, 2026

7. COMPENSATION
- A short author bio and social media promotion included with publication.
- Note: This is a non-paying market at this time.

8. ELIGIBILITY
- Open globally to writers of all backgrounds, experience levels, and literary traditions.
- Writing in English only for this anthology.

9. QUESTIONS
Contact specialanthologyfreshwordsmag@gmail.com with Query in the subject line.

CONTENT POLICY
We do not accept submissions that promote or glorify:
- Violence, abuse, or hate speech
- Racism, sexism, or discrimination of any kind
- Political propaganda or extremist ideologies

All work must be original, and artistically focused.

CONNECT WITH US
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Fresh-Words-An-International-Literary-Magazine-106332345070389/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQmmN1p8jcbIa6rUxzCzL2Q
Support Our Work: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/freshwordsmag

The things we never say outlive us.

Let your 300 words hold what someone, somewhere, spent a lifetime unable to say.
Submit by August 20, 2026.

Say the thing that needed saying.

Fresh Words
Where small stories hold enormous truths.

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