Events

Deadline: August 12th 2012 Payment: Charity Anthology - Exposure Only ‘Fear’ will be published, through us, in time for Halloween 2012. We’re looking for around twenty full, original and previously unpublished stories of terror, each around 4000 words in length. We won’t accept anything with fewer than 1500 words. If you think your story has what it takes, submit it to us at [email protected] with the words, HALLOWEEN ANTHOLOGY, in the subject line. Stories should be generally suitable for a broad adult audience. Scary, but not too graphic. Author and Publisher royalties will go completely to charity and, if accepted, your story will be published, in print and in e-format, as a part of the Anthology, across Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and the iTunes BookStore from October 2012. The two charities benefiting are the independent humanitarian medical aid organisation, Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF), and the anti child poverty, fostering, and anti child exploitation charity, Barnardo’s. We can only accept submissions up until midnight PST on Sunday 12th August 2012. All authors will be contacted throughout August and September.

Deadline: August 14th, 2012 Payment: Contributor's Copy The Pitch: Almost two hundred thousand years ago, HomoSapiens fought a war against the HomoHelmei for the coastal passages out of Africa. Although modern man won, the deadly virus that had infected the HomoHelmei infected the early migrants. The disease lay dormant in their DNA until the year 2012. Every descendant of those migrants, from India to China to the United States has been infected. All will die. The only survivors are the children of the Africans who did not migrate, whose DNA did not contain the virus. There is no test, no method of determining who will live and who will die to rise again as the living dead. If you're dark skinned, there is no hope. If not, you have 24 hours to live. The Truth: There are tons of zombie stories out there. Most of them create a lame back story and dive right into the killing and slaughter. I decided if I was going to do my own version, it had to be done differently. Using the retroviruses and genetic differences between the racial groups on Earth, I had a basis for an idea. It is important to tell stories that have cultural relevance, that touch upon issues of the day and explore themes we may not be comfortable talking about. Such as race issues. The comic industry has a lack of characters of color. It is primarily a white industry run by white people creating books about white characters. At the very least I wanted to create a property with an all black cast. One that didn't have anything to do with sports or crime. THE ANTHOLOGY: As a way to promote the book I will be publishing a novel anthology of short stories. Any interested writers should...

Dedline: August 15th 2012 Payment: shared royalties plus one eBook and one print contributor’s copy. Once in a while a random idea strikes me at an inopportune moment, like just before the movie begins at the theatre. That’s what happened with this one. Luckily, I remembered it and decided to do an anthology. This one is a little different than the ones we’ve done before, as I’m looking for stories with a strong sci-fi theme mixed with horror. The premise is a future society that dehumanizes its population. What if, in order to receive welfare (Medicaid, food stamps, the dole—for those of you across the Atlantic) you had to be put on a national donor’s registry? And what if someone who wasn’t on welfare needed an organ and you were the only match? Yes, imagine a government that makes citizens pay for their aid in one way or another. And that’s what I’m looking for—stories set in a not so distant future gone horribly wrong. I already have a few stories for the anthology, one by the incomparable Gene O’Neill. Length should be 3000 to 8000 words. If the story is longer, please query. If you have any questions, please feel free to query also. Deadline is August 15th and the proposed date of publication is November 10th, conveniently planned to coincide with the inevitable dissatisfaction of the US presidential election. (I mean one side’s always disgruntled, right?) So reread Orwell’s 1984 and Bradbury’s 451 Fahrenheit and then attempt to top them. Send your submissions to [email protected]. Please refer to our submission guidelines for proper formatting. Subs which are not properly formatted or do not include a cover letter will be returned unread.

Deadline: August 20th 2012 Payment: Payment: One contributor copy. All profit from this anthology will be donated to Downs Syndrome charities. Copies will be available for cost as long as you donate profit received to a Downs Syndrome charity organization of your choice. Chiral Mad is an anthology of psychological horror tentatively scheduled for publication by Written Backwards in November of 2012. It will contain twenty or more short stories by established authors and newcomers from around the world. Submissions will be open to the public starting May 16th with a listing appearing on duotrope.com soon. To submit a story for consideration, please see the guidelines below. Cover artwork in progress. Click the image for higher resolution. SUBMISSION GUIDELINES Twenty highly-regarded peers were selected for the initial invitation into this anthology, along with the twenty whose work appeared in Pellucid Lunacy. As stories are accepted, author names will appear on the “OFFICIAL LINE-UP” section on the top right of this page. Invited authors with submissions in the works will appear in the “UNOFFICIAL” section below that. Open submissions for Chiral Mad commence May 16th and will stay open until August 20th, or until filled. What’s acceptable? Fiction that disturbs the nonlinear fabric(s) of reality. Mindbenders in the range of 1000 to 5,000 words that could not only be classified as horror, but as psychological horror with chirality in mind. This anthology suits stories that push the limits of the human condition. The keyword being ‘human.’ Strong character development is a must, and all stories must have some element of chirality, whether it’s in character reflection, physical and/or mental symmetry, structure, or any other way you can manage. Look at your left hand; look at your right hand; now put them together… that’s chirality. Share something important with the rest of...

Deadline: August 20, 2012 Payment: An eBook copy will be sent to all contributors and up to 5 paperback copies per author will be available to purchase at cost. 50% of the royalties will be distributed between all contributors. We’ve all come across them. The warnings told by a friend of a friend - be careful! Some ghastly end met while undertaking a dare, don’t go in there, that’s the Devil’s Gate! Or perhaps your mind leaps to the cryptofiction realm - Bigfoot, the Chupacabra, or monstrous alligators roaming the sewers under New York City! Wherever your mind takes you, we want to come along for the ride. Ensure your story is dark and edgy, preferably full of horror - we want the reader to be too scared to step off the beaten path and wander into realms unknown. All urban legends are open for interpretation; just be sure to add the requisite elements of horror. Deadline for Submissions: August 20, 2012 Word count minimum: 4000 words - nothing less will be considered. Submission guidelines: Deadline for submissions - Monday, August 20, 2012. 4000 - 10,000 words. Please submit your manuscript as a *.doc or *.docx file in Verdana; 12 point font; single spacing and standard formatting. Graphic gore must be kept to a minimum unless it is integral to the story; absolutely no incestuous or sexual abuse storylines will be considered. Only stories previously unpublished may be submitted. Upon acceptance into the anthology, you agree that Sirens Call Publications holds exclusive publishing rights for twelve (12) months from the date of publication; after that date has passed, all intellectual property rights revert to the author with the proviso that Sirens Call Publications retains distribution rights in the format of the contracted anthology. An eBook copy will be sent to...

Deadline: August 30th 2012 Payment: 2 Contributor's copies KISS ME AT MIDNIGHT – COLLECTION A clean slate. A fresh start. A chance to throw out the old and begin anew. There’s nothing as revitalizing as the start of a new year, and what better way to begin than with a kiss. Less Than Three Press is seeking stories for a collection revolving around the theme of a new year, a new start, a propitious beginning. THE DETAILS: Deadline is AUGUST 30TH, 2012 11:59 EST (GMT -5) (give or take, we won’t kill you for sending it off the following morning) Ideally stories should be 5,000-10,000 words in length, but anything a little longer or shorter is acceptable. Stories must be m/m or f/f (threesomes etc are acceptable, but all parties must be the same gender). Stories should have a happy end—either HEA or HFN is acceptable. Any genre is acceptable: contemporary, fantasy, steampunk, sci-fi, horror, mystery, western, etc. We adore variety. All usual LT3 submission guidelines apply. This collection is centered around the theme of a new year and all the potential that comes with it. All stories must have a strong tie to this theme. We are looking for creative stories that bring in this theme, not simply dozens of stories about a New Year’s Eve party (though if you can do that creatively, we welcome it gladly). Kiss Me at Midnight is a collection of ebooks, meaning each story will be sold as an individual ebook, and readers will also have the option to purchase “bundles” or the entire collection for a reduced rate. Standard ebook royalty rates will apply. Stories should be complete before submitting, and as edited as possible. They can be submitted in any format (doc, docx, rtf, odt, etc), preferably single spaced with a...

Deadline: August 31, 2012 Payment: Exposure Only SUBMISSION DEADLINE: August 31, 2012 WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR: Flash fiction covering all genres. This is a collection of stories to be enjoyed by everyone, please keep excessive cussing and sex out unless integral to your character. WHAT WE ARE NOT LOOKING FOR: Slash and hack, blood and gore for their own sake. Graphic rape, torture, child abuse, and animal torture have their place, but not here. We prefer stories written in the third person—will consider first person if you knock our socks off. No Reprints. Looking for short stories in the 500- 1,500 word range. Payment exposure. This is a 4 The Luv anthology.. Submissions will be accepted August 31, 2012 Tentative Release Date: December 2012 Email submissions to: [email protected] Please put SUBMISSION, followed by the title of the story, and word count, in the subject line of your email. Attach your submission in .rtf format. Submissions pasted in the body of email will be rejected, unread.

Deadline: August 31st 2012 Payment: $10 Our 2012 anthology is a return to the classic ghost story... with a twist! We are looking for gay-themed ghost stories in the Gothic tradition. Avoid the ghost and Mr. Muir thing here and get creative! Requirements: 1000-3000 words RTF format Double-space/ Times New Roman There must some gay element to the story (and a ghost!) We do not want: excessive gore/ violence/ splatter rape/ torture/ abuse Reprints No simultaneous submissions We're looking for stories in the Poe, James, Le Fanu, Polidori vein here! Contact: [email protected] Payment: $10 Deadline: 31 August for an October publication

Deadline: August 31st 2012 Payment: $10 We are currently seeking submissions for our 2012 anthology! Our 2012 anthology is a return to the classic ghost story... with a twist! We are looking for gay-themed ghost stories in the Gothic tradition. Avoid the ghost and Mr. Muir thing here and get creative! Requirements: 1000-3000 words RTF format Double-space/ Times New Roman There must some gay element to the story (and a ghost!) We do not want: excessive gore/ violence/ splatter rape/ torture/ abuse Reprints No simultaneous submissions We're looking for stories in the Poe, James, Le Fanu, Polidori vein here! Contact: [email protected] Payment: $10 Deadline: 31 August for an October publication Ebook and paperback format

Deadline: August 31, 2012 Payment: We offer $30 and one contributor’s copy of the book as payment upon acceptance. An additional royalty will be paid out for every copy of the book (press or digital) sold after the first 500. SUBMISSION GUIDELINES What We Want DALI-ANCES: The Salvador Dali Anthology features around ten to fifteen short fiction stories dealing with Salvador Dali and his artworks. We are looking for stories inspired by or involving the artist, his art, or his symbolisms that categorize him as one of the 20th century’s most influential artists. We welcome all subgenres and forms of fantastic fiction, from horror and science fiction, steampunk and bizarro, fantasy and magic realism. We are looking for short stories which showcase Dali or his artwork as a central theme. Deadline for submissions is August 31, 2012. No entries will be accepted beyond this deadline. What We Don’t Want We will not accept stories which have the theme obviously shoehorned in after the fact. We do not want generic surrealism-based stories. We are not looking for poetry. And we don’t want an extreme amount of vulgarity or sexual perversion for its own sake, unless it fits the theme and mood of the anthology, especially considering the source material. Manuscript Format We are looking for short fiction between 1500-7500 words, though longer fiction will still be considered. All submissions should be in DOC, RTF, or TXT format in standard double-spaced manuscript format. Multiple Submissions and Reprints We accept up to two (2) multiple submissions for review. Each one must be sent via its own separate email. Reprints are permissable, as long as prior publication is mentioned and described in the cover letter. Pay Rate We offer $30 and one contributor’s copy of the book as payment upon acceptance. An additional royalty...