The submission period for The Temporal Element hits the 1-week point today, and I'd like to take a moment to reflect upon the process and current subs.
The initial story submissions have been trickling in, though word is still getting out there (and we haven't even been listed on duotrope yet; expect that to come any day now). I will say the initial story submissions are well written, and many are likely to find their way into the anthology. However, it will be a week or two before I start sending out acceptance letters.
The theme of the stories I'm getting seem pretty uniform in their time-setting, which isn't necessarily a bad thing, though I hope to see more variety when the flow of submissions increases. The current basis of most stories sent in thus far deal with future travelers seeking to change or save their time by changing something in the present (their past), with a few stories involving people making short trips into their own past to fix something (or they try and fail to fix things). These are all well and good, but if the current trend continues, there will be a glut of stories that take place in the present era vying for acceptance.
While there is still plenty of room for time travel stories that take place "close to home," I'm also interested in some stories about people exploring the past and future. My initial thought for the anthology was a balanced selection of stories taking place in the past, present, & future. It is still too early to know what will shake out, so if you are working on a story that takes place in the present, don't give up on it now. Heck, now I'll probably get a slew of past and future stories, and fall short on tales taking place in the present.
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