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Deadline: October 1st, 2014 Payment: 5 cents per word December--Arthurian Legend What ho! (No, we don't mean Guinevere.) For centuries, the magic and mystery of King Arthur and Camelot have enthralled readers. Thanks to great authors like Marion Zimmer Bradley and T.H. White, there's a strong tradition of Arthurian books on the fantasy bookshelf. So add your own myths to the Round Table; send Lancelot out on one more quest. Let's play in Camelot and Avalon until the mists gently cloak us from the modern world. CALL BEGINS AUGUST 1, 2014 CALL ENDS OCTOBER 1, 2014 Penumbra is looking for original, unpublished stories of 3500 words or less. We prefer that writers use Standard Manuscript Format for submissions. (You can read this article by Chuck Rothman on the SFWA site on preparing a manuscript for submission if you are unfamiliar with SMF.) Please send your stories as file attachments in .rtf or .doc formats only. Please include a cover letter in the body of your email, with the manuscript title, you pen name if applicable, the exact word count of the story not including title and byline, and a publication history if applicable. Penumbra is a professional rates paying publisher, paying 5 cents per word. We will evaluate poetry submissions for each issue. We will also consider previously published stories with rights reverted to the author. Penumbra has multiple issue calls open at the same time, therefore it is imperative that you include the issue theme in the subject line of your email. Submissions that do not include this information risk getting lost in our queue and not read before the deadline. Penumbra uses Musa Publishing’s house style guide, which relies upon the Chicago Manual of Style. All accepted stories will be edited to reflect Musa house style. If you have never...

Deadline: October 13th, 2014 Payment: $15 and contributor’s copy Theme: Fears fade as years pass. They are never as salient or real as they were when you were a child. Unless they are. For this anthology, we’re looking for the real, true terrors. The creatures that plagued you in the dark hours of the night. The bumps in the night that kept you awake. The characters need not still be children, but the fears must stem from childhood. Think Stephen King’s It, Neil Gaiman’s Coraline, and ghostly slumber party games. Though the theme is child-centric, the anthology is not. This is not horror for children. Scare us. We are looking for fiction prose only, 500 – 13,000 words. We may consider pieces longer than that, but if you send it in, make sure it’s awesome. Must be original works, no fanfiction. Simultaneous Submissions: No Multiple Submissions: Yes Reprints: Yes, but let us know where it has been previously printed and make sure you have the rights to have it reprinted. Questions? Send them to [email protected]. Excited and ready? Click that button! Source: A Murder Of Storytellers.

Deadline: October 15th, 2014 Payment: Contributor's Copy 'Robbed of Sleep' will be publishing volume 2 in December of 2014. We are currently looking for a sampling of the strangely dark, the darkly humorous, the starkly beautiful, and the hauntingly deranged to feature in its pages. If you are interested in submitting, send your very best work to: [email protected] Subject Line: 'SUBMISSION (Robbed of Sleep, Vol 2.) - , ' An example subject line is as follows: 'SUBMISSION (Robbed of Sleep, Vol 2.) - THE DAY THE EARTH TURNED INTO A WOOLY SCREWDRIVER, 2,500' Failure to follow subject line guidelines is an instant poor first impression. Submissions close on October 15th, 2014. You are strongly encouraged to track your submission with our DuoTrope listing. Guidelines: We are looking for stories anywhere from 100-1,000 word flash pieces, up through 2,000-4,000 word larger pieces. Something falling in between 1,000-2,000 words will be considered, especially if it's great. I am willing to look at pieces above 4,000, but not very. This means that if you are sending me something super long, it better be twice as good as it is long to even stand a chance at inclusion. You are much more likely to get something within the guidelines accepted. Pieces must be submitted in proper manuscript formatting. I remember when a writing friend asked me where I found the format I was submitting pieces in. I responded: "I just tried to make it look nice." That's when I found about proper manuscript formatting. I don't compose any other way now, and I definitely don't submit in other ways. That was a big day for me! So if you don't already use this formatting, I suggest you learn about it now: it'll really make your work look professional. The first installment of 'Robbed of...

Deadline: October 15th, 2014 Payment: 2 copies of anthology and Aus 2 cents/word (GST inc., maximum payment $150)   A new anthology edited by Amanda Pillar Blood will tell... blood holds memory... blood is sacrifice... blood is thicker than water... blood is life. Bloodlines will feature non-traditional horror stories, which take place in an urban fantasy setting. Give me stories about creatures that need blood to live, or blood to do magic, or whose blood is magic. Witches, shamans, faeries, ancient gods and humans can feature in this collection, so long as your story exudes magic and mystery. So long as you enchant me. As for the nitty-gritties: No science fiction stories will be accepted; Romance is acceptable, as long as the story is dark and has horrific themes/elements; Do not send stories written in the second person; While vampire stories can be submitted, please note that it would be in your best interests to wow me with something other than vampires. Lastly, the story must be on theme and meet the above guidelines. It must have blood (its need, use, potency etc.) as a major focus. If it does not, your story will be rejected. The anthology will be published by Ticonderoga Publications in late 2014/early 2015. Submission guidelines: Send me your best dark urban fantasy story. Story length 1,000 to 7,500 words. Original stories only: no reprints, multiple, or simultaneous submissions (please only submit one story). Stories may be submitted via email at [email protected]. Manuscript format: double spaced, large margins, Times New Roman font, Australian English spelling. The editor reserves the right to use their discretion in selecting stories. Submission period: 1 August 2014 to 15 October 2014 Payment: 2 copies of anthology and Aus 2 cents/word (GST inc., maximum payment $150) on publication.   Via: Ticonderoga Publications.

Deadline: October 15th Payment: 6 cents per word, receive a free 12-month subscription to Apex Magazine and a short story critique from an Apex editor. Stories for critique can be up to 5,000 words long. Halloween is coming and with it the vampire, zombie, witch, and ghost stories will creep into your hands and whisper “Boo” in your ear. Now I love a good ghost story. Witches are wicked. Zombies give me the chills. And vampires are grand. But… But there’s more out there. Monsters waiting in the wings to give you a fright. And they want their moment to shine! I went to Twitter to ask you, the Apex readers, what monsters you’d like to see steal the spotlight, and did you ever have suggestions. Everything from wendigos to banshees to Jekyll and Hyde. So tell me a story. After the huge success of our Christmas micro fiction contest last year (over 500 submissions!), we’ve decided to do it again. This time with the monsters that are often forgotten. The ones who’s stories don’t get told. Here’s the nitty-gritty: There will be five categories: sea monsters, black dog/Hellhounds, banshees, science experiments gone wrong, and demons (this can include wendigos, succubus, be creative). Write a story to fit one of these five categories, then submit it to [email protected] with the subject line formatted as Title, Author, Category. This is a micro fiction contest. Stories must be 250 words or less. If a story is more than 250 words, it will be deleted unread. You can submit one story per category, five stories total. If you submit two banshee stories, we will consider the first story your submission. Send each story as a separate email with the story in the body of the email. No attachments, please. Submissions are open September...

Deadline: October 24th, 2014 Payment: Exposure and Royalties. 0.01 cents per word. Deadline: October 24th, 2014 – or until full (12 Stories). Payment: Exposure and Royalties. 0.01 cents per word. Flash fiction & Short Stories (1,000 – 1,400 words). Poetry and re-prints will also be considered. Explore the endless madness and horrors which lie within each soul… The only limits are your imagination! Dark fairy tales, bizarre, horror, surrealism, dark science-fiction and steam punk are all cool here. Submission guidelines: Deadline for submissions – October 24th, 2014 – or until full. Word Count: 1,000 – 1,400 words. Please submit your manuscript as a *.rtf, *.doc or *.docx file (all other formats will automatically be rejected. Contact me prior to submitting if this presents an issue for you.) Font and formatting: Please submit in Times New Roman, 12 point font; single line spacing. Please format the document to 1st line indentation of 1″. The page margin should be set to .1″ on all sides. No headers, footers or page numbers. Please check grammar. PLEASE!!! Upon acceptance into the anthology, you agree that Miskatonic Press holds exclusive publishing rights for six months from the date of publication; after that date has passed, all intellectual property rights revert to the author with the proviso that Miskatonic Press retains distribution rights in the format of the contracted anthology. This title will be available as an e-book and eventually trade quality paperback. Michael Porter will be presiding over this anthology. Email your submission as an attachment to: [email protected] The email subject line must read “SUBMISSION – ASYLUM – ‘your story title’” or your submission will not be considered for this anthology. Successful applicants will be notified before the deadline has expired.

Deadline: October 24th, 2014 Payment: Exposure and Royalties. $20 per story. Flash fiction & Short Stories (1,000 – 1,400 words). Poetry and re-prints will also be considered. Witness the horrific, unknown things from beyond time… This anthology is a celebration of H.P. Lovecraft themed stories. Other than that, feel free to be creative. Dark fairy tales, bizarre, horror, surrealism, dark science-fiction and steam punk. Submission guidelines: Deadline for submissions – October 24th, 2014 – or until full. Word Count: 1,000 – 1,600 words. Please submit your manuscript as a *.rtf, *.doc or *.docx file (all other formats will automatically be rejected. Contact me prior to submitting if this presents an issue for you.) No headers, footers or page numbers. Please check grammar. PLEASE!!! Upon acceptance into the anthology, you agree that Miskatonic Press holds exclusive publishing rights for six months from the date of publication; after that date has passed, all intellectual property rights revert to the author with the proviso that Miskatonic Press retains distribution rights in the format of the contracted anthology. This title will be available as an e-book and eventually trade quality paperback. Michael Porter will be presiding over this anthology. Email your submission as an attachment to: [email protected] The email subject line must read “SUBMISSION – ABYSS – ‘your story title’” or your submission will not be considered for this anthology. Successful applicants will be notified before the deadline has expired. Via: Miskatonic Press.

Deadline: October 24th, 2014 Payment: Exposure and Royalties. $20 per story. Flash fiction & Short Stories (1,000 – 1,600 words). Poetry and re-prints will also be considered. The Knights of the Realm go to war....against the damned and forsaken! For this anthology we are looking for medieval horror, scifi, etc. Other than that, feel free to be creative. Dark fairy tales, bizarre, horror, surrealism, dark science-fiction and steam punk. Submission guidelines: Deadline for submissions – October 24th, 2014 – or until full. Word Count: 1,000 – 1,600 words. Please submit your manuscript as a *.rtf, *.doc or *.docx file (all other formats will automatically be rejected. Contact me prior to submitting if this presents an issue for you.) No headers, footers or page numbers. Please check grammar. PLEASE!!! Upon acceptance into the anthology, you agree that Miskatonic Press holds exclusive publishing rights for six months from the date of publication; after that date has passed, all intellectual property rights revert to the author with the proviso that Miskatonic Press retains distribution rights in the format of the contracted anthology. This title will be available as an e-book and eventually trade quality paperback. Michael Porter will be presiding over this anthology. Email your submission as an attachment to: [email protected] The email subject line must read “SUBMISSION – SWORDSMAN – ‘your story title’” or your submission will not be considered for this anthology. Successful applicants will be notified before the deadline has expired. Via: Miskatonic Press.

Deadline: October 31st, 2014 Payment: $75 per story and a print copy of the book (Not clarified if USD or AUD) Horror from the emptiness of the space between the galaxies Robert N Stephenson, Editor Altair Australia Publishing 'From Out of the Dark' PO Box 475 Blackwood SA 5051 Australia U.S.A. Subject explanation: I am seeking short stories to a maximum length of 10 000 words with a minimum length of 5 000. All stories are to he set in the gap between galaxies, the immense darkness of space and all the frightening aspects and contemplation of billions of light years of unseeable entities can bring. These are not just first encounter ideas as the bent is strong horror memes within science fiction framing. This is not horror added the SF or SF added to horror by slight of hand. What is required is a true as possible journey into a place we cannot and will never imagine outside of telescopes and maths. This is science fiction, so no fantasy worlds please. Space ships and rays guns are fine, but if I spot a dragon I might not reply. From Out of the Dark requires some deep thinking and frightful manipulations of emotion and events to create fiction that can cause a sweat and a gasp for air lost to vacuum. There are no entry fees, no costs other than postage if using mail or a few nips on your bandwidth if emailing. Please, no queries, you either understand what is being asked or you don’t. I will be able to read if you do not get what is being sought after here. The editor is me, Robert N Stephenson, I am an award winning author of several novels and non fiction/fiction collections with over 100 published short stories. I...

Reading Period: August 1 – October 31, 2014 Payment: AUD8c/word Edited by Bram Stoker® -nominated and Australian Shadows Award-winning editor, Marty Young. Payment: AUD8c/word Maximum word length: 5,000 words Submission window: August 1 – October 31, 2014 (anything submitted outside of this window will be deleted without being read) Publication Date: Early 2015 Publisher: Cohesion Press Do you really know what’s real and what isn’t? A man called Arnold Paole was accused of being a vampire in 1732 in Yugoslavia, after his body was dug up five years after his death and found with long pointed teeth and nails, with blood in his mouth. The Mothman of West Virginia was a winged man-sized creature with glowing red eyes and huge moth-like wings sprouting from its back, seen repeatedly during 1967 and 1968. In 1977, a dead creature that looked a lot like a plesiosaur was caught in the nets of a Japanese fishing vessel, the Zuiyo-maru, offshore east of Christchurch, New Zealand. The sage Apollonius of Tyana, born in Turkey at the start of the first century AD, hunted demons, and once saved one of his students from a vampire who was going to drink his blood and eat his soul. These are all supposedly true stories. And there are more, more tales of monsters that shouldn’t exist, of demons and devil possession, of serial killers wearing human skin, ghosts terrorizing families… But these tales also sound like fiction, don’t they? What we’re looking for: Blurring the Line (working title) is seeking to blur the line between what is fiction and what is non-fiction. We want horror stories, tales that are serious and frightening, hard-hitting and imaginative. We want monsters; vampires and zombies and werewolves and the mummy and creatures from the Black Lagoon and giant killer plants and mutated...