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Sam Bellotto Jr.
Editor

Eric M. Jones
Science Editor

Carol Kean
Associate Editor


Fiction

Blood and Bone
by Joseph Green

Inseparable
by Evonne M. Biggins

Captive Skin
by Eric Del Carlo

Terra Forms
by Jennifer Campbell-Hicks and Justin Adams

On the Snark Watch
by Karl Dandenell

Pitching a Bug
by Chet Gottfried

Fly, Robin,Fly
by C.E.Gee

Articles

Tesla’s Death Ray Wall
by Eric M. Jones

Alien Argument
by J. Richard Jacobs


Cover

Editorial

Comic Strips

Reviews

Feedback

Submissions

Fiction

WE ARE LOOKING for well-written, original science fiction, that is, science fiction with a solid plot, a beginning, a middle, and an end (but not necessarily in that order). No fantasy. No horror. No fan fiction. No poetry. Alternate history, not entirely taboo, is a difficult sale. Stories do not necessarily have to restrict themselves to robots, rocket ships, and extraterrestrials. However, the science and/or technology must be integral to the story; if you remove the science, the story falls apart, or disappears altogether. If the plot can be easily reconstituted as a western, a swashbuckler, or a bodice-ripper, it is probably not for us, either. We aren’t fixated on political correctness. We don't object to explicit language, violence, or sexual situations, as long as it is necessary to the plot. We like humor and satire. We really don’t care if you are a minority, transgendered, or purple; the story is the focus and not the author. Stories should run from 2,500 words to around 4,000 words. We also accept Shorter Stories. We consider Shorter Stories to be from 800 words to 2,000 words. Less than 800 words is probably an anecdote, not a story, not for us.fictionCurrently, we are paying one cent per word, up to a maximum of $40 per story. We pay a minimum rate of $12 per story. Payment is usually within 30 days after publication. Our rates will undoubtedly grow as we do. These specifications are firm. Please do not send us your latest novel. We don’t publish installments, so please do not send us Part 1 as a story.

Articles

We want carefully researched articles discussing or explaining new and interesting discoveries in science with which most people are probably not already familiar. The writing must also be entertaining. We do not want to see your term papers. This is not an assignment. It helps if the author has some kind of credentials in the subject being written about, but that is not a requirement. For example, absolutely do not research widely available information about photosynthesis and send us a Wikipedia-like article on how photosynthesis works. On the other hand, if you have information about or are involved in photosynthesis being used to create a new breed of human, we may be interested in that. Keep in mind that we want articles, not news. This is not a newspaper. Payment is one cent per word up to a maximum of $40 per article, within 30 days after publication. Articles should be anywhere from 2,500 words to around 4,000 words in length.

Reviews

We are no longer accepting unsolicited reviews of books, movies, and video games. However, there is still a large assortment of science fiction media that would interest us: TV shows, comics, theater, even operas if they exist. The reviews must be analytic. Simply reiterating the plot and saying you liked or disliked the work is not a proper review. You must explain why you liked or disliked the work. Reviews must be timely—if the TV series has recently been released on DVD, it should be reviewed as a DVD. And whereas Ray Bradbury’s “The Martian Chronicles,” if you have just read it, may be new to you, it is not. Reviews should be up to 1,200 words. Payment is a minimum $12 per review, within 30 days after publication. Query first.

Artwork

Currently we are looking for full-color cover art and comic strips only, either illustration or photography. The cover art does not correspond to any story or article, so it has to stand by itself. In fact, we prefer that the cover tells its own little story. A spaceship in orbit around a planet is a nice image, albeit trite. If the message “Elect Zerbek For President” is seen on the side of the spaceship, however, that is intriguing, even funny, and we’d probably buy it. We prefer that artwork be optimized for the Web, submitted in either GIF or JPEG or PNG format, in as small a file size as you can render without compromising the quality of the image. Our cover specs are 520 pixels wide by 1000 pixels high. Comic strip pages are 520 pixels wide. No maximum on vertical height, but a minimum of 1000 pixels is preferred. R-rated images are okay, but no erotica or raw nudity. Payment is $40 per page, within 30 days after publication. Please query in advance before submitting comic strips.

How to Submit Material

Email us the manuscript in RTF or DOC format. Artwork should always be in JPEG format. Please conform to proper manuscript format as best as you can. Also, use standard keyboard quote marks. Absolutely no double spaces anywhere. Only one space between words and sentences. The entire manuscript should be single line-spaced, except between paragraphs which use two carriage returns. No paragraph indents whatsoever. If we have trouble opening your manuscript or don't like the way it is formatted, we will reject it out of hand. RTF is preferred because it is universally accessible by all kinds of software on all kinds of platforms. Attach the manuscript in RTF or DOC format or artwork in JPEG or PNG format, to an email sent to editor-at-perihelionsf-dot-com, with “Perihelion Submission,” or words to that effect, in the subject line, along with a brief cover letter telling us something about yourself. It is not necessary to tell us about the story or article or artwork because we will see it ourselves. Every effort will be made to acknowledge receipt of your submission within a day or two. Please wait at least 48 hours before contacting us if you did not hear back. Generally, it then takes from one to two months to decide whether or not to accept the submission. We are trying hard to speed up our response time. Do not simultaneously submit anything to Perihelion Science Fiction. While it is in our possession, your manuscript should be exclusively for consideration only by us. Perihelion buys Exclusive First World Rights for a period of six months. The copyright always belongs to the original author.

All this aside, there are always exceptions to every rule, but it is best not to test us. Good luck!
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Perihelion Science Fiction is copyright © 2017 by Sam Bellotto Jr. ISSN 2328-675X. All rights reserved. Published in the United States of America. Any reproduction of content by mechanical or electronic means without permission is strictly prohibited. All other copyrights, trademarks, service marks, and logos are the respective property of their holders. For information about submitting to Perihelion Science Fiction, please refer to the submission guidelines. Perihelion Science Fiction welcomes material submitted by any writer and generally responds in one or two months.  Please all email to editor at perihelionsf dot com.