Member-only story
Red Flags in Submission Guidelines
If you’re writing short fiction then, likely, sooner or later, you will want to sell it to a magazine.
I always recommend starting at the top so you get the most out of your story. However, there are relatively few pro magazines and the majority of stories are going to end up in a second (or lower) tier market.
The vast majority of said markets are well-meaning, some may be less organized than others. However, every so often you might come across a problem market. Here are a few red flags to look for when reading submission guidelines.
Agreeing to Something on Submission
A good market will explain what rights they want. These days, that usually means First World Rights for original stories. You may occasionally still see regional rights, but in the days of the internet, most markets want to be able to sell or display the story in all countries.
They may even include their exclusivity period in the submission guidelines. (Note that most markets will give an exemption if a story is included in a Year’s Best or similar).
What you need to watch for is language like this: You affirm that you are the original writer of this text and that you give non-exclusive publication rights to X to edit and publish this content.