Events

Deadline: May 31, 2015 Payment: 2 cents/word for new fiction, half-cent/word for reprints and contributor's copy Call for Submissions for the Hides the Dark Tower anthology. Tower. What comes to mind when you hear the word? According to A Dictionary of Symbols by J.E. Cirlot: the tower in Egyptian hieroglyphics denotes the act of rising above the common level. It is a signal of ascent. In the Middle Ages, towers held the same symbolism as a ladder. Enclosed and walled in, a tower is emblematic of the Virgin Mary and can be found in many allegorical designs. The athanor — the alchemists’ crucible — was given the shape of a tower, since ascension often implies transformation and evolution. A tower can also be likened to man, the top-most windows seeming like eyes. It’s from that sense that the Tower of Babel acquired the symbolic point as a wild endeavor bringing disaster to mankind. The Tarot‘s Tower card — depicting a tower being struck by lightning — echos this symbolism. Yet Nietzsche found a dual symbolism in towers, descent as well as ascent. In Aurelia, Nervel says, “I found myself in a tower, whose foundations were sunk so deep into earth and whose top was so lofty, reaching up like a spire into the sky, that my whole existence already seemed bound to be consumed in climbing up and down it.” Where does the Hides the Dark Tower title come from? What else should he be set for, with his staff? What, save to waylay with his lies, ensnare All travellers who might find him posted there, And ask the road? I guess’d what skull-like laugh Would break, what crutch ‘gin write my epitaph For pastime in the dusty thoroughfare, If at his counsel I should turn aside Into that ominous...

Deadline: May 31st Payment: $15 and contributor’s copy It's that time again. Broken Worlds submissions begin today and end on May 31st! We want your stories, as always. We're still working with Submittable to make all of this happen, and we're all eager to see what stories you have brewing around in your heads. Are we all about horror? Maybe a little bit, but not really. Broken Worlds caters to a large swath of stories, and I hope that your creative juices will flow. There's no doubt this will be a wonderful anthology full of very talented writers. We honestly cannot wait to read your work. Theme: We are never alone, not truly. We exist within systems; families, societies, governments, countries, continents; all within a singular planet in a singular solar system in a singular galaxy in a singular universe. And none of these are perfect. Many are broken, some beyond repair. Some could become broken over time. Others need to be destroyed to be improved. This anthology is about broken worlds, from families to a multiverse, where things are not what they seem or seem to be what they are: utterly broken from the top down and vice versa. We're looking for original stories involving broken or breaking worlds. This anthology will run the gamit from fantasy to science fiction to horror (eldritch or otherwise) and beyond, all exploring the caprices of our fragile existence. Whether it's a piece on a dysfunctional family or the end of the world, we'd love to consider it. For some guidance, think 1984 or Fahrenheit 451. We want fiction prose only, 500 – 13,000 words. We may consider pieces longer than that, but if you send them in, make sure they're awesome. Must be original works: no fan-fiction.  Reprints will be considered, but unpublished works will receive priority consideration. Simultaneous Submissions: No Multiple Submissions: Yes...

Deadline: Just 1st, 2015 Payment: $25 per story selected for inclusion. We are looking for short stories of horror fiction told from the zombie’s point of view. We will consider different, intriguing, and creative spins on the multiple zombie mythos that currently exist. There are many fine zombie oriented anthologies already published, but we’re putting a spin on ours – at least 75% of the story must be told as the zombie from the zombie’s perspective. We’re giving the undead a chance to tell their tale through your words! We will not be accepting the following: Fan fiction of any variety – no characters, names, places, or homage pieces. Preexisting characterization from a story, novella, novel, or series you write. Love stories (no matter how fantastic yours is) – this is a horror only anthology. We encourage you to be as unique as you’d like and bring a new viewpoint to those who have suffered or perhaps sought ZOMBIFICATION! If you have questions about the details for the call, please write to [email protected] before beginning your piece. *** Submission Deadline: June 1, 2015 (midnight PST) Word Count: minimum 4,000 words; maximum: 8,000 words (anything outside that range will be automatically rejected). Payment: $25 per story selected for inclusion. Copyright: First time worldwide copyright for a period of one year after publication. Reprints will NOT be considered. All submissions MUST be submitted to: [email protected] *** Evaluation period: We expect to have the stories read and chosen within two months of the closing date. We strive to move through the decision making process as quickly and fairly as possible. If we find ourselves overwhelmed with submissions, we’ll contact the submitting authors to inform them of any delay. Via: Sirens Call Publications.

Deadline: June 1st, 2015 Payment: 5p/word Note: Not your usual anthology submission so may be of extra interest What if it was accepted that there really were ghosts? That mediums could actually talk to the dead. That your dearly departed continued to exist on a spiritual plane adjacent to ours and that at certain places, or in certain people they could manifest? What if those that disbelieved, that advanced a scientific explanation, are the kooks, freaks and loonies? What if neither model of reality were actually true and there was a third group, of conspiracy theorists, that were right? But which conspiracy? Is it aliens? Are the government spiking the water supply with experimental drugs? Are the military testing new subsonic weapons? Someone, somewhere knows the truth. This is the set up for Sick City Syndrome -my second novel & if you're a writer I want your help. So I'm asking for submissions. Lauren Beukes got her writer friends to write blog posts, news articles and the like for one of her books to help with the worldbuilding and that's what I'm looking for. I'd like news reports, blog posts, twitter conversations, other social networking, TV, radio, internet, academic article abstracts etc The novel will be set in the modern day, in "the City" (which will be closely modelled on Bristol of course) but there's no reason the articles need to be set in the modern day. I'd like a mix from all three viewpoints, choose one and give me a maximum of 750 words. If I use your piece (in any way - Some will be published on this website - http://petewsutton.com/sick-city-syndrome/, some will go in the book itself) you will be credited and I'll pay you 5p/word (upon publication) Send your pieces to BRSBKBLOG (at) Gmail.com by the...

Deadline: June 1st, 2015 Payment: Contributor's Copy Formerly known as Ghostlight, Ghostlight, The Magazine of Terror is open for submissions in 2015 during the specified periods! Please click on the link below to see our updated guidelines. Ghostlight, The Magazine of Terror is a magazine devoted to horror fiction, non-fiction, art, and poetry. It is published twice a year (Spring and Winter) by Great Lakes Association of Horror Writers. Unlike Erie Tales, Ghostlight, The Magazine of Terror is open to all writers of horror, sci-fi, dark fantasy, and dark humor – especially dark humor. It is edited by our very own Nicole Castle. If you have any questions not covered in the guidelines, please feel free to contact Nicole [email protected] READING PERIODS March 1 – June 1 (Summer Issue) (Publishing target: August) We at the Great Lakes Association of Horror Writers (GLAHW) are looking for stories that are well written and character driven, preferably with a Michigan or Great Lakes connection, but any well written story with a dark side has a chance with us. All stories need to be Horror, Dark Sci-Fi, Dark Fantasy, or Dark Humor, especially Dark Humor. If you can make us laugh and creep us out at the same time, you have a good chance of acceptance. Please don’t send us sword & sorcery or space opera stories. Tolkien and Lucas have their place, but not here. Also, we don’t and can’t accept “fan fiction” which includes anything based on a video game, book, movie or any other creator’s work or conception unless you have written permission from the creator. If you don’t own the copyright to the characters in your story, we cannot publish your work. By submitting to GLAHW you, as the author of the work, accept responsibility for any possible copyright infringement....

Deadline: June 1, 2015 Payment: 2.5 cents a word, with a minimum of $75 For the vampire erotica anthology Blood in the Rain, available October 2015, we seek short stories of 2000–7000 words, preferably by Northwest authors—from Oregon, Washington, British Columbia, and Alaska. Your story must include both a vampire and an erotic element, but it doesn’t have to be a “true” vampire, whatever that is, and the vampire doesn’t have to be the story’s focus. Erotically, we’re open to anything from a sexy tease to hardcore adult content. We encourage stories nonstereotypically including people who are LGBTQI (or A if you can make it work), people of color, and people any age above 18. Most of all, we want compelling characters having hot sex, with a story that draws us in. And a vampire. Bottom line: Make us horny. Stories due June 1, 2015. We pay on acceptance: 2.5 cents a word, with a minimum of $75. The Nitty Gritty Send your story as a .doc, .docx, .rtf, or .pdf file to [email protected], with SUBMISSION and the story title in your subject line (for example, SUBMISSION: My Sexy Vampire Story). Use traditional manuscript format for your story. If you don’t know what that is, seethis handy guide. And for the love of the gods, proofread before sending. Give us a short cover note, ideally with an author bio. Let us know if your story’s a reprint. We might take the perfect reprint, but original work is preferred. Send as many submissions as you want, but we’re not likely to pick more than one story from any writer. We’re buying first North American serial rights, first North American audio publishing rights, first world online rights, and archival rights (that is, to potentially archive your story on our website). Via: Blood...

Deadline: June 15th, 2015 Payment: 5% of the net profit will be paid for each accepted story. These payments will be issued to you at quarterly intervals. Stories under 3,000 words will only receive 4% of the net profit. Myths never die. King Arthur cannot be killed with a pike through the chest, or centuries of lies; instead he lays dreaming but not dead in wait for England’s fatal hour. The Ice Queen, in all her frozen fractal forms, does not waste away under summer suns. The Green Man, though a being of leaf and twig and human eyes, cannot be killed with so simple a stroke as leveling his forests and building cities on the cinders (even now, he watches us from his statues and reliefs embedded deep in our buildings). These beliefs predate written language. Something other than the ability to record them has kept these stories alive. Myths never die, but surely they don’t actually live, do they…? 18thWall Productions wants myths alive with life. We want heroes and monsters out of time, legendary characters in unfamiliar settings. We want mash-ups of magic and history, legends that live literally as well was figuratively. We want sirens on the Caribbean shores calling to men of ill-repute for yet another night of sin, we want to doings of the Pickwick Club extended into our dreary age, we want the Strigoi at the Petrograd Soviet…Let your imagination run riot. We want your myths and monsters to feel real, with voices feelings, and rich back-stories interwoven with the familiar tales. Why are they there? Where have they been all this time? We’re open to any style of fiction you care to give us. And please be aware that our guidelines are deliberately vague.  As with our previous anthology, this is a free playground....

Deadline: June 15th 2015 Payment: £10 and contributor's copy Frost pierces through everything. Your bones ache in the icy wind. Harsh winter storms rage and the sun is leaving, not to return for many months. Winter seems to never end. There is however beauty and magic. The snow covered pine trees reaching for the sky, the green northern lights dancing over the mountains, the wolf packs howling at the moon, and the snow crystals glinting like stars in the pale moonlight. When the temperatures drop, people and creatures gather around the camp fires to share warmth, friendship and tales, to chase away the frost and try to ignore the terrifying creatures lurking in the darkness. We are now collecting winter tales, to drive away the grim winter and bring you the wonders and magic of the season. Fox Spirit Books will publish the Winter Tales anthology in the beginning of 2016. The anthology will be edited by Margrét Helgadóttir. We want unusual and elegant speculative fiction stories with full plot and strong characters. We are seeking diversity. The stories can be light with a touch of romance or humour, or dark and terrifying. Stories about creatures, monsters, animals and shapeshifters are welcome. The stories can be within speculative subgenres such as the weird, fables or folkloric, magical realism, adventure, dystopian, cyberpunk, mystery or fantastic, but we ask that the stories take place on Earth and have the winter as frame. Poetry is welcome. We are not looking for nonfiction or fanfiction. We are not looking for satire, erotica, paranormal romance, splatter or overly gory stories. Submission details Submission deadline: June 15th 2015. Response will be given by end of October 2015 at the latest. The manuscript must be written in English. Stories should be 1500 words up to 7500 words. Any stories below or above this will not be considered, with the exception of poems which should be no longer...

Deadline: June 15th, 2015 Payment: $5 a story, plus a share of royalties. With a hearty mwaa haaa haaa and a swagger….we’re looking for villains. Dress them in black or tie dye or frilly pink tulle, but these villains need to be seriously bad. We are looking for tales of truly badass dark lords and ladies. We’re not talking about the guys who stand around monologueing to let the hero win. We’re talking smart dark lords who don’t keep incompetent minions around. Comedy is completely acceptable, as long as it doesn’t detract from the villain’s ability to be a total badass. Genres include:  Science fiction, Fantasy, Steampunk, Cyberpunk, Weird West, Romance, Alternate History Reprints are acceptable Multiple submissions are acceptable, but please wait until we have given a decision on the first story before you submit the second. Simultaneous submission are okay. If you learn you are accepted elsewhere, please let us know as soon as possible. Poetry and art are acceptable. Payment for these will be the same as for the stories. Story length is up to 7,000 words What we don’t want: No fanfic. Characters must be of your own invention. Keep it PG-13. Swearing and violence are encouraged, but keep it within limits that a teen could read. No erotica. Document Formatting: Submissions should be formatted in standard manuscript formatting: double-spaced, 12 point Courier or Times New Roman font, with indentations for paragraphs. Any improperly-formatted manuscripts will be rejected. File Format: We accept .rtf or .doc files only. Send to the publisher, WolfSinger Publications at [email protected] . Title your email:  DARK LORDS AND LADIES (Name of your Story) If you ever send us a virus, we will never accept a submission from you again. Submission Period: March 15 to June 15, 2015. Submissions sent prior to this...

Deadline: June 21st 2015 Payment: 3 Prizes Note: Sorry for the late posting, was just linked this one By Cyberjunkie (Own work) via Wikimedia Commons Quite often it can take ages to find the image for the next month's contest. This month's proved an exception. I'm sure that you'll agree that this is quite an awesome door! It might be a bit much for my house but it does make a good piece for inspiring June's contest submissions. I wonder what lies behind that door... As always the stories can be of any genre. They just have to be inspired by this month's image and no more than 500 words. Entry to the contest remains free and there are prizes for the three winners. I will also feature any of the stories that don't win but I believe are worth showcasing on this blog. First prize is a £50 Amazon gift card or PayPal prize Second prize is a £20 Amazon gift card or PayPal prize Third prize is a £10 Amazon gift card or PayPal prize The money for the prizes come out of my own pocket, although I do make a little from advertising on this blog. So if you see something of interest then feel free to click on the links and purchase away! If you haven't tried my books yet then check them out at the top of the page, as well as buying a good read you'll be helping this contest. Please make sure to check your story for typos before submitting. I don't mind a few errors, but my enjoyment of a story is diminished if I have to wade through too many. I'll post the winning entries by July 1st 2015. As with everything in life there are a few rules: Only one...