Stupefying Stories Deadline: July 31st 2011 Payment: 1/4-cent per word What are we looking for? Since the target date for releasing Stupefying Stories II is October 1, we've decided to make this one our Halloween issue. Therefore, we are looking for stories that fit in with a general "Halloween" theme, which is to say, scary stories. In the initial announcement, I used the word horror. That was perhaps a mistake, as it appears that horror has become synonymous with splattered gore and nauseating violence. (I blame Wes Craven.) I'm more interesting in seeing the sort of stories that give readers the cold shivers. You know, the kind of story that would, if you were reading it by the light of a single lamp in a quiet house after midnight, make you want to get up, turn on a few more lights, and make sure the doors and windows are closed and locked. I personally am a big fan of ghost stories. For that matter, I also have a strong fondness for that disturbing mix they call "horror-comedy." Case in point, I would dearly love to publish a story the equal of "Bubba Ho-Tep." But not identical to "Bubba Ho-Tep," of course. That one's already been written. If this is not coming out until October, why the July 31 deadline? Because the one lesson we really learned from doing Stupefying Stories: It Came From The Slushpile, is just how long it takes to get a book through production and into print. There's a heck of a lot of behind-the-scenes work that comes into play after the content has been picked. So yes, to be ready to begin shipping this thing in late September, we need to have the final content nailed down by August 15, at the latest. Speaking of Stupefying...