Submission guidelines for short fiction

Every published writer started with a big zero in the credits department. I advocate being "honest-but-vague."

1) Your age need only be mentioned if signing a contract becomes part of the equation. Keep the bio short. Something like: I am a student living in China whose interests revolve around ____, ____ and ____.

The squashing centipedes line is iffy.

2) A one-sentence description of the story as part of your (short) cover letter should suffice.

3) No. They'll ask for a line or two later in the process, if your piece is selected for publication.

Good luck.

I've never described a short story beyond genre and word count. Some places ask you not to describe it. You definitely don't want to go into the detail you would for a novel query.

If they ask for a bio, I would actually flip it around and use the line " As a child, Exir spent his time squashing centipedes for far less honorable reasons." Since you don't have a job, just list your profession as "student." And don't sweat it too much. The cover doesn't make or break your story. It's the story that matters.

Also,

a great way to start adding some fluff to your bio is try writing for your school paper and send some letters to the editor of your hometown newspaper.

If they are picked up, then that counts as 'publication in a periodical' also, if you can enter some contests and place, then that is another piece of fluff to build up your bio as you can use the generic "contest winner".

Anyways, but don't worry so much. The BIO isn't really a make or break unless you are trying to write an authoratative piece in which your BIO is a major justification for why people should listen to you. Otherwise, with fiction, usually, the work stands completely on its own.

In short, don't sweat it too much

Mel...