Black Library Open Submissions 2025
My status update as of March 2026.
I was ready. After years of lurking, I finally had an army, I'd gone to a tournament, I was leaving the ivory tower.
Then, as if the heavens approved of the small steps I was gingerly taking, Black Library announced their 2025 open submissions with what seemed to me like an awesome assignment: write a short scene featuring two iconic characters in a "Clash" (a duel, argument, debate, whatever).
It had to be under 500 words, and if it impressed them, you might get invited to pitch more formally. So I wrote one.
In August, I stalked Reddit and saw people posting rejections. I didn't get one. The next week, more rejections rolled in. But, again I received no e-mail.
People speculated that these rejections were going out in waves. But as I (and a few others) received no rejection email, we started to speculate too.
Black Libary brought forth no news either way.
Me and a fellow non-rejected submitter stayed in touch.
He even sent an email to Black Library, but nothing really came back besides a note that it would take a long time to go through all the entries personally.
So here we are, three months into 2026, and still nothing.
According to their official submissions policy, if you don't hear back within 100 working days (about 20 weeks) from the close of submissions (March 9, 2025), you're supposed to assume they don't wish to use your submission at this time.
That window has long passed for most of us, but the lack of any rejection email keeps the tiny hope flickering, maybe a very small number are held for further consideration.
A girl can dream right?
That's the reason I don't want to share my entry yet.
That hope I am having is strong. Praying to the emperor it won’t be idle.
I wrote about Urien Rakarth and Fabius Bile.
This would have been something for me.