Open Call For Submissions: Home Has No Borders

Following the 2023 release of MAGIC HAS NO BORDERS, authors Samira Ahmed and Sona Charaipotra announce the 2025 publication of HOME HAS NO BORDERS. This anthology will be published in 2025 by HarperTeen with a list of bestselling and critically acclaimed South Asian authors.

And we’re looking for a new voice of South Asian descent to contribute a short story for the young-adult anthology HOME HAS NO BORDERS.

These contemporary YA stories will center the lives and loves of South Asian teens from across the diaspora, exploring issues like race, class, caste, culture, language, and the very idea of home as both a place and feeling.

Stories in this anthology will span the breadth and beauty of the subcontinent in contemporary categories from romantic comedy to drama to coming-of-age to mysteries and thrillers. We would love for your story to be a part of it.

SUBMISSIONS REQUIREMENTS

The Submissions Call will open on Thursday, February 1, 2024 at 12:00 a.m. ET and will close on Thursday, February 29, 2024 at 11:59 p.m. ET.

Applicants should not have previously published a novel-length work and/or should not be under contract to publish a novel-length work. Applicants do not need to be represented by an agent. 

All submissions must include three separate attachments to be considered,
including the following:

  • All entries must be submitted electronically to HOMEHASNOBORDERS@gmail.com by Thursday, February 29, 2024 at 11:59PM EST.
  • A short story of 5,000 words or less, attached as a .doc, .docx, or .txt file.
  • A bio (150 words or less) that tells us about you and your connection to the South Asian subcontinent, attached as a .doc, .docx, or .txt file.
  • A photo/headshot, attached as a .jpg or .png file.

All submissions must be appropriate for a young adult readership, ages 12 to 18.

All submissions must be an original work of fiction written in English by the applicant. All rights to the submission should be owned solely by the applicant, and submissions should be never before published in any commercial medium, print or digital, audio, or translated from a foreign language.

Submissions should be aligned with the scope of the HOME HAS NO BORDERS focus, as outlined above. 
 
You will receive email confirmation upon receipt of your story. Submissions will not be returned. There is no guarantee that your submission will be published. Feedback will not be provided on your submission unless you are the selected contributor. The anthology editors have no obligation to applicants whose submissions are not selected. All rights for submissions not selected are retained by the original applicants.
 
If your submission is selected for potential inclusion in the anthology, then you agree, upon request, to work with the anthology editors and publisher as part of the editing process. You further understand that you will be asked to sign a contributor agreement, with terms equal to those of other contributors. If you elect not to sign, your submission will not be published. 
 
If your submission is selected for potential inclusion in the anthology and meets the publication requirements outlined above (as defined by the anthology editor), you will receive a contributor fee of $2500 and you will receive author credit as a contributor in the publication.

Please direct any questions to HOMEHASNOBORDERS@gmail.com.

About the Editors

Samira Ahmed is the New York Times bestselling and award winning author of the young adult novels Love, Hate, & Other Filters, Internment, Mad, Bad, & Dangerous to Know, Hollow Fires, and the forthcoming This Book Won’t Burn. She is also the author of the middle grade fantasy duology Amira & Hamza and the Ms. Marvel: Beyond the Limit comic series. She was born in Bombay, India, and grew up in Batavia, IL in a house that smelled like fried onions, garlic, and potpourri. She has lived in New York, Chicago, and Kauai, where she spent a year searching for the perfect mango. She invites you to visit her online at www.samiraahmed.com and on Twitter and Instagram @sam_aye_ahm.

Sona Charaipotra is the author of Symptoms of a Heartbreak and How Maya Got Fierce, and co-author of The Rumor Game and Tiny Pretty Things, now a Netflix original series. She earned a master’s degree in screenwriting from NYU and an MFA in creative writing from the New School. A working journalist, Sona has held editorial roles at People, TeenPeople, ABCNews.com, MSN, several parenting publications, the Barnes & Noble Teen Blog (RIP), and, most recently, as senior editor of trends and features at Parents.com. She has contributed to publications from the New York Times to TeenVogue. She is a former We Need Diverse Books board member, and she co-founded CAKE Literary, a boutique book packager focused on high concept diverse titles. Find her on the web talking about books, Bollywood movies, and chai.