Events

Deadline: May 31st, 2017. Payment: 5 cents per word Chiral Mad 4 is officially open for submissions! The anthology is scheduled for publication in the first or second quarter of 2018 by Written Backwards, an imprint of Dark Regions Press, to be edited by Bram Stoker Award winning editor Michael Bailey. Much like Chiral Mad 3 and The Library of the Dead, this latest installment will be published in trade paperback, eBook, and deluxe hardback editions. Unlike past Written Backwards projects, this fourth volume in the critically-acclaimed series of anthologies will be a completely collaborative effort of originality, collecting 4 short stories, 4 novelettes, 4 novellas, and 4 graphic adaptations (to celebrate this 4th book), all co-authored and/or co-created. The anthology itself may even possibly be co-edited. We’re also seeking individuals willing to write a co-introduction for the book. Email [email protected] if interested in either of these opportunities. The goal of Chiral Mad 4 is to help bring our creative community together, to make us stronger, to strengthen relationships already in place, and to help create new relationships entirely. It’s time for all of us to play nice, to get along, and to do what we do best: create somethings out of nothings… and we’re going to create these beautiful somethings together. Have a specific writer/artist you’ve always admired? Well, now’s your chance. Reach out. Ask! That’s all it takes to get started. Find a partner, or two, or three, and start collaborating! The more unique the collaboration, the better the chances you have of making it into Chiral Mad 4. The more diverse the collaborations, the better the chances you have of making it into Chiral Mad 4. Now, here’s the hard part: knowing whether or not someone is already collaborating… Email [email protected] if you have any questions or concerns about this. While half the anthology will be filled with commissioned works (the book is...

Deadline: May 31st, 2017 Payment: Novella (17,501 to 40,000 words) — $150 + two print courtesy copies Novelette (7,501 to 17,500 words) — $100+ two print courtesy copies Short Story (2,501 to 7,500 words) — $50 + one courtesy copy Poetry (one or more poems; 100 lines total) — $25 + one courtesy copy; additional $25 for each 100 lines Micro Story (less than 2,500 words) — $10 + one courtesy copy Anthologies are a great way to get your stories noticed. Caffeinated Press sponsors an annual house anthology titled “Brewed Awakenings,” with a new volume released every autumn. The first volume, released on March 2, 2015, contains the work of eight invited authors from West Michigan who penned stories under the loose theme of “all goes dark.” The second volume shipped in September 2016; subsequent volumes will follow each October. The anthology ships in print format (vol. 1); print and ebook (vol. 2); print, ebook and audio book (vol. 3 and subsequent). We are currently in the reading window for vol. 3. The window closes 5/31/17. We recommend that you read the Q&A that follows, then visit our Query page to read our formal house editorial guidelines. The submission form for proposed Brewed Awakenings content is at the bottom of the Query page. It will be to your advantage to read both of these documents in their entirety before you consider whether you should submit to us. Q&A When can I submit stories? What’s the deadline? We accept stories year-round. The cutoff for each autumn’s volume is May 31. Submit before then, you’re in consideration for that year’s copy; submit after that, and you’re in the pile for the following year. You obtain neither benefit nor disability from submitting well in advance of the cutoff, but technical errors in the submission...

Deadline: May 1st, 2017 Payment: 1 cent a word Submissions for the horror collection THE EDGE: INFINITE DARKNESS, the second book in The Edge series, are now open. Submissions should be sent to [email protected]. Send your story as a message, not an attachment, and include a short bio about yourself above the story so we can get to know you. Format your submission title as: "Darkness Submission - Title - Author Name". Please edit your story before sending it because if I can't read it, I won't. (NO REPRINTS - NO REPRINTS - NO REPRINTS) Pay: 1 cent a word (7,000 words = $70 = 0.01 x 7,000) Requirements: 500-7,000 words a story – multiple submissions are allowed within reason, spam is not allowed. My only rule vs multiple submissions is more of a warning than a rule. If I don’t like the first submission, then I can’t promise I will read the following submissions. Timeline: Submissions will be viewed until either May 1st or the book reaches its goal length, whichever comes first. That is, unless the stories received are unsatisfactory and I’m forced to leave submissions open longer, but let’s hope that’s not the case. This collection is the embodiment of Darkness. There is no direct theme in terms of “ghost”, or “monsters”, or anything like that. What darkness can you bring forth that is hidden from the world? A darkness that perhaps exists in the woods, or your basement, or in the back of someone’s mind. Take the reader by the throat and drag their struggling body into the confines of this darkness and make them beg for their own sanity that you let them go. Dark. Twisted. Sick. Perhaps psychological. Write something that would make the school psychologist call you in for questioning. Write something that...

Deadline: May 31st, 2017 Payment: Up to $100 and a contributor's copy We are currently requesting submissions for a new horror anthology of short stories we plan to publish this year. We're paying up to $100 per published story based on word count, AND a free printed version of the anthology.  We are looking for edited, well-written, horror stories from 5K to 10K words in length.  Scare us so we can't sleep at night!  Your stories need to be previously unpublished - exceptions to this will be handled on a limited basis as long as you still retain all rights to the work.  We are looking for original content. If you have previously published your story to a blog or social media account, we will not be interested. Please email your story to the address below and in the subject line and enter the words "Horror Anthology." Then, copy and paste your story in the body of the email, do not attach files. If accepted, we will notify you and ask you to submit an MS Word document.  Payment amount to be determined based on word count. We will discuss terms upon acceptance for publication. Submissions will close midnight, May 31, 2017. Other submissions are closed at this time. Please send your submissions to: Via: Rice Paper Press.

Deadline: May 31st, 2017 Payment: $15 and a contributor's copy if in the US There are things that define us. Things that separate us from the whole. Everyone’s a stranger in some way or another. Whether by coming to a new land, practicing different traditions, estrangement from your own people, or becoming a refugee forced from your home only to find yourself at the mercy of a tyrant… whatever the circumstances, strangers are compelling protagonists and so the theme of our anthology. The Central Arkansas Speculative Fiction Writers Group’s third anthology will be a collection of short stories about strangers. We want to see stories about estrangement, oddballs, and those who simply do not follow rules. We want to see outsiders and those deemed unworthy by society. Outcasts are welcome. SUBMISSION GUIDELINES: Submit your work in standard manuscript format to [email protected] with a subject line beginning with “Anthology Submission:” and ending with the title of your submission. Maximum word length is 7500 words. Payment is 15$ and a contributor’s copy. (Only writers within the U.S. will receive a physical contributor’s copy. Writers outside the U.S. will receive an e-book contributor’s copy.) Please only send speculative fiction. That’s science fiction, fantasy, and everything in between. We are looking for compelling storylines and, more importantly, compelling characters. Please no erotica or gratuitous violence. Please no multi-submissions or reprints. We will respond within thirty days of submission. Please do not query about submission status until thirty days have lapsed from when your story was submitted. If querying, please email with a subject beginning with “Query:” and ending with the title of your submission. The deadline is May 31, 2017. Via: Central Arkansas Speculative Fiction Writers Group.

Deadline: May 31st, 2017 Payment: 1 cent per word advance and royalties Note: Reprints ONLY Dust off your dragon stories. It's time to "releash" them on the world in the first DFF Dragons anthology. No word on publication timing as this will depend on the quantity and quality of reprint short story submissions. The Basics Theme: Dragons Open: Now Closes: May 31, 2017 (Or upon receipt and contracting of a full TOC; so don't wait.) Stories: Approximately 30 Reprint Stories; Total Words: Approximately 150,000; Story Words: 750 - 10000 Words - Or by prior invitation/permission more or less words; Type: Reprint Only - prefer semi-pro to pro prior publication; Rate: 1 cent per word advance - (less fees charged to author by PayPal). Participation in royalty sharing after advance; Rights: Non exclusive World English print (paper & hardcover), ebook/digital, audio - all for the complete anthology only. Publication: Complete anthology only - no one offs and no individual story license. Response Time: Could be 3 weeks, but if we've short listed your story it could be considerably longer while we build out our TOC. You may submit your reprint to other markets; just us know if it is no longer available (and congrats). However, we will do our best to keep authors in the loop. Submissions will be reviewed for inclusion upon receipt. Please submit only ONE story for consideration at a time; multiple entries will be rejected. IF your story is rejected you may submit another story for consideration - but just one at a time, please. IF your story is accepted then additional stories require pre-approval to submit. We are not looking for and will not license stories that are available to download on-line for free as a stand-alone story from any venue. Notes Dragons - bad-ass dragons. Dragons that destroy things...

Deadline: June 1st, 2017 Payment: Royalties and a contributor's copy Not horror, but with undeath involved you may be able to weave some elements in We’re looking for Steampunk stories—specifically, mysteries that take place in a Steampunk setting. A mystery is the story of a crime and its solution. As for Steampunk, you can find a good, concise description at Steampunk.com. Supernatural elements are welcome. Here are the particulars: Length: Maximum 10,000 words. Deadline: June 1, 2017 Submit to: editorjessfaraday at hotmail.com Format: paperback and e-book Payment: share of royalties plus author copies Contract: we use a modified EPIC contract. Additional Information: A lot of Steampunk focuses on the European experience. Elm Books is dedicated to promoting diverse authors and stories. Priority will be given to stories that feature characters from traditionally underrepresented groups—main characters of color, female protagonists, differently-abled main characters, LGBTQ main characters, and so on. Also, priority will be given to stories set outside of Europe, especially those examining colonialism from a non-European perspective. We will not print stories containing graphic sex or violence. Sound like enough of a challenge? Get writing! Via: Elm Books.

Deadline: June 1, 2017 Payment: $25 usd There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, Than are dreamt of in your philosophy. – Hamlet (1.5.167-8), Hamlet to Horatio Anthology Editor: Carrol Fix Word Count: 3,000 – 8,000 Deadline: June 1, 2017 Authors receive token payment of $25. Please read our Submission Guidelines before submitting. Submit using only this Submission Form. If you send the story directly to the editor, you will be asked to resubmit through the form. Not all stories will be accepted. Only the best of the best authors will earn a spot in Visions VII: Universe, the final Visions Series volume. Visions VII: Universe will focus on the previously unimaginable; in the vastness of the Universe, all things imaginable are possible. Please keep the science fiction theme. This is not a carte blanche invitation to turn your science fiction story into fantasy. If you include things that seem fantastical, make sure there is at least a bread crumb trail of science to support it. Via: Lilli Cat Publishers.

Deadline: June 1st, 2017 Payment: Royalties **Deadline: June 1st, 2017** Prompt: Literature is inseparable from context: medium, culture, and conflict. Whether that be social media or formal writing, we are always part of a conversation with the world. As writers, we live our lives in the margins, we go beyond a social conversation and create an artistic dialogue. This is the way we process and handle big events in our history, this is the way we change our history; by recognizing what is happening within our environment and putting it in ink. “People who shut their eyes to reality simply invite their own destruction, and anyone who insists on remaining in a state of innocence long after that innocence is dead turns himself into a monster” (Baldwin, 1953). We want to read your work outing the monsters and keeping our eyes open. We want to share your experience with the world as a statement. Writing reflects the human experience—especially that bound by social and political pressures. We write in hopes to disrupt power dynamics and increase the voice of subalterns (Said, 1979). Onyx Neon seeks submissions of disruptive poetry for a social activist anthology. The Project: In Fall 2017, Onyx Neon will release a collection of poems under the umbrella of American Upheaval. The world is reacting to a drastic shift in administration—and those reactions are raw, loud, and critical. We want poems that add to the political conversation. This collection will be edited by Head Editor of Onyx Neon Shorts, Lindsay Deter-Wolf, with Kit Martin. Submission Instructions: Please submit 1–6 poems. Each poem (including its enjambed stanzas and verse paragraphs, your chosen formatting) should appear on its own page, and the submission itself must exceed no more than six pages in total. What we pay: Our standard collection rate...

Deadline: June 1st, 2017 Payment: $0.03 cents per word WE NEED TEN TALES OF HIERARCHY HELL AND BUREAUCRATIC NIGHTMARE! Of all bureaucracies, corporations are the most powerful, seeming to have a life and will of their own.  They're privately held with a multi-national reach, seemingly bottomless resources, and armies of lawyers jealously guarding their trade secrets.  Anything and everything is justified by the bottom line.  Who needs a Cthulhu Cult when you've got Cthulhu, Inc.? Into this insidious world are thrust our heroes—the curious, the puzzled, and the frustrated.  Defying authority, seeking answers they'd be better off not knowing, the secrets they discover threaten their sanity and their lives.  Will they become the next whistleblower media hero?  Or disappear, leaving nothing behind but an empty desk and whispered rumors in the break room?  Remember: it's nothing personal—just business. Corporate Cthulhu is a Lovecraftian horror anthology about the intersection of the Cthulhu Mythos and corporations or other large bureaucracies. This is an OPEN call for submissions—anyone and everyone is free to submit a short story to the slush pile.  Feel free to share this with other writers you think might be interested. What We're Looking For •    Short stories up to 7000 words. •    Original, previously unpublished fiction. •    We're particularly interested in submissions from writers traditionally underrepresented in sci-fi, fantasy, and horror fiction.  This includes racial, ethnic, and religious minorities, women, LGBTQ+ individuals, and people living with disabilities. •    Stories must include at least a passing connection to the Cthulhu Mythos and/or Lovecraft's other work.  The stronger the connection, the more likely the story is to be accepted. •    Stories that make skillful use of Lovecraftian horror themes: insanity, helplessness and hopelessness, inherited guilt, old isolated locations, books of forbidden knowledge, ancient extraterrestrial influences on humanity, the risks of runaway science, civilization vs. barbarism, humanity's...