Submissions
All the information you need for submitting to Black Eyes Publishing UK
Accepting Submissions: Obsessed by Crows
Photo by Boston Public Library on Unsplash
We welcome submissions to this Anthology with a ‘loose’ theme of ‘relationships’.
Poetry: Max 100 lines via a word.docx
Flash Fiction: Max 500 words via a word.docx
We don’t discount previously published work, although we prefer unpublished. There is no limit on the number of submissions; everything is considered on merit. However, it’s unlikely that we will include more than a few pieces from one person.
Submission window: 1st December 2025 - 31st July 2026
(expected publication October 2026)
Email your submissions to Peter Lay.
All profits from sales of this anthology will go towards funding a multi-arts festival in the UK.
Accepting Submissions: FALL OF THE BADGER AND THE RISE OF THE ANT
Photo by Guillaume de Germain on Unsplash
The sequel to the best-selling anthology, RISE OF THE BADGER AND THE GREAT SHRUBBERY, will be:
FALL OF THE BADGER AND THE RISE OF THE ANT
Submission window: 1st April 2026 - 31st December 2026
Expected Publication April 2027
The surface of this planet moves slowly…
Even though humanities ongoing destruction has ceased with their demise, the resulting damage, the high temperatures, melting icecaps, rising sea levels, the wars, plastic, the toxic waste etc., were totally disastrous. The planet will eventually find an equilibrium, how long this will take cannot be surmised.
Many creatures will follow humanity into extinction, certainly most of the big mammals, in fact, much of the biodiversity we knew will be lost... Changes will come!
Is this to be the time of the insects?
For example, ant communities around the world are changing, building super colonies with multiple queens, spreading those colonies in nest after nest, all connected. When ants meet other ants from a different nest, but still part of the same super colony, they do the antennae thing and don't fight; they are as one.
These super colonies are vast networks of interconnected nests, sometimes more than a thousand mounds, that share a common scent. Unlike other ant species that are aggressive toward neighbours, the ants in the super colony cooperate, share food, and treat each other as if from the same nest. Many nests within a super colony contain multiple queens, a departure from the single-queen model in typical ant nests.
Workers can use their bodies to absorb sunlight, and they transfer heat to the brood chambers to keep them warm during colder periods. The ants in Switzerland cover their mounds with resin from spruce trees, where available, which contains antibiotics that help fight off fungi and other diseases. They also "farm" aphids to collect the sugary "honeydew" they produce.
They hunt in packs to capture prey that may be many times their size.
Ants are omnivores!!!
Watch David Attenborough’s 'Ant Mountain' on YouTube for an insight into these changes in the Ant World.
What other insects, creatures might fill the void?
What sort of biodiversity will exist in that future?
We want:
DRAWINGS (as a .jpg), ~ This doesn’t need to be fine art, we want to see the idea…
ARTWORK (as a .jpg), ~ Again, this doesn’t need to be fine art. One of these pictures could be on the cover.
POETRY (max 100 lines via a word.doc),
FLASH FICTION (max 1000 words via a word.doc),
PREDICTIONS/HYPOTHESIS (max 1000 words via a word.doc).
Email your submissions to Peter Lay.
All profits from sales of this anthology will go towards funding a multi-arts festival in the UK.
We are closed for submissions of Poetry Collections, Novels, and Short Stories.
Questions about submissions of Poetry Collections, Novels, Short Stories, etc., in the first instance, should be emailed to us.
Notes on submitting Poetry Collections, Novels, Short Stories, etc.
Please note: Most submissions, despite what you may think, are not ready for publication.
We may decline your submission. This is not commenting on its quality; it’s just not for us.
We may make some suggestions for you to work on before resubmitting for consideration, either to us or to another publisher..
We like your submission, but we may suggest some online editing sessions with Josephine Lay (We do charge for this service) before resubmitting for consideration, either to us or to another publisher. On this basis, you can resubmit to us outside of a submission window.
We accept your submission and offer you a contract.
All submissions should be submitted as a Word document or a PDF file. If accepted by us, we would need your manuscript in a Word document for editing and publication.
Send your manuscript by email to blackeyespublishinguk@yahoo.com