Horror eBook anthology - "Vermin"

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

"Discovery" / Boston Review 2009 Poetry Contest

Deadline: January 16, 2009.
Judges: Mary Jo Bang, Terrance Hayes, and Mark Strand.
Four Prizes: $500

Complete guidelines:
Four winning authors will be awarded a reading at the 92nd Street Y in New York City (May 11, 2009 at 8:15pm), publication in the May/June 2009 issue of
Boston Review,
and $500.

1. The contest is open to poets who have not published a book of poems (chapbooks and self-published books included). Those who have a book contract at
the time of submission or who are subsequently awarded a book contract are not eligible for the contest if their book is scheduled for publication before
Fall 2009. Individual poems that have been or will be published in periodicals or anthologies may be submitted; however, at least two of the submitted
poems must be unpublished and under two pages in length.
2. Submit four identical sets of a typed ten-page manuscript. Each set is to contain the same ten pages in the same order. Include no more than one poem
per page. NO personal identification should appear on any of the poems; no copyright attributions for previously published poems should appear on the poems.
3. Photocopied manuscripts are acceptable. However, in the case of previously published poems, do not send photocopied pages of the periodical or book
in which the poem(s) originally appeared.
4. Please staple each manuscript; do not use paper clips.
5. Enclose one cover letter including your name, address and day and evening telephone numbers, as well as a list of the submitted poems in the order in
which they appear, with copyright attributions for published poems. Do not attach this cover letter to the manuscripts.
6. An entry fee of US$10.00 must accompany the submission. Please make checks (drawn on U.S. banks only) or money orders (in U.S. currency only) payable
to the 92nd Street Y, and attach them to your cover letter. DO NOT SEND CASH.
7. All poems must be original and in English (no translations) .
8. No contestant may submit more than one entry. No corrections can be accepted after receipt of the contest submission.
9. Entries must be received by January 16, 2009. This is not a postmark deadline. If you wish to receive confirmation of receipt of your manuscript, please
enclose a stamped, self-addressed postcard (not envelope) and allow several weeks for its return. Due to the large number of submission received, manuscripts
cannot be returned. Winners will be contacted by telephone by the end of February; all contest entrants will be mailed the names of the winners and of
the judges shortly thereafter.
10. No phone queries can be taken. If you wish to hear a recording of the guidelines, or to receive another set of these guidelines in the mail, call 212.415.5759.

Mail contest submissions to:
"Discovery"/ Boston Review 2009 Poetry Contest, Unterberg Poetry Center, 92nd Street Y, 1395 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 10128

http://bostonreview .net/about/ contest/

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Clarkesworld Magazine

Clarkesworld Magazine is an online venue and chapbook series for short works of science fiction, fantasy, and horror. Each month, Clarkesworld will publish two pieces of fiction, one solicited from an author with one or more books published, and one chosen from the rolling open call for submissions below.

There have been some changes in our submissions process, so please read our guidelines carefully before submitting something a story to us.

Clarkesworld is also accepting queries for non-fiction and art.

Fiction Guidelines

Clarkesworld Magazine pays 10¢ a word for works of science fiction, fantasy, and horror. We have a firm word limit of 4000 words. Please do not query about word lengths. We will not consider stories longer than 4000 words or shorter than 1000 words. We claim first world electronic rights, first print rights for the production of signed/numbered limited edition chapbooks (author must be willing to sign 100+ chapbooks), and non-exclusive anthology rights.

Stories must be:

1. Well-written. Language is important. If your story is only a story because you didn't have the funds to produce and direct a short film or a sufficiently large live audience for the telling of a fanciful anecdote, then I don't want to see it. There is no distinction between "style" and "substance" or "story" and "writing" — stories are made out of words. If your story isn't worth reading as a collection of words, sentences, and paragraphs, it isn't worth experiencing in story form.
2. Convenient for on-screen reading. Very long paragraphs or typographical trickery may work against you.

Science fiction need not be "hard" SF, but rigor is appreciated. Fantasy can be folkloric, medieval, contemporary, surreal, etc. Horror can be supernatural or psychological, so long as it is frightening. There are no barriers as to levels of profanity, gore, or sexuality allowed, but high amounts of profanity, gore, and sexuality are generally used poorly. Be sure to use them well if you do use them.

Though no particular setting, theme, or plot is anathema to us, the following are likely hard sells:

• stories in which a milquetoast civilian government is depicted as the sole obstacle to either catching some depraved criminal or to an uncomplicated military victory
• stories in which the words "thou" or "thine" appear
• talking cats
• talking swords
• stories where the climax is dependent on the spilling of intestines
• stories where FTL travel is as easy as is it on television shows or movies
• time travel too
• stories that depend on some vestigial belief in Judeo-Christian mythology in order to be frightening (i.e., Cain and Abel are vampires, the End Times are a' comin', Communion wine turns to Christ's literal blood and it's HIV positive, Satan's gonna getcha, etc.)
• stories about rapist-murderer-cannibals
• stories about young kids playing in some field and discovering ANYTHING. (a body, an alien craft, Excalibur, ANYTHING).
• stories about the stuff we all read in Scientific American three months ago
• stories where the Republicans, or Democrats, or Libertarians, or the Spartacist League, etc. take over the world and either save or ruin it
• your AD&D game
• "funny" stories that depend on, or even include, puns
• sexy vampires, wanton werewolves, or lusty pirates
• stories where the protagonist is either widely despised or widely admired simply because he or she is just so smart and/or strange
• stories that take place within an artsy-fartsy bohemia as written by an author who has clearly never experienced one
• your trunk stories

Fiction Submissions Process Guidelines

NEW: Clarkesworld has adopted an online submissions system to help streamline our process and improve communication with authors. As a result, we will no longer accept email submissions. Go here to submit your stories.

Our online submissions form is designed to be simple. All fields (author, email, title, cover letter, and story) are mandatory. Your cover letter should contain your publishing history and any other relevant information (e.g, if you send us a lusty pirate story and happen to BE a lusty pirate, mention that). Stories must be in standard manuscript format and can be submitted in either .RTF or .DOC format. No simultaneous submissions. If you have questions, concerns or technical issues, please contact Neil Clarke (clarkesfiction@gmail.com).

After completing the online submission form, you will receive an email confirmation with a tracking number. This number can be used at any time to check the status of your submission. If you do not receive this email, please contact Neil.

Our goal is to respond to submissions within two weeks. We do ask that you:

• Please do not send queries until after a three-week period has passed. Please check our forum or Neil's blog or our forum for any important announcements first.
• Do not send revisions to a submission at any time.
• Writers may not submit another story for a period of seven days after receiving a rejection.
• Please do not re-submit stories that have been rejected. Do not query for permission.
• Writers whose work is accepted may not submit again until six months after their story is published.
• Please do not argue with rejection slips.

If you are uncertain about anything above, we recommend following the most conservative interpretation.