Events

Taking Submissions: Trigger Warning: Body Horror

Deadline: February 28th, 2019 Payment: $5 Trigger Warning is an annual collection of stories geared toward making readers uncomfortable. This is the place to be gratuitous, to expound on the details that might make readers wish they could turn their eyes away. So long as you write well enough that they are unable to. Each year Trigger Warning will focus on a different theme. In 2019 our theme is body horror! As per Wikipedia: Body horror or biological horror is a subgenre of horror which intentionally showcases graphic or psychologically disturbing violations of the human body. These violations may manifest through aberrant sex, mutations, mutilation, zombification, gratuitous violence, disease, or unnatural movements of the body.  There you have it. We will not accept any stories about rape. (Yes this means the aberrant sex must be consensual.) 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 up to 5000 Deadline is 2.28.19 Send all submissions with the subject ‘TW Body Horror Submission’ to [email protected] Via: Deep In The Heard Of Madness.

Taking Submissions: Earth: Giants, Golems and Gargoyles

Deadline: February 28th, 2019 Payment: $50 CAD and a contributor's copy Keep your feet on the ground. Sink in roots. Stay grounded. Mother Earth. We come from dust, and to dust we return… Earth is steady. Solid. Reliable. It is the source of life and the thing which sustains it. But it’s not always serene and peaceful. It takes a lot to stir the earth but when it does, things get dramatic. Quakes swallow cities. Oceans rise. Mountains crumble. Earth is not weak, and it knows no pity. In this, the second installment of the Elemental Anthology series, I want to explore the many facets of this often under-estimated element and the creatures associated with it so Earth: Giants, Golems and Gargoyles will be filled with stories about every kind of earthy creature you can imagine, not only those listed in the subtitle. I’m looking for trolls, dwarves, earth dragons, goblins, ogres, orcs, grotesques and earthen beasts no one has ever heard of before. And of course this anthology will not be complete without at least one giant, golem and gargoyle! Rights and compensation: Payment: $50 CAD flat fee and a paperback copy of the anthology. In exchange we are seeking first world rights in English and exclusive right to publish in print and electronic format for six months after publication date, after which publisher retains nonexclusive right to continue to publish for the life of the anthology. Open submission period: January 1, 2019 – February 28, 2019 Length: Under 7,500 words How to submit: Use the Submittable form found here https://niteblade.submittable.com/submit (If form is not visible, submissions are not yet open) No simultaneous or multiple submissions. No reprints. Canadian spelling, please. Via: Rhonda Parrish.

Taking Submissions: Disabled People Destroy Fantasy

Deadline: February 28th, 2019 Payment: 8 cents per word Disabled People Destroy Fantasy Guidelines Reading period: January 15th, 2019 to February 28th 2019. Please do not submit anything until January 15th. Emails containing submissions will be deleted. (Uncanny Magazine uses the Moksha submission system.) We are OPEN to all submissions! Who can submit: We welcome submission from writers who identify themselves as disabled. Identity is what matters for this issue. What kinds of disabilities? All of them. Invisible and visible. Physical disabilities, learning disabilities, intellectual disabilities, mental health disabilities, and neurodiversity. Yes, even if your disability is a recently acquired one. Yes, even if your disability is static, or if it isn’t. Yes, even if you’ve had your disability since birth. Yes, even if you use adaptive devices only SOME of the time. Yes, you. Please read Elsa Sjunneson-Henry’s essay “Disabled Enough” if you have any doubts. So, if you identify as disabled across any of these definitions or others, we want to hear from you!   A Note on Manuscript Guidelines For Fiction and Nonfiction:  14pt font, please. Serifed (ex: Time New Roman, Courier, Garamond). Double spaced. Please let the editors know if you need accommodations as well.   Fiction Fiction Editor: Katharine Duckett We do not require stories to explore issues relating to disability, though we welcome them. We’re seeking fantasy stories that invite readers to enter worlds they’ve never seen before. We’re looking for immediate and visceral tales of danger, fun and inventive adventures, and fateful journeys to distant lands or to the dragon’s lair in your own backyard. We’re looking for intricate, challenging tales with gorgeous prose, verve, and imagination that elicit strong emotions and challenge beliefs. We want the stories you’ve been yearning to encounter in the world. We want to engage with the characters you want to meet in...

Taking Submissions: The Devil’s Hour

Deadline: February 28th, 2019 Payment: $5 ... no hard and fast theme for this one - send us your very best horror stories and tales of unrelenting terror! Monsters, ghouls, demons, vampires, werewolves, and all manner of slithering, crawling creatures - throw us your most terrifying short stories and scare the wits out of everyone at HBB! To submit, email your polished story to [email protected] PLEASE read and adhere to our submission guidelines... * Word format saved in .doc, or .docx * 12 pt times new roman * Double spaced * Absolutely NO extra lines between paragraphs! * 5K-15K word count (although we are incredibly flexible for awesome stories!) * Write 'DEVIL'S HOUR' along with your name and story title in the header of your email *The body of your submission email will be considered the cover letter. * The submission documents are to be separated and Word (.doc or .docx) documents are to be attached to your submission email. - Make sure that you check your mss for grammar and punctuation, use our guidelines to help you: DOWNLOAD YOUR HBB GUIDE TO GRAMMAR HERE (PDF) Deadline: FEBRUARY 28th 2019 (publication March 2019) NO REPRINTS - ORIGINAL UNPUBLISHED WORKS ONLY Payment -$5 for first rights Capped at 150K words in total Via: Hellbound Books Publishing.

Taking Submissions: Apparition Lit Magazine (Short Window!)

Deadline: February 28th, 2018 Payment: $0.03 per word, minimum of 30.00 Apparition Lit is open for poetry and short story submissions four times a year. February 15-28 May 15-31 August 15-31 November 15-30 Our themes for 2019 will be: Resistance (Submission period November 15-30, 2018 (CLOSED), Published January 2019) Ambition (Submission period February 15-28, 2019, Publishing April 2019) Retribution (Submission period May 15-31, 2019, Publishing July 2019) Euphoria (Submission period August 15-31, 2019, Publishing October 2019) Our themes for 2018: Apparition (Published January 2018) – Delusion (Published April 2018) – Vision (Published July 2018) – Diversion (Published October 2018) Apparition Lit also holds monthly flash fiction contests. These stories will follow selected themes and be published online. For more information on themes and submission guidelines, please see the flash fiction drop down below. Payment: Apparition is a semi-pro rate magazine, paying $0.03 per word, minimum of 30.00 dollars (excluding flash contest. See details in the Flash Fiction dropdown for flash rates). If we accept your story, we are purchasing the right to publish the story online and in the quarterly edition. Rights will revert back to the artist after one year. What we’re looking for: (Click on the sections to see detailed guidelines for each classification.) Short Fiction Short Fiction: We will only accept stories between 1000-5000 words. If the story is complete with an extra hundred words, then it will still be considered. Any stories over 5,200 words will automatically be rejected. Payment: Apparition is a semi-pro magazine, paying $0.03 per word, minimum of 30.00 dollars (excluding flash contest). If we accept your story, we are purchasing the right to publish the story online and in the quarterly edition. Rights will revert back to the artist after one year. How to Submit: Format the story using the Shunn manuscript...

Taking Submissions: Letters from the Grave: A Collection of Epistolary Horror

Deadline: February 28th, 2019 Payment: 5 cents per word and a contributor's copy Letters from the Grave: A Collection of Epistolary Horror The epistolary form has a long, proud tradition in the horror genre. From the classics such as Frankenstein and Dracula, through modern classics like World War Z. We want to see your fresh takes on the idea. Remember that the epistolary genre doesn’t just include letters. It can be stories created from nearly any kinds or combinations of documents, i.e. crime scene reports, diary entries, interview transcripts, etc. This can include modern electronic and digital “documents” such as texts, voicemails, Tweets, blog posts, and more. Original stories only, no reprints. Preferred word count: 2,000 to 10,000 words Payment and rights: $.05/word on acceptance, and one paperback contributor’s copy. First Print and First Electronic Rights, exclusive for 1 year. The anthology will be published as an ebook and in paperback, and we reserve the right to produce a hardcover edition. Reading period: Now, through February 28, 2019. Stories should be submitted to [email protected], with the subject line “Letters from the Grave.” Please don’t send us: Fan-fiction or stories using other authors’ characters, settings, etc, unless they are in the public domain. Incest, child sex, sexual assault, racism, etc. This is a horror anthology, of course, so “adult content” and horrific, disturbing incidents are certainly going to be there. Make sure, however, that any of these elements are necessary to the story and that their depiction makes sense in the context of the letter or other documents. Random horror stories that you’ve stuck a “Hey, you’ll never believe what happened to me!” email frame around. Via: Orbannin Books.

Taking Submissions: THEMA: Six before Eighty

Deadline: March 1st, 2019 Payment: short story, $25; short-short piece (up to 1000 words), $10; poem, $10; artwork, $25 for cover, $10 for interior page display. Upcoming premises (target themes) and deadlines for submission : Six before Eighty To download a PDF file of the guidelines, click here . ALL SHORT STORIES, ESSAYS, POEMS, PHOTOGRAPHS and ART MUST RELATE TO ONE OF THE PREMISES SPECIFIED ABOVE. NOTE: Previously published pieces are welcome, provided that the submission fits the theme and that the author owns the copyright. The premise (target theme) must be an integral part of the plot, not necessarily the central theme but not merely incidental. Fewer than 20 double-spaced typewritten pages preferred. Indicate premise (target theme) on title page. Be sure to Indicate target theme in cover letter or on first page of manuscript. Include self-addressed, stamped envelope (SASE) with each submission. Rejected manuscripts unaccompanied by an SASE will not be returned. Response time: 3 months after premise deadline. NO READER'S FEE. Mail to: THEMA, Box 8747, Metairie, LA 70011-8747. Outside the US: email [email protected] On acceptance for publication, we will pay the following amount: short story, $25; short-short piece (up to 1000 words), $10; poem, $10; artwork, $25 for cover, $10 for interior page display. Copyright reverts to author after publication. THEMA isn't for everyone. To find out why, click here. New to submitting manuscripts to journals? Click here to download a PDF file of a few basic guidelines. Unlike many publishers, we prefer works submitted by the authors themselves, without the involvement of an agent. Be sure to indicate premise and include SASE for each submission. BE SURE to include a separate SASE for each premise. No handwritten manuscripts will be considered. NOTE: We do not accept e-mailed submissions EXCEPT from authors who live outside the...

Taking Submissions: The Literary Hatchet

Deadline: March 1st, 2018 Payment: FICTION, SHORT STORIES: 500-6,000 words — $10 The Literary Hatchet is a journal devoted to provocative fiction, poetry and prose. We are interested in well-written but digestible works in any genre (except erotica). We will consider previously published material but prefer original works. We accept short fiction, flash fiction, first-person narratives, speculative fiction, short stories, poetry, photography, art, cartoons, and illustrations. We’re interested in new angles on old ideas, or topics that don’t get covered frequently. We like to showcase articles that don’t just sum up some issue but make us think and make us want to read further. The above is not exhaustive. If you don’t have an immediate idea for a piece, but you’d really like to write for us, let us know and be prepared to show us work you’ve done. We can always think of subjects! WHAT WE DON’T WANT We do not accept erotica, either as articles or images We do not accept articles or images with excessive crude language or outlandish sexual humor We cannot consider partial or incomplete stories or essays We do not accept Haiku poetry, unless as a part of a collection of five or more GUIDELINES BY TYPE OF SUBMISSIONSHORT STORIES: We accept short stories from 500-6,000 words in length. Feel free to contact us with inquiries about the type of stories we might be interested in if you are in doubt. We appreciate the well-written work, and acceptance is determined by whether the piece grabs the editor and holds their interest. We consider works of general fiction as well as horror, dark subjects, detective fiction, and stories about monsters, either real or imaginary. POETRY: We are looking for high-quality extraordinary poems (both serious and humorous) that explore the darkness that resides in each of...

Taking Submissions: Contrary Spring 2019 Issue

Deadline: March 1st, 2018 Payment: $20 “Turning words into art is unnatural. It begins with a contrary attitude. It says, I am unhappy with the way things are and desire to make things different. Rather than represent the world, I will make something wildly and savagely new. I will defy logic. I will invest in new perceptions. I will combine and recombine and fabricate and juggle until something that I have never experienced is experienced. The process is alchemical. The process is violent. It goes to the heart of creativity. It disrupts and shatters. It is splendid with provocation. It is an aggression against banality. It is sharp and loud like a janitor scraping frost from a window. The hectic bounce of steam on a street after a truck roars by. The anarchy of waters, the comedy of the face, dangerous feelings vented from a cage of skin.” ~ John Olson Poetry — We believe poetry is contrary by nature, always defying, always tonguing the tang of novelty. We look especially for plurality of meaning, for dual reverberation of beauty and concern. Contrary’s poetry in particular often mimics the effects of fiction or commentary. We find ourselves enamored of prose poems because they are naturally contrary toward form – they tug on the forces of exposition or narrative – but prose poems remain the minority of all the poetic forms we publish. Please consider that Contrary receives vast amounts of poetry and that we can publish only a small percentage of that work. Please submit no more than three poems per issue. Our poetry editor is Shaindel Beers. Fiction — We ask our fiction writers to imagine their readers navigating a story with one finger poised over a mouse button. Can your story stay that finger to the end? We have published long stories on the belief...

Taking Submissions: ”Family” Fantasy Anthology

Deadline: March 1st, 2019 Payment: $25+ though payment structure is TBD. Attention Authors! We are soliciting short stories by new and established authors in the fantasy genre, between 3,500 and 7,000 words in length. (Shorter or longer works will be considered in cases of exceptional merit.) The goal is to select at least ten entries for publication* in a short-story anthology. Payment structure for the authors has not yet been determined, but will be no less than $25 all things considered. We are still awaiting publication on a previous anthology, which will help us decide whether it is fairer to authors to be given a flat fee or a percentage of revenues. That decision will be made by January 2019 at the latest; sign up here if you want to be kept up to date. (Our first Call for Submissions, in the military-fiction genre, can be viewed here. The associated Kickstarter met its goal, resulting in the authors being paid $100 each; ultimately, the anthology was placed under contract by an independent publisher. Our second, fantasy anthology is being self-published, and we are eager to see which anthology does better.) Submission Rules How to submit: Email your manuscript (acceptable document formats: Word, PDF, Pages, TXT, RTF) to the following address: submissions at orenlitwin dot com. Begin the subject line with “”, and make sure to list your contact information in the email itself. (Also, please mention how you heard of this anthology!) Submission deadline: March 1, 2019. Genre: Fantasy, broadly defined. This includes traditional high fantasy, urban fantasy, or any other flavor that includes a magical or fantastical element. (If you are interested in other genres, please suggest them for our next project!) Theme: “Family.” Your story must include as a significant plot element a family tie between a character...