The Pitch is a monthly discussion thread of the best science fiction and fantasy on Substack, as recommended by the authors themselves. Here’s how it works:
Are you an author? Head to the comments and add a link and a 1-2 sentence summary pitch for a speculative fiction short story, serial chapter or anthology post from your Substack. This is your chance to creatively promote your work and talent.
Are you a reader? Add likes and comments on the authors’ Substacks. Feel free to come back here and do the same.
Spread the word and restack the thread in a Note. Share outside of Substack on Reddit, Hacker News, X, Instagram, Facebook and in any other relevant forum interested in science fiction and fantasy. This exposes everyone’s stories to a wider audience of readers. The best link to use for sharing is as follows:
“ Surrounded on all sides by soul-eating wraiths, Ruathen the hermit must conjure up old magic if he hopes to free himself from his tower and take back his home. “
I present The Encircling Cells, a 2000-word short story originally written for a competition.
Judith Temple is most comfortable with cold, hard facts, but she’s pushed far outside of her comfort zone when her seemingly psychic visions draw her into a missing persons cold case.
Here’s episode 1 of my speculative serial mystery novella Down in the Holler:
The second novel of Bone Valley introduces Lord Der Arzte—a man with a painfully hidden past and a whole lotta money!
He joins forces with Lieutenant Ehrlich—a woman police officer who wears pants (how scandalous!)—to hunt down a beheading psycho who’s driving their rebuilding city and the Council of Five to the very edge of destruction.
It doesn’t help that he has to be nice to the mummified head of Dr Frankenfurter, who's making moves on…. everyone in his household, including Lord Der Arzte’s Mother! And now, his Lordship has to cope with the Grand Poohbah of the Brotherhood of the Wigged Elk and his disastrous band of henchpeople. If you're into Disc World, this is for you.
This month I'd like to contribute here with the first short story that I published on Substack. It takes place around 3650 CE and is set in my cli-fi universe 'The Deep Dive'.
Well, my current ongoing serial, The Southern Calt, follows the perspective of soldiers at war in a sci-fi fantasy world known as Astra. It's been a ton of fun and part 4 drops tomorrow! Now is a good time to jump into part 1 I'd say!
In post-apocalypse England Henry's dream is to eat a fresh apple but will the town of Appleton provide its namesake or have been stripped of all it once held dear...
Ryson is a rock miner on Sagan 7, a moon-like world orbiting Vega, home to humanity's first off-world mining colony. After an accident claims the life of his best friend Dave, Ryson drinks too much and sleeps too little. And he has no idea what to do with Dave's prized possession: a shiny red Corvette. On the hood of which Dave commissioned a painting of Christ. Title: Corvette Jesus. Sci-Fi novelette.
Eidothea needs to find the Greal (known to us humans as the Holy Grail) in order for the Chosen Court to form and avert extinction of everything and everyone. In Chapter 11, she meets her grandmother for the first time and receives a crucial gift.
Torn between the blurred memories of a life that was taken from her and the commands of her sinister master, Theta must come to grips with who and what she is in a desperate battle for freedom and redemption.
Awakening is a dark fantasy short story set in the Middle World of E'a.
The playground and hunting ground for Leo and Marissa Yassi, an entitled couple skilled in deception and cyber manipulation, navigate the high-stakes world of financial fraud in the year 2150-CE.
Today I give you my opening for Chapter 2. (Mostly because I don't remember which one I shared last time, but also) this is a good spot to jump in because of all the background in it.
After Logan accidentally overdoses Misty with a sedative that stops her heart, she relives some scenes from her past, that give us a bunch of background on where she came from and what her life was like.
A man finds himself jumping through different realities after a quantum research accident, and in each he is married to different versions of this wife.
A warrior of dubious mettle must defeat an impending existential threat to his way of life in this satirical and irreverent 100 word story freshly published (yesterday).
A tale of centuries-old demon slayers, 20-something burnouts, and the fight between good and evil. It’s SOLOMON KANE for the 70s, with hot rods, occult weirdness & a righteous warrior bringing all to heel.
A rogue planet comes dashing out from the other side of the sun, seemingly on a collision course with Earth. On what may prove to be the world's last night, a young, grief-stricken man and his dog go for a final walk around their neighborhood.
"Terrific" features serialized superhero stories set in a world where super-powers are new and only a few people have taken the initiative to serve as superheroes. This first installment, however, is barely a superhero story and takes us into surreal territory.
“ Surrounded on all sides by soul-eating wraiths, Ruathen the hermit must conjure up old magic if he hopes to free himself from his tower and take back his home. “
I present The Encircling Cells, a 2000-word short story originally written for a competition.
👇
https://open.substack.com/pub/ericfalden/p/the-encircling-cells?r=3ecd72&utm_medium=ios
Thank you for doing this!
Judith Temple is most comfortable with cold, hard facts, but she’s pushed far outside of her comfort zone when her seemingly psychic visions draw her into a missing persons cold case.
Here’s episode 1 of my speculative serial mystery novella Down in the Holler:
https://open.substack.com/pub/bridgetriley/p/down-in-the-holler?r=9e3cr&utm_medium=ios
The second novel of Bone Valley introduces Lord Der Arzte—a man with a painfully hidden past and a whole lotta money!
He joins forces with Lieutenant Ehrlich—a woman police officer who wears pants (how scandalous!)—to hunt down a beheading psycho who’s driving their rebuilding city and the Council of Five to the very edge of destruction.
It doesn’t help that he has to be nice to the mummified head of Dr Frankenfurter, who's making moves on…. everyone in his household, including Lord Der Arzte’s Mother! And now, his Lordship has to cope with the Grand Poohbah of the Brotherhood of the Wigged Elk and his disastrous band of henchpeople. If you're into Disc World, this is for you.
https://pandorasinfinitestories.substack.com/p/the-best-fiction-fantasy-for-the?r=2d0ibi
Summary: a young woman with the power to read minds, navigates a data-worshipping society as she races to unlock the secrets of her deteriorating body
https://open.substack.com/pub/keithhayden/p/sync-whole?r=qlc8m&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
This month I'd like to contribute here with the first short story that I published on Substack. It takes place around 3650 CE and is set in my cli-fi universe 'The Deep Dive'.
👇
Title: 'Welcome to gulmohur' - https://www.storyvoyager.com/p/welcome-to-gulmohur
Logline: A young teacher at a school for gifted children is looking forward to getting her first student.
Hey another Pitch!
Well, my current ongoing serial, The Southern Calt, follows the perspective of soldiers at war in a sci-fi fantasy world known as Astra. It's been a ton of fun and part 4 drops tomorrow! Now is a good time to jump into part 1 I'd say!
https://open.substack.com/pub/llford/p/the-southern-calt-pt-1?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=1v5vok
In chapter 7 of Oceanus, the team of survivors have to get through the dense jungle and find a way back their ship. Anthony, their chief scientist, is paralysed by the power of his own dreams, some of which could kill him. https://open.substack.com/pub/hannadelaneywrites/p/chapter-7?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=2byo0o
I’m sharing a piece of Sci-Fi flash fiction, which I might continue as a series of short pieces. This one is just about 400 words.
The Gravediggers of Orpheus.
A crew of selfless men going down into the war-zone of planet Orpheus to bury the dead civilians with dignity. An unexpected find.
https://open.substack.com/pub/kathrineelaine/p/the-gravediggers-of-orpheus?r=2rhgsy&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true
"Backward Things" is a paranormal mystery, part of the Time Witch series. When a woman buys an old Carnegie library, she is transported to 1910 when the library was built, and meets the handsome builder, a skeleton and past & present Coven members that have something to hide. https://open.substack.com/pub/tellmeamystery/p/the-time-witch-backward-things?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=19f5he
https://open.substack.com/pub/scvickers/p/jack-wars
A snippet from my alt-history/steampunkish WIP featuring jackalopes and a country that never was.
In post-apocalypse England Henry's dream is to eat a fresh apple but will the town of Appleton provide its namesake or have been stripped of all it once held dear...
https://reddoscarwrites.substack.com/p/in-search-of-an-apple
Ryson is a rock miner on Sagan 7, a moon-like world orbiting Vega, home to humanity's first off-world mining colony. After an accident claims the life of his best friend Dave, Ryson drinks too much and sleeps too little. And he has no idea what to do with Dave's prized possession: a shiny red Corvette. On the hood of which Dave commissioned a painting of Christ. Title: Corvette Jesus. Sci-Fi novelette.
https://authorryanschneider.substack.com/p/corvette-jesus?r=2n06tl
I've got a single page story in the Bradburian mode about a boy talking about his friend that drives the bus:
https://hwtaylor.substack.com/p/bus-driver-sci-fi
In "Bad Tech", we find out why it's a very bad idea to hand control of the presidential nuclear football over to AI.
https://indianamichael.substack.com/p/bad-tech
Eidothea needs to find the Greal (known to us humans as the Holy Grail) in order for the Chosen Court to form and avert extinction of everything and everyone. In Chapter 11, she meets her grandmother for the first time and receives a crucial gift.
https://open.substack.com/pub/projectstarfish/p/11-with-one-ring-to-find-them?r=1mk6at&utm_medium=ios
Torn between the blurred memories of a life that was taken from her and the commands of her sinister master, Theta must come to grips with who and what she is in a desperate battle for freedom and redemption.
Awakening is a dark fantasy short story set in the Middle World of E'a.
https://mpsiddell.substack.com/p/awakening
This is a part of my 1st chapter IN THE SHADOW OF THE MANDALORE. It takes place long ago, in a galaxy far, far away. If you like STAR WARS, come along for the ride. It's not Luke Skywalker or Han Solo, but 2000 years before them. https://open.substack.com/pub/benwoestenburg/p/in-the-shadow-of-the-mandalore-3ef?r=254e8w&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
The playground and hunting ground for Leo and Marissa Yassi, an entitled couple skilled in deception and cyber manipulation, navigate the high-stakes world of financial fraud in the year 2150-CE.
A short short sci-fi short... https://rippublishing.substack.com/p/black-hat-phishing-club
Don't get these ladies mad: https://davidperlmutter.substack.com/p/f-is-for
Hey Brian, almost forgot about you.
Today I give you my opening for Chapter 2. (Mostly because I don't remember which one I shared last time, but also) this is a good spot to jump in because of all the background in it.
After Logan accidentally overdoses Misty with a sedative that stops her heart, she relives some scenes from her past, that give us a bunch of background on where she came from and what her life was like.
https://open.substack.com/pub/jennyhoman01/p/8-opening-chapter-two?r=25941x&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
A man finds himself jumping through different realities after a quantum research accident, and in each he is married to different versions of this wife.
Read The Unstuck Man: https://jonauerbach.substack.com/p/the-unstuck-man
A warrior of dubious mettle must defeat an impending existential threat to his way of life in this satirical and irreverent 100 word story freshly published (yesterday).
https://joshtatter.substack.com/p/doom-and-gloom?utm_source=profile&utm_medium=reader2
THE VENATOR'S APPRENTICE
A tale of centuries-old demon slayers, 20-something burnouts, and the fight between good and evil. It’s SOLOMON KANE for the 70s, with hot rods, occult weirdness & a righteous warrior bringing all to heel.
https://astounding.substack.com/p/the-venators-apprentice
A rogue planet comes dashing out from the other side of the sun, seemingly on a collision course with Earth. On what may prove to be the world's last night, a young, grief-stricken man and his dog go for a final walk around their neighborhood.
https://whateverblues.substack.com/p/perihelion
"Terrific" features serialized superhero stories set in a world where super-powers are new and only a few people have taken the initiative to serve as superheroes. This first installment, however, is barely a superhero story and takes us into surreal territory.
https://danielsherrier.substack.com/p/the-manor-within-part-1
Thank you!