Appalachia Book Company publishes emerging and established authors with deep connections to central and rural Appalachia.
These Dreaming Hills, speculative fiction anthology — Open for submissions Aug. 15 - Nov. 15, 2025
Appalachia Book Company proudly announces a new anthology of speculative fiction, These Dreaming Hills, to be published in 2026, edited by Christopher Rowe.
The future happens everywhere, and all who lay their head to rest dream dreams. It is with the rich culture, history by turns painful and joyful, and extraordinary landscape of central Appalachia as their inspiration that the publishers of These Dreaming Hills call on writers with strong connections to the region to submit stories of fantasy fiction, fantasy, and fabulism for this new anthology.
The strength of the Appalachian people lies in diversity. Indigenous, African, and European traditions are the taproots of our folkways, but people from all over the world created, and continue to create, our culture. These Dreaming Hills will reflect our past heritage, current lives, and our shared future.
Submission details: We will publish original stories rooted in central Appalachia dependent upon broadly defined notions of speculative fiction, written by authors with strong ties to the region. All the elements of good fiction are, of course, required, but Appalachia is made up of its people, so strong characterization is an absolute necessity.
These Dreaming Hills will not include poetry or flash fiction. Reprints, simultaneous submissions, and multiple submissions will not be considered. We are looking for original works of fiction between 1,000-6,000 words. Please submit all manuscripts in William Shunn’s “modern” version of “Proper Manuscript Format.” https://www.shunn.net/format/story/
The submission window for this anthology opens August 15th, 2025 and closes November 15th, 2025. Submissions received outside that window will receive no response.
Submit stories via the Appalachia Book Company’s Submittable page, HERE. Authors are asked to include a brief cover letter explaining their connection to the central Appalachian Region. Address any questions to the editor at christopher@appalachiabook.co.
Payment and Rights: We offer US $.08 per word for first English world anthology rights. Contributors will also receive three copies of the finished book.
AI Statement: Any use of Large Language Models or Generative AI immediately disqualifies potential writers from the anthology.
About the Editor: Christopher Rowe was born and raised in Adair County, Kentucky, and lives there today. He has been a finalist for every major award in the fields of science fiction and fantasy and his work has been published, reprinted, and translated around the world for over a quarter century.
Made In Appalachia — Open for fiction and nonfiction submissions from November - January
The editors seek submissions of previously unpublished fiction and nonfiction for our recurring chapbook series, Made In Appalachia. This series is for emerging and early career writers with a connection to central Appalachia, the Appalachian subregion as defined by the Appalachian Regional Commission. We look for writers from our region, who have lived in or visited our region, and/or whose writing is set in our region. Each chapbook runs 20-30 pages.
Fiction. Short story series or novellas. Your submission should be at least 5,000 words.
Literary Nonfiction. Your submission should be no longer than 8,000 words.
Submissions should be made via our Submittable page. Previously unpublished submissions only. Simultaneous submissions are allowed. We ask that you notify us immediately if your work is selected for publication elsewhere. Please allow up to three months for response.