The Write Time Anthology

On November 14th ‘21, Kavya and I completed 3 months of hosting the Write Time together. What is the Write Time? The Write Time is an online space where writers gather together to sit and write. We believe in the power of showing up and so many writers have joined us in our journey to show up every Wednesday night at 9.30pm and write together.

Our next step was to give writers a platform to showcase their work and the Write Time Anthology was born. It’s also open for submissions from all writers and storytellers.

This anthology will be released in 2022 in print and as an ebook published by Tall Tales. Submissions are currently CLOSED.

Deadline: 30 January 2022

What are we looking for?

  1. Fiction
  2. Personal Narratives
  3. Poetry
  4. Essays (about the world)

Fiction:

Tell us a story. What we are looking for are strong characters and a compelling story that tends to linger in our brains even after we’re done reading it. We’re open to all genres like literary fiction, sci-fiction, fantasy, children’s stories, romance, comedy, everything works. The only exception is erotica.

Translations from regional languages to English are also welcome. You should have the English language rights in place for us to be able to publish it.

Word Count: 2000-6000 words

Personal Narratives:

What’s your story? We want to get to know you better. Tell us about a moment in time that changed you. Tell us about your secret inner desires. Show us how far are you willing to go to achieve what you want? We don’t want to hear about your achievements, but we want to hear about how you failed. What you lost. And in turn what you gained. Bare your soul to us. Dance naked on the page. We promise to read your story with kind eyes.

Word Count: 1000-2000 words

Poetry:

Poetry is best heard with our eyes closed. There are no rules here. Poetry in all its forms and formlessness are welcome. While we enjoy poetry on any topic, preference will be given to poems that touch upon the topic of human relationships. Interpret that as you will.

Line Limit: 50 lines

Essays (About the World):

Is there a topic you want to talk about, this is the place you can do it. Share with us your most compelling piece. It could be about politics, environmental issues, the state of the unemployed, writing guides, interviews with authors and other thought leaders. Tell us how you see the world from your lens.

These topics, while quite vast, should be well researched and all due sources should be checked, cross-checked and marked. You should also have the permission to quote whomever you decide to quote.

Unsure about a topic? Pitches are welcome too.

Word Count: 1000-3000 words

The editors for this anthology are Akshay Gajria and Kavya Srinivasan.

Akshay Gajria

Akshay Gajria is an award winning writer, storyteller, writing coach and the co-director of Tall Tales. His digital debut, Home, was the bestseller in the sci-fi category. He’s also the co-writer of the biography, One Dream is Not Enough. His short stories have been widely published the world over and one of them was converted into two separate short films. In his free time, he curates a publication called The Coffeelicious. He is also the mentor for an experiential writers retreat in the Himalayas called Alekhya.

Kavya Srinivasan

Kavya Srinivasan is a Bangalore-based actor, playwright and storyteller. Her most recent work, a digital production titled when the Colours Ran Away opened at the Vancouver International Children’s Theatre Festival in 2021. In her last ten years on stage, she has performed to over 10000 people in five cities.

Submission Guidelines

  • To submit, please send us an email to akshay@talltales.in. Your submission should follow the Shunn manuscript format. The email’s subject line should read: Write Time Submission – Poetry/Fiction/Personal Narrative/Essay.
  • Please attach the submission as a file within the email. We accept doc, docx, PDF file formats only.
  • Keep your cover letter brief stating the name of your written piece and word count. No other information is necessary.
  • Simultaneous submissions are welcome, but please do inform us as soon as your piece gets accepted elsewhere.
  • Our response time will be 4-6 weeks from submission date. Due to the volume of submission we will not be able to provide any feedback. If we do not respond in 8 weeks, please consider that the piece was not selected.
  • We will get in touch with the person selected via email. If your piece is selected for publication, we pay a flat fee of ₹500 and one contributor copy (If you live in India, a physical copy of the anthology. If you live outside India, an e-book).
  • If you have any queries, please reach out to akshay@talltales.in with the subject: Query – Write Time Anthology

We look forward to reading your submissions. Best of luck!