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Deadline: February 28th, 2015 Payment: Exposure and Royalties Short Stories – 3,000 – 5,000 words H. P. Lovecraft never stuck to any serious continuity with his Mythos. It has always been simply accepted that the return of Cthulhu and the other Elder Gods was an inevitability. So a while back I was rereading Lovecraft’s “The Shadow out of Time” and came across the following passage…. “I shivered at the mysteries the past may conceal, and trembled at the menaces the future may bring forth. What was hinted in the speech of post-human entities of the fate of mankind produced such an effect on me that I will not set it down here. After man there would be the mighty beetle civilisation, the bodies of whose members the cream of the Great Race would seize when the monstrous doom overtook the elder world. Later, as the earth’s span closed, the transferred minds would again migrate through time and space—to another stopping-place in the bodies of the bulbous vegetable entities of Mercury. But there would be races after them, clinging pathetically to the cold planet and burrowing to its horror-filled core, before the utter end.” Now this can easily be interpreted as stating that Cthulhu and the Others do not return during Humanity’s time on Earth! Why don’t they return? What happens that stops them? This is a focused idea that leaves lots of room to the imagination. Did we stop them? Did some one else stop them? Were the stars never right? They decided not come? Did Cthulhu over sleep? It’s all up to you! So get your writing caps on and let those eldritch juices flow! We’re open to all styles of writing. Be it Pulp, Noir, Literary, SF, Gothic or what ever you feel appropriate. Just make it entertaining!...

Deadline: February 28th, 2015 Payment: $15 per story FORMATTING GUIDELINES This is proving to be a recurring problem, so we're putting it up front. Please, for all our sakes, read this next part carefully. All submissions should be sent by e-mail (no letters or telephone calls please) [email protected]. Below are some formatting rules to help us process your submission more quickly. Email and Cover Letters Email is accepted in both text and HTML formats. When submitting, please put this in the subject line: Submission: (Title) - (First and Last name) Include the following in the body of the email and in the attached submission: Your name Name to use on the story (byline), if different Your preferred email address Your mailing address The story's title The story's word count You may also include a cover letter in the body of the email. We get a lot of strange stuff in cover letters, so if you're unsure of what goes in them (and especially what doesn't) please refer to these cover letter tips: How to write a cover letter | What not to put in a cover letter by Jed Hartman Submission Formatting We ONLY accept submissions as attachments! All stories submitted as an attachment must follow standard manuscript formatting. We will no longer read any story not properly formatted. (And we much prefer Courier New to Times New Roman) For explanations and tips on what SMF is and how to do it with word processing programs, please see this article. Please send your submission as an attachment in Microsoft Word (DOC, DOCX) orRich Test Format (RTF) only. Other formats, such as Works, WordPerfect, Open Office, etc., have proven difficult to open. Please note that we no longer accept "inline" submssions - that is: submissions with the stories pasted directly into...

Deadline: February 28th, 2015 Payment: $20 Note #1: This isn't a full on horror anthology. More of a kid's and young adult Halloween one. But.. Halloween! Note #2: I usually don't post anthologies that I had missed with deadlines this close but I know quite a few with Halloween stories that might want to take advantage of this if the story fits the theme. Halloween is over… But it doesn’t have to be! We are doing an open call for submissions for stories that involve trick-or-treating on Halloween night. Your story may be any genre, but the overall feel and mood of the anthology is macabre and spooky. Submissions can be middle grade or young adult age range. Please do not submit adult work or works best for picture books.   Stories Word count: Stories may be between 1,000 and 3,000 words. Deadline: February 28, 2015 for expected publication in October 2015. Pay: This is a paid anthology. If your story is selected and included you will receive payment. Payment for illustrations and stories are $20. Rights: We will not accept anything that has been published anywhere previously. Response: We will review work and respond within 6 to 8 weeks, possibly sooner. If you do not hear back after 6 to 8 weeks, please feel free to follow up.   Illustrations Medium: Any medium is welcome as long as you can provide a high resolution image of the work Theme: You may design any artwork that you like as long as it relates to the theme of trick-or-treating on Halloween night. You’re welcome to let your artwork tell a story of its own. Deadline: February 28, 2015 for expected publication in October 2015. Pay: This is a paid anthology. If your artwork is selected and included you will receive payment. Payment for illustrations...

Deadline: March 1st, 2015 Payment: $25.00 and electronic copy of the book upon publication. The wars are over. The monsters have won. There is nowhere monsters don’t stalk anymore; not the burnt out cities or desolate countryside. The monster’s endless search for the last of humanity grows intense as the number of people dwindle and the legions of hungry creatures swell. The battle between life and death is constant. No place is safe. But, the people who have survived are the fastest, the strongest and the most resourceful. Amongthem are the last monster hunters: individuals that have visited the depths of nightmare and survived. Individuals that have become the things that haunt those nightmares… They will never submit, no matter how large or small the gain. Their purpose is clear… Hunt the monsters. Reclaim the WASTELAND. Edited by: Miles Boothe Submission Period: 8/1/14 through 3/1/15 Reading Period: 3/2/15 through 4/4/15 Acceptances will be announced 4/5/14 Tentative Publication Date: Fall 2015 Payment: $25.00 and electronic copy of the book upon publication. Word Limits: 2000 to 8000 words. Please query if longer. Format: Submissions should be .doc (.docx is fine) or .rtf formats. The entire text will be reformatted, so no need to worry about margins, spacing, etc. Please use a standard font. Genres Accepted: Dark Fiction, Horror and sci-fi. Reprints Accepted: Yes. Please include a history of publication with your submission. Simultaneous Subs: (submitting to Emby and another press at the same time) can be avoided by requesting an early response. Multiple Subs: Each author may submit up to 2 stories. Only one story per author will be accepted. Exclusive Rights: The contract will stipulate 1 year exclusive worldwide print and electronic rights. However, the contract does also state that under certain circumstances, Emby Press will consider granting permission to the...

Deadline: March 1st, 2015. Payment: 5% of the gross profit will be paid for each accepted story. These payments will be issued to you at quarterly intervals. Stories under 1,500 words will only receive 4% of the gross profit Down deep in ancient tunnels carved by dwarven hands, past the piles of treasure, the ancient magical artifacts from races long dead, there is a library. Shelves and shelves of books, scrolls, even a few stone tablets, a vast collection worthy of a Dragon Lord. Who knows what timeless knowledge hides there for his slitted pupils only? Well, his secretary has an idea or two. She’s pulled a few off the shelves for you, at his request. We’re interested in fantasy, urban fantasy, dark fantasy, fairy tales, parodies, Just So Stories, and, if your imagination can handle it, a techno-action thriller which has disposed of James Bond and replaced him with someone far more stylish and far more lizardy. All we ask is that a dragon plays a major role. We do not care if there are a million dragons or one dragon, nor do we care if the dragons are heroes or villains (or simply too fabulous to take sides). We do not care if dragons are the protagonist or an influential side character. Your dragons may be adorable imps or horrible beasts. After all, what’s more terrifying than a dragon? Curated by Nicole Petit. Deadline is March 1st, 2015. Seeking stories from 1 to 10,000 words long. The full details can be found here Via: 18th Wall.

Deadline: March 1st 2015 Payment: 1 cent per word. Remember when GG Allin was kidnapped by aliens as a child and gang raped for twenty years before being returned to the exact point in time he had been stolen from? Or how about when he was playing a Boston dive bar with the Jabbers and he started growing penises out of his chest? Perhaps you’ve heard about when he took a dump on stage and the janitor of the club kept all of the excrement and now sells it online in vials for a hundred bucks each so scumfucs can buy it and inject it? Surely you know the story of how, just weeks after being released from prison, GG Allin fought off a pack of crazy weredogs with his bare hands? What do you mean you haven’t heard any of these classic GG Allin tales? Maybe you’ve heard weirder ones? Write them now! The Highest Power will be a collection of screwed up, fictional GG Allin stories edited by MP Johnson and Sam Richard, to be published in Summer of 2015. Publisher TBD. Your stories are needed! The weirder the better. Bizarro GG Allin. Splatterpunk GG Allin. Fill them with blood and rock and roll. All eras of GG Allin must be represented in this book. From young crossdressing GG Allin to post-prison shaved and goateed GG Allin – and beyond. Don’t forget about the full cast of characters, including Merle Allin and the Murder Junkies and GG’s mom. The stranger the story, the better the chance of acceptance. For example, a story in which early 80s GG goes out in drag and accepts an offer to give some guy a oral for $50, but instead bites the guy’s dick off, only to have the severed dick haunt him...

Deadline: March 1st 2015 Payment: Royalties, author share divided equally among the authors How Beer Saved the World 2 edited by Phyllis Irene Radford And on the Eighth Day God Created Beer. Beer is what separates humans from animals… unless you have too much. Seriously, anthropologists, archeologists, and sociologists seem to think that when humans first emerged on earth as human, they possessed fire, language, a sense of spirituality, and beer. DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS: March 1, 2015. Reading period is December 1, 2014 - March 1, 2015 How to Submit or The Nitty-Gritty In the SUBJECT LINE of your email put How Beer Saved the World 2: and the name of your story. Send us a virus and we will never accept anything from you again. Double spaced manuscript in Times New Roman or some other pretty font (not Courier!). Use italics, not underlines. Have your contact information on the manuscript including your email address. Let us know if this is a reprint and from where. Again, be sure you have the rights to reprint – we won’t chase down permissions. Fiction, humor, science fiction, fantasy, dark fantasy, urban fantasy, etc. Stories MUST contain beer, preferably humorous. Beer must save the world. Can be science fiction, fantasy, humor, mystery, historical, etc. Email Submissions Only. RTF only. Simultaneous submissions? No. Standard manuscript format. (Double spaced, contact info including email at the top of manuscript) Stories should be between 2000 and 6500 words. Pay: Royalties, author share divided equally among the authors Email submissions to Anthologies AT skywarriorbooks DOT com Our group discussion is on Facebook at How Beer Saved the World 2 Via: Sky Warrior Books.

Deadline: March 1st, 2015 Payment: Base rate of $25.00 and two contributor’s copies Intrigue Publishing is delighted to announce that we’ll be publishing a new YA anthology, Young Adventurers: Heroes, Explorers & Swashbucklers. Publication is tentatively scheduled for November 2015. This will be aimed at the Young Adult audience. The subtitle , “Tales of teens saving the day in the past, the present, the future & on other worlds” should indicate the level of diversity we’re looking for. We plan 16 stories, with a deadline for submissions of March 1or until the anthology is full. What We’re Looking For: Young Adventurers seeks stories of action, adventure and, yes, intrigue, featuring a teenage protagonist. We would welcome spy thrillers, mysteries, science fiction, paranormal or fantasy stories (dragons and magic are fine.) Straight adventure stories are also welcome and they could be set in any time period (we’d love to see a good western or pirate story.) Stretch your imaginations and surprise us! The important requirements are that the protagonist be a courageous teenage boy or girl, that the story be gripping with a real sense of risk or danger, and that the protagonist survives or saves the day through his or her own intelligence, skill and ingenuity. What We’re NOT Looking For: Please no stories involving graphic violence, graphic sex, or profanity. That said, respect your audience: do not talk down to the reader. Twenty-first century young adult readers are pretty sophisticated. The Submission Process: Young Adventurers is looking for original, never-published short fiction only (no poetry), 5,000-10,000 words. But we will consider reprints from well-established writers. Manuscripts must be submitted by email attachment in Word. Submissions pasted into the body of an email message will not be read. The manuscript must be double-spaced, 12-point type, (Times New Roman or Arial.) Please...

Deadline: March 1, 2015 Payment: 6¢ per word For this issue, rather than limiting ourselves to one specialized field of study, we’re looking for stories about the act of studying and learning itself. This could be anything from stories set in unusual schools like Hogwarts, Brakebills, and the Unseen University, to stories focusing on the students and faculty of unorthodox majors like Decision Sciences, Theme Park Engineering, and Bowling Industry Management and Technology (these are all real majors offered by real universities), to tales of researchers digging deep into forbidden tomes, to fictionalized scholarly articles on the Ethics of Motorcycle Taming or the Alternate History of Space Flight in the Mongol Empire. (Yes, we realize this opens us up to stories with footnotes, and we’ll probably kick ourselves later, but we’re brave souls.) We would not be dismayed to see stories that delve into epistemology and hermeneutics, into the nature and limits of knowledge itself. As always, we want gorgeously-told tales, gripping characters, and unique worlds to explore. Genre doesn’t matter to us, along as your tale involves schools, studying, or academia in some integral way. For the sake of setting this issue apart from our recurring entomology and cryptography issues, we’d prefer not to receive stories involving the study of bugs/insects, or computing/code. Word limit: We’ll consider stories up to 8000 words, but strongly prefer stories of 5000 words or less. We’re open to flash fiction and fiction in non-traditional formats, but we do not publish poetry or non-fiction. Pay rate: We pay 6¢ per word for original fiction. Payment is made upon publication. Rights: We buy first-printing world exclusive English-language rights for six months after publication, and non-exclusive electronic rights for twelve months after publication. We hope (but do not require) that you’ll allow us to post the...

Deadline: March 1, 2015 Payment: $25 per story selected for inclusion. The elevator doors open, the lights are flickering, the gurney is wheeled into a dank, dimly-lit hallway well below ground. Does the Doctor have the patient's best interests at heart, or is something more nefarious going on? How does the staff figure out what treatments are most effective and which are not? In our other two Mental Ward collections, we asked you to tell us what happened above ground in the institute itself; what memories of the past were trapped in the abandoned hallways; now we're asking you to tell us what goes on behind closed doors. The secret experiments that are feared and whispered about among the patients. Tell us what unthinkable things greed, the corruption of power, and the desire to be remembered will drive a Doctor to do to the unfortunate patients left in their care. Tell your tale from whoever's perspective you'd like, just make sure the story you tell is a depraved one. Note: This is a reopened anthology. Your story must contain the following three elements to be considered: Your story must take place in a Mental Asylum or Institution. Your story must involve individuals from the Asylum: doctors, nurses, patients, maintenance staff, etc. Your story must contain what would be considered an inhumane experiment that is physically performed. Submission Deadline: March 1, 2015 Word Count: minimum 4,000 words; maximum: 8,000 words. 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. Anthology Submission guidelines: Submission Deadline - March 1, 2015 Word Count: 4,000 - 8,000 words. Payment: $25 per story selected for inclusion. Copyright: First time worldwide copyright for a period of one year after publication. Reprints...

Deadline: March 1st, 2015 Payment: .02/word (up to 5k words) Fictionvale Magazine is designed to bring great short fiction to folks on a quarterly basis. But we can’t do that without you, the awesome writers out there! So please read the submission guidelines below to find out how to contribute to Fictionvale. Fiction We look for well-written genre fiction to fill our valley with story! Most episodes will pair two genres, sometimes similar ones, sometimes distinctly different ones, so we are open to all types of popular fiction. Because each episode features eight or so stories of two genres, we will put out a call for those genres first, but we will accept other genres as well, for future episodes. Please note that we are an editorial publisher. Check out our Editorial Musings blog post for what that means to us and to you if accepted. You can find any and all submission calls on our Submittable Page. Research Where You Submit It’s important that, as a writer, you know the market you’re submitting to. We really can’t stress this enough. Each publication has its own style and its  own ideas of what makes a great story. We strongly suggest purchasing at least one episode of Fictionvale so that you can familiarize yourself with the types of stories we find worthwhile to publish. It’s often not difficult to tell when an author isn’t familiar with our preferences. You can go for one of the genre free-for-alls, or, if you write in a particular genre, a genre-specific episode, as they’re published. Episode Eight – upcoming September 1, 2015 – Horror/Humor Guidelines Length & Format: Up to 5000 words, including flash (<1000 words) and micro-fiction (<100 words). Standard manuscript format: 1″ margins, double-spaced, Times New Roman 12pt. You really need to pay attention to...

Deadline: March 1st, 2015 Payment: 5 cents per word up to 5000 Stone Skin Press is proud to announce our newest anthology, Swords v. Cthulhu. As you might have guessed from the title, this project is a spiritual successor to our previous Shotguns v. Cthulhu, but while Shotguns featured mostly modern or futuristic settings for its action-heavy eldritch tales, this tome will collect stories of a historical or fantastical bent. Molly Tanzer and Jesse Bullington will be co-editing the project. If you’re simply an excited reader then there’s nothing more to report at present. But! If you’re interested in potentially submitting a story, there will be an open reading period for a few of the slots in Swords v. Cthulhu. Read on for the full guidelines… The brass tacks (or red nails, as the case may be): We are paying five (5) cents a word for original works of fiction of up to 5,000 words. No poetry. No reprints. No multiple submissions. No simultaneous submissions. The open reading period for story submissions will be from February 1st to March 1st, 2015. All submissions will be answered by the end of March. During the reading period, all submissions should be sent as a double-spaced word document in standard manuscript format to [email protected]. Please address the subject line SVC Submission: “Story Title.” Any stories submitted before or after the open reading period will be deleted unread. To fulfill the promise of the title, we want at least a few adventure romps in which sinewy muscle and cold steel are pitted against the minions of the Great Old Ones. That said, we’d also like some stories combining movement and violence with the existential despair at the heart of Lovecraft’s work. What we want to see is the cerebral cohabitating with rowdy action sequences....

Deadline: March 1st, 2015 Payment: Contributor's Copy SUBMISSIONS FOR ISSUE 3 ARE OPEN UNTIL MARCH 1, 2015. Dark Corners publishes pulp fiction quarterly. Hardboiled, noir, westerns, sci-fi, fantasy, and horror are all desired. If you have something that exists outside these genres or even combines them and you think we'd enjoy it, feel free to submit. Be forewarned, though, that we reserve the right to be picky. If you don't know what pulp fiction is, you might be better off submitting elsewhere. Absolutely no fan fiction. Our readers demand and deserve quality and there is a lot of quality out there so be competitive. Give us your best. Word limit is 2-5,000 words but err on the side of brevity. We want it fast and memorable. Please send only one story per quarter. This is a small operation here and while I appreciate the vote of confidence, we have our limits. Submit to craigtm85 (at) gmail (dot) com. (Please don't type "at" and "dot". I think you know how e-mails look. This is to protect myself from Nigerian princes and people trying to enlarge parts of my body or introduce me to Russian girls. I already live with the best woman possible.) Attach your submission in a Word Document file or Open Office file if you prefer. For the subject of your e-mail, write "Dark Corners Submission -- Your Last Name". If you actually write "Your Last Name", I will respond telling you how funny I think you are but I probably won't read your submission. In the body of your e-mail, send your cover letter. Look up how to do one if you don't know but don't fret about it. As long as you give your best attempt at professionalism, we won't ignore you. Make sure your letter contains...

Deadline: March 1st, 2015 Payment: Royalties from the sale of the individual anthologies will be split between the company and contributors, paid out on a quarterly basis.  Each contributor will also receive an author’s copy of the complete anthology, which will exist in electronic format only. Pagan Writers Press and Ishtar Press (the romance/erotica imprint) are currently seeking flash (short) fiction stories of 1,000 to 2,500 words for inclusion in five separate promotional eBooks for the press. The purpose of these books is to introduce new readers to PWP and display the vast talent of our authors to grow their individual followings. Themes for these eBooks include: Paranormal Romance: These stories focus on relationships, but have a supernatural twist. Characters can be shifters, witches, ghosts, vampires, or a host of other creatures (or be the humans that interact with them). They can be on the darker side, but the focus must be on the relationships. Erotica: While the romance has a relationship focus, here we are looking for stories centered on the physical acts of pleasure of one or more parties. All manner of couples and light BDSM welcome. Halloween / Samhain: Celebrate the magic and mystique of this solemn (and fun) holiday with stories that occur on this day or the days leading up to it. All non-erotic genres welcome. One submission per author per collection is allowed (i.e. you can submit two different stories to two of the anthologies, but not more than one story for each). Please review our standard guidelines before submitting your work. Failure to follow them will result in the rejection of your work. All settings/eras/time periods welcome unless designated in the comments above. All manner of relationships (straight, GBLT, or polyamorous) are welcome. Graphic lovemaking should be restricted to the Erotic submissions only. Royalties from the...

Deadline: March 23, 2015 Payment: $15 per story accepted Timeless Tales exclusively publishes retellings of fairy tales and myths. We don't accept original fairy tales or stories outside of our current theme. These are the known upcoming themes: #4.    Perseus and Medusa (Submission window open Feb. 8 - March 23, 2015) Additional Rules:  Length: Up to 2,000 words. Under 1,500 preferred. Genres:  Please be creative! We love to see modernizations, sci-fi retellings, continuations, mash-ups, etc. Just no eroticism, please (see Content section). Formatting: Please put your story's title and the author's name in the file name of your submission. Example: "Pandora's Choice by Zeus Smith.doc". Too often, we'll get a ton of submisions all labled "Pandoras Box.doc" and it makes it harder to keep track of them.  ​ Want to know what makes an A+ fairy tale retelling?, HERE is my blog post about it. Content: While Timeless Tales is not targeted specifically at children, it is a fairly conservative magazine, especially when it comes to sexual content, so I intend to keep the stories in the PG-13 range or below. However, I have a deep appreciation for the darker side of many original fairy tales, so don’t assume I only want “happy” stories. Pay Rate: At the moment, we’re just starting out and budget is tight, so we will pay a flat rate of $15 per story accepted, but we hope to increase this amount in the future. You'll also get a free year of our premium subscription. 1.    We do NOT accept multiple submissions. 2.    We DO accept reprints as long as the author has the rights to the story. But please include in your cover letter the details of where and when the story was previously published. 3.    We DO accept simultaneous submissions, but please notify us by email immediately if your story has been accepted elsewhere. If you have a question, please us the contact form at the bottom...

Deadline: March 31st, 2015 Payment: Fiction and nonfiction alike, we will pay $0.01/word (1 cent a word) USD. For poetry, we offer a flat rate of $5 USD per accepted piece; for artwork, $40 ($60 for cover art) Kaleidotrope is currently open to submissions until March 31, 2015. Kaleidotrope tends very heavily towards the speculative — towards science fiction, fantasy, and horror — but we like an eclectic mix and are therefore always eager to read interesting work that blurs these lines, falls outside of neat genre categories. Man does not live on space ships, elves, and ghostly ax murderers alone, after all. We’d suggest looking through the archives to familiarize yourself with the zine, and/or checking out other work by our past contributors, to get a sense of what we’re looking for and what we like. In the end, what we want is interesting, sometimes unconventional work, well-written stories and poems that surprise and amuse us, shock and disturb us, that tell us things we didn’t know or reveal old truths in brand new ways. We want strange visions of distant shores, of imaginary countries and ordinary people, and work that doesn’t lose sight of entertainment and the joy of good writing. Fiction We have no maximum word limit, although anything over 10,000 words may be a tougher sell. We do like well-crafted flash fiction, too, although preferably not under 250 words. Poetry We will consider all forms. Humor is encouraged, if tricky. Rhyming is not actively discouraged — done well, it can be terrific — but be careful about overly simple, sing-song-like structures. Individual haiku, or other very short poems, may be a tougher sell. Nonfiction We want essays, memoirs, creative nonfiction, thoughtful criticism. In past issues, we have featured essays on popular culture — from Transformersto fembots...

Deadline: March 31st, 2015 Payment: $0.01/word and Contributor's Copy Our journey continues… World Weaver Press has agreed to publish a second volume of the Far Orbit science fiction adventure series. We are once again looking for modern space adventures crafted in the Grand Tradition. We are not looking for slavish imitations of past classics. Rather, we would like to receive stories that establish a new tradition in the much maligned Scifi adventure genera — smart, modern stories built around the classic traditions. We are looking for adventure stories that are creative, readable, and memorable. We are also looking for midnight indulgences; exciting stories that transport you from the everyday grind and leave you wondrously satisfied. All adventure-based sci-fi genera are welcome but stay away from fantasy elements unless they are genetically engineered or cybernetic. Stories can begin on Earth but the major action should happen out there, beyond the edges of our blue marble. Dystopia (Mad Max) and fantasy-like adventures (John Carter of Mars) have to be very special to be included in this anthology. Please, no fan fiction. Because adventure stories often take more space to develop, World Weaver Press is accepting stories up to 10,000 words in length. Previously published stories are acceptable but we will not publish stories that have been previously anthologized. Want to know more about the editor’s preferences? Check out the links at the bottom of this post or pick up a copy of the first volume of Far Orbit. Rights and compensation: Payment: $0.01/word. All contributors will receive a paperback copy of the anthology. For previously unpublished works: Seeking first world rights in English and exclusive rights to publish in print and electronic format for twelve months after publication date after which publisher retains nonexclusive right to continue to publish for a term. For reprints: Seeking non-exclusive right to...

Deadline: March 31st, 2015 Payment: 3 cents per word Another Dimension Magazine is the evolution of Wily Writers Speculative Fiction Podcast. It has a more focused theme, that of classic-style Horror and Dark Fantasy, as seen on the television shows Night Gallery and The Twilight Zone, produced and often written by Rod Serling. We are doing blatant homage to these wonderful contributions to these genres. We'll release issues quarterly in both text and audio formats. What We're Looking For We've identified elements that we're looking for in the stories we'll buy: An interesting and well-thought-out lead character, first and foremost. Supernatural elements or alternate reality/history. The genres of either Horror or Dark Fantasy. The various subgenres of Horror are perfectly acceptable, such as SciFi Horror. A commentary on the world we live in (however metaphorically). Say something with your story. A surprising climax. Take us by surprise, if you can. Impressive imagination -- show us a different culture or an alternate world. Submission Requirements Submissions need to follow the guidelines listed below. IMPORTANT: Name your file so that it makes sense. An impressive filename for a fiction submission is: (lastname)-(word from title).RTF Word count: 1000 - 3000 (Firm. Do not query). Use standard manuscript formatting. (more info) Simultaneous submissions to other publishers are okay. Do not submit more than once to the same issue. You may submit only one story to each issue. Gore, sex, and adult language okay, but make sure it improves the story. Use good grammar, double-check your punctuation, and run a spell-check. We prefer Chicago Manual of Style rules, and we will reject it if it's a mess, even if it's an amazing story. If you're bad at grammar and spelling, then hire an editor or bribe a friend with cookies to help you before you...

Deadline: March 31, 2015 Payment: 1% royalty share of the profits from both the kickstarter and on-going sales, plus 2 comp copies and a 50% discount on purchased copies Whether you’re talking about the wild frontier, the Final Frontier, the literary frontier, or all three at once, The Weird Wild West edited by Misty Massey, Emily Lavin Leverett, and Margaret S. McGraw pushes those boundaries. This collection takes all those things you love about genre fiction and marries it to that western grit we cut our teeth on as kids with classics like The Lone Ranger, Kung Fu, and The Wild Wild West. Thank you for helping us make this project happen! SUBMISSION GUIDELINES: All submissions should be in Times New Roman, 12 point, in .doc or .docx format. Stories should be between 3,000 and 9,000 words. No multiple or simultaneous submissions, and please, no reprints. We seek stories of the Wild West in all its glory but with that delicious left turn into weirdness. The stories must be related to, inspired by, or set in a Western setting, whether on Earth, in a fantasy world, or on another planet. Let your imagination run free figuring out what dangers the frontier folk might face from magic or science (or both!) A couple of disclaimers here – we’re definitely not looking for hard erotica. If there’s sexual behavior in your story that drives the plot along, that’s fine. If the only point to your story is sex, please reconsider submitting it. eSpec Books and its editors do not support the marginalization or discrimination of any individual or group due to any trait, including but not limited to race, ethnicity, age, gender, or orientation. We seek to produce fiction that is respectful and in good taste. While individual characters in that fiction...

Deadline: March 31st, 2015 Prizes: Amazon gift cards and Inkitt custom mugs. The first place winner will also get a custom poster spotlighting their story! Readers, be on your toes, too: there's an Amazon gift card up for grabs for one lucky reviewer! Write a horror story that has people running for cover! What is Inkitt? Inkitt is a free platform for writers to cultivate ideas and watch their stories grow. On our site, users collaborate with fellow writers and readers to give each other feedback and improve their work. Inkitt wants to help writers get the exposure they deserve and the publishing deals they covet without suffering the frustrations and bias of traditional printing and selfpublishing. What is the theme of the horror contest? "Running Scared: The Most Terrifying Tale Ever Told." In the tradition of classic horror flicks and monster movies, we want the freakiest, flashiest fiction you can come up with. Make us scream! What are the guidelines? Frightening fiction up to 15,000 words. Entries must be posted on the Inkitt contest page to be considered eligible. The contest opens on March 3rd and closes on March 31st . It is free to enter , and authors will retain all rights to all work submitted. Authors will collect community votes, and the first, second, and third place winners will be chosen by Inkitt’s guest judges (horror authors J.D. Horn , Armand Rosamilia , and J. Thorn ) from the top 10% of entries. What are the prizes? All entrants will have the chance to show their work to a growing community of authors and readers hungry for high-quality fiction and win the following prizes: 1st Prize:  $25 Amazon gift card, customized movie poster (and high-resolution .pdf file) spotlighting the winner’s story, Inkitt custom mug, custom cover design for the Inkitt story of their choice (created by Inkitt’s designer). 2nd Prize:  $20...

Deadline: March 31st, 2015 Payment: 1 cent per word We are looking for stories 500-8000 words in length about the end of the world, in whatever form it takes. These stories will be published in our anthology, Selfies from the End of the World: Historical Accounts of the Apocalypse. We will accept submissions from March 1st through March 31st. The stories must include the following elements: The World Must End: At the very minimum, we’re looking for a catastrophic collapse of human civilization. The end of the world can either take place in the story or, in the case of post-apocalyptic tales, it can take place before the start of your story. It Must Be First Person: There must be a narrator that is telling the story as though they have experienced it. It does not need to have mad science in it at all. Though we are not requiring it, we would also love stories that feature protagonists or settings that are outside of what we typically see in mainstream fiction. We don’t want to just publish a couple dozen stories about straight white men in the ruins of the United States. We would also like to collect stories from a wide range of authors, including authors with little to no publishing history and authors from traditionally underrepresented groups. All our other submission guidelines still apply, particularly the request for Standard Manuscript Format. We will not be accepting reprints. Payment will be 1-cent a word. How To Send It You will want to send it through our submission form on Submishmash: http://madscientistjournal.submishmash.com/submit Questions? Queries can be sent to [email protected]. Via: Mad Scientist Journal.