Events

Deadline: April 30th, 2019 Payment: 2% of the net profits from the anthology History is full of "what if" possibilities. What if Rome had never fallen? What if the USA lost the Revolution? What if Hitler had never come to power? This is the stuff of "Alternate History" fiction. But, where's the fun in that? Thus comes our new anthology to provide that answer! This Never Happened is an anthology devoted to the humorous side of alternative history fiction. This collection will hold stories that are funny and outrageous, set in worlds where history differs from what happened in our own reality, with ridiculous consequences; tales that could not possibly have happened, or maybe they could have but they'd have just been absolutely hilarious! Explore what could have been, and what absolutely could not have been as well. Make us laugh, and screw up history like never before for this wacky story collection! If you wish to submit a story to this anthology, please adhere to the following guidelines: 1: Format: Stories should be formatted in either Times New Roman (preferred) or Courier New, and single-spaced. Please, do not add an extra space between paragraphs. A lot of writers separate their paragraphs into blocks these days, like they're writing a blog post. Please don't submit that way. Also, Files must be in an MS Word compatible format (.doc, .rtf, .docx). 2: PG-13, please. With this anthology, we're hoping to produce something Young Adults can enjoy, as well as older folks. No gratuitous sex scenes or horrifically offensive material. Some language is acceptable, but try to keep f-bombs to a minimum. 3: Word Length: 1,500-10,000 words. While we will entertain reprints, we give preference to fresh, previously-unpublished stories. 4: No Simultaneous Submissions. It is most disappointing to read the greatest story and accept it, only to...

Deadline: April 30th, 2019 Payment: Royalties Beginning January 1st, Level Best Books will be accepting submissions for the seventeenth Best New England Crime Stories anthology. Seascape: The Best New England Crime Stories 2019 will be published in November and debut at The New England Crime Bake.  Please read all submission guidelines carefully before submitting stories. Submissions that do not follow the guidelines and procedures will not be considered. Guidelines:  Stories must be set in New England or be written by a New England author* in the following genres: mystery, thriller, suspense, caper, and horror from any time period (historical, modern day, future, etc.). Please indicate which New England state is featured in your story (this is especially important for non-New England authors) Stories must not exceed 5,000 words. Stories must be previously unpublished in print or electronically, including self-published works (to include author websites). Stories from both previously unpublished and published authors will be considered. The Level Best editors will consider up to two stories from the same author per anthology** Stories submitted previously, and not published in the interim, are welcome, especially those that have been revised. New England stories are set in the six New England states: Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island. If you have questions about whether your story qualifies, please query us before submitting. We will not consider stories that feature graphic scenes of torture or sex. Submissions will be read blindly by the judges. Your story will be coded to insure anonymity before it is sent to the judges, therefore your name should not appear anywhere on the document. There is no entry fee. Level Best Books is a royalty paying and MWA approved publisher. You may simultaneously submit your story for consideration for the anthology and the Al Blanchard Award, which is judged separately. *Please note: This is a change from previous years. Authors do not...

Deadline: April 30th, 2019 Payment: Royalties Beginning January 1st, Level Best Books will be accepting submissions for the seventeenth Best New England Crime Stories anthology. Seascape: The Best New England Crime Stories 2019 will be published in November and debut at The New England Crime Bake. Please read all submission guidelines carefully before submitting stories. Submissions that do not follow the guidelines and procedures will not be considered. Guidelines: Stories must be set in New England or be written by a New England author* in the following genres: mystery, thriller, suspense, caper, and horror from any time period (historical, modern day, future, etc.). Please indicate which New England state is featured in your story (this is especially important for non-New England authors) Stories must not exceed 5,000 words. Stories must be previously unpublished in print or electronically, including self-published works (to include author websites). Stories from both previously unpublished and published authors will be considered. The Level Best editors will consider up to two stories from the same author per anthology** Stories submitted previously, and not published in the interim, are welcome, especially those that have been revised. New England stories are set in the six New England states: Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island. If you have questions about whether your story qualifies, please query us before submitting. We will not consider stories that feature graphic scenes of torture or sex. Submissions will be read blindly by the judges. Your story will be coded to insure anonymity before it is sent to the judges, therefore your name should not appear anywhere on the document. There is no entry fee. Level Best Books is a royalty paying and MWA approved publisher. You may simultaneously submit your story for consideration for the anthology and the Al Blanchard Award,...

Deadline: April 30th, 2019 Payment: Royalties A Murder of Crows—cozy to cozy-noir crime stories, set in any time, from dinosaurs to the present, using the collective names of groups of animals which includes mammals, reptiles, fish, birds, and insects. If your imagination goes beyond the scope of known collective names, you may create your own. Earth animals/birds only, none from outer space or invented animals. You can put your animals in jeopardy but animal cruelty or killing an animal is an automatic rejection. Choosing an animal/bird that is a little different may give you an edge on being chosen. We don’t want multiple stories using the same species! Your animals should be an integral part of the crime, not just a mention as part of the story. Examples of collective names to use: http://www.namibian.org/travel/misc/collective-nouns.html https://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/animals/blogs/99-strange-collective-animal-names https://grammar.yourdictionary.com/word-lists/list-of-names-for-groups-of-animals.html Submission Period: December 17th – April 30, 2019 [email protected] and the name of your story in the subject line. Standard manuscript form, sent as an attachment. Your contact information on Page One. Length: 2500 to 6000 words. Four to five thousand words is a good goal. We expect the anthology to have approximately seventy-five thousand words, a mix of longer and shorter stories. Payment: Royalty Fifty percent of the gross royalties per calendar quarter will be distributed equally among the contributors. Contributor copies will not be offered. A limited number of review copies will be available. We ask for the exclusive right to publish your story for one calendar year following contract signing, excluding publications of those previously published. Title subject to change. For additional information, please contact [email protected] or visit the website at http://www.darkhousebooks.com. Sandra Murphy is the author of From Hay to Eternity: Ten Tales of Crime and Deception. Her short stories have appeared in Flash and Bang, The Killer Wore Cranberry...

Deadline: April 30th, 2019. Payment: 2 cents a word for reprints, 4 cents a word for original work. This horror anthology, to be edited by Jerry L. Wheeler, seeks stories under 10,000 words that involve one of the traditional tropes of campfire tales and slasher films: the axe murderer. Stories need not focus solely on this antagonist, but all stories must somehow involve this threat or concept. Think Angela Carter’s “The Fall River Axe Murders.” Surprise us by breathing new life into this theme. That said, we anticipate most of the book will be reprints – for which we are offering 2 cents a word. Original work pays 4 cents a word but first query the editor with a synopsis. Specs? Please submit Word docs only, standard formatting, 12 pt Times Roman to me at [email protected], using the title of the anthology as the subject line. The deadline is April 30th, 2019. Via: Lethe Press Books.

Deadline: April 30th, 2019 Payment: £10 and a contributor's copy A new fiction anthology to be edited by Allen Ashley and to be published by Eibonvale Press (UK) during 2019.   Guidelines from Allen Ashley: This will be an anthology of stories set on / dealing with the abiding influence of the Moon. You can take a literal or non-literal approach. The “Once” aspect will deal with how older cultures / earlier civilisations / people in history saw the Moon, considered and reflected upon the Moon. Think Verne, Wells, Godwin. Think mythology. Think the Sumerians. Think the Ancient Greeks. Think beliefs held by vanished cultures. These stories do not have to be factually, scientifically accurate; the Moon element could be seen as poetic, figurative, imaginative, etc. These stories will likely form one-third of the book. Possibly half. For “Future”, I am looking at both the liveable near-future (e.g. up to 50 years’ time) and slightly further ahead as well. I want stories grounded in how we will live on / adapt to / use the Moon in the near and further future. What issues might we face – some of which have yet to be even thought of by NASA? I will also look at stories about how the Moon will affect our lives going forward. Will it be the site of the next war? Will it be the focal point of a conflict between science and religious forces (consider how the Moon is central to many religious practices)? What happens if the Moon starts to move closer to us or to move further away? What if the Moon was badly damaged or destroyed? What if the Moon acquired a companion? I am likely to take between half and two-thirds of the stories for this segment. These Guidelines are meant...

Deadline: April 30th, 2019 Payment: advance royalties of £50 ($67) The call for submissions for The Third Corona Book of Horror Stories is now open. Help us make this our best anthology yet. We invite submissions of brilliant modern horror short stories from you, whoever you are and wherever you are. In fact, we want to do everything to encourage you to submit your stories and nothing to discourage you. So: We're not asking for exclusivity or any rights to your story other than to publish it in The Third Corona Book of Horror Stories. We will pay advance royalties of £50 ($67) to the author of each story we publish in the book. We're keeping our guidelines as simple and straightforward as possible with no outdated or unnecessary rules about formatting etc. Full details are as follows: This autumn we will publish The Third Corona Book of Horror Stories, to be a collection of the best in new horror writing comprising between fifteen and twenty short stories. If you think you have written, or can write, a great horror story that you would like to see included in The Third Corona Book of Horror Stories, we would love to hear from you. We want this collection to include only brilliant modern horror stories and to surpass in terms of quality the high standards we set ourselves again with last year's The Second Corona Book of Horror Stories. We are looking for the best in new horror stories. Submissions in English are welcome from any country. Stories should be between a minimum of 1,000 words and a maximum of 8,000 words - there will be room for both short short stories and long short stories. There will be room too in the book for various different takes on what constitutes horror - we want the stories in the book...

Deadline: April 30th 2019 Payment: $5.00 Alternative American history, dark supernatural takes on national tragedies, the dark gods behind the politics and power. This anthology is the place to put the horror back into our homeland. There are lots of horrifying things going on in the country, however, for this collection, we are specifically seeking cult/supernatural horror. As these are works of fiction, we strongly recommend changing the names of living politicians in your work. Even if you make it painfully obvious who inspired it. We will not accept any stories about rape. Racism/Sexism/Bigotry of any form will never be accepted here. Stories between 1500-5000 words prefered. Double check your grammar and spelling. Format your story correctly. Please submit all stories in DOC/RTF format. We prefer stories that have not been published before. We prefer to avoid multiple and simultaneous submissions. We retain exclusive publishing rights for 12 months. We pay $5.00 for stories Deadline is 4.31.19 Send all submissions with the subject ‘American Cult’ (Your story Name) to [email protected] Via: Madness Heart Press.

Deadline: April 30th, 2019 Payment: 6 cents per word Open Period and Deadline Nox Pareidolia will open to previously unpublished submissions on April 1st and will close to submission at the close of that month. Payment Payment will be 6 cents per word. I prefer shorter pieces but I will accept exceptional tales that are longer, however the payment will be capped 6,000 words. Theme The theme is heavily inspired by Robert Aickman's fiction. Initially, I envisioned a book of stories where it is ambiguous as to whether the nature of the horror/weird element is supernatural or not. But I've recently decided to make that a more openly interpreted theme of ambiguous horror/weird fiction. Whether it be ambiguously supernatural or whether what exactly has or is happening is ambiguous, or any creative idea playing off of ambiguity could be interesting to see explored. But the element that is ambiguous must be intrinsic to the story. Formatting Standard Shunn formatting is just fine, but we're finding more and more that we prefer single spaced manuscripts as we read submissions on our devices. And italics should preferably be italicized and not underlined. Single spaces between sentences is also a huge help when final formatting comes around. That said, we will not reject stories if the formatting isn’t perfect. First and foremost make it readable. And where stories require odd formatting for effect, certainly don’t change that on our account.   Via: Night Scape Press</a..

Deadline: April 30th, 2019 Payment: $20 Thank you very much for considering BJ Bourg’s Flash Bang Mysteries. We will do our level best to ensure your experience is a pleasant and positive one. SEE BELOW FOR SUBMISSION PERIODS Fiction we seek: Original mystery/suspense of all types (police procedural, private eye, amateur sleuth, cozies, hardboiled, etc.). Basically, if it involves a crime and it is within our guidelines, we would love to consider it. (Updated: October 25, 2015) We want stories that feature believable characters who speak naturally, realistic situations that bleed conflict, and surprise endings that stay with us long after we reach the final period. We welcome new and established authors. We publish four times per year: January / Winter April / Spring July / Summer October / Fall Submission periods are limited to the following dates: October 1st to October 31st for January Issue January 1st to January 31st for April Issue April 1st to April 30th for July Issue July 1st to July 31st for October Issue How to submit: We accept submissions via e-mail only. Send as .rtf or .doc attachment. Include brief cover letter in body of e-mail We do not accept simultaneous submissions. If you have not received an answer by publication date, feel free to submit your story elsewhere. Please submit one story per author at a time. E-mail submissions/queries to [email protected] (Updated: August 13, 2015) Subject line must read: “Flash submission: ” Manuscript format: (Updated: December 31, 2017) Font: Times New Roman, 12-pt Center title in all caps at top of first page, skip line, insert byline, skip line, and begin story. Use single line spacing. Skip line between paragraphs and do not indent at the beginning of paragraphs. Single-space after periods. Use two hyphens instead of the em-dash. Use italics to indicate flashbacks and...

Deadline: April 30th, 2019 Payment: $0.03 USD per word Note: Must identify as LGBTQIA to submit. DEADLINE: April 30, 2019 PAYMENT: $0.03 USD per word MINIMUM WORD COUNT: 500 MAXIMUM WORD COUNT: 3500* MAXIMUM SUBMISSIONS PER AUTHOR: 2 REPRINTS: No** SUBMISSION EMAIL: [email protected] *Authors are welcome to interpret the maximum word count as a guideline rather than a strict ruling. The maximum payment for a single story, once accepted, will not exceed $105 regardless of final word count. (If you send in something that is around 3690 words and we love it, we’ll compensate you for 3500 of those words and you’ll have to give the rest of them to us for free.) Regardless of this flexibility, PLEASE NOTE: Stories exceeding 3900 words will not be considered for publication. **For the sake of this project, reprints are defined as follows: stories that are posted on your personal blog, a Reddit account, or other similar social media will be considered “first run” and eligible for acceptance. Stories that have been narrated on horror podcasts such as The NoSleep Podcast, Creepy, Monsters Out Of The Closet, etc, will be considered for acceptance (provided the author retains the right to resell these stories.) As it relates to “Black Rainbow” we define reprints as works that have been previously published and distributed in print (whether that be in a magazine, book, e-book or otherwise previously distributed medium.) If you have previously published the story with a similar publisher, it will not be accepted. Works that have not been published anywhere will move to the front. ADDITIONALLY: MOVING FORWARD ALL SUBMITTERS MUST BE LGBTQIA IDENTIFYING. Authors may submit any number of stories they wish for consideration. Should we choose to select multiple stories from a single author, we will only be accepting two per author. This is not an erotica anthology. We...

Deadline: April 30th, 2019 Payment: 1 cent per word, a flat rate of $20 if under 2,000 words. The Overcast is currently open to submissions three times a year, during the months of January, April, and October. (Note we are no longer reading during July.  Our summers have just gotten too hectic.  Sorry for the inconvenience.  Thank you for understanding.)   What We Want We are interested in speculative fiction, whatever that means to you, be it Science Fiction, Fantasy, Steampunk, Magical Realism, Slipstream, or an as-yet-unnamed genre.  Anything that looks at the world and life from an unexpected angle.  We want the original vision of William Gibson.  The magic and beauty of Erin Morgenstern.  The uncompromising voice of Margaret Atwood.  The technical brilliance of Ted Chiang.  We want to read stories that transport us to places that we've never imagined.  We want to still be thinking about a story days after reading it.  Be original.  Be amazing. We are based in Portland, OR, and shine a spotlight on writers hailing from, living in, or connected in some way to the Pacific Northwest, as loosely defined by the bioregion of Cascadia.  We feel there is an exceptionally strong talent pool of speculative writers in Cascadia, and we want to celebrate and promote them to a larger audience.  Roughly half the stories we publish are by PNW writers.  That said, we are not exclusive, and the other half of our stories come from authors all over the globe.  So no matter where you live, send us your stories.  If they make us laugh, cry, or turn cartwheels of astonishment, preferably all at once, we will find a place for them on The Overcast. This is an audio format publication.  We feel that stories of around 20-30 minutes in length are the best...

"Das Cabinet des Dr. Caligari"D 1919/20R.: Robert WieneConrad Veidt Deadline: April 30th, 2019 Payment: Contributor's Copy Hey weirdos! We are looking for Cthulhu mythos / Lovecraftian tales for our May issue. Submissions must be in by April 30th! Length should be between 1k-3k. Compensation is a contributor copy. Send submissions, copy and pasted in the body of the email, to weirdmaskzine at gmail dot com Please be sure to add your address, story credit and twitter or instagram handle (if you have one). Via: Weird Mask.

Deadline: April 30th, 2019 Payment: 1.5p per word You know how we like to keep you on your toes? Well... The Shadow Booth is now OPEN for fiction submissions until the end of April! Here are some basic guidelines: We are a bi-annual journal of weird and eerie fiction. Do not send us your Western romance (in space). Do not send us your drug addiction memoir. Do not send us your shopping list (unless you're buying some really weird things). Weird. Eerie. Fiction. Please. If you want an idea of what we mean by weird and eerie, then read one of our previous volumes. This is the best way to find out what we like! All ebooks are under £5, and like all independent publications, we need your support to keep going. Paperbacks are under £9, and our latest, Vol. 3, has just been published. (Paperbacks, ebooks and subscriptions are available here. Okay, rant over...) If you want further pointers, why not read editor Dan Coxon's article on the Ginger Nuts of Horror website: Face the Strange. Submissions should be 1,000 - 8,000 words long. We won't quibble over a word or two, but otherwise those limits are fixed. We would particularly like to read stories by BAME writers, and by women writing within the weird/eerie horror scene. In our experience, these tend to be underrepresented within the genre. Having said that, if you fall into neither of these groups, we want to read your work too - all stories will be considered on an equal basis once they have been submitted. Please only submit one story during the submissions period. Any further submissions during this period will be rejected. (We would say 'send us your best', but you know that already...) Simultaneous submissions are fine, but please let us know if your story is accepted elsewhere....