Anthology News and Reviews

Science Fiction Anthology

2011-08-21T18:50:00.000-07:00

Horror, Humor, and Heroes (science fiction anthology)
PAYS: $50 per story

Deadline: 31 August 2011

Jim Bernheimer is doing a science fiction themed anthology under his Horror, Humor, and Heroes brand. This volume is devoted to science fiction short stories. He is looking for original works up to 5000 words. There is no overall theme and he is not picky whether it is hard sci-fi or soft sci-fi. Entertaining, well-written stories are the key.

He will provide feedback on your story, but makes no guarantees that it will be accepted for publication. Payment is $50 if your story is accepted. This is a one time only payment and not a royalty paying anthology.

If you are interested, you can go to his website www.jimbernheimer.com and fill out the contact form and he will be in touch.

Contact Information:

For inquiries: click here

Website: http://www.jimbernheimer.com

SHAPATO PUBLISHING, LLC

2011-08-20T12:00:00.000-07:00

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS

Midwest Stories Submissions are now open for the upcoming 2012 anthology, tentatively titled Sowing Wild Oats. Word count 500 – 1600. Deadline: March 2012.

This is a small publishing company, so compensation at this time is minimal ($10-20 per essay) for the anthologies. However, if your story is chosen for publication you will also receive a short author bio to be included at the end of your story, as well as one free copy of the book. Authors may also purchase as many copies of the book in which their work is published at wholesale price, which is generally 40% off the retail price. And you'll have the publishing credit, of course, for your writing résumé!

Other Submissions Accepted:
Fiction or nonfiction. Adult stories and children's stories, as well as children's picture books.

Send submissions with SASE to:

Jean Tennant
Shapato Publishing
PO Box 476
Everly, IA 51338

For more information, visit their website.

Panverse

2011-08-20T05:40:00.000-07:00

Panverse - All-Original Novella Anthology Series

They are now reading for Panverse Four (publication date Sept 1, 2012). They'll be reading very selectively, and submissions will remain open until the anthology is filled.

What they're looking for in Panverse Four:

Pro-level novellas of between 17,500 and 40,000 words. They are particularly interested in core SF stories, as well as Fantasy and Alternate History. With Fantasy, note that they gravitate toward urban and edgy, though they do have a weakness for non-sappy stories involving Faërie or Sidhe characters. Your story should be original and unpublished in any medium including web publication.

Depth of characterization will count for a lot—however clever the idea, if they don't care for the protagonist, they'll reject it. They like stories that instill wonder. Give them a character they care for, a world both interesting and well-developed, and a story that carries them along, and you've probably got a sale.

What they don't want in Panverse Four:

Military SF, High Fantasy, Sword and Sorcery, Horror, RPG, superhero, shared-universe stuff, etc. Vampires and Cthulhu-mythos stories are strongly discouraged unless you've done something absolutely original with either theme. No gratuitous or wildly excessive sex or violence: what this means is that sex or violence which serves the plot is okay, within limits; the same goes for language. Think R-rated rather than XXX-rated.

Response Time:

They'll respond to all submissions inside six weeks; if you haven't heard after that time, please ping them. If they're on the fence over a story, they'll keep you in the loop rather than leave you wondering. Yes, they've been on the other side of the slush pile, and it's their intention to maintain a gold standard in this regard.

How to Submit Stories:

Your submission should be professionally formatted, with paragraphs indented but not separated by line breaks.

Please send only your best work, and take the time to proofread and format it properly. If your submission completely ignores these guidelines or is full of typos, they're unlikely to read it. Please send them only one story at a time. No simultaneous or multiple submissions.

NO 'BOOK BLURB', please: I don't want to know in advance what the story's about! There's no better way to annoy me in a submission than to ignore this rule.

A cover letter is optional, but please keep it very short.

If they really, really like a story but feel some edits or rewriting are needed, they'll make suggestions and discuss them with you rather than just bounce the story outright. They're doing this because they want to help you make this story the best it can be. If you're not open to constructive editing, don't submit to them.

Finally, please don't expect critiques or reasons for rejection. If your story is rejected, it's probably because it either doesn't conform to their needs, or doesn't grab them enough to make them want to publish it.

Email them your submission at pansubs (at) gmail (dot) com as an attachment in either docx, doc, or rtf format. Write SUBMISSION: (Story Name) in the subject line. Stories pasted into the email will be deleted. Please don't attach anything except the story.

Payment and rights:

Each contributor will receive $75 on publication. They buy FNASR for a period of one year.

Here's the deal: they're working on a shoestring, and they're going to be to spending time and money on getting this series—and YOU—noticed. Expect reviews in LOCUS, TANGENT ONLINE, ASIMOV'S and several other prominent venues; they'll blog about this anthology, notify everyone on their large email list, and generally market their butts off; and of course Panverse Four will be available in all digital formats via Amazon.com and other online outlets.

If you're thinking, "Waitaminnit! The pro mags would pay me 6 cents a word!" by all means try them first—they're rooting for you! But the sad truth is that the very few remaining pro markets between them only have room for maybe 10-15 novellas a year, and they're not known for taking chances on novellas by new authors.

Panverse, on the other hand, exists primarily to publish authors writing at these longer lengths, and their titles have received several excellent reviews in LOCUS, ASIMOV'S and elsewhere. Stories from Panverse Two made both the LOCUS and TANGENT ONLINE reading lists, and Alan Smale's AH story, 'A Clash of Eagles,' is currently on the shortlist for the 2011 Sidewise Award.

The Panverse series is the premier anthology for all-original SF/F novellas in the market today. Check their website for more details.

Chicken Soup Stress Anthology

2011-06-15T04:13:00.000-07:00

Deadline for this Chicken Soup title is August 7 and payment is $200.

*Chicken Soup for the Soul: Say Goodbye to Stress!
Manage Your Problems, Big and Small, Every Day
*Everyone feels stressed out at some point in their lives. Many people have trouble getting their stress under control and are looking for help. We're seeking stories about people who have felt or feel stressed out, found a way to resolve their stress, learned to rethink their stress, improved their lives by handling stress, etc. We are interested in normal Chicken Soup for the Soul stories on this issue. Your stories will provide the inspiration and comfort to those who are stressed out, and Dr. Brown will provide the hard medical facts.

Here are some possible story topics, just to get your creative juices
flowing:

* How you managed the stress of a new baby
* How you got through a divorce
* How you held it together while planning an elaborate wedding with 300 guests
* What advice would you give to someone who has a difficult work situation
* What got you through tough financial times without falling apart
* How you learned to let go of anxiety and worry
* How you turned stress around and made it work for you
* Learning meditation helped you feel calmer and more focused on the important stuff
* Silver linings
* And any other topic you think would be helpful to someone else who wants to get their stress level under control

*SUBMISSIONS GO TO: http://chickensoup. com

Non-fiction Colorado Anthology

2011-05-31T04:56:00.000-07:00

Stephen J. Leonard (Metropolitan State College of Denver) and Thomas J. Noel (University of Colorado at Denver ), General Editors

The University Press of Colorado is accepting manuscripts for publication in Timberline Books, a series of nonfiction prose works about the state of Colorado . Books in the series will be selected from across a variety of fields, including architecture, the arts, biography, communications, economics, education, ethnic studies, gender studies, geographies, government, history, institutions, literature, recreation, religion, sociology, sports, tourism, and transportation.

Submissions should be addressed for the series and directed to: Darrin Pratt, Acquiring Editor & Director University Press of Colorado 5589 Arapahoe Ave. #206C Boulder , CO 80303

All proposals for the Mesoamerican Worlds Series should follow the press submission guidelines , and submission will be evaluated by the press acquisitions staff, the series editors and/or editorial board, as well as outside experts.

A Quiet Shelter There Anthology

2011-05-25T05:16:00.000-07:00

A Quiet Shelter There

An anthology of speculative stories about companion or service animals.

Submissions Guidelines

"The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated." Mahatma Gandhi

A Quiet Shelter There. An estimated four million unwanted dogs and cats are euthanized every year in the United States.
Throughout the country, animal shelters, humane societies, and other rescue groups are working to change this by helping
homeless animals find forever homes, healing those that are sick or injured, providing training and socialization for those that
need it, and working toward a future in which there are no more homeless pets. This anthology directly benefits one of those
shelters, Friends of Homeless Animals (http://www.foha.org), which has rescued and placed dogs and cats in the Washington
D.C. metro area since 1973. In 2010, even with limited funding due to the downturn in the economy, FOHA found homes for
350 dogs and 150 cats, including hard-to-place FIV positive cats, and they routinely house over 100 dogs and 50 cats at
their shelter in rural Northern Virginia. 70 percent of the profits for A Quiet Shelter There will be donated to FOHA--other
shelters across the country will be able to buy the book at a discounted price if they want to use it for fundraising.

We are looking for: Stories about companion or service animals. We expect most of the stories to be about cats or dogs,
but will not rule out stories that deal with other animals. We will accept fiction and poetry only. No essays. No nonfiction
articles. Preference will be given to speculative fiction: science fiction, fantasy, horror, magical realism, etc. But we will also
consider other kinds of fiction, including (and especially) humor. While we welcome poetry submissions, we will probably not
use very many poems in the book. The submission can be from an animal's point of view, or it can be a more traditional
story that features or deals with animals in some way. We are open to seeing what you have to offer--just don't make us
work too hard trying to figure out how your story fits our theme. (Please query if you aren't sure if your idea will work within
the guidelines. Email address is below. Put QUERY in the subject line.)

Electronic submissions only: Do NOT send attachments. Emails sent with attachments will be deleted unread. Send the
story in the body of the email. Please double space between paragraphs, single space your text, and put some kind of
indicator between sections--no other fancy formatting is required. Please do NOT press Enter at the end of each line--let the
words wrap naturally. We will acknowledge receipt of each submission. If you do not receive an acknowledgement within five
days, please query to see if we received your sub (glitches do happen).

Please include a short bio of yourself with your submission, 100 words or less. New authors will definitely be considered, so
if this will be your first sale, don't be afraid to say that.

No simultaneous or multiple submissions.

Query first before submitting reprints.

Submissions must be in English, and contributors must be 18 or older.

Submission dates: May 1 to August 31, 2011.

Length: 1000 to 4000 words, query for longer or shorter.

Payment: By PayPal. $10.00 US for stories, $5.00 US for poems--you may choose to donate your payment to the shelter.
You will also receive one copy of the book; extra copies of the book will be available at a special author's price.

Other Important items: Stories will be judged based on merit. You do not have to have been published for your story to be
accepted, but we strongly recommend that you have the story critiqued or workshopped and please send good, tight, clean
prose. The editor has certain preferences--even, dare we say it, quirks (read: strong biases). Check out her blog to see
comments on these and read updates on anthology submissions.

No media tie-ins such as Star Trek (R), etc. (only the studios can authorize those) will be accepted. No using someone
else's literary creations (Big Red, for example) unless you are sure it is in the public domain (and can point us to where it
says it is--most literary characters are not: heirs have a habit of renewing copyrights).

We’re not looking for anything beyond mild language unless absolutely crucial to the plot. No gratuitous sex or graphic
violence. This book will be for all ages.

Where to send your submission:

Editor: Gerri Leen

FRIGHTMARES! FLASH FICTION ANTHOLOGY CONTEST

2011-01-16T05:36:00.000-08:00

Submission to this anthology is open to all writers, published or unpublished as long as you hold the copyright to your story. The story style does not matter as long as it is a horror tale and does not exceed 500 words. Submissions for Frightmares! will be accepted until the volume has been filled. They estimate a release date of Fall 2011 which means a closing date of approximately July 2011. Five authors will be awarded cash prizes.

1st Place - $100
2nd Place - $50
3rd Place - $25
4th Place - $15
Random Drawing - $50

For more information visit the Frightmares website.

Downstate Story Journal

2011-01-08T05:58:00.000-08:00

Deadline: 30 June of each year

Writers Guidelines:

* Downstate Story is published every fall. Each issue contains 10 original short stories and original illustrations. We accept a variety of genres so that every reader who looks at Downstate Story will find something fascinating.
* The deadline is always June 30.
* Meanwhile we also promote Downstate Story, as well as the reading of fiction in general. We hold readings, and our writers have read and been interviewed on radio and TV.
* As a not-for-profit venture, our goal is to break even financially through sales, so that Downstate Story can support itself and need not depend on subsidies, grants or advertising - though we're flexible, and not ruling these out entirely. People can help by mentioning Downstate Story and similar publications to friends, encouraging libraries to order copies, or buying copies for themselves or friends. It costs $8, postpaid in the USA, and makes a good gift. Add $2 more for non-USA postage. You can reach an order blank at the end of this page.
* We encourage potential contributors to buy a copy to support the magazine, and to become familiar with it.
* Story guidelines, in general: short fiction or narrative written to the standards of fiction, under 2000 words, never published before. Shorter is better. We prefer some connection with Illinois or the Midwest. We also need illustrators. All contributors are paid $50 on acceptance for their work. We buy first rights, including Internet publication. Anyone can submit work.
* Please enclose an SASE for a response. In this age of cheap copies we do NOT return manuscripts. We do NOT accept e-mail manuscripts, but we REQUIRE correspondance via e-mail for the speed and cost savings. If you plan to send us a manuscript, be sure you have access to e-mail. All manuscripts should have a valid e-mail address, as well as a valid phone number on the manuscript itself!
* We notify all authors of our decisions in late fall. Don't call us -- we will notify you!

Send manuscripts to:

Downstate Story
1825 Maple Ridge
Peoria, IL 61614

Questions? Email ehopkins7@prodigy.net

Beta City, POW!erful Tale

2011-01-07T16:49:00.000-08:00

The first book about the superhumans of Beta City, POW!erful Tales, cast a wide net. Their authors spun a wide variety of tales--humorous, exciting and tragic. This collection will hopefully be just as varied, but with a more focused over-arcing plot.

POW!erful Tales ended with the threat of an alien invasion--and the implication that meeting this threat was the reason for Beta City's existence. In this volume, the threatened invasion from Gehenna (also known as Jupiter's moon, Io) arrives on Earth, and only the heroes of Beta City can stop it.

They are looking for finely-crafted tales of superhero fiction, set during the invasion of Beta City. The forces attacking from Gehenna are diverse and cosmopolitan, so any alien rabble you can dream up can be used. Their methods are up to you -- classic spacecraft assaults, subtle sorcerous schemes, and unspeakable horrors let loose in dark alleys are all fair game. Whether your preference leans toward science fiction, fantasy, horror, or something else entirely, your story can find a home here. Similarly, while they love well-written superpowered action, they don't want to fill the book entirely with tales of hero vs. alien combat. With the invasion as a background, all sorts of stories are possible -- consider how many different kinds of stories have been set during World War II, from Saving Private Ryan to the Indiana Jones films to Casablanca. Find your own angle, and surprise them!

That said, stories need to keep the following invasion timeline in mind. While an ingenious story will get you past almost any requirement, you have to fit into the book somewhere. Your story should take place during one of the sets of events listed in the timeline below. You can stretch your story across more than one if you desire, but it's not recommended; doing so makes it harder to place your story, and lowers your chance of acceptance. Also keep in mind that they will probably need more stories from the middle than from either end; stories set at the beginning or end of the invasion will probably have fewer competitors, but will be competing for fewer spots.

INVASION TIMELINE

1. The first ships arrive. Stories set in this period should start with things relatively normal, and in some manner touch on the chaos as the invasion begins and no one yet knows what is happening.

2. Conventional forces, aided by superheroes, attempt to stave off the invasion before it can get a foothold on the ground -- and fail.

3. The invasion fleet has landed. Superheroes continue to fight on their own, or conduct guerilla actions as the Gehennan forces establish themselves in Beta City. Why is Beta City so important? Apparently it sits on the one place on Earth suitable for the construction of... (see #4)

4. The invasion has succeeded and Beta City is occupied. Citizens march off to work camps to construct a huge pit in which Kharsear plans to create a new singularity to swallow the Earth. Heroes do what they can, particularly to sabotage the singularity project. For the most part they are disorganized and working solo.

5. The resistance becomes organized. Superheroes (perhaps working with surviving military or even some of their old supervillain enemies) have become resistance cells, and are working together to disrupt the occupation.

6. The resistance launches a counterattack. Together the heroes assault the occupation headquarters on a do-or-die mission to finish off Kharsear or drive him away. Note that the main story dealing with the counterattack has already been assigned; submitted stories can take place at the same time, but the final battle itself will be resolved elsewhere.

WHAT THEY DON'T WANT

One thing they're not looking for this time is the ironic, tongue-in-cheek sort of superhero story that brings out the various tropes of the genre in order to poke fun at them. Those kinds of stories can be enjoyable -- they published a few in POW!erful Tales -- but for this book they're looking for stories that take the genre seriously and try to make it cool and exciting. Light-hearted and comedic are acceptable, but try to work within the genre.

Another unacceptable category is fan fiction. No characters (or anything else) owned by third parties, please. Not even the most vague or oblique reference is acceptable. They love the classic heroes of comics too, but they're not authorized to include them here.

FORMATTING YOUR SUBMISSION

Include a cover letter in the body of your e-mail with a brief (and I do mean brief) bit about yourself and your publication history. Please indicate in which part of the timeline your story is set (just the number from the timeline is enough).

Word Limit: 1000 - 8000 words
Deadline: March 15, 2011
Payment: 1 cent per word + 1 contributor’s copy
Reprints: No
Multiple Submissions: No
Simultaneous Submissions: No
Postal Submissions: No
Format: Use standard manuscript format. If you don’t know what this is, find out quickly.

Send the story as an .RTF file to betacityantho@gmail.com with the story title, your name, and the word count in the subject line. You should get a “story received” email within a week. After that, you may not hear from me until submissions close. Stories may be rejected before the deadline, but no stories will be accepted until after the deadline. You may only get one shot, so send in your best work!

CANDLE IN THE ATTIC WINDOW

2010-12-28T17:18:00.000-08:00

Candle in the Attic Window, an anthology of Gothic fiction, will open to submissions January 1-February 28, 2011. Do not send any submissions before this date. Yes, they mean it.

The anthology will be available in print and as an e-book in 2011, and is edited by the eldritch duo of Silvia Moreno-Garcia and Paula R. Stiles. Cover art work is by Nacho Molina Parra.

What They Want

Remember those Gothic paperbacks of the 60s? Yes, the ones featuring the heroine in the white gown running from the creepy mansion. Well, they want her (or it could be him) back!

They are seeking tales and poetry of Gothic horror. While they will consider different time periods, they are not fixed on only exploring an English Victorian country manor. They want a variety of settings. Can you do Gothic Brazil? Gothic Malaysia? How does Gothic take shape in the modern, blue-glass towers of Vancouver? Show us how the terror-stricken governess can morph into the computer programmer that discovers a deadly secret in Hong Kong. Or transport us to 18th century Moscow, where that candle burns bright – and deadly. They want Gothic tales reimagined for a modern audience.

Take the classic Gothic and shake it up a bit. Surprise us. But most of all, scare us.

Further fiction guidelines below. For poetry, send up to three poems pasted in the body of the e-mail with a cover letter. Poems paid at $10 CAD per poem. A physical contributor’s copy and e-book copy are provided.

Length

Short fiction (2,000 words) to novelette (10,000 words). Keep in mind they have a payment cap of $70 CAD, so your long novelette might be better served by finding another home.

Payment

One cent per word (minimum $30 CAD) up to a maximum of $70 CAD; one physical copy of the anthology and one e-book copy.

Payment made via PayPal or Canadian check upon acceptance.

They are purchasing first English print and electronic rights for the anthology.

Reprints

Considered, with a few caveats:

1. Indicate where and when the story was originally published in your cover letter.

2. Reprints offered should not be easily available in print or online.

3. Payment is a flat $30 CAD for reprints.

If you published it in a small collection in 1985 and it’s no longer on the market, that’s fine. If it was published in a German magazine and never translated to English, they’d like to see it. If it appeared in a now-defunct zine, that’s okay, too. If it was in a recent issue of an English-language zine that is currently online, no.

Submitting

E-mail them at innsmouthfp AT gmail.com. Subject line: Gothic Antho, [Title of your Story, Author's Name]. The subject line is important; otherwise, the story might go into the wrong pile.

Do not send simultaneous submissions. Do not send more than one submission because they will not consider more than one at a time and will make you resubmit any simultaneous submissions after they answer on the previous one. If they reject one story, you can send another one.

Include a cover letter with the story word count, salient writing credits and any reprint information (if applicable). Yes, they do read cover letters, so please include the information (Paula gets cranky when stories arrive sans byline, title or cover letter).

Attach story as RTF (preferred) or Word document. Use standard manuscript format. Italics as italics, bold as bold. No fancy fonts.

Stories can be sent in English, French, or Spanish.

Submissions are accepted from January 1-February 28, 2011. Do not send anything before or after that date. If you do, they will ignore it.

They will reject some stories as they come in and send others to the hold pile. Final story selection will take place in March 2011.

Tremblers - A Brand New Market

2010-10-12T04:26:00.000-07:00

Trembles is a brand new horror magazine slated for its first release in January 2011 and released 5 times a year (Jan., Mar., May., July., and Sept.) with a double year-end issue in November. The publication will appear online and in electronic and print form and all stories accepted will cross into all three formats.

Guidelines

Horror. Simple as that. To give you an idea of what to send, some authors we like are Brian Keene, Peter Straub, Stephen King, Richard Laymon, Clive Barker, Shirley Jackson, Edgar Allan Poe, H.P. Lovecraft.

Flash Fiction (1,000 words or less)
Short Story (1,001 to 6,000 words)
Poetry (up to 50 lines)

Format

Please send manuscripts as a .DOC, .DOCX or .RTF attachment totrembleshorrormag@gmail.com with a cover letter in the body of an e-mail. Do not send your manuscript in the body of an e-mail, it will automatically be deleted. Make sure your manuscript uses standard formatting like 12-pt New Time Roman font and double-spacing. On the first page of your manuscript, please include your name, address, phone and e-mail in the upper-left corner and the word count rounded to the nearest hundred in the upper-right.

Payment

Trembles provides a token payment of $5 for short stories and $2 for flash fiction and poetry in exchange for First North American Serial rights. You will also receive a contributor’s copy in electronic form.

Please send any questions to the above e-mail address.

Bad-Ass Faeries 4

2010-09-27T05:45:00.000-07:00

Bad-Ass Faeries 4 - It's Elemental

edited by Danielle Ackley-McPhail, L. Jagi Lamplighter, Lee C. Hillman, and Jeffrey Lyman

Submit To: Danielle Ackley-McPhail, greenfirephoenix (at) aol (dot) com

Genre: Urban Fantasy, Deadline: June 2011, Release Date: May 2012, Word Limit:3500-7000 words

Familiarity with the existing Bad-Ass Faeries titles is recommended if you have not submitted to us previously. They are your best guide to the types of stories we are looking for in this series. You can fine excepts at www.sidhenadaire.com/excerpts.htm or you can find the complete books for sale in print or ebook via the publisher's website or on the major book-selling sites.Genre: Urban Fantasy

Premise: A collection of unconventional stories about bad-ass elemental faeries with a focus on urban fantasy. Faeries should interact with the human world in some capacity visualized as tough, and for this collection, in a logical profession that is linked to their element: truckers, deep-sea fishermen, cowboys, police, firemen, freedom fighters, crocodile wrestlers, paratrooper, sled-dog driver, etc. We are not really looking for specific known figures from faerie mythology so much as types of faeries from myth and legend with a very clearly defined affinity for one specific element. (Please see below for some recommendations, and also note the category for those already spoken for).

Earth Air Fire Water Spirit Taken

Book will have four (or five) sections, one for each element: Earth, Air, Fire, Water, (Spirit). This means that competition will be fiercer because we will be accepting stories by section as well as by overall quality.

Submission Don’ts

1) Don’t call your faeries elementals, we want specific faeries from myth and legend that are affiliated to one of the elements. Please see below for some recommendations.

2) Don’t include faeries from all of the elements in your story…it will not improve your chances and it will limit us in our ability to select and place a story. Each story should have one primary element incorporated into the plot. Not saying you can’t mention the others or have them as secondary aspects of the story, but we don’t want a bunch of submissions that are Gang of Four style or this element against that element. We want bad-ass stories of elemental faeries using their unique natures to get the job done…whatever it is.

3) Please note that we are not looking for erotica, or extreme violence, language, or gore.

Submission Do’s

1) Use standard submission format: Double spaced, tab indent (NOT auto indent), double hyphen with no spaces before or after to indicate emdashes. Ellipses with no spaces before or after. Use the actual formats for bold, italics and underline. Formatting Guidelines.

2) Include COMPLETE contact information at the top of your submission. Snailmail and email address, including phone number.

3) Include a short author bio with your submission (do NOT use all caps or quotation marks to indicate titles, please make sure they are Title Case and in italics.)

4) Authors MUST submit a proposal before writing and submitting their stories. This is the only way we can avoid overlap among the submissions. The editors do not want to be put in a position of having to reject an otherwise exemplary story because it happens to have too many similarities to something we have already accepted.

5) Include an author’s note about the specific type of faerie you have selected for absolute clarity and to provide some background information to the editors about the particular myth dealing with that faerie. This is optional, but helpful. Anything that makes the editors’ jobs easier is a good thing.

Specifics:

Publisher: Mundania Press, www.mundania.com

Collection will be published in print, ebook and possibly limited edition hardcover.

Contributors will receive one comp copy of the book and an equal share of the royalties, which are 20% for print and 50% for electronic.

More information.

Historical Lovecraft Anthology

2010-09-06T10:21:00.001-07:00

Historical Lovecraft anthology opening this September to submissions. The anthology will be available in print and as an e-book in 2011, and is produced and edited by the eldritch duo of Silvia Moreno-Garcia and Paula R. Stiles.

What They Want

Historical fiction with a Lovecraftian twist. Stories should be set in a variety of places, cultures and time periods. While they might buy one story set in 1920s New England, they want to stray far from the normal Lovecraft milieu. If you’re going to do 1920s, why not ship them off to China and tell the story from the point of view of a native of Shanghai? Some examples of ideas they’d like to see:

There’s something afoot in Henry VIII’s court.
A Mayan warrior discovers evil lurking in Tikal.
A trader in Byzantium finds a rare artifact.
The Pharaoh’s latest advisor is a man of vast knowledge and even vaster secrets.
The Necronomicon! Take them to Damascus as Alhazred pens the manuscript. Or to the printing of the 17th century edition in Spain.
Journey to Inuit Canada, where the ice holds prisoner an old foe.
Political intrigue in Edo leads to blood, tragedy and a brush with a fearsome entity from beyond the stars.
What happened to Machu Picchu? How bloody were its last days?
How did the jungle really claim Angkor Wat?
The rainforests of the Congo groan under Belgian tyranny at the turn of the 20th century. What deadly deals are made to free it?

Please note that for their purposes they consider historical anything up to 1937 (the year of Lovecraft’s death).

If you are curious to know what they enjoy reading, look at some of the fiction issues ofInnsmouth Free Press. The latest one is here.

Length

From flash fiction (1,000 words or under) to novelette (10,000 words). Keep in mind they have a payment cap of $50 CAD, so your long novelette might be better served by finding another home.

Payment

One cent per word up to a maximum of $50 CAD. One physical copy of the anthology and one e-book copy.

Payment made via PayPal or Canadian check upon acceptance.

They are purchasing first English print and electronic rights for the anthology.

Reprints

Considered, with a few caveats:

1. Indicate where and when the story was originally published in your cover letter.
2. Reprints offered should not be easily available in print or online.
3. Payment is a flat $25 CAD for reprints.

Submitting

E-mail them at innsmouthfp AT gmail.com. Subject line: Historical Antho, [Title of your Story, Author's Name]. The subject line is important; otherwise, the story might go into the wrong pile.

Do not send simultaneous submissions. Do not send more than one submission. If they reject one story, you can send another one.

Attach story as RTF (preferred) or Word (doc, not docx) document. Use standard manuscript format. Italics as italics, bold as bold. No fancy fonts.

Stories can be sent in English, French or Spanish.

Submissions are accepted from September 1, 2010 to January 3, 2011. Do not send anything before or after that date.

They will reject some stories as they come in and send others to the hold pile. Final story selection will take place in January 2011.

It Came From Her Purse

2010-09-01T10:20:00.000-07:00

Sam's Dot Publishing is pleased to announce the opening to submissions of an anthology to be titled It Came From Her Purse. We are looking for original short stories in the genres of science fiction and fantasy, and we will consider a very few horror stories. We will also consider original poetry and illustrations. We will remain open to submissions from 1 May 2010 until we are filled at 65,000 words, and anticipate publication in the spring of 2011.

We leave the subject matter up to the writers, so long as the story is related in some way to the title of the anthology and especially to the tone of the title. It may be helpful to think of the title as that of a Roger Corman movie. We also hope to receive some humorous submissions, but please bear in mind that trying to be funny often falls flat. If you wish to write something humorous or off-beat, use a light touch. Subtlety and absurdity combine well for humor.

All submissions must contain contact information both in the e-mail and on the first page of the manuscript. D'you get that? We may delete without comment or reply any submission that does not contain this information.

Lead editor for the "Purse Project" is Karen L. Newman. The associate editor is Georgia Middleton. Just so you know . . .

Response time is expected to be one month. Stories will be either declined or held over for consideration; in either case you will be notified within a month. If your story is held over for consideration, it could be up to three months before a decision is made.

You may submit more than one piece, but please submit only one piece at a time. The subject line of each submission must read Submission: and the title of the submission.

We will consider reprint stories and poems. However, we will accept no more than two reprint stories and two reprint poems.

Stories:

Stories should be between 2,000 and 5,000 words. Submit your story as a Word or rtf attachment to fromherpurse at yahoo dot com [you will have to combine the elements of this e-mail address. We're fighting spam].

Poems:

Poems should be no longer than 100 lines. Submit your poem in the body of an e-mail to fromherpurse at yahoo dot com [you will have to combine the elements of this e-mail address. We're fighting spam].

Illustrations:

Black & White illustrations should be submitted as jpeg attachments. The preferred size is 800 by 1100 and 300dpi. Submit your illustration as a jpeg attachment to fromherpurse at yahoo dot com [you will have to combine the elements of this e-mail address. We're fighting spam].

Cover Art:

Again, submit your art as a jpeg attachment. The preferred size is 800 by 1100 and 300dpi. Submit your cover art as a jpeg attachment to fromherpurse at yahoo dot com [you will have to combine the elements of this e-mail address. We're fighting spam].

Payment:

Stories: $10.00 each

Poems: $3.00 each

Illustrations: $5.00 each

Cover art: $20.00

If you have any questions, please query the submissions address and put query in the subject line. Good luck, and we're looking forward to reading your work.

Guidelines.

Last Man Anthology

2010-06-04T05:46:00.000-07:00

Sponsored by Sword & Saga Press and The Last Man Anthology.
Submissions are being accepted for the first annual “End of the World Contest.”
Deadline is September 30, 2010.

Contest winners will be notified by October 31, 2010 and published in the November 2010 issue of the Last Man Magazine.
Entry fee $5 (See below).

First Prize:
$75 cash prize
A free six week course on SF & Fantasy Writing, a $120 value.
A copy of the Last Man Anthology, a $15
Publication in the first edition of The Last Man Magazine, Winter, 2010.
Feature “author’s spotlight,” an interview with the writer about his or her craft, novels/short stories/work-in-progress.
A copy of the first issue of the LM Magazine, a $6 value.

Second and Third Prize:
A copy of the Last Man Anthology, a $15 value.
Publication in the Last Man Magazine.
A copy of the first issue of the LM Magazine, a $6 value
The theme of your submission should be the end of the world.
It can be Earth, or any other interstellar planet.
Genre is open. Bring us your best catastrophe, disaster, and woe.

Please include the following in your electronic submission:  
- A cover letter with brief bio and contact information including your e-mail address 
- A short fiction story up to 7500 words, as a Word doc. attachment
 - In the body of the email please include your Unique Google Transaction Number
- Email submissions with the title and word “contest” in the header to LastManAnthology@aol.com.

-Writers who have submitted to the LMA prior to June 1st may send two stories for the one $5 entry fee. Just include the transaction
number on both submissions.

The Last Man Anthology

2010-02-20T16:36:00.000-08:00

The Last Man Anthology is seeking submissions:

We are a print publication bringing together the best of catastrophic literature. This anthology is a tribute to Mary Shelley's novel, "The Last Man." Submissions to the Last Man Anthology will be accepted until filled. The anthology will be released August 30, 2010 in celebration of Mary Shelley's birthday.

Word count: 1500-8888 words.

All fiction should focus on the theme of catastrophic literature, and present interesting and innovative ideas that lend to the conception of being the last. Show us the last man, woman, robot, alien, planet, universe. The last person to do what. The last planet to do what. Show us the end of the world. What world is up to you to decide. The characters or world must show the last of something. Stories should be science fiction in nature, although genre-bending is acceptable. No alternate history.

Email submissions to LastManAnthology[@]aol.com. Attachments in doc. or docx. Subject header should read: Last Man Anth/title/word count. Please include a bio, any creative writing or college classes you've taken, if any. In a few sentences tell us what your favorite book is and why. Lastly, in a few sentences explain why science fiction is important to you.

Visit our website for complete instructions: http://lastmananthology.weebly.com/

Distant Realms

2010-01-23T17:52:00.000-08:00

Library of Science Fiction & Fantasy Press is pleased to announce open
submissions for “Distant Realms”, an anthology of novella length Fantasy.

Fantasy sometimes needs big brush strokes to paint a world, or room to
spread and grow to show the entire picture, and that can make the novella
the perfect length. It’s a length often neglected in modern genre fiction,
but it has the potential to deliver incredible stories. We believe very
strongly in that potential and invite you to help us find it.

The details:

There are a lot of different opinions on how many words it takes to make a
novella. For Distant Realms, we’re looking for stories that run between
20,000 and 30,000 words. Those two numbers make fairly solid barriers and
it makes us sad to reject things solely based on length.

We prefer your submission be in standard manuscript format and attached to
your e-mail as an rtf file. For a good reference on what standard
manuscript format entails, please see William Shunn’s web
pageon the subject.

Payment for inclusion in this anthology will be $100, two contributor’s
copies of the book, and the everlasting knowledge of being involved in
something special. In return, you’ll be giving Library of Science Fiction &
Fantasy Press two year exclusive print and electronic rights from the date
of publication; not to the world you’ve created, just to the story.

Submissions are open and will close at midnight on 31 Mar 2010. This is a
fairly large window, but we recognize the size and scope of a novella can
require a great deal more time than a short story. If you don’t have one
ready to go, we’d like to give you a chance to write and polish one from
scratch.

Submissions and Queries should be sent to distanteditor@gmail.com with
‘Submission – Distant Realms’ or ‘Query – Distant Realms’ in the subject
line, as applicable.

Caveats:

Strange Horizons provides a wonderfully detailed (yet certainly
incomplete) list
of overused themes and
plots.
We’re not saying don’t do it, because it’s always possible to bring
something new to a cliché, but if you’ve picked something from this list as
your main focus, try to stand it on its head.

Because there is only room for 4 or 5 stories in Distant Realms, submissions
will be taken in two stages, building a shortlist of possible inclusions.
Rejections will happen, but final decisions on acceptances won’t be made
until ALL submissions have been read.
The speculative elements you choose, whatever they are, must be integral to
the story. If you can write the same story without them, then it’s not a
genre story. That said, our definition of Fantasy is very broad. If you
can say Fantasy when you look at your story, please send it because we want
to read it.

Stories of Life and Adventure with the VW Bus

2010-01-08T04:23:00.001-08:00

I'm collecting stories for an anthology that I hope to get published in 2010.

Although I have about 25 stories so far, some long and some short, I'm still looking for tales of travel adventure; tidbits of daily life with a VW Bus; memories of your first sighting of a Bus; the first Bus you ever owned; weddings and celebrations where VW Buses held a prominent position; stories of Bus enthusiasm passed down from generation to generation--–anything related to the glories (and predicaments) of VW Busing.

Photos and artwork are welcome. Word length can be from 200 to 3000, whatever is sufficient to tell your tale.

I would be grateful for any leads to other material.

Please contact me if you need more info.

type2tom@gmail.com

http://storiesoflifeandadventurewiththevwbus.blogspot.com/

Zombidays: Festivities of the Flesheaters

2010-01-07T14:56:00.001-08:00

Submissions are now open. A deadline has not been set, but as the book fills an advanced closing date will be announced.

Stories must include zombies and be about, involve, or be set on one of the holidays listed below.

The theme/spirit of the holiday must be clearly evident.
No stories with religous aspects or themes will be accepted.

word count 5k - 8k only
rich text format only
courier font size 12
indent paragraphs
double space
use italics - do not underline
no page numbers

Stories should be presented where a sumbmission should only require copy editiing.

Submissions that do not meet guidelines will not be accepted.

Place your contact information on first page, upper left - name, address, phone number, and email.

On the upper right please state the name of the holiday you are using and the word count.

Place your name/pen name under the title.

Send submissions to zombidays@gmail.com

Please mention any of your previous work, a brief explanation of who you are, and where you have learned of the submission request.

You may submit multiple stories, but only one story per author may be published.

Published authors will receive 1 center per word and 1 contributor copy.

You may find updates on the anthology and information regarding the publisher - the Library of the Living Dead Press here:

http://libraryofthelivingdead.lefora.com/2009/12/22/zombidays-submissions-open/

LIST OF THE ACCEPTED HOLIDAYS

April Fools Day
Arbor Day
Australia Day
Boxing Day
Canada Day
Christmas
Columbus Day
Earth Day
Easter
El Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead)
Father's Day
Ground Hog Day
Guy Fawkes Night
Halloween (can include Mischief Night)
Hanukkah
Human Rights Day
Independence Day/4th of July
Kwanza
Labor Day
Mardi Gras
May Day
Memorial Day
Mother's Day
New Years Eve/Day
New Zealand/Waitangi Day
Presidents, Inauguration, or Election Day (USA)
Rosh Hashanah
St. Patrick's Day
Thanksgiving (can include Black Friday)
Valentimes Day
Veterans, Remembrance, Armistice, ANZAC Day
Victoria Day

Silver Boomer Books Anthologies

2010-01-06T10:39:00.001-08:00

Silver Boomer Books

http://silverboomerbooks.com/submissions.html

Silver Boomer Books is looking for submissions for two upcoming anthologies:

A Pinch and A Dash: Recipes from Home and Long Ago

Flashlight Memories (childhood reading)

They are also interested in "speculative submissions for:

The Faith of Our Mothers (faith of real women at least a generation older)

Out of the Kitchen (women pioneers in professions)

Life Spinning Moments (comments or events that changed the course of a life)

Payment is US$5 for poetry, US$10 for prose plus a contributor' s copy.

Payment upon publication.

Music for Another World Anthology

2010-01-02T07:44:00.000-08:00

Submission Guidelines
Forgive the lengthy guidelines but I hope by being as specific as possible I'll save both my time and yours. If a story does not fit the submission guidelines it will be rejected without a second glance.

What I'm looking for
The obvious points:
I'm looking for Fantasy and Science Fiction Stories. I am quite broad with definitions, but a fantasy story must have an element of fantasy, and a science fiction story must contain an element of science/technology and speculation about science. I like merged-genre stories, but be warned that I don't want the anthology dominated by 'slipstream' stories.

Story length is ideally between 2000 and 6000 words. However, I will consider stories outside of this range.

The unique points:
Music must be integral to the story: for example, the story might be about music, or the life of musicians, or the effect of a musical instrument, or perhaps a piece of music -- or anything else that I haven't thought of!

This next requirement is equally important. I'm not only looking for great characters, great plot, great entertainment and great prose, but I'm also looking for stories that are intellectually exciting. This is something Science Fiction and Fantasy is best equipped to deliver, so I am going to be explicit about wanting this in the anthology.

What I'm NOT looking for:

A story where the author has changed the lead character from a schoolteacher to a musician, or where the magical object has been changed from a cursed handbag to a cursed violin. Music MUST be integral to the story. If the musical element can obviously be exchanged for something or someone else -- brilliant though the story may be -- it won't fit my anthology.

I'm also NOT looking for:

Gore-fests
Sword and Sorcery
Fan fiction
Mozart fighting zombies

Submission Format:
Electronic submissions only. In RTF format. Email to mark.musicanthology'@'gmail.com

If you have an off-the-wall idea you would like to check out with me in advance, please do so. I can be contacted at mark.musicanthology'@'gmail.com

Background info for submitters: What's 'Strange Fiction'?
I'm using it as a convenient term to lump together Fantasy and Science Fiction. 'Speculative Fiction' would also do, but it has acquired snobby associations. I'm happy to celebrate The Geek.

Background info for submitters: The Anthology

The book will be published to good standard in paperback, PDF and ePub. Sales will mainly be online as the cost of selling through the big retailers is exorbitant. I will send review copies to sites and associations that are likely to cover it. I will also invest in publicity activities when the anthology is near completion -- but the scope of this will depend on what is practical when I get to that point. The anthology will contain about 10 stories.

I'll give updates here on submission and book progress -- so if you are a story submitter follow this site for news.

SeaBeast Anthology

2009-12-29T17:40:00.000-08:00

For the purpose of this collection, focus on elves in the vein of those in LOTR, more skillful and long-lived than magical (though a few light "powers" are welcome; thisis fantasy, after all). Bring us a story of elves in a kingdom of their own but contained within the world of man. Will the two worlds interact? That depends on you, the author. Will we see a war between good and bad elves? Maybe. Will your elves have a language of their own? What drama can you bring into their lives? Will they fall in love? Will you choose a timeline distinct from ours?

Send us your best stories involving elves, human-looking, human-acting beings, but will certain "advantages". Tell us what those advantages are, show us how they live and function within the world of man. What we don't want to see are modern-day settings, unless the elf-kingdom is far removed from all things modern.

Port Yonder Press will print an anthology with six winning submissions. Additional submissions may be selected for publication as eBooks for sale on our website. Authors will be paid small royalties on the sales of their books (details explained in a contract), for both print and ebook, IF and WHEN royalties per author reaches $50. Until then, we will hold onto the funds until this goal is reached, up to five years. After that time, we will absorb funds to cover expenses.

Submission guidelines:

Well-developed plots and believable characters are essential. Settings and locations should be fictional.
We welcome the use of murder and mayhem in your story, but no overly graphic violence, foul language or sexuality. Magic must be light and not involve the occult. Disregarding these guidelines will automatically disqualify your submission. This is fantasy, pure and simple. Use your imagination and give us something novel and gripping.
Target age group: teens and adults.
You may submit up to three separate submissions (each in a separate email with cover letter and marketing strategy).
No reissues or reprints. All stories must be original.
Word count should fall between 5,000 and 15,000 words.
Submissions are due no later than October 1, 2010, or until 30 (thirty) manuscripts have been received, whichever comes first. Decisions regarding the submissions will be announced by December 1st, 2010 or sooner. Tentative publication date TBA.

Format your document this way:

File saved in Word 97-2003 or 2007 format (.doc) or (.rtf)
8 ½ x 11 sheet
Times New Roman 12pt font/black ink
1-inch margin on all sides/ 1.5 line spacing
Align text left, do not justify (aligning text both left and right)
Header containing title, author name, e-mail address, and page number
Capital letters at the beginning of sentences and proper nouns
Show new paragraphs by indenting first line of new paragraph. Do not add blank line between paragraphs.
Show scene breaks with * * * centered in the appropriate line.

In your email, please:

Use the subject line “SeaBeast Anthology Submission: Elves – title of work”
Include a very brief cover letter that includes your name/pseudonym, mailing address, phone number, and web address. Your submission must also include a marketing strategy for at least one year of promotions. If you're not sure what "Marketing Strategy" is all about, check out our "Getting Published" page here. Look under "Your Platform is essential".
Submit all along with your inline story text (no attachments!) to: Contact@PortYonderPress.com
Any and all attachments will be automatically deleted.

After publication:

Each author will receive 1 (one) copy of book
Authors will be able to purchase additional copies of book at the rate of 30% off retail price, plus shipping.

Blood Bound Books

2009-12-21T04:01:00.000-08:00

We are currently accepting submissions for our first three anthologies. Please review themes and deadlines for each below.

NIGHT TERRORS: An Anthology of Horror

Blood Bound Books is pleased to announce that our first anthology, will also be a short story contest. All winners will be published in the print anthology Night Terrors, with the following payments:

1st Place - $.05 per word
2nd Place - $.01 per word
3rd Place - 1/2 cent per word

Runners-up - Flat rate of $ 5

Night Terrors will be an open themed anthology of horror. Stories can range from 750 - 5,000 words (query for longer) and must be rooted in the realms of horror/dark fiction. Science fiction and dark fantasy will be considered as long as it has a strong element of horror. Try to avoid classic horror conventions, unless you incorporate a new twist. Remember, evil has no boundaries and neither do we! Nothing is off limits, so take advantage of the freedom. We'll accept stories in any setting or time period, as long as it's well written, powerful and original. Most importantly, scare us. We want to be haunted by your story long after we put it down. Gore and sex are acceptable, as long as it serves a purpose. If we start receiving an abundance of common themed stories, I will update this page so authors have a better idea of what we still need, but for now it's wide open.

Send all submissions to : submissions@bloodboundbooks.net.
Subject should read :
Night Terrors: story title/author last name

Check our guidelines page for manuscript formatting . Stories will be accepted until March 13, 2010. We will not make final selections until the end of the reading period. Please do not query about the status of your submission until April 13, 2010.

UNSPEAKABLE : A New Breed of Terror

Unspeakable will be an anthology of creature stories. They may dwell in caves or under water. In deep forests or windblown deserts. Perhaps they lurk in the shadows of our very own homes. But regardless of origin, these ancient, nameless beasts are awake and they want you. We're looking for your best creature stories 750 -5,000 words. But werewolves and vampires won't cut it here, we want a new breed of creatures and original plots. Get creative. Gore and sex are acceptable as long as they are integral to the plot. However, blood is not essential. Some monsters may hunger for something besides flesh.

Accepted stories will be paid a flat rate of $5.00. In the future we hope to raise that rate and open up more contests and opportunities for professional payments. But until Blood Bound Books gets established this is the best we can do.

Send all submissions to submissions@bloodboundbooks.net.
Subject should read :
Unspeakable: story tile/author last name

Check our guidelines page for manuscript formatting . Stories will be accepted until May 1, 2010. We will not make final selections until the end of the reading period. Please do not query about the status of your submission until June 1, 2010.

D.O.A

This is the one that goes all the way! D.O.A. will be a shocking anthology unsuitable for the faint of heart. We want stories 750 -5,000 words, that push the limits. The crazier, stranger and gorier the better. No subject is taboo. However, with that in mind, we are not simply looking for torture stories containing no point or direction. Blood and guts only work if there is a great story and creative twists to back it up. The best way to describe what we're looking for is to imagine that the guys from Cannibal Corpse got together with Richard Matheson and penned a story. The result would be D.O.A. So if you ever had a story idea that you felt was too extreme or offensive for a sane publisher, then send it our way. We want your worst!

Send all submissions to submissions@bloodboundbooks.net.
Subject should read :
DOA: story tile/author last name

Check our guidelines page for manuscript formatting . Stories will be accepted until August 1, 2010. We will not make final selections until the end of the reading period. Please do not query about the status of your submission until September 1, 2010.

Queer Light

2009-12-07T15:26:00.001-08:00

Open call for submissions for *Queer Light* to be published by
QueeredFiction where genre is queered. Deadline is *31st January 2010*

Angels, fallen angels, nephilim (half human and half angel), and demons;
devas of light and darkness. An urban contemporary fantasy anthology
featuring queer angels of all shades and hues. As with our first anthology
in the *Queer Legends Series*, *Queer
Wolf<http://www.queeredfiction.com/queerwolf.htm>
*, we'll be looking for tales *set in an unnamed and location non-specific
city*, but this time involving queer angels, the good and the bad.

Your submission should be an *URBAN FANTASY* short story between 3,000 and
20,000 words. We are seeking fiction with positive images of queer
characters. We’re not looking for clichés. We do not want reprints. We are
seeking first world rights for this anthology which will be published as an
eBook and in Print format. Your submission should be via email to
editor@queeredfiction.com with Queer Light Anthology submission in the
subject line.
Complete guideline details available at:
http://www.queeredfiction.com/queerlight.htm

Hurray God!

2009-11-20T17:55:00.000-08:00

HURRAY GOD! stories are true, real life experiences of ordinary people sharing answers to prayer. They are heartwarming, inspirational, encouraging and unforgettable. The believer’s faith will be bolstered, and the nonbeliever’s interest piqued.

Stories transcend every culture and cross barriers of age, race, and gender. They are universal and timeless. Stories weave their way into the hardest of hearts. Jesus knew the power of story.

Submission Requirements:

Story length 480 – 1500 words.
Use our online Submission Form only.
Write in first-person (preferred) or third person point of view.
Use a narrative simple, dramatic, and anecdotal style.
The story must be original, and one you hold rights to.
English only.
We do not publish fiction, profiles, sermons, letters, confessionals, expository essays, diatribes, academic papers, testimonials, or eulogies.
You may submit multiple stories, but only one story per submission form.
Your first and last name, address, e-mail address, and phone number must be included with each Submission Form.
Stories whose content contains inappropriate or degrading language will not be accepted.
Use 12-point, Times New Roman font.
At the top of your manuscript, please list the word count.
We do not respond to queries or provide editorial feedback.
Include a short paragraph about yourself at the end of the story.
Writers whose stories are selected for HURRAY GOD! will be notified by e-mail.
Submission deadline is December 1, 2009.

Elements of Powerful Storytelling:

Use description and dialogue to draw the reader into the story.
Paint word pictures. Help the reader experience the joy, sadness, danger, and see the characters, and hear their dialogue.
Write from your heart; make your story live on in the heart of the reader.
Hook the reader at the beginning by writing a strong lead that grabs their attention and keeps him reading right up to the end.
Capitalize deity nouns and pronouns.
Use one space after a period or other punctuation at the end of a sentence before beginning the next sentence.
Identify the scripture passage and the Bible version used.
Read and reread your manuscript before submission. Use the Spell-Check function, but don’t rely on it alone.
Read your story out loud and eliminate words that don’t move the story forward.
Write your story so that it flows smoothly.
Read the stories posted online to get a feel for our need.
Use strong verbs. Eliminate as many “ing” and “was” words as possible.
Stories must have a clear, strong “take away” value and point to the workings of our Almighty God.
Include a short paragraph about yourself at the end of the story.
After the book is published, writers whose stories are accepted will receive a copy of the book in which it is published and a check for $50.

Distant Worlds

2009-10-30T17:46:00.000-07:00

Library of Science Fiction & Fantasy Press is pleased to announce Distant Worlds, an anthology of novella length Science Fiction.

The novella is often neglected in modern genre fiction. Too short to print as a novel and too long for most short story markets, a novella has room for a lot of richness and growth, for fully realized characters, settings, and societies, and for concepts and ideas that just won’t fit into a short story but may not be big enough or complex enough for a novel. The Novella has the potential to deliver incredible stories.

We believe very strongly in that potential and invite you to help us find it.

The details:

While definitions may vary depending on where you look, for the purpose of this anthology, a novella will have a length of somewhere between 20,000 and 30,000 words.

Your submission must be in standard manuscript format and attached to your e-mail as an rtf file. For a good reference on what standard manuscript format entails, please see William Shunn’s web page<http://www.shunn.net/format/story.html>on the subject.

Payment for inclusion in this anthology will be $100, two contributor’s copies of the book, and the everlasting knowledge of being involved in something special.

Submissions are now open and will close on 15 Jan 2010. This is a fairly large window, but we recognize the size and scope of a novella can require a great deal more time than a short story. If you don’t have one ready to go, we’d like to give you a chance to write one from scratch.

Submissions and Queries should be sent to distanteditor@gmail.com with ‘Submission – Distant Worlds’ or ‘Query – Distant Worlds’ in the subject line, as applicable.

Caveats:

There are a lot of themes that have been overdone in SF. Strange Horizons provides a wonderfully detailed (yet certainly incomplete) list of overused themes and plots<http://strangehorizons.com/guidelines/fiction-common.shtml>. We’re not saying don’t do it, but if you’ve picked something from this list as your main focus, try to stand it on its head.

Because there is only room for 4 or 5 stories in Distant Worlds, submissions will be taken in two stages, building a shortlist of possible inclusions. Rejections will happen, but final decisions on acceptances won’t be made until ALL submissions have been read.

The speculative elements you choose, whatever they are, must be integral to the story. If you can write the same story without them, then it’s not a genre story. That said, we subscribe to the Damon Knight theory of Science Fiction: Science Fiction is what we point to when we say it. Every story will be read. If you believe in yours, please send it.

Blade Red Dark Pages – Volume 1

2009-10-04T06:00:00.000-07:00

The first Blade Red Press anthology of dark speculative fiction is now open to submissions. The anthology will be available in print and ebook format through online retailers in early 2010 (assuming sufficient submissions are received). Only submissions received between September 17th 2009 and November 30th 2009 will be considered. Any submissions received outside this timeframe will be deleted unread.

We are accepting short speculative fiction up to 7,500 words. Submissions must have some element of a speculative nature (scifi, fantasy, horror, alternate universe, steampunk, etc.) that is integral to the plot. Stories must also have a dark and gritty edge. We’re not a Young Adult or Kids publisher – we’re looking for tales that disturb, dismay and unsettle, yarns that stay in the mind long after they’re read. We like our dark tales to be clever and interesting rather than blatant. Dark doesn’t mean tortureporn or slash and slay. We are interested in all aspects of speculative fiction, so surprise us with your imagination.

We are not interested in supernatural erotica or romance. Obviously strong language and blood and gore are bound to be involved to some degree, but make them a part of the story, not the reason for the story. We will not publish stories that are racist or hate fuelled diatribes. We don’t mind some sex that’s relevant to the story, but we’re not interested in pornography. Try to avoid the overused cliches like senseless revenge, cookie cutter serial killers and predictable monsters. And if you want to write a story with vampires it better be mind-blowingly original and fantastically well written. Seriously, isn’t everyone sick and tired of vampires right now?

Blade Red Press is not a straight horror publisher, so we’re looking for a variety of speculative fiction with a dark edge. Surprise us!

Electronic submissions only accepted. Submit stories attached to an email in .rtf format only. Any other file type or stories in the body of the email will be deleted unread. Please follow standard manuscript format – search the web if you don’t know what that means. HOWEVER, regardless of the format guidelines you read, ignore the bit about leaving two spaces after every full stop. This is the 21st century, not the wild west. Two spaces after a full stop is an old typesetting standard and just annoying in the digital age.

The subject line of your email must read: “SUBMISSION: Story Title”

The body of the email must include:

Story Title
Author’s name (please indicate here if you want to use a pen name for publication)
Address
Contact email
Word count of your submission

Feel free to include a short cover letter, but don’t bore us. We’re going to have enough to read as it is. Don’t bother with a bio – if we like your story we don’t care whether you’re Stephen King, Dan Brown or Joe Schmo. We’ll ask for a bio if we offer to buy the story.

Payment is a flat rate of AUD$25 per story, payable upon publication, plus one contributors copy of the finished anthology. We pay via PayPal only. (We would love to pay more but Blade Red is a relatively new publisher and we are trying to establish ourselves in a diffcult marketplace. We will hopefully be in a position to pay more as time goes by.) We are buying Exclusive First Worldwide Print and Electronic rights for 6 months from the date of publication. Publication will be during 2010 (hopefully before June). Once that 6 month period is past all rights revert to the author.

No simultaneous submissions, so only send us your very best work. No reprints – all submissions must not have been published anywhere else. We aim to respond within 6 – 8 weeks. Query after 8 weeks if you haven’t heard back from us.

Send submissions to contact@blade-red.com

All submissions will be read by a team of slush readers who will receive stories stripped of all identifying details. This blind read will result in an editorial scoring process by which we will select the successful submissions. If you have any questions about the anthology, please email us.

Inner Fears Anthology

2009-09-27T16:37:00.000-07:00

Announcing the first in the "Guest Editor Series" of Lame Goat Press books.

I'm looking for stories (1000-5000 words) about a character who has an inner fear. Whether it's your inner fear or a fear of one of your characters doesn't matter to me. The genre will obviously be horror, but I'll be flexible on what other elements it has (sci-fi, fantasy, etc.). I'd prefer third person stories where the fear really grips the reader. I'll accept some first person narratives if they're well written, but as I'll probably receive an abundance of those, they must be VERY well written to be accepted.

Also, I'm looking for ONE poem with which to open the anthology. I'll only accept one story per writer, but if you were to send in a poem and a story, then I might accept both.

Unless I absolutely fall in love with a story, I won't be accepting anything until after the deadline, which is December 20th, 2009.

Word count for this anthology is expected to be around 80,000 words. Please send in your stories in .rtf format. Please include a cover letter with your name, address, e-mail address, phone number, and publication history. Also, a short author's biography of around 100 words.

Look for this to go in print in 2010. I'll be able to give you a better idea when a few months down the line, but 2010, as a broad estimate, should be fairly accurate. Lame Goat Press is in its infancy, so, unfortunately, we cannot afford to compensate our writers at this time. This will be the third anthology that we produce, so we're hoping to be able to begin giving out contributor copies soon, but no promises. All I can promise you right now is that you'll have a writing credit if we accept your story.

Please send submissions to William Wolford at wgwolford@gmail.com with "Inner Fear submission" in the subject line. If you have any questions, feel free to e-mail me about them. Good luck!

If you have any interest in providing the cover art for this particular antho, contact me at cjacobsmeyer@msn.com.

Visit Lame Goat Press at LAMEGOATPRESS.PROBOARDS.COM.

Warrior Wisewoman 3

2009-09-09T12:38:00.000-07:00

Warrior Wisewoman is an annual anthology series of science fiction featuring powerful and remarkable women, edited by Roby James.

The first volume was published by Norilana Books in June 2008, the second volume in June 2009.

The anthology was conceived as a sister volume to the classic Sword and Sorceress fantasy series originally edited by Marion Zimmer Bradley, with the main difference being that the story themes will involve science fiction instead of fantasy, and they will be intended for a more mature audience, allowing a mixture of serious contemporary issues and reasonable sexual content (but no erotica) in addition to action and adventure. The stories will have a stronger focus on the interface between scientific exploration and our sense of wonder.

Editor Roby James says:

"I am looking for stories that shed light on the truth of what it means to be female, that illuminate the wisdom and the strength of a woman, but not in clich� 'goddess' stories. I love action and adventure, grand space opera, thrilling discovery, and intelligent protagonists. Make the story thoughtful, wise, and surprising, not merely the same old metal spaceship hull filled with cardboard military uniforms with female names 'barking' orders and firing at aliens. In addition, the stories in the anthology should appeal to genuine emotions, suspense, fear, sorrow, delight, wonder. The science can be part of the background and the characters foremost, or the science can be central to the story, as long as the characters are realistic and appealing. It is strongly recommended you read the previous volumes to get an idea of what kind of material we're looking for.

"This is science fiction, but I also welcome stories of spiritual exploration, looking at the bond between the scientific and the divine. I want to see how a woman survives tragedy and disaster, overcomes impossible odds, achieves her true potential, or goes on to thrive in a marvelous universe of so many possibilities, using what is inside her, as well as what she finds in the laboratory, the alien planet, or space itself.

"The stories should contain the question of 'what if' on some level. And they should have a woman answer it."

Read the editorial Introduction to Volume One.

Guidelines for Volume #3 of the Anthology:

RIGHTS PURCHASED: First English Language Rights and non-exclusive electronic rights. The anthology will be published by Norilana Books in a trade paperback edition in June 2010, to be followed by an electronic edition to be produced later.

PAYMENT: $0.02 a word on acceptance, and a pro rata share of royalties, plus a contributor copy.

WORD LENGTH: Up to 10,000 words, with longer stories having to be exceptional.

READING PERIOD begins on September 1, 2009. Please do not submit your stories before then.

DEADLINE: January 15, 2010.

HOW TO SUBMIT: Submissions are electronic only. Please submit your story as a Word (.doc or .rtf) attachment to your e-mail. The subject line of your e-mail should say "Submission: Story Title, last name of author." Also, include a brief cover letter. It should have your full name, address, e-mail address, title of story, number of words, and brief biographical information in case we don't know you, with most recent publishing credits, if applicable. We are open to new writers and seasoned veterans alike.

EDITORIAL ADDRESS:

We look forward to reading your most inspired work.

Contest: Missouri Review

2009-09-02T12:50:00.000-07:00

The Missouri Review is now offering $15,000 in prize money for the 19th annual Jeffrey E. Smith Editor's Prize Contest -- $5,000 per genre in poetry, fiction, and non-fiction. Past winners' work has been reprinted in the Best American series. Each entry is $20. All entrants receive a one-year subscription to The Missouri Review either in print or in the new environmentally friendly digital format, which includes bonus audio content. The deadline is October 1st, and you can enter online or by mail. For details, check out our webpage: http://missourirevi ew.com/contest

The Beast Within 2: The Beast Unleashed

2009-08-24T04:24:00.000-07:00

You know them from the office. See them at movie theaters, at restaurants and shopping malls. But when the sun goes down and the moon gets high in the sky, watch out, because the pizza delivery boy may be bringing something besides a large cheese and pepperoni. You might get the door closed, but grab your wolfs' bane and silver trinkets.

This anthology is the follow up to Graveside Tales' 2008 anthology The Beast Within. 2010 will see The Beast Unleashed.

We're looking for stories that bring a new "twist" to the lycanthrope tale. The traditional lycanthrope stories are fine, but how many Romanian cursed, moor-bitten were-wolves can there be? Give us something original, Lycanthrope Steampunk, Lycanthrope Cyberpunk, Lycanthrope Gaslight. And remember there are more things that prowl by the light of the full moon. Don't let wolves be the only outlet, not saying we won't read them, but the more original the story the more likely it is to get more attention. Were-koalas, Were-ostriches, Were-seamonkies, nothing is out of bounds; just keep the ideas original and creative. Most importantly make sure The Beast is Unleashed.

What about new and unexplored realms of the beast. A world where they roam the land, day and night except during the cycle of the full moon when they're vulnerable? Or an underwater realm where lycanthropes are only sea-beasts, the things legends are made of. Or alternate realities where lycanthropes are the predominate race Get your paws off you damn dirty wolf.
Make it new, make it unique give it a new vantage point of the beast. Wolves may be traditional, think outside those boundaries.

What we're not looking for, gore-porn, necrophilia, cruelty to animals or children, unless the stories demand it. And no hard-core porn please. Trapezes are fun in the circus, but not needed in a sex ritual between lycanthropes.

Stories should be in the 2,000 to 5,000 word range. Query for longer or shorter works. We're not looking for novellas or for flash fiction. Stories by electronic submission only. Files should be attached, not pasted into the body of the emails, in RTF or DOC format. Put your contact info
in the email and on the first page of the story. Please also include bio and publishing history in the initial submission. Response time will be 2-3 weeks. New and original stories only, no reprints please. No simultaneous submissions please. If your story is chosen we'd buy FNAR in print and possibly e-book format. Reading period is from September 1st to December 31st or until filled. Publication is set for third quarter 2010.

Payment is $.01 per word and upon publication plus one copy of the anthology. Additional copies can be purchased from Graveside Tales at a discounted rate.

Email submissions to: anthology@gravesidetales.com. Put TBW2 along with submissions title and word count in the subject line.

Want to get a good idea what we're looking for pick up a copy of 2008's The Beast Within available at Graveside Books, Amazon, and other fine retailers.

AMAZING ALTERNITY STORIES

2009-08-22T16:06:00.000-07:00

AMAZING ALTERNITY STORIES is a new anthology from Pulpwork Press. It purports to be an average issue of the flagship title from pulp magazine publisher Alternity Publishing, and features a rotating series of what Publisher George H.W. Bush proudly calls 'The Greatest Action Heroes On Earth'...

....wait a minute....Publisher WHO?

The trick is that Alternity Publishing is a magazine publisher from an alternate reality where many of our real life personages exist only as fictitious characters in the most lurid of popular fiction. In this reality, for example, Nikola Tesla could be a 'science spy' who uses advanced technology to save the world, Albert Einstein could be a Flash Gordon-like swashbuckler, and George Washington could be a maritime adventurer.

(Note that the above are just examples; I'm not looking specifically for these concepts)

What we are looking for is stories in the pulp tradition with an adventure component of 5-12K in length with a central character based on a real-life personage. We want a wide variety of pulp genres represented; if this book is successful we'll release future volumes that focus on specific genres. Fun should be the most important element in these tales--the oddity of seeing a real-life person in a different setting should be secondary to the excitement of reading a fast paced adventure tale.

Original concepts will net you extra points--we've seen H.G. Wells as a time traveler or H.P. Lovecraft as a psychic detective several times already, but Wells as a mercenary with a heart of gold or Lovecraft as the courageous major of The French Foreign Legion, however..... Keep in mind that while you should give us enough to make the real life person recognizable as that person, you don't have to hew 100% close to their bio; to expand upon one of the earlier example, it's sufficient that you mention that Major Lovecraft joined the Legion to forget his lost love Sarah and that he's from Providence; we don't need chapter and verse.

The important thing is to give us verve, give us style, give us true blood-and-thunder...in short, a real pulp fiction reading experience. Have fun writing the tale; if you're having fun, the reader will have fun. Keep in mind that, given that these are supposed to be 'genuine' pulp stories, you should refrain from profanity.

Pulpwork Press will be purchasing First North American Serial Rights for each story chosen. Payment will be one copy of the final book and an equal share in the profits. The actual size of the percentage will be dictated by the number of stories that ultimately end up in the book.

Because of the unique nature of the anthology, we will require authors to submit a story outline of two to three pages. This is to assure that we won't end up with two stories about different versions of the same real-life figure, and also to assure that we have as wide a variety of genres represented. Once we choose a good line-up, we'll give the authors picked the go-ahead to write up their tales.

Please send outlines to nywisdom@hotmail.com. Deadline for outlines is August 31st, 2009. Deadline for completed stories will be announced to chosen writers shortly after the deadline proper.

Good luck, and if you have any questions, contact me at the above e-mail!

Thomas Deja
Editor, AMAZING ALTERNITY STORIES

Wait a Minute, I Have to Take Off My Bra

2009-08-15T16:39:00.000-07:00

InkSpotter Publishing is looking for submissions for an anthology celebrating the most female of body parts, the breasts. From light-hearted memories of the first buds of puberty to heart wrenching accounts of breast cancer, these stories will run the gamut of experiences and emotions.

Unpublished submissions are welcome from both women and men. Maximum 3,000 words for both fiction and non-fiction. Poems are also welcome, though a limited number will be used (no specific length requirements, but please, no epics).

We are NOT looking for salacious material. Please keep your submissions tasteful. Think in terms of what you would want your young daughter (or niece) to be able to read.

Send your submissions in the body of an email (absolutely no attachments) to submissions( at)inkspotter( dot)com with "Submission for Wait a Minute" in the subject line. You may also submit via postal mail to:

InkSpotter Publishing

163 Main Avenue

Halifax, Nova Scotia

Canada B3M 1B3

If you require confirmation of receipt, include either a stamped postcard or
your email address (preferred).

Deadline for submissions is October 31, 2009.

Manuscripts will not be returned. Do not send your only copy.

Writers chosen for the anthology will be entitled to a share of profits.
Part of the proceeds will be donated to a breast cancer charity in Canada.

Please forward this notice to anyone else who might be interested and/or
post in your newsletter or on your blog.

Finding the right words

Ms. Betty Dobson
Owner/Operator

InkSpotter Publishing

A Handsome Laundrette, a Box of Lovers and Two Dozen Happy Seacows

2009-08-05T18:32:00.000-07:00

A Call for Submissions.

Have you been writing stories for years in abject squalor, perhaps in
a small room above a dirty store full of hamburgers and no buns, never
ever any buns?

Have your stories been stolen by an angry buzzard and returned with
great holes in them that were not there before, probably?

Have you been waiting and waiting and waiting for an anthology of
stories which explore the magical, bewildering, even muddled world of
un-realism?? ?

Then look no further, or indeed, do look, at the following words
[note: edit this sentence later]

A Handsome Laundrette, a Box of Lovers and Two Dozen Happy Seacows is
looking for stories or an experimental, odd, or surreal nature, WITH
WHICH TO FILL ITS OWN ANTHOLOGOUS BELLY!

You too can be part of its digestive majesty.

BUT HOW??

AHLABOLATDFHS, to its friends, is open to submissions throughout the
month of July, that preposterous month fast approaching.

YOU WANT MORE DETAILS?:

Stories: Up to 5000 words
Publication: Via the magic of Internet PDF.
Payment: $50 (Australian)
Turnaround: Two months maximum.
Format: Rtf attachment. Email to moonlighttuber@ gmail.com
No reprints.

AHLABOLATDFHS is open to writers of all varied nations, but is
particularly interested in publishing Australian writers and funny
dogs.

To Arms, My Jolly Breathren!

The Seacows are (metaphorically) in your hands…

http://moonlighttub er.wordpress. com/2009/ 06/29/submission s-open-for- moonlight- tubers-first- e-anthology/

The Four Horsemen: An Anthology of Conquest, War, Famine & Death

2009-08-04T04:52:00.000-07:00

Edited by Jessy Marie Roberts
pillhillpress@ gmail.com

The anthology will be divided into four sections: Conquest, War, Famine/Pestilence, and Death. Most genres, including, but not limited to, supernatural, dark fantasy, horror, suspense, crime, mystery, humor and science fiction, are welcome as long as they fit the theme of one of our four categories (conquest, war, famine/pestilence, death). Please note which category your story fits into when you submit.

Stories can be realistic or fantastical. They can take place anywhere - on Earth, under Earth, in Space, etc. They can take place at any time - past, present, future, alternate. We are looking for a good variety of unique stories that fit our four categories!

We are looking for short stories 500-5,000 words in length.

Please do not send stories with a strong religious theme. Pill Hill Press does not wish to misrepresent any religion. Also, please do not send rape/torture stories, anything "x" rated or pornographic, pet mutilation tales, fiction about child abuse and/or pedophilia, or submissions that denegrate any race, gender or sexual orientation.

Submissions will be accepted until Thursday, December 31, 2009. We will not make final selections until the end of the submission period. Responses will be sent by January 31, 2010. Please do not query about the status of your submission until February 1, 2010. We will send notification that we received your story within one week of submission. If you do not receive acknowledgement of your submission, please resend to pillhillpress@ gmail.com.

This book is scheduled to be released June, 2010

Writers Wanted for Web Publication on New Indie Film Website:

2009-08-02T20:04:00.001-07:00

We're looking for articles to post on the "Starting Over" section of our new
website. The site will promote "Phil Cobb's Dinner for Four", a new indie
comedy/drama. We'd like to build a community of readers who can empathize
with Phil Cobb's on-again/off-again life. So if you have an inspirational or
entertaining take on some of the pain, heartache, and heartburn you've been
through as a result of a break-up, divorce, pink slip, alcohol addiction,
cross country move or relocation, please submit.
You can view the trailer for "Phil Cobb's Dinner for Four" at

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Icwe32ODLts

You can also check out our facebook page here:
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/pages/Phil-Cobbs-
Dinner-for-Four/109475079448?ref=search

Please include your bio and byline (or pseudonym). The bio can include links
to your website or any pertinent webpages. You can mention upcoming works or
previous works, note any upcoming events such as a book signing or speaking
engagement. You may submit a photograph that we can spotlight.

Since our website is not a literary site and because film typically
engages such a wide ranging audience, we're hoping you can reach and
cultivate an entirely new group of fans.

SUBMISSIONS: Creative non-fiction, fiction, first or third person
accounts. Submit query or complete ms as an MSWord file with bio by email.
Byline or pseudonym. Up to 1,000 words. Format single or
double-spaced. Bio can include links to your website or relevant webpages;
include any notices. Please limit bio to 50 words.

EMAIL: submit@pcd4.com

USE: Submissions will be posted on http://www.pcd4.com in the "Starting
Over" section for one to two week intervals.

DEADLINE: Rolling submissions. Next deadline, August 15th.

Thanks for reading this post and may your writing career flourish

AMAZING ALTERNITY STORIES

2009-08-02T06:40:00.000-07:00

Original concepts will net you extra points--we've seen H.G. Wells as a time traveler or H.P. Lovecraft as a psychic detective several times already, but Wells as a mercenary with a heart of gold or Lovecraft as the courageous major of The French Foreign Legion, however..... Keep in mind that while you should give us enough to make the real life person recognizable as that person, you don't have to hew 100% close to their bio; to expand upon one of the earlier example, it's sufficient that you mention that Major Lovecraft joined the Legion to forget his lost love Sarah and that he's from Providence; we don't need chapter and verse.

The important thing is to give us verve, give us style, give us true blood-and-thunder...in short, a real pulp fiction reading experience. Have fun writing the tale; if you're having fun, the reader will have fun. Keep in mind that, given that these are supposed to be 'genuine' pulp stories, you should refrain from profanity.

Pulpwork Press will be purchasing First North American Serial Rights for each story chosen. Payment will be one copy of the final book and an equal share in the profits. The actual size of the percentage will be dictated by the number of stories that ultimately end up in the book.

Because of the unique nature of the anthology, we will require authors to submit a story outline of two to three pages. This is to assure that we won't end up with two stories about different versions of the same real-life figure, and also to assure that we have as wide a variety of genres represented. Once we choose a good line-up, we'll give the authors picked the go-ahead to write up their tales.

Please send outlines to nywisdom@hotmail.com. Deadline for outlines is August 31st, 2009. Deadline for completed stories will be announced to chosen writers shortly after the deadline proper.

Good luck, and if you have any questions, contact me at the above e-mail!

Thomas Deja
Editor, AMAZING ALTERNITY STORIES

Chicken Soup for the Soul: Count Your Blessings

2009-07-23T04:37:00.000-07:00

VERY QUICK STORY CALL OUT FOR NEW TITLE!
TWO WEEK DEADLINE!!

Chicken Soup for the Soul: Count Your Blessings
101 Stories of Gratitude, Fortitude, and Silver Linings

This follow-on book to Chicken Soup for the Soul: Tough Times, Tough People continues Chicken Soup for the Soul's focus on inspiration and hope in these difficult times. These inspirational stories remind us that each day holds something to be thankful for -- whether it is having the sun shine or having food on the table. Power outages and storms, health scares and illnesses, job woes and financial insecurities, housing challenges and family worries test us all. But there is always a silver lining. The simple pleasures of family, home, health, and inexpensive good times are described.

We are looking for true stories and poems written in the first person of no more than 1,200 words. Stories can be serious or humorous, or both. They should not have been previously published by Chicken Soup for the Soul or other major publications.

Here are a few suggested topics:

How you count your blessings or express your gratitude
What made you realize that your life is good and that you are grateful
Silver linings that you have discovered in the midst of challenging events
What is really valuable in your life
Major life changes or events for which you are grateful
How you spread the message of gratitude to your family and friends
The joy of simple pleasures
The unexpected benefits of health challenges or other life changes

This book is in the process of being completed and will go to the printer in September for publication in October! It is a featured Chicken Soup for the Soul title for Christmas 2009. The deadline for submissions is soon, so if you can submit quickly you have a better chance than normal of being chosen.
If your story is chosen, you will be a published author and your bio will be printed in the book if you so choose. You will also receive a check for $200 and 10 free copies of your book, worth more than $100. You will retain the copyright for your story.

SUBMISSIONS GO TO http://chickensoupf orthesoul. com/form. asp?cid=submit_ story.

DEADLINE IS MONDAY AUGUST 3rd. THANK YOU!

CONTACT US

Please do not reply or send questions to this address. For any further questions or correspondence, contact webmaster@chickenso upforthesoul. com or visit our website at http://www.chickens oup.com.

THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE: HORROR IN RURAL AMERICA

2009-07-15T05:18:00.000-07:00

We are looking for horror/suspense/mystery/supernatural stories that take place in rural America. Other genres are okay as long as the main theme is dark and/or disturbing. Think farmland. Think abandoned buildings. Think small towns with nosy neighbors. Think malevolence in middle America. Think long, creepy country roads. Most importantly, think outside the box!

Traditional monsters (vampires, werewolves, zombies, witches, mummies, etc.) Are welcome as long as presented in a fresh and interesting way. For more information, check our website at Pill Hill Press.

Flash Fiction Contest

2009-07-11T15:25:00.001-07:00

1st Prize: $60 plus publication
2nd Prize: $30 plus publication
Theme: Open
Genre: Fiction
Length: 500 words or fewer
Deadline: July 21, 2009 (postmark)
Entry Fee: $2.00 per story

THE RULES

- Write a self-contained short story in 500 words or fewer. No predetermined
theme this year, so let your imaginations run wild!
- Be original. Be concise. Be spelled correctly.
- Send your story in plain text in the body of an e-mail to
contests@inkspotter .com (subject line =
"Annual Contest Submission") or to the address on the website (below). Do
not indent paragraphs. Leave one line space between each paragraph.
- All stories MUST have a title.
- Be sure to include your full name and e-mail address. If your story wins,
we'll contact you for your preferred method of payment.
- Enter as often as you like, but payment must be received for each entry.
- You retain copyright of your story.
- All entries will be acknowledged if an e-mail address is included.
- By entering the contest, you agree to have your name and email address
added to the subscriber list for InkSpotter News, our monthly ezine. Contest
news and winning stories appear in the newsletter. (Our subscriber list will
never be shared with or sold to a third party.)

NOTE: Please, do not submit fan fiction.

FULL DETAILS at http://inkspotter. com/contests. htm

Anthology of Essays, Short Stories and Poetry

2009-07-07T16:48:00.000-07:00

Call for Submissions

I'm taking submissions for an anthology of essays, short stories, and poetry inspired by Newbery award-winning books. I'm interested in discovering how a particular Newbery book influenced you (or someone you know), or made a difference to you, at any age.

Did you try to hide overnight at the Met because you read From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler? Maybe you once survived a week in the tundra because you read Julie of the Wolves. Maybe you read Johnny Tremain and then you became obsessed with American history and you've written a great short story about Paul Revere. Or your kid read A Wrinkle In Time and now you're helping her build a tesseract in the garage! This is the sort of thing I'm looking for — something about a Newbery book that will resonate with everyone else who's ever read it.

The list of Newbery recipients is here. I am currently taking submissions dealing with both Newbery award winners and honorees.

Deadline for submissions: November 1, 2009

Please follow these guidelines for submission:

* Don't submit works in progress.
* Everything must be submitted electronically.
* Don't submit someone else's work for them — submit your own work yourself.
* Don't submit something that was published somewhere else before.
* No fan-fiction, spin-offs, sequels, prequels, crossovers or erotica.
* Poetry is acceptable. Your poem should not be longer than 2 printed pages.
* Essays and short stories should be shorter than 7500 words.
* For text submissions, please attach the file to your email. I will accept submissions in .doc, .rtf or .txt format. If you're submitting a .doc, please turn off smart quotes and tracking changes. Don't send me a link, or paste your work directly into the body of your email.
* Please include the title and the author of the Newbery recipient in the cover letter with your submission.
* Please have all submitted works in "ready-to-publish" condition. At a minimum, this should include spellchecking the submission. Submissions including multiple spelling or grammatical errors are much less likely to be accepted.
* All work submitted must be the original work of the submitter, and the submitter must have the ability to grant the right to publish the work.

Please send your submissions to me at editor at mataglap dot com.

Your submission should not include any copyrighted material the use of which has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner.

This project is not endorsed by the ALA or by the Newbery program in any way.

Short Story Contest - “Old Mold New Milieu"

2009-06-26T17:44:00.000-07:00

There’s still time to submit your winning short story to TRI Studio LLC for our current writing contest, “Old Mold New Milieu.” The deadline is June 30th. Winners will be published in The Fiction Flyer, our free ezine for writers with 1,000 subscribers. There are modest cash prizes, but you likely will survive without the ten dollars. More interesting, winning stories (and their authors) will receive the benefits of much promotion.

Okay, you can survive without the exposure, too, but wouldn’t it be nice? And your story only needs to be 1,000 words or less. You can write that much before lunch! AND you get to showcase a couple characters in your own books or stories, which of course begs readers to investigate further, which is why links to winners’ books and stories will be included. Details for the contest are here:

http://tri-studio.com/contestguidelines.html

We have some interesting judges, too, which include the well-known and mutli-published author and artist of youth fiction, Kevin Collier, his wife, Kristen Collier, author of critically acclaimed Christian literature, and Carolyn Howard-Johnson, promotional guru and multi-award winning author of numerous novels, books of poetry, and the best-selling how-to Frugal Book series on book promotion.

We hope you’ll take a look and decide to join in the fun!

Kathe and Ray Gogolewski
Editors/The Fiction Flyer
TRI Studio LLC www.tri-studio.com
http://tri-studio.com/contestguidelines.html

2008 Finding the Right Words Flash Fiction Contest

2009-06-25T04:50:00.000-07:00

1st Prize: $60 plus publication
2nd Prize: $30 plus publication
Theme: Open
Genre: Fiction
Length: 500 words or fewer
Deadline: July 21, 2009 (postmark)
Entry Fee: $2.00 per story

THE RULES

- Write a self-contained short story in 500 words or fewer. No predetermined
theme this year, so let your imaginations run wild!
- Be original. Be concise. Be spelled correctly.
- Send your story in plain text in the body of an e-mail to
contests@inkspotter .com contests@inkspotter .com> (subject line =
"Annual Contest Submission") or to the address above. Do not indent
paragraphs. Leave one line space between each paragraph.
- All stories MUST have a title.
- Be sure to include your full name and e-mail address. If your story wins,
we'll contact you for your preferred method of payment.
- Enter as often as you like, but payment must be received for each entry.
- You retain copyright of your story.
- All entries will be acknowledged if an e-mail address is included.
- By entering the contest, you agree to have your name and email address
added to the subscriber list for InkSpotter News, our monthly ezine. Contest
news and winning stories appear in the newsletter. (Our subscriber list will
never be shared with or sold to a third party.)

NOTE: Please, do not submit fan fiction.

FULL DETAILS at http://inkspotter. com/contests. htm

Surrealism Anthology

2009-06-23T04:16:00.000-07:00

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS - New Surreal Anthology

Submitted by: DANNY GONZALES

I am putting together an anthology of horror called "The Ultimate Surreal". I have been published in Rare, an anthology of horror, on gothic.net as well as many other anthologies. I am looking for surreal horror fiction grounded in reality which ever so softly slips into the surreal. I don’t want splatterpunk, over the top grossout horror. I am looking for more psychologically surreal stuff, it can have alien fetuses in it as long as those alien fetuses are integral to the plot.

Think of David Cronenberg meets David Lynch with a dab of Tim Burton. I am looking for artists, fiction writers and perhaps even poetry if it is truly surreal. I like ambiguity, where the reader can be left to determine if the narrator was insane or not and I am a big fan of everyday horror, the way a simple day at the office can turn freaky scary. Psychological horror is preferred over gory horror, cussing and sex is okay as long as it has a point. 500-1500 words. Deadline is: Oct 31st, 2009 but if you want to send something over to let me know you are
interested early like a rough draft I would be happy to look it over and let you know if it is what I am looking for.

You can submit it to me at dangrn77@hotmail.com: put Surrealism Anthology in the subject posting. It can have a horror context or sci-fi or even dark fantasy as long as it operates on the same level of the surrealist's manifesto which is: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surrealist_Manifesto "two distant realities brought together to create a new, uncanny union" Consider the weird vibe of the film “Eraserhead” which gives us ordinary circumstances, a seemingly familiar world then slowly begins to tear away every thread of sanity we have and exposes the grim horror within. Show me your inner surrealist!

Star Dreck Anthology

2009-06-15T18:11:00.000-07:00

Before we go any further, this is SATIRE*. This is PARODY*. This is SPOOFING*. These things
are fully protected under American copyright law, with the benefit of Supreme Court decisions.
That being said...

I saw the new Star Trek movie, and I was depressed. It was quite a paradox, because I actually
had a blast watching this engaging, exciting, exhilarating, fun film. But as I let it all sink in the
rest of the day, I realized I actually hated it. I won't belabor why here; either you agree with me
or you don't. If you do, then this anthology is for you.

Paramount Pictures, in its endless quest for piles of money, have finally completed the utter
destruction of Star Trek, a process at which I feel Rick Berman and Brannon Braga had already
worked very hard for several years to achieve anyhow. As any Trekkie who has writing skills,
my ego tells me I could have done a better job than Berman, Braga, and J.J. Abrams. My sixth
sense tells me that talented Trekkies all over the world could do better writing SATIRES* and
PARODIES* and SPOOFS*. So, I want to give them the chance.

This will be a three-volume (maybe four-volume) series of anthologies with stories that
SATIRIZE and PARODY Star Trek.

Star Dreck: This will be a collection of SATIRES* and PARODIES* and SPOOFS* of Star
Trek (the original series).

Star Dreck: The Next Degeneration: This will be a collection of SATIRES* and PARODIES*
and SPOOFS* of Star Trek: The Next Generation.

Star Dreck: Overcross: This will be a collection of SATIRES* and PARODIES* and SPOOFS*
of any Star Trek, along with another television show or movie.

Star Dreck: The Frontier Finale: This will be an anthology that MIGHT happen. If it does, it will
contain SATIRES* and PARODIES* and SPOOFS* of Star Trek: Deep Space 9, Star Trek:
Voyager, and Star Trek: Enterprise. This volume will happen if there are enough submissions for it.

I want SATIRE* and PARODY* and SPOOFING*. Write these like the literary equivalents of
the spoofs you see in MAD Magazine, or hat you used to see in CRACKED (before it died and
was reborn as a pile of online crap, sadly).

To this end, you have to spoof things and me from getting sued. Rename the characters: Captain
Kork, Mister Sprock, Chief Engineer Montgomery Ward, Helmsman Solo. Captain John-Luke
Pickaxe, Commander Raker, Counselor Menage-a-Troi, the android Info. You get the idea.
It's the Enterprize, and fazer guns, and zapton torpedoes. Whatever you want to do, do it. I
absolutely encourage a few things:

SATIRE* and PARODY* and SPOOFING*. These cannot be fan-fiction Trek stories, or
Paramount will sue me blind. Paramount probably will sue me blind anyway, but that's okay.

Humor. Make it funny! Poke fun at all things Trek, including the way this cultural icon has been
whored out by Paramount, beaten nearly to death, and changed to the point that the loyal fans
who made its success a reality are completely ignored (because we don't matter, right?).

Stories. Yep, even amidst humorous SATIRE* and laughable PARODY* and gut-busting
SPOOFS*, I still want real stories (which you'll learn about on the next page).

Star Dreck III: Overcross. This one is special. Do the same things as the others, but include a
crossover with another TV show or movie. Land the Enterprize in a galaxy, far, far away, with
Luck Skyskipper and Duchess Layme, and give the Volcanian Mr. Schlock experience with the
Forceful (maybe he has amazing midichlorian levels!). Maybe the Boobyprize goes back in time
and gets tangled up with Pong... James Pong, Double-Oh-Negative, who likes it shooken, not
starred. Or maybe the SG-01 team go through the StarPortal to a parallel universe where Mr.
Splott has a goatee! And what about the Exitprise trying to save a world... and they're assisted
by Superduperman?

(In fact, this idea was inspired by a book from the 1980s called The Doctor and the Enterprise,
a book where Doctor Who's TARDIS lands on the Enterprise. The characters were ambiguous
(The Captain, The Science Officer, The Physician... along with The Doctor), but we all knew
what it was. And it was funny! If you can find a copy on Amazon or eBay, I highly recommend
it.)

Whatever TV show/movie you cross this over with, you'll stand a better chance of selling it if
it's a show/movie I'm familiar with, so before writing, if you want to know my thoughts, drop
me a line.

For all titles: I absolutely reserve the right to change any names, terminology, etc., to avoid
getting me sued, but of course I'll work with you on that.

Fan fiction. Don't send me any of this. I don't care if you think you've written the best Star Trek
short story ever written. If it isn't a SATIRE* or a PARODY* or a SPOOF*, don't even think of
sending it. If you do, you'll be blacklisted from any and all future publications I release. I know
that sounds really hard-ass, but copyright is a very serious matter. I'm not a pirate. I won't
ever be a pirate. And I won't give the time of day to people who submit fan fiction and expect
me to publish it. Send it to whoever is licensed to publish Star Trek fiction.

Stories from 3,000 to 12,000 words; however, I am unlikely to accept long stories unless they
are very, very good. Long stories mean multiple shorter stories won't make the cut. So, make
sure the longer it is, the better it is. Ideally, I'd like to see stories in the 3,000-7,000-word
range.

Deadline for submissions is October 31, 2009. I'll be staggering the releases of these in early
2010.

Interested?
Click here to learn more

Two Anthologies: Vacationland and Speculationland

2009-06-05T12:06:00.000-07:00

This will be a pair of sister publications devoted to all that is Maine:

Vacationland will feature mainstream/literary stories.

Speculationland will feature SF, fantasy, or horror, having some sort of speculative element.

I'm doing two volumes because people who prefer mainstream fiction aren't likely to appreciate spec fiction, and spec-fic readers won't likely be too excited about mainstream fiction.

Stories must take place in Maine, or at the very least be a central part of the story (say, a character from Maine living in California or on Mars and wishing he were home). Stories should absolutely reflect what Maine is all about in some way--either through historical exposition, or focusing on things that typify Maine: lobster, County potatoes, Bar Harbor, Mt. Katahdin, or whatever.

The subject matter is entirely up to you, so long as you observe what I consider a story to be (which you'll read about on the next page). I mention this here because, in doing a mainstream-fiction anthology, I know I'll be inundated with piles of "stories" that are little more than slices of life. I don't want scenes; I don't want pieces of a character's day; I want stories that accomplish something and arrive somewhere, with characters who grow and change in some way.

Despite my background in speculative fiction, I have written some mainstream stuff. But I haven't worked on an all-mainstream anthology, so this will be a learning experience for me. For writers, know that what appeals to me are stories with bite, with grab, with visuals, with ideas that make me say "Wow!" That's what I like about sci-fi and fantasy and horror, which can bring a certain edge that mainstream stuff cannot. As such, it will be your job to create really vivid characters--make me feel so sucked into your story that I must finish it, even if there aren't spaceships or dragons or werewolves there to bring that sense of wonder to the tale.

I will give a strong preference for Maine authors. Non-Maine authors should be originally from Maine, frequent Maine, or have some other powerful Maine connection. When it comes down to choosing between two excellent stories, the Maine authors will always have the edge.

I don't want stories by people who obviously have no idea of what the flavor of Maine is. I also don't want 500 submissions that take place entirely in Bar Harbor or along the coast or in Portland's Old Port. There is much more to Maine than those things, despite what the tourists think. There are mountains and hiking trails, whitewater rivers, fields of potatoes and blueberries, the Golden Road, the expanse of Baxter State Park. And there's a load of history everywhere you go. So what I don't want is a pile of stories about lobster feasts and clambakes--strive to be as original as you can imagine. Envision what the masses are likely to write about, and then choose something you don't think anyone will write about.

Stories from 3,000 to 9,000 words; however, I am unlikely to accept long stories unless they are very, very good. Long stories mean multiple shorter stories won't make the cut. So, make sure the longer it is, the better it is. Ideally, I'd like to see stories in the 4,000-6,000-word range.

Deadline for submissions is November 30, 2009. My goal is publication in early 2010, with a secondary goal to have copies available for the summer tourist traffic.

Interested?
Click here to learn more.

Queer Gothic Anthology

2009-06-03T06:25:00.001-07:00

Open call for submissions for a *Queer Gothic Anthology* to be published by
*QueeredFiction* where genre is queered. Deadline is 31st August 2009. We're
looking for gothic tales of horror and romance. Your submission should be a
short story between 3,000 and 10,000 words. We are seeking fiction with
positive images of queer characters. We’re not looking for clichés. We do
not want reprints. We are seeking first world rights for this anthology
which will be published as an eBook and in Print format. Full guidelines
here .

Submissions open: *1st June 2009 to 31st August 2009*

As a queer publisher, QueeredFiction would like to have an emphasis on the
queer community as a whole, rather than by segments. So ideally the perfect
submission would have 'queer characters' in the forefront and in the
background ... just mainly prominent!

*Gothic fiction (sometimes referred to as Gothic horror) is a genre of
literature that combines elements of both horror and romance. *
*[...]*
*Prominent features of Gothic fiction include terror (both psychological and
physical), mystery, the supernatural, ghosts, haunted houses and Gothic
architecture, castles, darkness, death, decay, doubles, madness, secrets and
hereditary curses.The stock characters of Gothic fiction include tyrants,
villains, bandits, maniacs, Byronic heroes, persecuted maidens, femmes
fatales, madwomen, magicians, vampires, werewolves, monsters, demons,
revenants, ghosts, perambulating skeletons, the Wandering Jew and the Devil
himself.

Dogs and the Women Who Love Them 2009 True Story Contest

2009-05-30T04:50:00.000-07:00

Dogs and the Women Who Love Them True Story Contest Rules:

The Angel Animals Network (AAN) is accepting story submissions about dogs and the women who love them. The stories should demonstrate the benefits for a woman who fulfills a life purpose by partnering with a dog to perform extraordinary physical, emotional, or spiritual service.

Stories must be original, based on real dogs, people, and events. Preference will be given to emotionally evocative and well-written creative nonfiction stories. Please do not submit journalistic articles, profiles, testimonials, essays, or fiction for this contest.

Story submissions must be no more than 2,000 words in English. They should be typed or legibly handwritten. Each story submission must be accompanied with an Angel Animals Network official entry form (below), completed by the contestant submitting the story.

Contest story submissions will not be returned. Please do not include photographs. You may view the list of 1st place and 2nd place winners on the Angel Animals Network Website after winners are announced. You can also subscribe to the free weekly, online Angel Animals Story of the Week Newsletter and look for winners to be announced there.

To be eligible, contest entries must be postmarked no later than September 30, 2009.

If stories are selected as winners of the Dogs and the Women Who Love Them True Story Contest and later found to contain distortions or falsehoods, the AAN is not responsible for any incorrect or inaccurate entry or story information.

Any contest entries, but especially those of the winners, will be considered for possible publication in the new book Dogs and the Women Who Love Them by Allen and Linda Anderson to be published by New World Library in Fall 2010. However, the contest and the new book are separate projects. Entering or winning the contest doesn’t mean the story will be published in the book. Allen and Linda Anderson will contact entrants if they are considering a contest story for possible publication in the book. Previous books in the Angel Animals series have included many stories that were contest entries.

Entry Fee:

There is no entry fee to submit a story for the contest.

Number of Entries:

Each individual is limited to submit three separate entries.

Eligibility:

Employees/volunteers and the immediate family (spouse, mother, father, sister, brother, daughter or son, regardless of where they live) or members of the same households (whether related or not) of such employees/volunteers are not eligible. There are no citizen status or resident country restrictions for contestants.

Judging:

Judging the stories for this contest will be based on the exceptional nature of the dog(s) who demonstrates partnering with a woman to fulfill a life’s purpose including a dog who performs some type of extraordinary physical, emotional, or spiritual service. Other categories on which stories will be judged are: readability, spiritual connection between human and animal, dramatic/emotional appeal, inspirational, and represents good practices for animal health and welfare. A panel of judges, who are known for their service to animals, will select the finalists.

All Dogs and the Women Who Love Them True Story Contest decisions are final.

Prizes:

Grand Prize

One grand prize of $250 will be awarded to the first-place winning contestant.

2nd Place Prize

A second place prize of $25.00 will be awarded to 5 contestants.

Honorable Mentions

There will be 5 entries chosen as Honorable Mentions.

Click Entry Form PRINT VERSION to go directly to the Dogs and the Women Who Love Them True Story Contest Official Entry Form.

LifeBytes...Real Stories of Online Dating - Extended Deadline

2009-05-25T16:07:00.000-07:00

Update:

We are accepting submissions for "LifeBytes...Real Stories of Online Dating" (est. publication date spring 2010)

Who doesn't love sitting around with friends and family over coffee or a cocktail sharing stories about life, work and love? LifeBytes is interested in YOUR Online dating story. Make a cup of coffee or stir up a cocktail and tell us your cyber dating adventures - the good, the bad and the ugly! "LifeBytes...Real Stories" will be a compilation of the true stories that singles love to share with one another about the ups and downs of searching for Prince (or Princess) Charming.

We are looking for evocative stories that can be funny, poignant, provocative, scary, weird, sexy, edgy or happy. We're looking for the full range of experiences that make online dating such an adventure. Writers whose work is chosen for publication will receive payment for their story in the market range of $50-$100 (word count dependent).

Our extended deadline is September 15, 2009.

For complete submission guidelines please visit our website at: http://www.lifebytesbook.com[

1]
Also, stop by our blog at: http://lifebytesrealstories.wordpress.com [2]to put your digital feet
up and chat for a while.

And don't forget to join our Facebook group: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/group.php?gid=67366205943[4][3]

Let us know who you are through your unique voice. We're looking forward to meeting you.

Regards,
Sharon Sommerhalter

Beneath Ceaseless Skies

2009-05-22T06:27:00.000-07:00

Beneath Ceaseless Skies publishes "literary adventure fantasy": stories with a secondary-world setting and some traditional or classic fantasy feel, but written with a literary flair.

Secondary-World Setting: We want stories set in what Tolkien called a "secondary world": some other world that is different from our own primary world in some way. It could be different in terms of zoology (non-human creatures), ecology (climate), or physical laws (the presence of magic). It could be set on Earth but an Earth different from our primary world in terms of time (the historical past) or history (alternate history). It could have a "pre-tech" level of technology, or steampunk technology, or magic as technology, or anything else that's not advanced or modern technology. However, the setting should contain some element that is in some way fantastical.

The inhabitants of this secondary world should have developed their own culture in response to the uniqueness of their world. The characters should fit this culture, and the qualities of the secondary world should have some bearing on the plot.

We are not interested in urban fantasy or other types of stories set in the "real world," even if they contain fantasy elements.

Plot: We strongly prefer stories that have some plot. It can be external, in the character's surroundings, or it can be internal to the character, or it can be both. We are not interested in stories that meander between external events or internal emotions with no causality and therefore do not have any trace of a conventional-type plot.

Characters: We prefer stories that focus on the characters. We strongly prefer characters who yearn for something, external or internal, and feel driven to attain it. Our favorite characters are "round characters": ones who grow and change over the course of a story instead of remaining the same.

Literary Elements: We love modern literary devices like tight points-of-view, non-linear narratives, unreliable narrators, and ambiguous endings, so long as they fit that particular story. Our favorite literary device is round characters, who grow or change over the course of the story.

Narrative Style: We prefer styles that are literary but readable. We love gorgeous, poetic prose, but in genre fiction it's vital that the style be clear enough so the reader can understand what's happening. Our favorite prose styles are lush but still clear.

We have a preference for limited points-of-view, either first-person or third-person, because we find it harder for a story to get deep inside a character's head from an omniscient point-of-view. We find present tense often pretentious and second-person point-of-view always annoying.

We know grammar rules, such as which types of clauses should have commas between them and which types should not. We respect the author's freedom to bend the rules as suits their story. However, be forewarned that repeated ignorance of grammatical principles for no apparent artistic reason will make a manuscript look unprofessional to us.

Originality: We prefer stories that are as original as possible, particularly in the setting. We are unlikely to enjoy stories featuring elements we have seen repeatedly, such as elves or barbarian swordsmen or a quest to save the world from an evil overlord, unless they present that element in a unique new way.

Extreme Content: We prefer that graphic sex and violence not escalate beyond the level of an R-rated movie. We also insist that sex and sadistic violence not be acted upon children.

Fairy Tales / Myths: We usually find that fairy tale-style or myth-style narratives don't provide a gritty or immediate enough perspective to make us feel the texture of the secondary world or the direness of the protagonist's struggle. Any fairy tale-type or myth-type story probably isn't right for us.

Science Fiction: We aren't interested in science fiction; it's just not what we prefer to read. Any story with advanced technology or esoteric scientific concepts isn't right for us.

Science Fantasy: We do think there's common ground between fantasy and so-called "science fantasy," as some readers consider Dune because it focuses on secondary-world setting and culture rather than on advanced technology. For a detailed explanation of what science fantasy elements we are and aren't interested in, read this thread on the BCS Forums.

Steampunk / Smoke & Sorcery / Weird West / Sixguns & Sorcery / Etc.: In addition to fantasy, we also enjoy stories set in other types of secondary world that likewise don't have modern technology, including steampunk, smoke & sorcery, weird West, sixguns & sorcery, etc. Feel free to send us anything that you think might fit.

Humor and Satire: We don't mind humorous stories, but we have a very dry sense of humor. We love wry satire, but we rarely enjoy slapstick or puns. We aren't planning to publish much humor, but if you have a dry satire that hits us just right . . .

Length and Policies

We prefer stories under 10,000 words. We will consider stories over that length, but the longer a story is, the better it must be to hold our attention.

We are not interested in reprints (stories that have previously appeared anywhere in print or online, including on a personal website or blog).

We do not accept multiple submissions (more than one story submitted at a time). Please wait until you have received a reply to your submission before sending another.

We DO accept simultaneous submissions (stories that are currently under submission to another market), but ONLY if you state in your cover letter that your submission is simultaneous, and ONLY if you notify us IMMEDIATELY when another market accepts your story. We accept simultaneous submissions as a favor to writers because we know that response times can be long, but if people abuse this policy, we will rescind it.

Acceptances, Payment, and Rights

All accepted manuscripts will be line-edited for grammar, punctuation, and clarity. The author will have the opportunity to review and discuss all of these edits. However, we do insist on a high proficiency of grammar and clarity in our magazine. Payment will be made after receipt of the final, line-edited manuscript.

For standard acceptances, we pay 5 cents US per word, which is professional rate as defined by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA). For this payment, we purchase the following rights:

First World Serial Rights
First World Electronic Rights
An Option to buy Non-Exclusive World Anthology Rights
An Exclusive Period to buy Limited-Time Exclusive Audio Rights

This means that our payment buys the rights to publish your story on the Beneath Ceaseless Skies website, as well as the option, at our choice, to pay you again at the reprint rate specified in the original contract (usually 2 cents per word) to reprint your story in any future anthology of stories from Beneath Ceaseless Skies and distribute that anthology anywhere in the world. It also gives us a time period during which we have the exclusive option, at our choice, to buy limited-time audio rights to your story, at the rate specified in the original contract (usually 1 cent per word), and podcast your story from the Beneath Ceaseless Skies website.

You can't publish that story as a first-run or "new" story anywhere else in the world, and you can't have it appear anywhere else, in print or online or as audio, before or for ninety days after we publish it. But after that you can have it reprinted online and/or in a reprint magazine and/or in any reprint anthology, like one of the many Year's Best collections.

You also can't sell the audio rights to anyone else for ninety days after we publish the story. And if during those ninety days we buy the audio rights from you, you can't have the story appear in audio form anywhere else before or for ninety days after we podcast it. But after that you can resell the audio rights, including to one of the many fiction podcast websites.

We also hope that you will let us keep the story in our online archives after ninety days.

How to Submit

Format: Format your manuscript in Standard Manuscript Format. If you don't know what that is, look it up. If you deviate from this in more than a few ways, your story will look unprofessional to us before we've read the first word.

Include your name, address, and email on the first page, and a running header with your last name, the title, and page number at the top of every subsequent page.

Cover Letters: We do prefer a short cover letter with every submission. Type it into the body of your email. Mention the title of your story in case the attachment gets lost. List the best one or two fiction sales you have and/or mention any writing workshops you have attended. TELL US if this is a simultaneous submission. DO NOT give a synopsis or summary of your story; we'll learn what it's about when we read it.

Attach your manuscript to an email as either a *.DOC MS Word document file or a *.RTF rich-text-format file. If you can't get either of these to work, you may paste the text of your manuscript into the body of your email. DO NOT send a *.DOCX file (the default format that Word 2007 uses); we can't open those files.

Send your email to submissions[AT]beneath-ceaseless-skies.com (replacing [AT] with @). Use the subject line Submission: (the title of your story).

IMPORTANT: your subject line MUST include the word "Submission" or our spam filter will delete your email.

Our Process and Response Times

You should receive our email auto-reply within 24 hours after sending your submission.

If you don't, check your spam filter to be sure it didn't get caught there. Then make sure your subject line starts with Submission so our filter won't delete your email and send your story again. If you still don't receive the auto-reply 24 hours after that, query using the email form on our Contact page. We will get back to you as soon as we can.

Response Times: Our response times are currently averaging 3-5 weeks, occasionally as long as 6-7 weeks. To keep writers informed on our reading progress, we will post periodic Slush Updates in the Submissions Status section of our online forums. If we announce that we've replied to all submissions emailed before a certain date, but you sent yours before that date (and received our auto-reply confirming that it arrived), feel free to query us using the email form on our Contact page.

Please do not query if we haven't announced that we've replied to all submissions up to the date you sent yours. Any time that we spend answering extra queries is time we can't spend reading submissions or posting Slush Updates.

All rejections and acceptances will be notified by email.

Age of Elegance

2009-05-20T04:38:00.000-07:00

Ah, Baby Boomers. Look who's entering the Age of Elegance...

According to author Chloe Jon Paul who wrote, Entering the Age of Elegance - A Rite of Passage & Practical Guide for the Modern Maturing Woman, this second adulthood reaches us around age forty and if this “rite of passage” isn't done with style and grace, we can become disoriented and lose our way.

We want to know what the Age of Elegance means to you. Fulfillment? Exploration? Discovery? Tell us!

To enter this contest, simply follow these short and simple guidelines before submitting your story.

CONTEST GUIDELINES:

Using 500 words or less, and using these helpful questions below, tell us;

What does the “age of elegance” mean to you?
Have you embraced this time in your life? If so, how?
Have you used this journey to define yourself as a new woman?

Please submit your entry in a WORD document AS AN ATTACHMENT. Include your name, email address, and short bio (no more than 75 words) INSIDE the WORD document NOT IN THE BODY OF THE EMAIL.

SUBMIT to - contest@nabbw.com with Age of Elegance in the subject line.

Deadline – May 31, 2009

PRIZE MONEY - 100.00 and F-R-E-E membership or renewal in the NABBW. Plus your story will be published in the Our Voices section at www.BoomerWomenSpeak.com.
also
TWO LUCKY RUNNER-UPS will receive a framed copy of The Litany of Elegance plus easels, compliments of author Chloe Jon Paul!

For more information, please visit: http://www.nabbw.com

Contact Information:
Dotsie Bregel
877-226-6637
boomercontest@nabbw.com

Living Dead Press

2009-05-12T15:42:00.000-07:00

Working Title: The Book of the Dead (tentative title)
Publisher: Living Dead Press
Release Date: Summer 2009

What we want:

Original stories about standard zombies that have not been printed anywhere before.
Only slow, Romero-type zombies. Keep the plot true to a world where the dead walk.
All the stories need to be set during either Night of the Living Dead or Dawn of the Dead timeline. Therefore the zombies are not rotting and purtid just yet, but do have wounds or have just left the funeral home.

No viruses, the dead walk and we don't know why, just like the movies. Its not airborn ect. you die, you come back, period.

In this world, the dead walking is new as people deal with it in their own ways, be it fight or run.

No werewolves or vampires, its the world we live in but the dead walk, otherwise everything is the same.

We want action, save the intelligent stories for someone else. We want blood, gore and guns.

Also, we are not fans of first person stories so unless your story is absolutley fantastic, only a few will be picked that are in first person.

Here's the deal folks. If we start reading and the story goes of in any other direction than what we are looking for, it gets rejected for this book on the spot.

Your story only needs two things to qualify:

a unique story about the walking dead
needs to be basically finished and edited other than small, copy-editing done by us.

Stories are to range from 3,000 to 6,000 words. The story can be up to 10,000, but you only get paid to 6. Nothing under 3,000 will be considered, they are too short. We want real stories, not flash fiction.

Location of author:

You need to be in the U.S or maybe Canada. We aren't set up to do international business right now but will be in the future.

So if you don't live in those two locales above, then please don't send the story right now.

What rights do we want?

First print and electronic rights to your story and exclusive rights for 1-year after publication. After that you can resell it. But we do have the right to use the story for as long as there is demand for the book.

What we don’t want:

No repetitive coarse language. (All swears are fine but in normal moderation.)
No poetry
No Fast Zombies!!!
No Porn. (Sexy scenes are fine if tasteful and relevant to the story.)
No reprints. New stories only, please.

Multiple submissions are allowed, but only up to two at any one time.

What we’re making:

The Book of the Dead will be published as a trade paperback and perhaps as an e-book.

What you get:

1 cent a word and a contributor’s copy of the book. The paperback copy of the book will be sent to you upon or shortly after the book’s official release date. Payment is based on final word count from the final edited copy of the story, so once your story is ready for print, payment will be sent to you via check.

What to send:

Please send your story in standard manuscript format:

Courier, arial or baskerville, 12pt, it really doesnt matter because the first thing we do before reading your story is change to Georgia 12 point, then we read and edit the work at the same time in hopes we are going to take it.

Make sure any italicized words are underlined. Also include your name and contact information, phone number, on the first page as well as your name in the upper right corner of subsequent pages. Don’t forget to also number your pages.

We don't want double spaced, we want to see the story how it would look in a book so as we read it we can get the full feeling of the story.

We also would rather not see the story indented. Keep it flush to the left with no double spaces. If we take your story, its easier to format into the book if its like we just described. When we get them tabbed, it all has to be taken away again, agravating to say the least.
If you dont underline what you want italizied then dont complain if its not like that in the book.

Where to send it:

Send all submissions via email to livingdeadpress@yahoo.com

Please also use the same address for any questions not addressed here.

When to send it by:

Reading period starts right away and will end at the end of June/July, 2009. You will be notified by early June if your story is accepted, possibly sooner. We are very excited to start this project so all dates can be sooner depending on volume of submission.

Even if your story isn't accepted this time around it's possible we could use it later, so make sure you know how long you will let us hold onto it before you do anything with it.

"War Is All We Know" Short-story Contest

2009-05-10T05:56:00.000-07:00

New Anthology “War is All We Know” is now accepting manuscripts.

This anthology is designed to collect the best fiction on war. We don’t want war as a backdrop to another story, but the war or conflict must be the major part of the story. Each story must include as a quote or somewhere else in the text the phrase “War is all we know.”

All submissions will be considered for inclusion in the anthology and for contest prizes.

Anthology Series Submission Guidelines.

Contest End Date: July 15, 2009

Prizes:

1st: $30 and free copy

2nd: $20 and free copy

3rd: $10 and free copy

Page length: Between 20-40 pages, but we would consider longer or slightly shorter pieces.

Some things to consider before you submit to us:

We DO NOT accept previously published material for any of our anthologies.

We acquire first time world rights and re-print rights (only to re-print the same anthology as a paperback, hardback, or audiobook). All other rights revert back to the author 12 months following publication as outlined on our release form.

Materials will not be returned. All materials will be shredded and recycled.

Submission:

Hard copy via regular mail

Please send one double-spaced typed copy of your story with your name on each page and include page numbers.

With your story, please submit a cover letter with a short biography listing your credentials, stating to what anthology you are submitting, and including an active E-mail address.

Compensation:

Before you submit please be aware that the compensation, unless otherwise noted, will include publication of the work (if accepted) and a brief author biography. For all short story anthologies (excluding the poetry anthology), authors residing in the United States will receive one free copy of the work. The author may also be able to purchase discounted copies of the work.

Acceptance or Rejection:

You can expect to receive a reply via E-mail regarding the acceptance or rejection of your manuscript once the review process is complete.

A Cup of Comfort® for Mothers:

2009-05-06T05:41:00.000-07:00

Stories that celebrate the women who gave us everything

While it's true that each of us has "only one mother the wide world over," there are many different ways to be a mother and many different forms and flavors of mother-child relationships. And in this Cup of Comfort anthology we want to capture it all—with personal stories about a wide range of mothering and mother-child experiences, including those that test your mettle as well as those that enrich your life. The book will include stories written both by mothers and about mothers (by their adult children, spouse, own mother). Any topic and tone goes, as long as it’s meaningful to mothers and suitable for Cup of Comfort. Whether a story is endearing or entertaining, inspiring or insightful, humorous or heartwarming, poignant or empowering, or all of the above, it must be uplifting and authentic. And most should be about living mothers/children. Although a story may be about a deceased mother (or a deceased child, if written by the mother), it should focus on her life, not on her death. Narrative essays preferred. Story length: 1000–2000 words.

Submission Deadline: May 15, 2009 Submit Your Story Now
Finalist Notification: June 1, 2009

Grandmother's Necklace

2009-05-04T20:26:00.000-07:00

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS GRANDMOTHERS' NECKLACE DEADLINE: Midnight, May 15th

Are you a grandmother? Have you had/do you have, a grandmother? This, then, is for you.

What is it? An anthology of poetry and prose — gems written by and about grandmothers (hence, the plural title) including some from those in the sub-Saharan African countries. This title stems from the beautiful Emerald Necklace Trail system in Petawawa, Ontario, Canada.

Wanted: A variety of pieces from men and women of diverse ethnic and experiential backgrounds — amusing, touching, encouraging, up-lifting anecdotes, short stories, letters and poetry.

Editor: Patricia (Anne) Elford, B.A., M.Div., editor of various genres of books for adults and children, of newsletters, individual pieces and articles, an award-winning professional poet and writer, frequently published in periodicals (e.g. The Presbyterian Record, Artspaper, Glad Tidings, Esprit, The Link), newspapers and anthologies, as well as on line.

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES:
e-mail attachment preferred. Submit to granniesnecklace@hotmail.com, after March 15, 2009, with “MY GEM” in the subject line. For answers to questions as yet unanswered, please use the same address and “QUESTIONS” subject line.

√Microsoft Word or Word Perfect √12-pt Times New Roman √ one-inch margins
If hard copy: One side only, Address: “The Pines”, 614 Airport Rd., Pembroke, ON, K8A 6W7, Attention: My Gem

Prose: Short fiction, creative non-fiction or brief opinion piece, double-spaced
Word Count: 500 to 650 words maximum (excluding title)

POETRY: (non-rhymed preferred but not required), single-spaced
Limit of Lines per poem: 40

PHOTOS: If submitting related photos (e.g. the grandmother, a special item which belongs/ed to the grandmother), use the camera as an external device and cut-and-paste images to a folder. When e-mailing, attach the image directly from its folder to the email; the way you would a Word document. Preference: digital photographs, 300 dpi minimum, high quality uncompressed JPEGs.
Please do not send originals through surface mail.

A brief bio and photo will be requested from all whose work is accepted for publication

ALL PROFITS WILL GO TO "GRANDMOTHERS TO GRANDMOTHERS", Stephen Lewis Foundation.
http://www.stephenlewisfoundation.org/grandmothers.htm

REMEMBER! ALL SUBMISSIONS ARE DUE, AT THE LATEST, BY THE IDES OF MAY. EARLIER WOULD BE MUCH APPRECIATED.

Nurse Anthology - Beyond the Borders

2009-04-23T14:02:00.000-07:00

Call for Stories from Nurses

Kaplan Publishing, the publisher of a broad range of educational and consumer books by and for healthcare providers, is now accepting stories for a new and exciting anthology, Beyond Borders: Nurses´ Stories about Working Abroad.

Kaplan wants nurses from all over the world to reveal what it´s like to practice nursing outside of their hometowns, in places like the United States, Jamaica, France, Indonesia and beyond.

Whether confronted with unfamiliar cultural norms, new medical language, or greater or fewer resources than you would experience at home, your story will open a window into the commonalties and cultural differences in how the art and science of nursing is practiced around the globe.

SUBMISSIONS GUIDELINES.
§ Tell your story. If you are a nurse´s aid, a nurse, or a nurse practitioner please share your unique experience of working somewhere other than your native country. If you have a story of working in a town that is culturally very different from your hometown, we hope you will share this story as well.
§ Tell us how your experience has shaped the person that you are today.
§ Make us laugh, make us cry; allow your words to open a broader world for your readers.
§ All stories must be true and you must you retain the copyright if previously published.
§ Story Length:1,000 - 2,500 words
§ Submit stories in Microsoft Word, 12-point Times New Roman, double-spaced.
§ Each submission should include your name, address, phone number, and email address.
§ Tell a story that has a beginning, middle, and end.
§ Write from your heart about a life-changing or life-defining experience.
§ Multiple submissions are welcome.
§ All manuscripts selected for publication will be subject to editing.
§ Before final acceptance, you will receive an agreement that outlines the terms and conditions of publication.
§ Submission Deadline: May 29, 2009
§ Payment:$100 if published, along with two complimentary copies of the book

*By Email - Beyond Borders@live. com Please put your story title in the subject line. You can type the story into the body of the email, or send as an attachment.

*By Mail - Only a paper copy of the story - no disks or CDs please.
Kaplan Publishing - Beyond Borders
P.O. Box 51
Wever, IA 52658 USA
Due to the volume of submissions we cannot acknowledge receipt or provide status updates.

LifeBytes...Real Stories of Online Dating

2009-04-22T14:04:00.000-07:00

We are accepting submissions for "LifeBytes...Real Stories of Online
Dating" (est. publication date spring 2010)

Who doesn't love sitting around with friends and family over coffee
or a cocktail sharing stories about life, work and love? LifeBytes is
interested in YOUR Online dating story. Make a cup of coffee or stir
up a cocktail and tell us your cyber dating adventures - the good,
the bad and the ugly! "LifeBytes...Real Stories" will be a
compilation of the true stories that singles love to share with one
another about the ups and downs of searching for Prince (or Princess)
Charming.

We are looking for evocative stories that can be funny, poignant,
provocative, scary, weird, sexy, edgy or happy. We're looking for the
full range of experiences that make online dating such an adventure.
Writers whose work is chosen for publication will receive payment for
their story in the market range of $50-$100 (word count dependent).

Our initial deadline is June 15, 2009.

For complete submission guidelines please visit our website at:
http://www.lifebytesbook.com[

2]

Also, stop by our blog at:
http://lifebytesrealstories.wordpress.com[3] to put your digital feet
up and chat for a while.

And don't forget to join our Facebook group:
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/group.php?gid=67366205943[4]

Let us know who you are through your unique voice. We're looking
forward to meeting you.
Regards,
Sharon Sommerhalter

Audience with an Agent Contest 2009

2009-04-21T18:16:00.000-07:00

It's the moment you've all be waiting for! THE announcement you've been hankering for. Yep, today is the day we announce the first MAJOR contest from Novel Matters.

Audience with an Agent Contest 2009!

Let's all take a deep breath, and steady ourselves. It doesn't get more exciting than this!

You could win an Audience with an Agent!

Who can enter? Novelists in North America.

How does it work? We will post full contest rules in the "Promotions" section of the blog so you can refer back to them whenever you need to - or print them out.

Who is the agent? None other than the amazing uber agent: Wendy Lawton of Books & Such Literary Agency.

There are two stages to the Audience with an Agent Contest:

Stage one: Submit as an attachment a sample chapter of your completed novel along with a one page synopsis to us at novelmatters@gmail.com by July 31, 2009. (This means you will have until that time to finish your novel if it isn't yet complete, but it is important that your book be finished when you submit your chapter and synopsis. Details of what is expected in a sample chapter and synopsis is posted in the "Promotions" section of the blog).

Stage two: If your manuscript is chosen, it will land on the desk of Wendy Lawton in October, 2009. Wendy will read the sample chapter and synopsis. There will be a total of six manuscripts that will make it to this stage. At that point, it is possible that Wendy will contact one or more of six authors and ask to see a full manuscript. It is completely up to Wendy Lawton's discretion to seek out more information from a writer.

What? Only ONE Chapter?
Yes. Just one.
Latayne shared this story with us one evening: "Once I interviewed several prominent editors from Christian publishing houses for an article I was writing for Christian Retailing magazine, for an article entitled, "What Makes a Bestseller?" One very prominent editor told me of the importance of the first few lines of a manuscript. She said that if the writing didn't "grab" her on the first page -- or conversely, turned her off in those first few lines -- she didn't read further.
All the editors I talked to said that they read manuscripts, proposals, query letters etc. trying to find a reason to reject them. Now, they may not have said it so baldly, but that's what they meant. That's because everyone is inundated with writing. They simply don't have the time to keep reading through boring/illiterate/inappropriately-pitched materials to find something good later on.
When I conducted the interview with this editor, she told of hiring kids from her church youth group to come to her corporate office on Saturdays once a month. She would pay them and buy them pizza just to stuff manuscripts and proposals back into SASEs with form-letter rejection slips. She pictured mountains of materials that deserved a response -- but did not deserve to be published.
Now, that was a decade ago when major publishing houses were all still accepting manuscripts directly from authors; and in the early days of electronic submissions. But I would imagine the story is even more overt today: The ease of electronic submission has made it even easier for increasing numbers of people to send off their projects. Now, if a synopsis or first chapter doesn't compel an agent or editor to read further than the first computer monitor screenful, why would they?"

Some writers ask, "How can an agent or editor really know if they want my book based only on the first chapter and a synopsis?"

The answer is that while you probably won't be offered a contract from a first reading, there is more than enough information in the first chapter and synopsis to let an agent or editor know she wants more. It shows you've got the chops for writing. And it leads to the next step.

Get your submissions ready to send in. We look forward to hearing from you.

Chimeraworld

2009-04-18T12:10:00.000-07:00

MILITARY INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX, DETENTION CAMPS FOR DISSIDENTS, RFID CHIP GLOBAL TYRANNY, FALSE FLAG TERRORISM, BIOCHEMICAL ATTACK, MARTIAL LAW ON OUR STREETS, TOTAL SURVEILLANCE STATE, THE SUPRESSION OF KNOWLEDGE IS POWER . . . following a mass awakening, the Global Elite are annihilated.

For Chimeraworld #6, I want stories depicting THE WORLD AFTER THE COMING REVOLUTION, as mankind returns to a life stripped of Capitalism and Mass Media Propaganda. Is this a worse or a better world, without the Google-fuelled glare of the bankers dictating every move you make? I want insane stories about a travelling life, a journey through real freedom. I want uncensored stories about chaos, uncertainty and anarchy. I want enlightening stories about how the world deals with no money, no banks and no business loans.

I want your story of how yourself and your family get by once everything you know about Modern Society has been eradicated, when the Global Elite's power grab has been exposed and has failed in spectacular fashion. I want stories about life after global brain-washing, stories of life filled with compassion and promise that one day we'll be embraced by the wider society of our galaxy. What was your part in the revolution and how you made a difference to the new world disorder?

I want Chimeraworld #6 to be a testament to the awakening of mankind, stories about immersion in the galactic melting pot – hardcore experimentation, dimensional travel, body-swapping with alien races, DNA bartering, galactic superheroes, real cultural exchange. Everything is permitted. Nothing is a crime. Surrealism is your saviour.

Chimeraworld #6 (new world disorder) will be published by Chimericana Books, late 2009 in American format 6" by 9" trade paperback. Word count: 2,000–4,000 words, strict. Payment: £10.00UK (approx $20.00US). Esubs: only to m.i.k.e.@m.i.k.e.philbin.com (remove the dots in m.i.k.e. ). Format: Rich Text Format only. Font: Times Roman, 12 point, single space. Add postal address, email and word count to first page. Add 50–100 word bio after THE END.

For those of you reading this who are still a tad confused and might have read/submitted to previous Chimeraworlds where the guidelines were much more prescriptive, let me reiterate that I want what you think you can offer to this anthology. How you think the future pans out.

It could talk about a continued civil war as clan-ism takes root once again.
It could talk about Capitalist-free utopias where freelove is the new social Macaq.
It could talk about a world stunned into peace by the arrival of a new race, uncloaking from the rags of society.

Anything you wanna submit has the potential to be appropriate, as long as it's after the Global Banking Elite, and the present structure of society, has been vanquished.

NEW MORALITY, NEW BELIEF SYSTEMS, NEW FAMILY, NEW SOCIAL LIFE, NO MORE WARS, CREATIVITY IS KING, LIBERATION FROM THE DAILY GRIND, COME OUT FROM UNDER THAT STOMPING COMBAT BOOT AND SHOW ME WHAT YOU GOT!

Mike Philbin, editor for Chimericana Books

Shadows of the Emerald City.

2009-04-08T05:15:00.000-07:00

Submission period ending: July 31^st, 2009.

POD Anthology.

No other story has touched as many hearts and endeared itself into the American fabric as 'The Wizard of Oz' by L. Frank Baum. Often toted as America's first Fairy Tale, this heartwarming classic has been made and remade again and again across every medium known to man. The themes are timeless, the characters themselves beloved.

And now, here is your chance to rip that all to bloody, meaty pieces.

Like all fairy tales, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz has one foot rooted in the fantastic, and the other foot planted in blood. There are some very adult themes taken lightly in this novel, themes of child abduction, murder, cannibalism, torture, witchcraft, and more. Shadows DO fall in the Emerald City, and where they are their darkest is where you will find the true terror of Oz.

What we want to see are horror stories based on the world of Oz. This includes the characters, the settings, the world itself. We're deconstructing an American institution, so we'd like to see what you can come up with. Blood and gore, or explicit sex? By all means. As long as it reads as part of the natural progression of the story and not some fucked up penthouse letter.

Scare us. Disgust us. More than anything though, give us a reason to turn the page.

Tentative Publication Date: Fall 2009.

Particulars

Stories should come in under 10k words. Now I say should, because Iï¿½m not going to leave something amazing on the floor because it's 11k words, but it had better be something very special to be seriously considered. Anything in the 5-10k range is perfect. Unpublished work preferred, but please query if you have a previously published work that you think would fit this collection.

Payment

Payment is $20.00 US and 1 contributor copy, paid on publication. I am paying for the right to use your stories one time (AKA ONE TIME WORLD WIDE RIGHTS) for this particular short story collection, and all rights will revert back to you upon publication.

Submission Format

Please send all stories, questions, and complaints BY EMAIL ONLY to ozhorror @ gmail.com. Please remove the spaces prior to mailing. or click the TWO handy links I created just for you. Standard submission format is acceptable. RTF files only please. Return time will be <4>

Open Submissions: Demons: A Clash of Steel Anthology

2009-04-07T07:35:00.000-07:00

You are hereby cordially invited to submit
your tales of demonic wickedness and diabolical wages!

For this shall be an anthology devoted to
the devilish fiends who seek to wreak havoc among mankind upon the mortal plane –
and of the paladins and warriors who return the vanquished denizens of all the hells
to whence they’ve come!

Grab thee pen and paper now!

Join in the epic battle that eternally wages betwixt humanity and all that hates it!
Face off against evil incarnate and make us whimper in despair - or cheer in triumph.

It is your choice.

Submission Period:

April 1 - June 15, 2009

Release Date:

August 15, 2009

RBE has assumed the “Clash of Steel” series and existing titles from the late Carnifex Press. The first order of business is the re-issuance of the original three CoS titles. RBE is beginning with Demons as the first CoS title to be incorporated into the “Rogue Blades Presents” series of premium anthologies and collections. Similar to other titles in the “RBP” series, every CoS cover will have a standard color and appearance — black is the CoS color! All CoS titles will have black-bordered covers, NEW cover art, titles such as “Rogue Blades Presents” Demons: A Clash of Steel Anthology, and consist of 90-100,000 words. Each anthology will be re-edited by yours truly, with a salute to their creator, Armand Rosamilia, on the title page.

Almost all of the previous authors in the original version of Demon have agreed to return in the re-issued version. The current Demon contains roughly 50k in words - so I will be needing almost double its contents. CoS story lengths will remain the same — 2500-5000 words — so this anthology could reach 30 stories in length.

RBE is offering a flat $30 within 90 days of signing contracts, plus two complimentary copies (1 print/1 electronic) of the book at publication, the permanent right to purchase additional copies at the contributor price (RBE’s standard 42% off the cover price), and the opportunity to include half-page vertical ads for other works of the author for $5 each (a savings of $37).

Demons: A Clash of Steel Anthology will be in print by mid-August, in time to attend Dragon*Con with other RBE titles - even if I do not hit the desired word count. Submissions will (pretty much) be read and responded to as they are received. If you have not received a rejection or request to keep your story in the running within 3 days of submission, query or submit again! IMPORTANT: Because I will be reading them as I see them, hook me immediately! Do not delay my gratification - I am too busy to continue reading stories that cannot give me the good stuff up front. I will still provide non-standard rejections with feedback - but I can only provide feedback up until the point at which I quit reading.

CoS tales should be powerful, action-oriented tales of steel versus sorcery -

in this particular case,
strength of man versus spawn of hell!

Some will win and defeat evil - but not unscathed!
Some will lose and die horribly at the hands of evil.

Don’t think - just act!

Don’t emote - just do!

Submissions should ONLY be sent via email
with .RTF attachments and a subject line that reads like this:

Submission: Demons: your story title,
e.g., Submission: Demons: Helter-Skelter

Email? editor@roguebladesentertainment.com
Words? 2,500 to 5,000 words - Over or under word count is not a grave disqualification, but I am not looking for flash or too much more than 5k.
Rights? First World Volume and Electronic Display Rights (with limited exclusivity)
Stories? Multiple submissions are allowed - but separately please! Authors may have more than one story in CoS anthologies. Reprints are allowed - so long as the author can demonstrate reversion of rights.
Submissions? If you simultaneously submit - tell me and keep me informed.
Format? Make sure I can read it.

Horror eBook anthology - "Vermin"

2009-04-04T05:27:00.001-07:00

Reading period will be April 15th - July 15th 2009

Stories submitted before the reading date or after the reading dates will be returned unread, NO EXCEPTIONS!

What the "Vermin" anthology's theme will be...

Stories about those tiny, menacing feet inside the walls, creatures watching you from the darkenss of the halls at midnight... you tell me, and make it creepy! And PLEASE no generic 'rat-creature in the attic, kills the exterminator, etc.' tales... be original!

Length and submission...

We are looking for tales in the 2,500-7,500 word range. Nothing more, nothing less. We will return (unread) anything not within these guidelines. You can submit a story as either an attachment to the e-mail address in Word or in the body of an e-mail. We do NOT accept snail mail. Please put "Vermin Sub" in the subject of the e-mail and give a word count in the e-mail itself, even if the story also has it listed. Our reading time is usually 6-8 weeks NO multiple submissions, NO exceptions. Reprints accepted.

Payment info...

We pay a flat $3.00 for each story accepted via PayPal. That's it. We are a brand new eBook-only publisher looking to get the name out there and get some quality releases under our belts without making the mistake of so many other small-press publishers and overdoing it in the beginning. We pay everyone once the anthology has been officially filled. If this is acceptable, kindly submit to us.

rymfireebooks@gmail.com

Love Stories Magazine

2009-04-01T07:04:00.000-07:00

Any previously published stories are not acceptable.

The overall theme should involve short stories of Male/Female love and romance. These stories may be contemporary, historic, inspirational, paranormal, or any other theme as long as love and romance are the main thrust of the story. Story length should range from 3,000 to 5,000 Words

ALL STORIES MUST CONTAIN WITHIN THE ATTACHED DOCUMENT, A STORY SYNOPSIS PROCEEDING THE BODY OF THE WORK.

When submitting stories via e-mail, please include the story title within the SUBJECT line.

While we will accept any story having to do with love and romance, we are currently seeking stories with some sexuality incorporated into the plot to stimulate interest and allow the reader to live vicariously. However, stories should not be overtly graphic or pornographic in nature. Suggestive phrases should be used in the place of reference to body parts and inappropriate language.

All stories must be checked for spelling and grammar. License with grammar may be taken if it carries the story or character forward.

Stories are to be submitted as Microsoft Word attachments, SINGLE SPACED USING TIMES NEW ROMAN 12 POINT TYPE.

Please include STORY TITLE and ALL contact information - NAME, ADDRESS, PHONE AND E-MAIL - on the first page of the story.

The first line of each paragraph must be indented two spaces from the left. All dialogue should be enclosed within double quotes.

Please allow up to 10-12 weeks for us to review your manuscript.

Submissions should be sent to the following address:

submit@newlovestori es.com

or

All hard copy submissions should include a SASE.

New Love Stories Magazine
C/O Phoenix Magazine Publishing Company Inc.
1040 First Avenue
Suite 323
New York, NY 10022-2902
908-222-0990

http://www.newloves tories.com/submissions.html

Learning Through History

2009-03-29T14:58:00.000-07:00

Vol 7, Issue 4- Egypt's New Kingdom (1570–1070 BC)

The deadline for submissions for this issue is April 15, 2009. Below are a few of the topics that we are seeking submissions on:

Valley of the Kings
Ahmose I and Egypt's Expansion
Akhenaten, the Heretic Pharaoh
Boy King Tutankhamun
A Unusual Pharoah:Hatshepsut
The City of Thebes
Battle of Kadesh
Egyptian Deities
Ramses the Great
Tomb Robbing
New Kingdom Mummification
Farming in the Nile River Valley
Art During the Reign of Thutmose I
Amenhotep III's Stone Scarabs

CONTENT AREAS:

NonFiction
$75 per article

This includes biographies and various other approaches to history, science, mathematics, geography and arts that pertain to the topic in each issue. We do NOT publish lesson plans.

We are looking for focused and exciting articles, rather than broad factual surveys (aka history textbook style) that will engage our young readers. They should be written at an appropriate grade-level given our readership - middle school through high school with reading level not to exceed the 9th grade if using Word.

Articles should be 1000-1400 words and include at least three meaningful discussion questions or activity suggestions that can be used with the article. See the Magazine Tour for good examples. Note: Discussion questions should not be counted in the word count.

References or sources of information must be included with submissions - please provide as a separate page of the manuscript. We use this for fact-checking sources. Sources for corresponding websites and public domain photos welcome.

Arts & Crafts Projects
$75 per project

Arts and crafts submissions should appeal to ages 10+ and tie into the historical topic or theme of each issue. Project plans must include clear, numbered directions and require inexpensive, easy-to-obtain materials. Two or more high-resolution digital photos (JPEG, Photoshop or Illustrator files - 300 dpi min.) of the project are required for acceptance.
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DEADLINE
The deadline for submissions for Vol 7, Issue 4 is 4/15/09

SUBMISSIONS

Submissions are via email; please send directly to:

submissions@LearningThroughHistory.com

Keep in mind the reading level of our audience. Readability should be between the 6th and 9th grade reading levels and no higher. Microsoft Word has a grammar check function that can give you readability statistics.

Please include the word "submission" in the email subject header. Please send as a Microsoft Word file. If you do not have Word, send us a plain text (.txt) file only - we can not read other word processing formats, such as Works - .wks files.

Please ensure that your name and the title of the work appear on all pages of the manuscript. Do not include any fancy formatting or embedded graphics in your file.

Include your name, regular-mail address where we can send payment and a copy of the magazine if your article is accepted, and a short 20-30-word bio written in the third person.

We will notify you of submission receipt within 2 weeks. Allow 4 weeks or more after issue closing date for notification of submission acceptance or decline. Queries on status prior to this time will not be answered.

We do not accept submissions from any third-parties or agencies, only original authors.

NOTE: We accept queries ONLY from established authors who have previously published works for younger audiences and can provide numerous, relevant examples. All queries must include details about your proposed article (i.e. topic, length, etc.) - an email stating that you'd like to write an article for us with no other information is NOT a query).

All others must submit completed works for consideration.
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RIGHTS

We buy ALL rights, both print and electronic, including copyright. If you are not comfortable with these terms, please do not send us submissions, as terms are not negotiable.
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PAYMENT AND KILL FEES

Payment is upon publication and is paid in U.S. funds via check. See above under the content areas for specific payment amounts. Contributors will also receive a free copy of the issue in which their work appears.

If we assign you work based upon a query or accept a manuscript that we end up not publishing, we will pay a kill fee of 50% of the agreed upon rate. Rights of works that are not used are retained by the writer.

Five Markets - Fiction, Nonfiction and Poetry

2009-03-25T06:02:00.000-07:00

The Tampa Marketing Company is seeking contributing authors for Five Books to be published in June 2009. The Collections for 2009 are:

1. Ghost Stories and Unusual Tales.
Fictional stories about ghosts, spirits, and the paranormal

2. What Sports (and Sports Viewing) Is Really About
Fictional stories about why people are so attached to sports activities. Stories can be about the activity itself, friendships made, or almost any aspect of the sports world.

3. Depression/Recession ? The Economy in 2009.
Fictional and/or testimonial stories about hardships faced in todays economy.

4. Relationships: the Good , the Bad, and the Funny
Fictional stories about the good, the funny, and the bad side of relationships.

5. Measures of Time, A Collection of Contemporary Poetry.
Creative poetry reflecting today's emotions, living, and times.

Compensation and Submission Information:
Short Story writers will be paid $50 upon approval of their story for publication and will receive 4 books upon publishing. Poets will receive $25 and 2 books for each poem accepted.
Authors may submit more than one story or poem. Fees will be paid within 30 days of receipt of an executed Writer Acceptance Agreement.
Story must be original, on topic, and all rights to the story must belong to the author.
Deadline for entry is March 31,2009.
Selections will be made by April 10, 2009.

To Submit a Story:
Email story to bill@tampamarketingcompany.com

Heading must indicate which subject area the story belongs to and title of the article.
Name, address, phone, and email of the author must be provided. Story must be submitted in a Microsoft Word File. Stories to not be longer than 3,000 words. Poetry limited to 1,500 words

Availability of Finished Books. The books will be available for pre-order and will be extensively marketed through all available store and online outlets. ORDER BOOKS AND GET MORE INFORMATION at http://writercollections.com/

Life Without Series

2009-03-21T05:20:00.000-07:00

-- Writers wanted for new collection of true stories --

We are looking for writers – newbies, hobbiest, or professionals - to help contribute true stories to our first series in a new collection called Life Without ...

Life Without ... presents a glimpse into the window of life of people who live life missing a key element but yet still live with the insights shaped inevitable by what is missing. These true stories open a display of raw emotions, intriguing thoughts, and intimate memories culminating into powerful life lessons. These stories should touch the human chords that encourage, entertain, and enlighten all of us and not just those who live life without.

Life Without ...Dad is the first series in this collection - which is currently under development. These true stories will be accounts from individuals who grew up without a dad whether due to divorce, passing, or other reasons. These stories will detail a specific memory or event that culminates by providing insight into the window of life without dad.

If you have a story to share with others about life without dad; we would love to hear from you! Please review our writers guidelines and submit your story.

Corrected Link: http://www.thelifewithout.com/

Chicken Soup for the Soul: NASCAR

2009-03-19T04:57:00.000-07:00

101 Stories of Family, Fortitude, and Fast Cars

Everyone loves great stories about families working and playing together, grit and perseverance, and fast cars! We are collecting stories for the ultimate NASCAR book, coming out in February 2010, in time for the new season. We are excited to have well-known NASCAR columnist Cathy Elliott editing the book.

Do you have a great NASCAR story to share? We prefer stories and poems written in the first person of no more than 1,200 words.

Here are some suggested topics, but we know you can think of many more:

Interacting with the drivers
Experiences you have had with family members at the track or at home
NASCAR family traditions
Things you have seen drivers do that you found admirable or inspiring
Finding love at the racetrack, or even getting married there
Funniest personal NASCAR moments
Individual drivers and what they have meant to you
Ways that NASCAR has brought your family together
Stories about the most passionate, dedicated, or downright obsessive fans
you have ever met
Your first NASCAR experience and what it meant to you
Your favorite racetrack
Why NASCAR is part of your life
Kids and NASCAR
NASCAR's patriotism
Experiences in the infield...

If your story is chosen, you will be a published author and your bio will be printed in the book if you so choose. You will also receive a check for $200 and 10 free copies of your book, worth more than $100. You will retain the copyright for your story and you will retain the right to resell it.

SUBMISSIONS GO TO http://www.chickensoup.com/form.asp?cid=submit_story

A Book of Miracles

2009-03-11T04:47:00.000-07:00

Chicken Soup for the Soul, A Book of Miracles

Chicken Soup for the Soul, A Book of Miracles, with co-author LeAnn Thieman, is looking for true stories showing signs and wonders God is performing today. We invite people of all faiths to share their stories of ordinary people whose lives are transformed by wondrous events. Whether a "Divine coincidence, " an appearance of God, or answered prayers, this book will show God's miracle power in action, alive and very active in the world today!

Please share your heart-warming, humorous and powerfully moving stories of no more than 1,200 words.

Here are some suggested topics, but we know you can think of many more:

*"Divine coincidence"
*Healing
*Angels
*Everyday miracles
*Safety and Protection
*Visions and Voices
*Heavenly Connections
*Overcoming Obstacles
*Intercession of Saints
*Power of Prayer
*Holy Spirit
*Signs from Above

If your story is chosen, you will be a published author and your bio will be printed in the book if you so choose. You will also receive a check for $200 and 10 free copies of the book, worth more than $100. You will retain the copyright and the rights to your story.

SUBMISSIONS GO TO http://chickensoupforthesoul.com/form.asp?cid=submit_story.

DEADLINE IS MARCH 31, 2009. Book is scheduled for publication in 2010

Surfing's Greatest Misadventures: Volume 2

2009-03-03T04:27:00.000-08:00

DEADLINE: May 30th, 2009

We are seeking stories, articles and essays on the general subject of surfing misadventure for publication in Surfing's Greatest Misadventures: Volume 2. We are looking for nonfiction, first-person surf stories of bad judgment calls, pranks, comical/ironic episodes, disaster, attacking predators, misfortune, injury, loss of wit or limb, panic, critical conditions, contest meltdowns, everyday fears, surf trips gone wrong or the out-of-water episodes that surround surfing. Weâ€™re looking for well-written stories that tell a good tale, reflect a culture, and develop the depth of the characters involved. We also like stories that have a tight narrative tension and a payoff at the end. Open to writers and surfers of any level. There is no fee or cost to submit a story.

What do we mean by surfing?

We include the following types of wave riding: surfing, body boarding, bodysurfing, tow-in surfing, wind surfing, kiteboarding and other forms of wave riding on a board.

Payment
Writers will be paid $100 and four contributor copies upon publication if their story is selected for publication.

Book Description
The true stories in this one-of-a-kind collection cross the spectrum from terrifying to comical to downright bizarre. Prepare yourself for the most gripping and unbelievable stories about big waves, shark attacks, tsunamis, boating disasters, devastating wipeouts, pranks, and bad judgment calls. These thirty tales, by surf journalists, filmmakers, magazine editors, watermen, and everyday surfers, illuminate the less enchanting aspects of a life committed to surf.

For more info: http://www.casagran depress.com/ surfing2. html

Chicken Soup for the Soul: What I Learned From the Cat

2009-02-26T05:44:00.000-08:00

101 Stories about Life, Love, and Lessons

Cats have always been wonderful companions and playmates that brighten and enrich our lives but they are also amazing teachers. We want cat lovers, both lifelong and reluctant, to share the lessons they have learned about life from their furry companions. The stories in this book will delight readers with the often humorous, heartwarming, poignant and always inspiring lessons taught to us by our feline friends and family members.

We are looking for true stories and poems written in the first person of no more than 1,200 words. Stories can be serious or humorous, or both. Remember, these stories should be about lessons learned from your cat rather than general stories about your cat.

If your story is chosen, you will be a published author and your bio will be printed in the book if you so choose. You will also receive a check for $200 and 10 free copies of your book, worth more than $100. You will retain the copyright for your story.

SUBMISSIONS GO TO
http://chickensoupf orthesoul. com/form. asp?cid=submit_ story.

The deadline for submissions is March 31, for publication in September 2009.

CONTACT US

Please do not reply or send questions to this address. For any further questions or correspondence, contact webmaster@chickenso upforthesoul. com or visit our website at
http://www.chickens oup.com.

All About Eve

2009-02-24T07:31:00.000-08:00

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS

Eve - the first woman - some call her Pandora. Both the Christian and ancient Greek myths make her the reason man was plagued with the ills of the world. Whether in convincing Adam to taste of the fruit of the forbidden tree of knowledge or in giving in to her curiosity and opening a forbidden box that contained all of the plagues.

Well, it’s time she had a chance to tell her story.

WolfSinger Publications is looking for stories about the first woman created by the gods. Be imaginative and draw on more than just the traditional Christian and Greek stories. Let her tell her side of the story - whether she was manipulated and tricked into her actions or whether she acted willfully and in full knowledge of what her actions might bring. Or maybe - just maybe she acted out of spite for some wrong done to her.

Tell us her side of things - make the reader look at the old myths and stories in a new light and also at the differences in the genders in a new way.

BTW: Don’t forget about Lilith either - in some stories she was Adam’s first wife, before Eve.

Stories should be 3000-5000 words long.
Payment will be $5.00 plus equal share of 50 percent of royalties

Please send your submission to editor@wolfsingerpubs.com as an .rtf attachment.
Put “Eve Submission: ‘Title - Last Name’” in the subject line.

Deadline is 31 August 2009 (planned for a November/December release)

Preferred genre is Fantasy, but most will be considered if the story works. Please no erotica.

Destination Future

2009-02-21T05:08:00.000-08:00

Description: Science Fiction anthology to be edited by Z.S. Adani and Eric T. Reynolds

Publisher: Hadley Rillie Books

Submission Guidelines:

We are looking for Science Fiction stories, particularly Hard SF, Space Operas, Alien Worlds, Alien Encounter, Exploration, and Quest Stories. (We prefer not to receive alternative and historical fiction, fantasy, steampunk, or horror for this anthology, but other than that it's pretty open.

Length: 3000 – 6000 words

Electronic Submissions Only. Send as an attachment to an email message. Microsoft Word .doc file is preferred, or .rtf is okay (please contact us if you need to make arrangements for another format). Please virus scan your document before sending.

Email Your Story To: submissions.future [at] gmail [dot] com

Important: Place Destination Future in the subject line

For more information visit their website: http://www.hadleyrillebooks.com/DestinationFutureSubs.html

Chicken Soup for the Soul: True Love

2009-02-15T05:11:00.001-08:00

Chicken Soup for the Soul: True Love
101 Heartwarming and Humorous Stories about Dating, Romance, Love and Marriage

Everyone loves a good love story. And we all love stories about how the love started and blossomed.

Join us in a fun new book about dating, romance, love, and marriage, scheduled for publication in January 2010, just in time for Valentine's Day.

We are looking for true stories and poems about your soulmate, your true love, the one that got away, and all the ups and downs of your love life. Stories can be serious or hilarious, or both.

We prefer stories and poems written in the first person of 600-1,200 words. Stories should not be pre-published unless in very small publications.

Here are some suggested topics, but we know you can think of many more:
Dating adventures - the good and the bad
How you met
Internet searching and dating
Speed dating and other strategies
When did you know?
Proposals
Wedding stories
Parental pressure and support
Pressure and support from children
Senior dating and love at a certain age
Making marriage work
Second chances

If your story is chosen, you will be a published author and your bio will be printed in the book if you so choose. You will also receive a check for $200 and 10 free copies of your book, worth more than $100. You will retain the copyright for your story and you will retain the right to resell it.

SUBMISSIONS GO TO
http://www.chickens oupforthesoul. com/form. asp?cid=submit_ story

DEADLINE IS May 31, 2009.

Teen relationships will be covered in a future book, so please do not submit them for this book.

Butcher Knives & Body Counts

2009-02-13T10:34:00.000-08:00

Butcher Knives & Body Counts: Essays on the Formula, Frights, and Fun of the Slasher Film

From meat cleavers and machetes to summer camp carnage and sorority house massacres, from final girls and scream queens to demented deviants and dead teenagers, slasher films turned body counts into box office gold. It’s the oft-maligned - but surprisingly durable - sub-genre of horror films that uses a Freudian rulebook and bases the survival rates of its characters on vice and virtue. From the low-budget aesthetics of the 70’s and 80’s to the self-referential gloss of the 90’s and beyond, Butcher Knives & Body Counts will explore the archetype of the slasher film and trace its evolution from formula to franchise. From the inventive kills and the gory intestine spills right down to the last tagline and toe tag, Butcher Knives & Body Counts will celebrate the enduring formula, frights, and fun of slasher movies.

The project will be less a “guide” - what most would immediately associate with encapsulated reviews - and more a comprehensive collection of critical essays on the slasher film genre. In addition to opportunities for analyses of individual films, DSP is also looking for essays on various aspects of the slasher film genre. We anticipate those essays dealing with individual films to be in the 1,000- to 1,500-word range, with a slightly larger word range and some added flexibility for essays pertaining to the more general aspects of the genre.

As we did with our Unspeakable Horror anthology, Dark Scribe Press has established a dedicated blog for the project where submission guidelines, tips, and announcements will be posted. We have also posted at left of the blog a list of films already covered and a “wish list” of films we’re looking to have covered. We also offer some suggested topics that will give potential contributors an idea of what we’re open to in relation to the broader essays.

Butcher Knives & Body Counts: Essays on the Formula, Frights, and Fun of the Slasher Film will be a comprehensive non-fiction collection of essays on the slasher genre and its films, due for publication by Dark Scribe Press in the first quarter of 2010.

We’ve taken great care to compose submission guidelines that are detailed and as all-encompassing as possible. Please take the time to read through the following guidelines in their entirety before contacting us with questions.

We have two primary needs for this project:

I. Essays on Individual Films: 1,000 to 1,500 words on individual slasher films. Please note the lists at left which provide a directory of films already covered and those we’re especially interested in. This second list is not all-inclusive of our interests and we are open to essays on slasher films not on our list.

There are three distinct elements that we are looking for in the essays covering individual films:

* A strong angle or approach to the film. This angle should be clearly communicated within a catchy, creative subtitle;
* Passion for the film and the writer’s ability to articulate the film’s enduring appeal and how it contributed to the genre;
* A balanced integration of film theory/commentary and tribute/personal anecdote. We want to read essays in which the writer connects with a chosen film in a personal way.

Considerations before Submitting:

* We are not looking for encapsulated reviews. Elements of plot synopsis should be well-integrated into the essay and inconspicuous to the reader;
* We are open to single essays that take on two films, if the films have a direct relation such as sequels or remakes.

II. Essays on the Slasher Genre: 1,000 to 2,000 (query first for longer) words on the slasher genre or elements of the genre. We are looking for engaging essays that explore the formula and psychology of the slasher film, the history and evolution of the slasher, individual elements of the slasher, the influence of the slasher film in popular culture, the sociological exploration of the slasher from alternate perspectives (i.e. race, religion, sexual orientation), sub-genres of the slasher (subhuman slashers, hospital/medical slashers, summer camp slashers, etc.), comparative analyses that examine originals versus remakes (see above) or take on particular characters (villains, victims, or heroes/heroines), and trends in the slasher genre (i.e. remakes).

There are two distinct elements that we are looking for in the essays covering individual films:

* Ingenuity of topic and approach to subject matter is going to impress us. Think sub-genres and narrow (versus obscure) focuses;
* We want thought-provoking essays that take a more learned, well-read style than scholarly textbook approach to the subject matter. Think well-articulated pop culture versus academic recitation, cerebral but accessible.

General Tips:

* Passion will be key for any writer interested in becoming part of this project. We love slasher films - so you won’t be able to fake your enthusiasm(!).

Payment: $0.05 (five cents) per word for original essays upon contract for FNAR. $0.02 (two cents) per word for reprints. For the purposes of payment consideration, works having previously appeared as part of blogs and other electronic or web-based publications will be considered reprints.

Submission Specifics:

Reading Period:

* Exclusive Call Period: In our efforts to support and encourage support of the professional writing organizations working on behalf of dark genre literature, members (at any level) of the following writing organizations will have a two-month exclusive submissions period beginning November 1st through December 31st: Horror Writers Association (HWA), International Thriller Writers (ITW), Mystery Writers of America (MWA), and the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA). Writers of these professional organizations should note their affiliation and status in their cover letters. Writers from other professional writing associations not listed above should query first.
* Open Call for Submissions: We welcome submissions from all writers beginning January 1st, 2009.
* The submission period ends April 30th, 2009.

Notification of Writers:

* Email confirmations will be sent upon submission. If you do not receive a confirmation that your submission has been received after two weeks, first check your Spam folder and then drop us a line. We’ve also taken the time to create this project-specific blog in an effort to communicate with writers. Please bookmark the page and check back for updates on where we stand with submissions.
* Expect to hear back on your submission(s) between 60 and 90 days from the date of confirmation. Essays will be either accepted or rejected outright, or we may ask to hold an essay until the end of our reading period. We realize that 6-8 months is a long period to ask to hold onto a particular essay, but because of the nature of this project we anticipate several submissions per film. At DSP, we realize that a writer’s time is money. If you receive an email from us asking to hold onto your submission until the end of the process and don’t want to tie up your work that long, simply let us know and we’ll take the piece out of consideration and release it back to you with our best wishes.

Formatting Submissions:

* Send as Word attachments only - do not send submissions in the body of an email or as any other type of attachment
* Use Courier, 12-point font
* Single space body of essay
* 5-space indent at beginning of new paragraphs
* No manual page or section breaks
* No extra spacing between paragraphs - the 5-space indent will tell us where a new paragraph begins
* Use 1-inch margins - this includes top, bottom, left and right
* Film titles within essays are to be italicized - do not use all caps or bold
* Working title of essay center on first page - do not use italics or all caps, no quotations
* For film essays, title should include film title and subtitle that communicates the angle of the essay separated by a colon.

Examples:
Curtains: Paging Agatha Christie
A Nightmare on Elm Street: No Sympathy for This Devil

* No headers or footers
* No page numbers
* At the top of the first page in the left-hand corner, single-spaced, please include the following information:

Name
Street Address
City
State
Zip Code
Email Address
Word
Count (body of submission, excluding title)

Multiple / Simultaneous Submissions:

* We will accept multiple submissions. Limit of (3) submissions per author. Send up to three at one time, but kindly wait until you hear back on one or more of your submissions before sending another.
* No simultaneous submissions.

Sending Submissions:

* Include a short cover letter in the body of your email with the film or topic your submission covers, 2-3 sentences describing the essay’s unique perspective, and a brief bio. For those submitting between November 1st and December 31st, please note your professional writing organization affiliation.
* Our plans for this project include interspersing first-person blurbs and anecdotes about the various films covered in between the essays. Kindly note any connections or contacts you may have with anyone involved with a specific film. While helpful to us, this is in no way a prerequisite to submission.
* Send submissions via email only to DSPsubmissions(at)AOL(dot)com.

Questions:

* Questions? Hopefully, we’ve covered all bases with these guidelines. If not and there is a pressing need for information, you may contact us at darkscribepress(at)AOL(dot)com. Due to time constraints, it may not be possible to answer questions individually. We will, however, compile questions and answer them here on the blog. Bookmark and check back often.
* Please do not email us asking if a particular film has been covered. Once we have made a final decision regarding an essay dealing with a particular film, the title will be added to our “Films Already Covered” list at left. Until then, all films are fair game. Again, check the blog often. If we receive a dozen essays dealing with The Burning, we may note that on the blog to discourage additional submissions on that film.
* Please note that queries about specific films are not required prior to submission. Films are not being “assigned” to particular writers (unless by invitation) and all films are up for grabs. There is no “first come, first served” aspect to the process. Writers are simply invited and encouraged to write about whichever film(s) or topic(s) interest them and to submit their best work. There will be an editorial selection process, meaning (for example) that if four essays are submitted on the film Motel Hell, we will choose the one that best fits our criteria and needs and will pass on the other three. As with most open calls for submissions, this is a competitive process versus calling dibs.

HIDEOUS EVERMORE HORROR ANTHOLOGY

2009-02-10T14:01:00.000-08:00

Shadow City Press is seeking short story submissions for an anthology of modern day, creature-themed horror tales entitled Hideous Evermore. We are looking for edgy, thought-provoking dark genre fiction—horror only. We are not interested in science fiction, fantasy, mystery, or splatter punk for this anthology. What we are seeking are stories about creatures of unknown origin that have rarely been read about in horror fiction (however, please avoid stories that only present the origin of the villain/beast). We do not want stories about zombies, vampires, werewolves, mummies, ghosts, psychopaths/serial killers, or any of the other horror clichés. Though many writers can present these types of characters in a new light, this anthology is focused on an original breed of creature to provoke the minds of readers.

At the heart of all submissions should be a theme of hideous terror. Scare us with something we’ve never seen! Generally, if you read your manuscript and it scares you, then it is probably a good fit for this anthology. In addition, we pride ourselves in publishing works that contain strong characters. Make your characters believable! Make us feel their struggles! Sex and gore are fine as long as they are an integral part of the story.

At Shadow City Press, we believe that horror is meant to frighten, disquiet, and strike deeply at the darkest places in the reader’s soul. Therefore, we ask that you only submit your darkest tales to us. If we do not like the tale, we will kindly pass on it. Submissions that do not adhere to the guidelines presented here, will automatically be discarded.

Submissions should be between 1,000 and 3,500 words. Payment for accepted stories is 1 cent per word and one contributor’s copy of Hideous Evermore upon publication. We will acquire first-time North American rights for original works, to appear in our anthology Hideous Evermore, slated for release in the Spring/Summer of 2009.

We are not accepting simultaneous submissions or reprints.

All electronic submissions should be in the following standard manuscript format:

· Microsoft Word Document (.doc)

· 12pt Courier New Font

· Double-spaced

· First page should include Author contact info, title of work, byline, and word count

· Last Name, Title, Page Number on upper right of every page after first page

ALL stories should be well-crafted. Numerous spelling errors will work against you. Take the time to edit your work before submitting!

As editor, we have chosen our first published author, Andrew Wolter (author of Nightfall) to head-up this anthology. Andrew is a great writer and has a good eye for well-constructed stories and characters. Please email your query/cover letter AND attachment to him with the subject line: Hideous Evermore Submission. It is important that you email both Andrew and Seth Drake (editor at Shadow City Press), so that all lines of communication remain open. Therefore, email your electronic submissions to andrew@andrewwolter.com and editor@shadowcitypress.com. Once you have sent your email, you should receive a response from Shadow City Press within 1 day that we received your submission. Once we have confirmed receipt of your submission, please allow 30 to 60 days for a response. If your story is rejected, we will do our best to give you feedback. However, we kindly ask that you don’t argue with our rejection. Our guidelines are stringent. We prefer that all writers we work with display the same respect and professionalism that we give.

We will be open to submissions for our Hideous Evermore anthology now until March 31, 2009.

Should you have any questions, email Seth Drake at editor@shadowcitypress.com.

GENERAL SUBMISSIONS

Shadow City Press is currently open to submissions via invitation only. We have a strong team of publishing scouts who search for our authors through buzz created via Internet message boards, author web sites and popular sites such as MySpace. We hope to be offering general submission guidelines in the future.

Since we primarily focus on providing limited edition books to a vast audience, we can currently only do so on an author by author basis.

Feel free to check back to our website on a regular basis to view the latest author/book we are promoting and our future publishing criteria.

Appalachian Holiday Hauntings

2009-02-09T08:29:00.000-08:00

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES:

Title: Appalachian Holiday Hauntings

Editors: Michael Knost and Mark Justice

Publisher: Woodland Press

Publication date: November 1, 2009

Word count: 1000 to 3000 words

Pay: three-cents per word plus contributor copy (one-cent per word on reprints)

Submit to: xmasanthology@yahoo.com

Format: Attached RTF or Word Document file. (do not copy and paste into email body)

No simultaneous or multiple submissions

No explicit language or sexual content (this project will be in regional school systems)

Deadline: September 1, 2009 (do not inquire on status of submission until after this date)

We are looking for traditional Christmas ghost stories set in the Appalachian region. Think Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol with an Appalachian backdrop. However, given this example, we want to make sure you understand that stories may be set in any time frame, including the present.

We are not interested in tales that disrespect or alter the religious aspects of the holiday.

Return of the Raven

2009-02-06T04:10:00.000-08:00

Submission Guidelines for Upcoming Anthology

Horror Bound Online Magazine publications is announcing a call for submissions for a future anthology called Return of the Raven. (temporary title only).

This is a tribute to the master of Horror, Edgar Allan Poe. If you are inspired by the work of the master and his themes, tone, characterization and style then read on:

Preference will be given to:
*paranormal themes
*psi phenomena
*spooky, ghostly tales
*psychological horror
*both short stories and poetry

LENGTH
3,000-7,000 words (for short stories)

DEADLINE
We will be reading immediately. Deadline for submissions is March 31st, 2009 or until the anthology is filled.

PAYMENT
0.01 cents (CAN) per word. Payment made upon publication. You must have a paypal account. Money will be deposited into that account.

PRINT RIGHTS
First print rights, exclusive print rights for three years from time of publication. Author retains copyright. No reprints please.

HOW DO I KNOW YOU’VE RECEIVED MY SUBMISSIONS?
Within one (1) week of your submission, you'll receive an e-mail confirming that we received it. If you don't receive this confirmation, feel free to email and ask. After that you will NOT hear back from us unless we confirm that your story will appear in our anthology.

ARE MULTIPLE SUBMISSIONS OKAY?
Yes.

WHAT ABOUT SIMULTANEOUS SUBMISSIONS?
Simultaneous submissions to other publications are fine but please inform us if your story is placed.

WHAT ARE THE LIMITS ON SEXUAL/EROTIC CONTENT AND PROFANITY?
No sexual/erotic content or profanity.

LIMITS ON VIOLENCE AND GORE
The editors of this anthology are not big fans of either violence or gore. If there is going to be violence and gore, it better be a very compelling read!

SUBMISSION PROCEDURE
Send the file to admin@horrorbound.com. Must be in .doc format or .rtf. NO PDFS PLEASE.

ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS?
Send an e-mail to admin@horrorbound.com

PSYCHO BOY/PSYCHO GIRL

2009-02-05T04:46:00.000-08:00

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES FOR:
PSYCHO BOY/PSYCHO GIRL

Ah…romance. We all want it. We all want to find that special someone. Someone to share our hopes and dreams with, someone to confide in and just sit next to on a cold, rainy day. But finding that special someone usually means dating, which for lack of a better definition means a roller coaster ride into the minds of the insane. You may meet some nice people who just don’t fit with your qualifications, sure, we get that, but it seems more often than not you end up sitting across a restaurant table listening to Joe Blow’s reason for eating human flesh and Jane Blow’s explanation for setting her ex’s house on fire.

And those are the good dates. Oh yes, it can get much much worse.

We here at Rapier Press want to hear about the WORST DATE YOU’VE EVER HAD and we want you to spare no detail. We are looking for stories in the 1500-4000 word range (query for longer/shorter tales). These stories will be included in our first ever anthology: Psycho Boy/Psycho Girl: True Tales of the Worst Dates Imaginable.

Reading Period: February 1st to March 31st or until filled.

What we want: True stories of dates gone bad. Everything from the time you and your date ended up in jail to the time you found yourselves tied to a motel bed in Nicaragua. The crazier the story, the more chance it has of being accepted. We’re really looking for funny, exciting, and benignly nightmarish stuff. We are striving for an equal number of stories from both sexes.

What we don’t want: We don’t want full names. This is not about getting revenge on the girl or guy who broke your heart or stole your money. Any stories that come in with people’s full names will be immediately rejected. Stick to first names or some other kind of description (Mr. BuckTooth, Mrs. Crazy Eyes, etc). We also don’t want GRAPHIC sex. Stories of sex are fine, and you are welcome to include sex (this book is for adults after all) but try not to be gross about it. Look at it this way, we’d happily print a story like Cameron Diaz’s hair gel moment in Something About Mary—that’s funny—but a 5000 word story about deformed genitalia will likely be rejected. Also, this book is meant to be fun, so nothing depressing or involving people getting seriously hurt.

DO NOT MAKE UP YOUR STORIES. We are hoping to build some nice writer/publisher relationships here. Impress us once and we’re likely to offer invites to future books. If we find out you lied about your tale, you will never work with us again and your story will be cut from future runs of the book.

Payment: Authors will receive a flat payment of $15 via paypal and a contributor copy of the book. Yes, we realize that is a horrendously low payment and we should be flogged repeatedly for the insult, and rabid monkeys and venomous tarantulas should be set loose in our bedrooms, but this is our first book and we are paying for it ourselves. We will increase our rates for future books as sales go up. You’re welcome to sub elsewhere if you don’t agree with the rate. Or you can toilet paper our houses if you can find them.

Book Format and Accessibility: The book will be printed in POD format. This means it WILL be available through online retailers such as Amazon.com, Walmart.com, Borders.com, etc. We will do our best to get it in stores but brick and mortar stores often will not buy POD books until a certain sales figure has been reached online. It can be done and we hope to get there eventually, but chances are that won’t happen with this first book.

Submission guidelines: Email your manuscript as a WORD DOC or RTF attachment to rapierpress_AT_hotmail_DOT_com. Please use a 12-point readable font -- SINGLE SPACED. Yes, we repeat, single spaced. If we want to make liner notes later we will adjust the line spacing ourselves. Why single spaced? Because this email is attached to our Crackberrys, allowing us to read submissions whenever and wherever, and it’s way easier to read the stories if they’re single spaced. One more time: SINGLE SPACED.

Include your name and email on the cover page. Place the title of the story, page number, and your name in the header of each page. Please only submit one story at a time. No simultaneous submissions.

Return time: We will get back to you as quickly as we can.

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Open Submissions: Demons: A Clash of Steel Anthology

You are hereby cordially invited to submityour tales of demonic wickedness and diabolical wages!

For this shall be an anthology devoted tothe devilish fiends who seek to wreak havoc among mankind upon the mortal plane –and of the paladins and warriors who return the vanquished denizens of all the hellsto whence they’ve come!

Grab thee pen and paper now!

Join in the epic battle that eternally wages betwixt humanity and all that hates it!Face off against evil incarnate and make us whimper in despair - or cheer in triumph.

It is your choice.

Submission Period:

April 1 - June 15, 2009

Release Date:

August 15, 2009

CoS tales should be powerful, action-oriented tales of steel versus sorcery -

in this particular case,strength of man versus spawn of hell!

Don’t think - just act!

Don’t emote - just do!

Submission: Demons: your story title,e.g., Submission: Demons: Helter-Skelter

You are hereby cordially invited to submit
your tales of demonic wickedness and diabolical wages!

For this shall be an anthology devoted to
the devilish fiends who seek to wreak havoc among mankind upon the mortal plane –
and of the paladins and warriors who return the vanquished denizens of all the hells
to whence they’ve come!

Join in the epic battle that eternally wages betwixt humanity and all that hates it!
Face off against evil incarnate and make us whimper in despair - or cheer in triumph.

in this particular case,
strength of man versus spawn of hell!

Submission: Demons: your story title,
e.g., Submission: Demons: Helter-Skelter