Events

Deadline: May 1st, 2013 Payment: Exposure Only Yeah, we spent two months thinking about it, but still couldn’t come up with a better title than that. We know you’re busy setting pen to paper crafting devious, speculative (possibly metrical) verse for our recently unveiled Poetry Issue, but we also wanted to give you the what-for’s and how-to’s on the second of three special editions JDP will be publishing in 2013. Simply put, we’ve always wanted to do a Lovecraft issue. But not just the standard collection of pastiches, because there are lots of other people around doing that and doing it well. So…inspired by Gaiman stories like “A Study in Emerald” and “I Cthulhu,” we’re looking for something special…a mash-up of one literary style or theme with ol’ Howard Phillips to create something new, ideally something dark and ferocious, very possibly with a healthy dose of humor. In short, write Lovecraft like Neil Gaiman! Guidelines 1. No copyright infringement. We’d love to see Batman fist-fight Nyarlahotep as much as the next quirky lit mag, but we can’t publish characters that belong to someone else. So whatever you’re going to mash-up with Lovecraft, make sure that either a) you created it or b) it’s in the public space. Related: since Neil already went to town with Sherlock Holmes and won a Hugo for his troubles, you might want to scratch that character off your list. 2. No trunk stories. Look, we love Innsmouth Free Press and things like the Cthulhurotica anthologies by Dagan Books, but if they’ve already rejected you, we’re probably not interested. (Unless they said, “Wow, this is something like Neil Gaiman would write!” But they probably would’ve accepted it if that was the case.) Bottom line: conjure something fresh from depths of outer space for us. We want...

Deadline: May 1st 2013 Payment: $20 USD and a copy of the anthology Love writing short stories? We’ll be releasing three anthologies this year under our series line entitled, Three Little Words. Yep, you guessed it, each story in the respective collection must use the three little words in the title. Cute, huh? Witches, Stitches, and Bitches – What if you had the power to sew up the mouth of the evil bitch who called you fat in 10th grade? How would you deal with a curse that caused you to be infertile because you stole the heart of someone else’s love? Would you choose love or the ability to have children? We are looking for 13 stories involving a witch, a stitch, and a bitch. The stories will revolve around the witches’ calendar which begins with October. We would like five stories in the book to involve holidays (Samhain-we will take two- one to open the book and the other to close it, Yule, Beltane, and Mabon). If you plan to write a holiday story please identify this in your submission letter. Deadline May 1, 2013. Please use the form at the right to submit your story for consideration. One submission per anthology will be accepted. Payment for anthology stories is $20 USD and a copy of the anthology. In return, you give us exclusive rights for one year from the date of publication, after that you are free to submit the story to other publications as long as you acknowledge us as first publisher. We only ask that for five years after date of publication that you do not self-publish the story on Smashwords, Barnes and Noble, Amazon, or any other self-pub medium.

Deadline: May 1st, 2013 Payment: 2 contributors copies At last it can be told! An anthology of all-new stories about Carnacki, the Ghost-Finder is NOW OPEN FOR SUBMISSIONS! Later this year, to coincide with the first issue of SARGASSO (The Journal of Hodgson Studies), I will be publishing an all new collection of Carnacki stories and I am currently looking for submissions! Carnacki remains one of Hodgson’s most popular creations with not only new stories about the character appearing but he has been included in comic books as well as novels from other writers. I’m looking for a fresh crop of writers to tackle the stories of this intrepid Ghost-Hunter! So here’s the details: stories should be between 3,000-6,000 words (anything longer, please query first); stories should feature Carnacki in some aspect; no explicit gore, violence or sex, please; payment will be in 2 contributors copies; DEADLINE for submissions is May 1, 2013 so, yes, this will be closing quickly. CARNACKI: THE NEW ADVENTURES is planned for an August, 2013, release at the Necronomicon convention in Providence, RI. Send your submissions (or questions) to me at: [email protected] with the tag CARNACKI SUBMISSION in the subject line. I look forward to reading all of these great new Carnacki stories and presenting to everyone an exciting new collection of tales about this timeless character. Get your submissions in early! William Meikle already did!

Deadline: May 5th 2013 Payment: 1 Contributor's Copy We are open to submissions for Shifters, a themed charity anthology, for POD paperback and eBook publication. It will benefit the American Humane Association’s Red Star Rescue Team, which provides disaster response services for pets and domestic animals. The release will coincide with the World Horror Convention in June. We are looking for shapeshifter and were-creature stories of any type, for an adult audience. Horror stories with werewolves, shapeshifter erotica, weird western, science fiction, reimagined fairy tales… as long as it features a shapeshifter or were-beast. Word Count: 2,000 to 10,000 words preferred, but flexible. We also need a small number of very short flash pieces, 250 words or less. In addition to being in the book, these may be printed on postcards as promotional pieces. We are also looking for submissions for cover art and art for the promo pieces. Payment for stories, and for artwork: 1 print contributor’s copy of the anthology. All proceeds from sales of the anthology will be going to the charity. Rights: We will be asking for First Electronic and First Print Rights (unless it’s a reprint). Please remember that you can only sell your various ”First” rights once, and that you will only be able to market your accepted story later as a reprint, once we have published it, which may limit where you can submit it to in the future, and how much you may be paid for it. Only you can make this business decision for yourself. Deadline: May 5th, 2013. Submit the full story to us at [email protected], with “Shifters” in the subject line. Include a little information about yourself as well. Multiple submissions: Ok Simultaneous submissions: Ok, just let us know. Reprints: We prefer original stories for this anthology, but will...

Deadline: May 5th 2013 Payment: $100 flat rate per each manuscript accepted into the collection ‘Ominous Realities’ focuses on the dark side of the speculative street. For this collection of short stories, we’re looking for work that fits comfortably into the Dark Science Fiction and Dark Fantasy genres, but that is a ‘cut above.’ If you’re an author whose subject matter is complex, disturbing, visceral, or brooding and thought provoking, then you’ll want it included in ‘Ominous Visions.’ If you make your home in dark horror science fiction or dark horror fantasy or anywhere in between, as long as you dwell near the center of all that is horrible, you need to have your work included in this upcoming anthology. DEADLINE – May 5, 2013. We are looking for your Speculative Horror Fiction. As long as it is dark and dreadful. For our upcoming anthology ‘Ominous Realities,’ we’re looking for the darkest voices working in the areas of Science Fiction, Science Fantasy and Speculative Horror Fiction. Whether your vision includes alien intervention, biblical apocalypse, dystopian existences or simply fantastical and frightening concepts of life current or past, we want to see what you’ve got up your sleeve. We do not want to limit the creativity or our authors, preferring instead to let each writer’s words speak to them from the place that is most comfortable. We’re looking to include the best and brightest new voices writing in Speculative Fiction today, and ‘Ominous Realities’ is intended to celebrate that creativity, without limitations. Please review our Submissions Guidelines below, and feel free to contact us here on the site with any questions. or send a message to [email protected]. But, keep in mind we have a VERY short deadline! *’Ominous Realities’ is a working title. Grey Matter Press reserves the right to change...

Deadline: May 15th 2013 Payment: $20 Dark Bits will be a collection of 52 horror flash fiction stories. We have no restrictions or subject or taste, only on the length. The anthology will be book and ebook formats. Reprints are welcome. Maximum of 500 words. We are asking for non-exclusive print and digital rights Payment is $20 per story. Deadline for submission is 15 May, 2013 There are two ways to submit to Dark Bits. We take submissions through Submittable.com. http://apokrupha.submittable.com/submit/07d27c0e-f6e2-40db-b341-bc54b8616daa Please remember, Submittable is a third party site. Please read the Terms of Service before you sign up. Submissions can also be emailed with the subject line: DARK BITS, your name, story name as a DOC file attachment to: [email protected] Dark Bits will be the first in a series of anthologies, entitled QuickLII

Deadline: May 19th 2013 Payment: Exposure Only What we’re looking for is previously unpublished old-style pulp stories in the genres of science fiction, fantasy and horror. Word length 6000. Please follow, as far as possible, the Lester Dent Pulp Fiction Formula. The content, as long as it’s sci fi/fantasy/horror, is up to the individual author, but try to make it pulpy and retro. Weird tales, superheroes, Flash Gordon-style space opera, even noir or spy-fi, as long as it has a supernatural or SF twist, will all be accepted. Deadline: 19th May. Payment: exposure plus discounted copies. Send all submissions to [email protected]

Deadline: May 20th 2013 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 plus shipping. 50% of the royalties will be distributed between all contributors. Not afraid of the water, are you? Maybe you haven't thought about what might be down there... Write us something original; tell us what is so terrifying about two Hydrogen atoms bonded to one Oxygen atom forming a single molecule. Should we be afraid of the water itself, or what it might be hiding below its surface? Shallow murky depths, clear hot springs that are deceptively deep, or underground caverns holding secrets yet to be discovered. Think about it. Don't just spin an average yarn - we want the reader to wonder if the next time they dip their toes into the water, it be their last. The series is called FEAR, that should fairly well define the parameters, and remember - we publish fictional tales, not scientific journals. Accepting Submissions: April 1, 2013 - May 20, 2013 Word Count minimum: 4,000 words - nothing less will be reviewed; no reprints considered. Submission guidelines: Accepting Submissions - April 1, 2013 - May 20, 2013. Word Count: 4,000 - 10,000 words. Please submit your manuscript as a *.doc or *.docx file (all other formats will automatically be rejected. Contact us 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 with a 0 point definition above and below each line. Please format the document to 1st line indentation of .5" (1.27cm), do not space or tab to indent the line. The page margin should be set to .5" (1.27cm) on all sides. Graphic gore must...

Deadline: May 29th 2013 Payment: 5% royalties after cost per story published. Fringeworks is always trying to find clever ways of getting fifteen drunken pirates on a dead man’s chest. We are currently seeking submissions for an anthology entitled ‘Dead Men’s Tales’. The story will be published under our KnightWatch Press imprint. Submission deadline for this anthology is midnight on Monday, 29th May 2013. As the title suggests, we are looking for stories between 2,000 and 6,000 words, which are in some way related to pirates, and which are told from the perspective of a dead character who is either in the story or referenced by it. The character must be dead when telling the story, although his or her demise can be before, during or after the events of the tale itself (we will give priority to stories where the circumstances of that death are integral to the story). We are looking for new and original stories on this theme with surprising elements. We expect this anthology will appeal to writers of historical, ghost stories and horror fiction, and to fans of swashbuckling pirate adventures. Submissions should be sent to [email protected] as word documents or rtf files. Your email subject header should read ‘SURNAME/PIRATES/WORD COUNT (include word count) All submissions should; Be 2,000 to 6,000 words (max) Be typed in Courier or Times New Roman 12 Be typed in line with Standard Manuscript Format. Details can be found at http://www.shunn.net/format/story.html Include your full details (name/address/telephone number/email address) Previously published stories will be considered for this anthology. Authors will retain copyright. Multiple submissions up to a maximum of two stories per author can be submitted. We will write to you within approximately four weeks of the submission deadline to let you know if you have been successful. We will pay...

Deadline: November 1st 2012 through May 30th 2013 (DO NOT SUBMIT EARLY!) Payment: 1p (£0.01) per word DF Lewis is intending to publish a Horror anthology book with the above title in 2013. Horror Stories, Weird Literature, Ghost Stories, Literary Fiction. Each story must either subtly or directly reflect the title of the anthology. Stories between 2000 and 10,000 words. One-off payment upon publication: 1p (£0.01) per word Start Date for Submissions: 1 November 2012 End Date for Submissions: 30 May 2013 Submissions (not simultaneous or multiple) as a Word attachment to [email protected]. As with some earlier Megazanthus Press publications, you may submit by anonymous email and your story will be rejected or accepted before knowing who you are. Also, you may submit non-anonymously. The accepted stories will all be published with their correct by-line. Stories must be previously unpublished in any form. As with the ‘The Horror Anthology of Horror Anthologies’ and ‘The First Book of Classical Horror Stories’, DF Lewis will edit, publish, design, typeset and print (via Lulu) this book. It will be distributed under an ISBN system. Please at least read the reviews of previous Megazanthus Press publications to gauge the type of fiction favoured by the editor. I may need to keep your story for the whole reading-period but may not be able eventually to accept it depending on the timing of other acceptable stories being submitted to me over the period. As a paying market for writers, MEGAZANTHUS PRESS / NEMONYMOUS (2001 – 2012) has previously published 205 original stories by various authors. And ’HORROR WITHOUT VICTIMS’ follows in this tradition. Now… ‘LET’S EAT MONSTERS’!

Deadline: May 30th, 2013 Payment: A penny per word up to 2500 words A HP Lovecraft inspired flash fiction anthology. OPEN CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS PAY RATE: A penny per word up to 2500 words. WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FOR: What we are looking for is flash fiction, meaning short stories no more than 2500 words. We want authors hungry to play in the twisted universe envisioned by H.P. Lovecraft, or write tales that are in the spirit of his mythos. Like Lovecraft’s own work, the horror in this anthology aims to be subtle and subjective. The mind and its inner working are a far more terrifying place than the actual corridors of R’lyeh or the Mountains of Madness. Ideally this anthology should hit readers like a really good mix tape (or iMix for those of you too young to remember what a cassette is). We want a variety of styles, themes, and moods that hook the readers fast, creep the hell out of them, and leave them wanting more. Experimentation is highly encouraged –especially unconventional narrative styles, meta-fiction, genre mash-ups, even sick humor. Of course, don’t be afraid to stick with the tried and true “ravings of a madman,” if that’s your jones. Multiple submissions are fine. WHAT WE’RE NOT LOOKING FOR: Consider this anthology to have a hard R rating. That said, please no stories involving graphic rape or child molestation. Excessive gore is fine, but must function to further the story. Here is a list of themes and elements that will get your story instantly rejected: 1. Cthulhu taking center stage. The big cheese can appear in dreams, statues, visions, etc. Characters can even come across the aftermath of someplace Cthulhu has destroyed. Just as long as we never “see” old squid face we’re happy. 2. No story that...

Deadline: May 31st 2013 Payment: Fixed-rate token payment, equal shares for each contributor, £15-20 per story. Edited by Chris Kelso and Hal Duncan "Glaikit, mockit, droukit, drouthy, couthy, scunner, thrawn – the Scots language is rich with words too gallus not to glory in, dialect terms that deserve better than to be boxed away as precious oddities. For us, those words aren't quaint parochialisms of a past preserved in amber; they're wild wee beauties, straight razors slashing keen to the quick of meaning. We want stories that wield them as weapons for today, for tomorrow. We want you to pick up one of these words and flick it open to gleam in the light of the 21st century. Play with it, work with it, give us a story that riffs on it with relish – the sound, the sense. Run wild with it, ye ramstouger rannigants, and send us the result." Submission deadline is 31 May 2013. Click here for the full guidelines in RTF or PDF format. note: where to submit is located in the guidelines above

Deadline: May 31st 2013 Payment: 5 cents per word 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 been published before, please tell us. Penumbra likes publishing new authors as much as we like publishing experienced authors. Every month, we select one of the best stories from an author with little or no publishing experience and feature that story and author as our Rising Talent recipient for the month. The Rising Talent author's story, biography, and a non-fiction essay will be featured on our website for a full year, as well as spotlighted in the Penumbra issue for that month. We absolutely do...

Deadline: May 31st 2013 Payment: Digital Copy The Bug Issue - Issue #09 It's an infestation! No, really - the June 2013 issue of The Sirens Call eZine will be infested with nothing but BUG stories because that's all we're accepting this time! Since creepy crawlies come in many shapes and sizes, make sure your story has at least six legs to stand on. Horrify us but don't imagine the bug; your story must revolve around an insect of minuscule or mutated proportions that could be found in nature. Deadline: May 31, 2013 Sirens Call Publications is currently accepting submissions for our bi-monthly e-zine, focusing on edgy & dark fiction including Horror, Fantasy, Science Fiction, and Suspense genres. All contributors will receive a free PDF copy of the issue that their work is featured in. We welcome short stories (1000 - 2500 words), flash fiction (300 - 500 words), and dark poetry. Artwork, photography and literary reviews are also accepted. Interviews with both up and coming or established authors will also be featured. Take advantage of this superb opportunity to gain exposure for your work and email [email protected] with your submissions, or contacting [email protected] with any queries. We ask for one time publication rights only; stories that are previously published elsewhere are accepted provided that you hold the rights to them.

Deadline: June 1st 2013 Payment: Contributor's Copy Source Point Press is very happy to announce it will be publishing a zombie themed anthology. From now until June 1, 2013 we will be accepting short stories, flash fiction, poems, and even black & white artwork for the anthology set to be released in time for Halloween 2013. The only rule is that the submissions cannot contain the "z" word in them. Each contributor will receive a copy of the anthology. Please email your submission to [email protected]

Deadline: June 1st 2013 Payment: $20 USD and a copy of the anthology Love writing short stories? We’ll be releasing three anthologies this year under our series line entitled, Three Little Words. Yep, you guessed it, each story in the respective collection must use the three little words in the title. Cute, huh? Stories between 5-15,000 words will be considered. Stamps, Vamps, and Tramps – Have you always wanted to know what tattoos were used for in Roman times? What if a vampire was the one giving them out? How would a vampire prostitute handle her own with Jack the Ripper in foggy London while the local tattoo artist watched? We are looking for stories that include the history of tattoos (any time period), vampires (your preferred mythos), and tramps (whatever your definition of a tramp is). Human main characters are fine but vampires have to be in the story. There are 15 openings for this anthology. Submission deadline June 1, 2013. Please use the form at the right to submit your story for consideration. One submission per anthology will be accepted. Payment for anthology stories is $20 USD and a copy of the anthology. In return, you give us exclusive rights for one year from the date of publication, after that you are free to submit the story to other publications as long as you acknowledge us as first publisher.

Deadline: June 1st 2013 Payment: The anthology is planned for release in print and eBook formats in the Fall of 2013. A royalty pool will be generated on print and eBook sales, with the royalty pool divided equally among the contributors and editors. Royalties for print are 10% of gross receipts received by SSP on sales retail and wholesale up to 1,000 copies, with an increase to 12 1/2% for every copy thereafter. eBook royalties are set at 50% of gross receipts received by SSP for sales of the digital version. Royalty statements and payments will be made bi-annually. All contributors will receive a complimentary trade paperback copy of the anthology. A Speculative Fiction Anthology from Seventh Star Press Edited by: David J. Guyton and Stephen Zimmer A struggle has always existed between those who wish to coerce others into following a certain way, and those who wish to liberate the full potential of the human being. It is the clash between those who wish to impose their will, feeling they know what is best for others, and those who wish to live and let live, as long as no fraud or violence is being done to another. To one side is a world filled with controls, barriers, and punishments, to conform individuals to an order determined by an elite few, and to the other is a world where all individuals pursue their dreams and interact with each other in an environment of mutual consent. The hunger within the human spirit for freedom has been demonstrated all across history, in every age and land. Even in the darkest, most tyrannical of environments, the fires of liberty have ignited within the hearts of individuals, leading to some of the most inspiring and transformational events in history. Fires of Liberty (Volume One)...

Deadline: July 1st 2013 Payment: 20% of the total profit will be paid for each accepted story (at quarterly intervals; if more than five stories are accepted, they will be placed in another anthology in this series. We’d dislike reducing your pay) The glories are gone. No-one remembers the madman who stitched a new man together, corpse by corpse by corpse, into a living symbol. No-one remembers the sage of Baker Street, who solved the entire universe between puffs of his cherrywood. No-one remembers the metal men who punched evil whilst only wearing pajamas. They are forgotten. Not forgotten in the way one forgets about Athanasius Kircher, but forgotten in the malacious way that finds Watson’s memiors rebound as fiction and TV shows chronicling our modern legends spring up like the weeds afront an abandoned house. Each legend is forgotten in their own way, by a force that would like the world to remain mundane and hidden. They are the conspiracy. And they would much rather the world continues to be quiet here. Write a story telling how some fictional object, character, or what-have-you ended up in the hands of the global conspiracy responsible for keeping the magic of the world secret. Think of the ending of Raiders of the Lost Ark, but all extensive—every bit of magic and the exceptional in the world is collected, filed away, and either locked up or used for the expansion of the conspiracy’s activities. In this anthology, you’re encouraged (nay, required) to use characters from other fictional works in order to tell your story. It’s part of the charm. You may NOT break copyright in your story. You’re very welcome to tell the story of how a mysterious and perhaps magical wardrobe came into the conspiracy’s possession; but you may not tell a...