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Contest / Events / Flat Amount

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Contest: On The Premises: The Hat

Deadline: May 3rd, 2024
Prizes: $35 for first place, $25 for second, $15 for third
Theme: 25 to 50 word story about hats, details below!

Premise: For this mini-contest, tell, show, or evoke a complete story between 25 and 50 words long in which a hat of some kind matters to the story. We’re going with the fairly traditional definition of “hat” for this one. Scarves, hijabs, earmuffs, wigs, hoods, and other head coverings do not qualify. I’m going to say that even helmets don’t qualify. Caps are okay; they’re an informal hat. The judges will not care if anyone wears the hat in the story, so that’s up to you.

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Articles

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Writing Prompt Wednesdays: Trapped in a building in the middle of nowhere!

Writing Prompt Wednesdays: Trapped in a building in the middle of nowhere!

Welcome to “Writing Prompt Wednesdays,” a haven where your imagination can roam free in the realms of speculative fiction. As we embark on this weekly journey, it’s thrilling to think about the untold stories waiting to be penned in the domains of horror, science fiction, and fantasy. Whether you’re a seasoned author or a budding wordsmith, these prompts are your gateway to unexplored worlds and untapped potentials.

Every Wednesday, we’ll serve up a fresh, thought-provoking prompt designed to ignite your creative spark and challenge your storytelling prowess. Think of these prompts as a key, unlocking the doors to uncharted territories where your creativity is the only limit. From eerie, shadow-laden corridors of Gothic horror to the farthest reaches of interstellar space, and the mystical depths of high fantasy, our prompts are a kaleidoscope of possibilities.

Remember, there’s no right or wrong way to approach these prompts. They are mere stepping stones, guiding you towards the vast landscapes of your imagination. Use them to break free from writer’s block, to experiment with new ideas, or simply as a fun exercise to keep your writing skills sharp.

This week’s writing prompt:

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Events / Flat Amount / Magazine / Online / Royalties

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Taking Submissions: Short Story Substack May 2024 Window (Early Listing)

Submission Window: May 1st – 31st, 2024
Payment: $100 for the chosen story + 50% of subscription revenue
Theme: Any genre, short story

Mission = Revive the art of the short story, support artists, and produce something wonderful.

Payout = Base Pay of $100 for the chosen story + 50% of subscription revenue to be sent by Paypal, Zelle, or check.

Wait, you mean if this substack gets thousands of subscribers, the winner would get thousands of dollars?

Yes! The New Yorker pays roughly $7,500 per story and I sincerely hope to go way past that.

What does the timeline look like?

Submit stories by the end of the month, winner to be announced on the 15th. There is ONE story that wins and receives the full payout.

Where do I send submissions?
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Events / Flat Amount / Online

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Ongoing Submissions: Neon Dystopia

Payment: $20
Theme: Cyberpunk

We have a pretty broad idea of what cyberpunk as a genre is and isn’t. We’re living in it, so why stamp it down to some cookie cutter bullshit? Neon Dystopia looks for nuanced takes on genre fiction, talks on the writing process, the world around us, and what these things mean to us NOW, not later or then.

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Articles / Interviews

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Wendy N. Wagner & Living the Nightmare

Wendy N. Wagner & Living the Nightmare

By Angelique Fawns

Wendy N. Wagner is no stranger to horror and speculative fiction. She’s the editor-in-chief of Nightmare Magazine and the Managing Senior Editor of Lightspeed.  Hugo-award winning and Locus-award nominated for her editing, she’s also been nominated for a Shirley Jackson Award with her short fiction. Her latest book, Girl in the Creek will be released by Tor Nightfire in 2025. Wagner uses cli-fi cosmic horror to explore the dark side of beautiful places. 

Nightfire teases the storyline with this:

“Deep within the wild Clackamas National Forest, the shadows of looming trees and long-abandoned mines have sheltered hikers and harbored serial killers. Hidden in the forest are ghost towns with deteriorating buildings overrun by glowing fungi and phosphorescent spores that even local experts can’t identify. Not to mention the missing persons posters multiplying around town, many of hikers who never returned.”

I finally managed to track Wendy down on twitter and ask her if she would talk to us. 

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Events / Flat Amount / Novel / Royalties

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Third Estate Books Is Open To Novel Submissions

Deadline: May 15th, 2024
Payment: $300 and 50% royalties on all sales
Theme: Horror novels between 50k-100k words

Third Estate Books, publishers of Spectrum: An Autistic Horror Anthology and the forthcoming The Monologist, is proud to announce our first Open Submission period.

From April 15-May 15, 2024, we will be accepting submissions for horror novels that give voice to the voiceless. Three books will be selected for publication in 2025.

We are looking for:

  • works that align with the philosophy of Third Estate Books. Click here to read the vision statement.

  • horror, and only horror. If you have any doubts if your book is horror, don’t send it to us.

  • previously unpublished novels. Do not send us previously published material. This includes self-published and traditionally published material.

  • word ranges of 50k-100k. Anything more or less will be rejected outright.

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Contributor's Copy / Events / Flat Amount / Magazine

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Taking Submissions: Eggplant Emoji Volume 4

Deadline: May 6th, 2024
Payment: $25 and a contributors copy
Theme: Hilarious short stories that are character-driven and culturally striking

Eggplant Emoji, the comedy literary journal is currently seeking previously-unpublished comedic short fiction submissions for its fourth volume.

 
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Articles / Guest Post

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Beneath the Mask: Psychological Horror and the Human Psyche

Beneath the Mask: Psychological Horror and the Human Psyche

 

Psychological horror occupies a special place at the top of the horror genre. But it grows in the strange shadows of the mind, not in overt acts or visible monsters. This article does just that by exploring the central role psychological horror plays in penetrating our deepest fears and penetrating the veil of consciousness. 
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