Black Library Open Submissions 2025

[Maque]

Just submitted my Black Library Open Submissions entry for this year. Looking forward to be able to share it once the competition's concluded. 

I'd be interested to hear your thoughts on this year's challenge - 'clash - a meeting of two iconic characters in a situation of your choice, be that a vicious duel, a blazing argument or a cerebral debate'.

 

Which characters did you choose? Any thoughts on the limitations (setting, must be a pre-existing model)? When the time comes, feel free to share your entries too. 

[grailkeeper]

I went with Captain Tycho meeting Horus in Armageddon. Well he thinks he's meeting him. It's actually the black rage.

 

Clash is a very wide challenge. It's hard to imagine a story written for Black Library submissions that doesn't fall into this category. I think the real challenge was the geographic locations. But its not a particularly hard challenge. I think the restriction about characters who have a model was a very sensible one.

 

Overall I think they are looking to see if they can get writers who meet the brief. We had some of the stories from the last entry go on sale. I doubt stories about two random characters meeting will sell as well as ones about obscure chapters. 

[Mazer Rackham]

1 hour ago, grailkeeper said:

We had some of the stories from the last entry go on sale. I doubt stories about two random characters meeting will sell as well as ones about obscure chapters. 

 

Bah! Everyone knows about my Human-Aeldari Tau Fire Warrior Commander Shas'O Malcolm 'Knife-Ears' McTavish! It'll make a fortune, I tell you!

 

Seriously though, I agree with @grailkeeper - although the brief was challenging in it's own way, IMHO, since established characters can feel flat, and there's a lot of backstory to learn if you've never really delved into them (or been interested - then it becomes revision..!).

 

Thankfully, I have had a few dalliances with my chosen pair of crazies: Drazhar and Jain Zar, at Commorragh.

 

Spoiler

Darmok and Jihlad, at Tenegra. With whips and corsetry.

 

[wecanhaveallthree]

From the start it was always going to be Cato and Haarken on Vigilus. I just love the duality of these two: Cato has been the successor-in-waiting for the Ultramarines for so long now, but Calgar just won't die, and now he's been yoinked out to be Guilliman's equerry he's guaranteed to never be Chapter Master. He was supposed to be royalty on Talassar, he was supposed to be Chapter Master, but he just keeps getting stuck in other people's shadows. 

 

Haarken is Abaddon's hype-man, a Worldclaimer who has literally nothing to show for it. Dude has clearly spent his life looking for meaning (and gone somewhat loopy in doing so) - anyone who is looking for wisdom in Angron's clotted scrolls has, uh, possibly not got the best sense of direction. He drank Abaddon's kool-aid, the brotherhood and ambition, and now he's got essentially no agency of his own. From warband leader and Raptor Lord to effectively a mouthpiece for the Despoiler. How does he really feel about that?

 

I appreciate that the scope was narrower than previous open submissions, especially in terms of locale. Pitching zany stuff is one thing, but being able to write both established characters and within the established setting is a really good filter for prospective authors. Good training for genre fiction writing as a whole, really. I had a good time, I wrote some fun metaphors, I got a positive comparison to Tamsyn Muir (of GIdeon the Ninth fame) which is a very high compliment indeed. 

[Rain]

 

52 minutes ago, wecanhaveallthree said:

From the start it was always going to be Cato and Haarken on Vigilus. I just love the duality of these two: Cato has been the successor-in-waiting for the Ultramarines for so long now, but Calgar just won't die, and now he's been yoinked out to be Guilliman's equerry he's guaranteed to never be Chapter Master. He was supposed to be royalty on Talassar, he was supposed to be Chapter Master, but he just keeps getting stuck in other people's shadows. 

 

Haarken is Abaddon's hype-man, a Worldclaimer who has literally nothing to show for it. Dude has clearly spent his life looking for meaning (and gone somewhat loopy in doing so) - anyone who is looking for wisdom in Angron's clotted scrolls has, uh, possibly not got the best sense of direction. He drank Abaddon's kool-aid, the brotherhood and ambition, and now he's got essentially no agency of his own. From warband leader and Raptor Lord to effectively a mouthpiece for the Despoiler. How does he really feel about that?

 

I appreciate that the scope was narrower than previous open submissions, especially in terms of locale. Pitching zany stuff is one thing, but being able to write both established characters and within the established setting is a really good filter for prospective authors. Good training for genre fiction writing as a whole, really. I had a good time, I wrote some fun metaphors, I got a positive comparison to Tamsyn Muir (of GIdeon the Ninth fame) which is a very high compliment indeed. 

This is a pretty neat idea. Contrasting two “always the bridesmaid” characters that haven’t seen much development otherwise. As an aside, ADB’s portrayal of Abaddon is probably my favorite ADB character, and the implication that Abaddon may be using promises of brotherhood as a form or manipulation is one of the most interesting themes in Chaos writing, so more of that is always good.

 

PS: It’s a little known fact, but Angron is a prolific author. The Clotted Scrolls, War and War, A Tale of Two Sickles, The Slasher in the Rye, and many other classics.

 

 

[Dalmyth]

I ended up going with Shrike and Invocatus on Vigilus. Mainly because Invocatus doesn't have too much behind him, but I think World Eaters and Raven Guard would be a fun combination. A mix of ambushes and tactics with a fun little chase throughout the hive spires. Offering a fun bit of action with what seemed like a rare matchup.

[Malkydel]

I did one just as a writing exercise and ended up writing Trazyn and Creed on Vigilus.

[grailkeeper]

2 hours ago, Malkydel said:

I did one just as a writing exercise and ended up writing Trazyn and Creed on Vigilus.

Times are tough if actual BL authors also have to go through the open submissions.

[Malkydel]

2 hours ago, grailkeeper said:

Times are tough if actual BL authors also have to go through the open submissions.

As I said, just a writing exercise. Didn't actually submit it. :P