Cat’s Eye: The Purple Ink Press Fiction Chapbook Contest
This is a fiction Chapbook Contest open to everyone. We are accepting works between 16 and 35 pages. You can submit several shorter pieces (stories or flash fiction) or one longer work. Hybrid pieces are welcome. All manuscripts are considered for publication. Share what you’ve got!
This selection will be the first of the Cat’s Eye Fiction series, named in honor of Marget Atwood’s incredible novel, Cat’s Eye.
The contest will be judged by the editors at Purple Ink. Depending on the judges’ selection, there might be multiple winners. The prize is $500, publication, plus twenty copies of the chapbook. If there is more than one winner, the monetary reward will be increased and distributed among the winners.
We publish visually stunning books that people can’t help picking up. Each chapbook receives an ISBN and is sold worldwide by local independent booksellers and in larger markets like Barnes & Noble. We create a promotion/publicity plan for each author.
We encourage both new, emerging, and established writers to submit!
About the editors:
Yael Valencia Aldana is a writer and poet. She has published in multiple genres. She is a Pushcart Prize winner and the winner of the University Press of Kentucky New Poetry and Prose Series Prize 2023. She earned her M.F.A. in creative writing from Florida International University (FIU). Her work has appeared in Torch Literary Arts, Cutbank Literary Journal, Obsidian, Nelle Journal, among others. Her work has also been featured by Ms. Magazine, AWP’s The Writer’s Chronicle, Hip Latina, and The National Latino Book Club, among others. She is the Editor in Chief at Purple Ink Press and a member of the Aunt Lute Press board. She teaches creative writing in Southern California, where she lives with her family and pets.
Alina Lugo was born along the U.S.-Mexico border and currently lives in Houston, TX. Through creative writing workshops and public speaking, she has been heavily involved in intercultural communication and community outreach projects. She is the Managing Editor at Purple Ink Press. She’s a freelance writer for Diáspora, an online cultural journal based in Guadalajara, México. Additionally, her professional experience includes writing consultancy and tutoring. She holds a master’s in World Cultures and Literatures from the University of Houston. In her spare time, she loves making handmade crafts and singing.
Chapbook Guidelines
- The entry fee is $12, and submissions are through our portal on Dousuma. We are not able to accept submissions via email or postal mail. We have a limited number of fee waivers available. Please message purpleinkpress@gmail.com for consideration.
- Hybrid poetry and visual art submissions, including photographs, are welcome and encouraged.
- Currently, we are not accepting translations.
Manuscript Guidelines
- Work must be unpublished in any genre between 16 and 35 pages, including text and images. These 35 pages do not include your title page, table of contents, or acknowledgments.
- Your manuscript should include a title page with the name of the work, a table of contents if needed, and, when appropriate, an acknowledgments page.
- You can include a bio in your submission. Your bio will only be considered after the final selections are made.
- Manuscripts should have page numbers and be formatted with a white background in Garamond, Georgia, Times New Roman, or Calibri (colored backgrounds are difficult to read).
- Submissions are anonymous. Manuscripts are reviewed without identifying information by our readers, editors, and our judges. Please remove all identifying information from your manuscript, including the file name and the “title” field in Duosuma. If your name is in the manuscript, please remove it or make a substitution. You will have the chance to edit your name back in if selected for publication.
Simultaneous, Multiple, and Collaborative Submissions
- Simultaneous submissions are fine, but please withdraw your manuscript in Duosuma if accepted elsewhere.
- Multiple submissions, that is, the submission of more than one manuscript for the contest, are permitted. You need to pay a submission fee for each submission.
- Collaborative works are welcome with the permission of the authors.
Feedback
- Feedback options are available for your story and chapbook manuscripts.
Previously Published Work
- We will accept manuscripts with some previously published work. Up to 20% of the manuscript can be published elsewhere. Please note where your work was published on an acknowledgments page. Also, please check that you have the right to republish. We do not accept previously published chapbooks, including self-published, online/digital All s, and publications in a small, limited-edition print run.
Deadline: January 18th.
- Semifinalists and finalists will be announced in February 2026, and winners In March 2026. Follow us on social media for updates.
We are excited to read your work!
