2021 Newsletter Archives
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New Markets Update April 2021: Adventurous ⚔️ SF/F wanted, time management techniques, and other Aswiebe's Market List updates!
http://www.aswiebe.com/writing/markets.html
The next update of Aswiebe's Market List will be after 5/15/2021.
Permanent link to this newsletter in the archives: http://www.aswiebe.com/writing/archive2021.html#041821
Thoughts in Passing If I don't figure out a time to do a thing, the thing isn't going to get done. In my life in general, I've found two strategies that help.
Big Rocks! Imagine that you need to fit a big rock into a jar. You also have pebbles and sand that you want to use some of. If you put the pebbles and sand in first, you might end up with no room in the jar for the big rock. But if you put the big rock in first, you can fill around the rock with pebbles, and then sand. You'll fill the jar right up to the top. Your time is the jar. Your most important task is the big rock.
Pairing! Sometimes it's easier to establish a habit by pairing it with something else that you are already doing (especially something you like to do). For example, I've started pairing doing yoga with eating lunch. No, not at the same time! I set an alarm and always do yoga for the half an hour before lunch. If you have a particularly difficult writing-related task, try pairing it with something else you are already doing. Maybe that's as simple as, "I get to make my coffee after I write my first sentence."
So there you go. Pair your rocks!
(Do you have a writing question? Send it to me, either by
replying to this email or by using the comment form on my website, and
it may get answered in the next newsletter.)
What I've been up to lately, writing-wise:
Things Shiny or Useful
Featured Market New magazine Uncharted wants
crime, mystery, science fiction, fantasy, horror, and thriller short stories.
Uncharted Magazine publishes Science Fiction/Fantasy Short Stories from
fiction writers of any background or experience. We want stories that
richly imagine the future of technology and science, that explore our
world through a speculative lens. We want stories of fantasy that make
us hunger for new worlds, new biomes, new places we can explore through
thrilling sensual details and human empathy. We want stories that thrill
us, that make us feel alive, that awaken our desires to explore and go
on adventures.
Basics: SF/fantasy/horror/mystery, 1,000 - 5,000 words, pays $200, (unpaid) reprints okay. To see all the details about these new listings and what they're looking for, as well as hundreds of other listings, go to Aswiebe's Market List and download the latest version of the spreadsheet.
| Name |
What they want |
Pay Per Word (originals) |
Flat Pay (originals) |
Website |
Notes |
| Departure Mirror Quarterly |
All spec-fic |
$0.100 |
|
http://departuremirror.com/guidelines/ |
ONE-TIME SUBMISSION PERIOD: 4/1/21 - 4/30/21 |
| Blood Knife |
All spec fic, especially dark, cyberpunk, futurist |
$0.090 |
|
https://bloodknife.com/write-for-blood-knife/ |
|
| Africa Risen (Tor.com) ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 5/14/21 |
All speculative fiction by authors of African descent |
$0.080 |
|
https://www.shereereneethomas.com/copy-of-africa-risen |
|
| Dark Matter Magazine |
Science Fiction |
$0.080 |
|
https://darkmattermagazine.com/submission-guidelines/ |
ONE-TIME CLOSURE until Q2 2021. NOTE: This is NOT the same publication as Dark Matter Zine. |
| Escape Pod (Podcast) |
SF |
$0.080 |
|
http://escapepod.org/guidelines/ |
An Escape Artists publication. Original work up to 6,000 words. ONE-TIME Black Futures Month theme extended to 4/30/2021. |
| Inclusive Futures Magazine |
SF esp. fictional non-fiction, by and about marginalized people (themed) |
$0.080 |
|
https://www.inclusivefuturemag.com/prose-subs |
|
| Field Notes From a Nightmare: an Anthology of Ecological Horror ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 6/1/21 - 6/30/21 |
Environmental horror |
$0.030 |
|
https://dreadstonepress.com/submissions/#antho-jump |
|
| Found: An Anthology of Found Footage Horror Stories ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 08/08/21 |
Horror themed to found footage |
$0.030 |
|
https://twitter.com/andrewcull/status/1381034413291626497/photo/1 |
|
| Runs Like Clockwork (Wyldblood Press) ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE UNTIL FULL |
Steampunk |
$0.014 |
|
https://wyldblood.com/steampunk/ |
|
| Cafe Irreal Magazine |
Fabulist fiction |
$0.010 |
|
http://cafeirreal.alicewhittenburg.com/ |
|
| Gen-X-ed (Dark Ink Books) ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 6/20/21 - 7/3/21 |
Horror by and about Gen-X |
$0.010 |
|
https://aminkpublishing.com/open-calls |
|
| Space and Time Magazine |
Science fiction, fantasy, and horror |
$0.010 |
|
https://spaceandtime.net/submissions/ |
|
| Wight Christmas ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 5/31/21 |
Christmas-themed horror |
$0.008 |
|
http://tdotspec.com/wight-christmas-open-call-for-submissions/ |
|
| Uncharted Magazine |
SF, fantasy, horror, and mystery/crime |
|
$200.00 |
https://www.uncharted-mag.com/ |
|
| Needle Drops, The (Urhi Publications) - RECURRING ANTHOLOGY SERIES |
Horror |
|
$138.37 |
https://www.urhi.co.uk/post/urhi-submission-guide |
|
| Tales From the Cyber Salon |
Themed hard SF for collaborative discussion |
|
$69.14 |
https://cybersalon.org/open-call-for-submissions/ |
|
| If I Die Before I Wake Vol 6 (Sinister Smile Press) ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 6/9/21 |
Horror themed to water |
|
$40.00 |
https://www.sinistersmilepress.com/submissions-v6 |
|
| Black Cat Magazine |
All genres, especially literary SF/F, themed |
|
$30.00 |
https://www.blackcatmagazine.com/submissions |
|
| Nightmurr Before Yiffmas, The (Weasel Press) ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 10/01/21 |
Erotic holiday horror themed to furries |
|
$25.00 |
https://weaselpress.submittable.com/submit |
|
| Ceci n'est pas une histoire d'horreur (This is Not a Horror Story) (Night Terror Novels) ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 7/31/21 OR UNTIL FILLED |
Surreal or transgressive horror |
|
$20.74 |
https://nightterrornovels.wordpress.com/2021/03/13/announcement-our-debut-anthology-is-now-open-for-submissions/ |
|
| Asinine Assassins (Smart Rhino Publications) ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 5/1/21 |
All genres, themed to the title |
|
$20.00 |
http://smartrhino.com/projects.html |
|
| Elemental Zoological Preserve ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY SERIES - DUE UNTIL FULL |
Shared world fantasy |
|
$20.00 |
https://unitedfaedompublis.wixsite.com/unitedfaedompub/submissions |
|
| Exploring Infinity ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 6/30/21 |
Shared world SF/F based on Escaping Infinity novel. |
|
$20.00 |
https://scifiscribe.com/2021/04/09/anthology-submission-call-exploring-infinity/ |
|
| Us/Them (Wolfsinger Publications) ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 7/31/21 |
All genres, themed to us vs. them |
|
$15.00 |
https://www.wolfsingerpubs.com/us-them-guidelines |
|
| Beneath the Yellow Lights (Oddity Prodigy Productions) ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 7/31/2021 |
Urban fantasy |
|
$10.00 |
https://www.oddityprodigy.com/beneath-the-yellow-lights |
|
| Phobia (Pixie Forest Publishing) ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 5/15/21 |
Horror |
|
$10.00 |
https://pixieforestpublishing.com/open-to-submissions/ |
|
| Undertow Novels and Novellas ONE-TIME SUB PERIOD 5/1/21 - 5/31/21 |
Literary dark fabulist fiction |
|
|
https://undertowpublications.com/subs |
|
| Arsenika - DEAD MARKET |
All spec-fic |
|
$60.00 |
http://arsenika.ink/submissions/ |
SUBMISSION PERIODS: 10/1 - 10/31, 4/1 - 4/30 |
Keep writing, keep submitting, and good luck!
Abra Staffin-Wiebe, Compiler of Lists
Aswiebe's Market ListAbra Staffin-Wiebe's Author WebsiteAswiebe's Market List Details* Aswiebe's Market List
is a searchable, sortable spreadsheet of paying fantasy, science
fiction, and horror markets. This way it's easy to find, for example,
only horror markets that accept reprints greater than 10,000 words. For more information on what it is and how to use it, see About Aswiebe.com's Market Spreadsheet.
* If you find it useful, please consider donating via PayPal to help support it.* To help prevent these from being flagged as spam, please add this email to your contacts. Thanks!
* If you're so moved, go ahead and link to Aswiebe's Market List on your blog or webpage. * To report a new paying market, go to my contact page.
* To unsubscribe, simply reply to this email with "unsubscribe" in the subject line.*Feel
free to share this newsletter with others by whatever means you like,
as long as you include all of it. * If you received this from a friend and want to subscribe to this email
newsletter, go here.
New Markets Update February 2021: Open call for positive SF/F/H 🌄, tips for pandemic productivity recovery, and other new Aswiebe's Market List updates!
http://www.aswiebe.com/writing/markets.html
The next update of Aswiebe's Market List will be after 3/15/2021.
Permanent link to this newsletter in the archives: http://www.aswiebe.com/writing/archive2021.html#022521
Thoughts in Passing For the first time in almost a year, I am alone in my house on an ordinary day. My spouse is working on-site today, and the kids are at in-person school. It is HEAVEN. And I am trying to figure out where to start digging myself out from the mound of all the projects that I have neglected. Fortunately (or unfortunately), I have played the "getting back into the groove" game before, after recovering from injuries and surgeries and newborns. I'm guessing a lot of people will emerge from the pandemic and need to work on recovering their productivity and getting back into writing. If you've been able to keep writing and keep on top of your projects during this time, that's GREAT. You should be proud. If you haven't been able to, well, maybe me sharing my process will help. WARNING: extreme productivity geeking-out below, feel free to skip!
Step 1 is simply figuring out where I'm at. This step will take a while.
I tend to use my email as a to-do dumping ground. I use "action needed-writing" and "action urgent" email tags to flag these to-dos. That's not enough organization to really keep on top of things, although it does make it easier to find them. List organization isn't quite enough either. This is where the spreadsheet comes in. You knew there'd be a spreadsheet, right? 
It's pretty simple. The Type column is how I prioritize my tasks. Paying gigs come first, followed by things I've promised to other people (I'm careful not to take on too many of these), and everything else is intuitively sorted by the Eisenhower Decision Matrix. There is a number at the beginning of each Type label so that I can sort the tasks in order, first by Type and then by Deadline.
If you are a natural-born procrastinator like me, this is a good time to pay attention to what you've been procrastinating on the hardest. Often it falls in that critical "Action Important & Non-Urgent" category.
I also add significant writing projects that have deadlines. I enjoy writing for a particular submission call, so that is where a lot of these deadlines come from initially. This is not the place to track all my various manuscripts in different stages of writing and editing and submitting (again, unless deadlines apply). I track those elsewhere. Scheduling blocked time for writing/editing outside of this task spreadsheet is essential.
One final productivity note! As I go through my email "to-dos," I try to apply the 2-minute principle. If it would take me 2 minutes to do, it doesn't go on the list. It gets done then.
Next month, I'll talk about scheduling and how getting things done is going. I have 288 "action-needed - writing" emails in my inbox, so wish me luck!
(Do you have a writing question? Send it to me, either by
replying to this email or by using the comment form on my website, and
it may get answered in the next newsletter.)
What I've been up to lately, writing-wise:
My final reminder is that awards nomination season is wrapping up. If you are eligible to nominate, I am very fond of my small bittersweet story about love in the time of extinction, "The Dinosaur's Valentine."
It's available to read at Daily Science Fiction or to listen to at Centropic Oracle.
Things Shiny or Useful
(Yes, it's a new section in the newsletter! Any registration fees are noted.)MarsCon, March 12-14, 2021: http://marscon.org/2021/Norwescon 43, April 1-4 ($35): https://www.norwescon.org/Steampunk CommuniTea Weekend, April 9-12: https://www.facebook.com/events/336440080917274/Flights of Foundry 2021, April 16-18: https://flights-of-foundry.org/Featured Market DreamForge Anvil wants
positive stories of science fiction, fantasy, and even horror, pays $.06/wd.
The biggest thing to know is that this reading period, our maximum word length is 4,500 words.
We’re looking for positive stories of science fiction, fantasy, and
speculative fiction. Horror is a stretch for us, but occasionally an
unusual one with an upbeat ending makes it through.
...
For every story we accept, we’ll provide two other hopeful contributors
with the same level of detailed notes that we provide to the hidden gems
we choose to work with. These will be chosen at random so that authors
with a wide range of skill sets and experience can receive some
feedback. We might not be able to publish your story, but perhaps we can
help you improve its chances elsewhere.
Basics: positive speculative fiction, up to 4,500 words, pays $.06/word, reprints okay. 2021 submission window closes 03/13/2021. To see all the details about these new listings and what they're looking for, as well as hundreds of other listings, go to Aswiebe's Market List and download the latest version of the spreadsheet.
| Name |
What they want |
Pay Per Word |
Flat Pay |
Website |
Notes |
| New Modality, The |
Speculative fiction and non-fiction |
$0.150 |
|
http://thenewmodality.com/contributor-commitments-rates-guidelines/ |
NOTE: currently accepting subs from NeMo community members and SFWA members only. |
| Arcanist, The |
SF/F/Horror flash fiction |
$0.100 |
|
https://thearcanist.io/tag/submission-guidelines/ |
|
| Strange Horizons |
F/SF/Spec-fic |
$0.100 |
|
http://strangehorizons.com/submit/fiction-submission-guidelines/ |
Submission periods (December varies): Mondays 1600 UTC - Tuesdays 1600 UTC = 10 AM CDT Mon - 10 AM CDT Tues (Winter, no daylight savings) |
| Augur Magazine |
Literary SF/F, fabulism, slipstream |
$0.087 |
|
http://www.augurmag.com/submissions/ |
80% Canadian. ONE-TIME SUBMISSION PERIOD: 2/21/21 - 3/7/21 |
| Cast of Wonders Podcast |
Clean YA SF/F/H |
$0.080 |
|
http://www.castofwonders.org/submissions/ |
ONE-TIME 2021 schedule: 4/1/21-4/30/21 banned books, 5/1/21-5/31/21 holidays, 7/15/21-8/15/21 young authors, 11/1/21-11/30/21 general submissions. ### Query first for > 6,000 words. |
| Lightspeed Magazine |
Science fiction and fantasy |
$0.080 |
|
https://johnjosephadams.moksha.io/publication/lightspeed/guidelines |
ONE-TIME SUBMISSION PERIODS: BIPOC SF 2/1/21 - 2/8/21, all SF 2/8/21 - 2/15/21, BIPOC F 3/1/21-3/8/21, all F 3/8/21 - 3/15/21. ### Prefers < 5,000 words |
| Dark Magazine, The |
Horror and dark fantasy, including outside regular categories |
$0.060 |
|
http://thedarkmagazine.com/submission-guidelines/ |
Fast response time. |
| DreamForge Anvil |
Positive SFF/Horror |
$0.060 |
|
https://dreamforgemagazine.com/call-for-submissions/ |
Prefers < 5,000 words. ONE-TIME SUBMISSION PERIOD: 2/20/2021 - 3/13/2021 |
| Mythulu |
SF/F/H, themed |
$0.060 |
|
https://mythulu.com/emagazine-submission-call/ |
|
| Classic Monsters Unleashed (Crystal Lake Publishing) ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 4/8/21 - 5/30/21 |
Horror themed to classic monsters or characters related to them. |
$0.050 |
|
https://www.crystallakepub.com/authorcentral/ |
|
| Tales From the Canyons of the Damned |
Dark SF, Weird, Horror, Slipstream |
$0.030 |
|
http://canyonsofthedamned.com/#eluid20a88705 |
|
| Write Ahead / The Future Looms |
Cyberpunk with flair |
$0.028 |
|
https://www.writeaheadthefuturelooms.com/submission-guidelines/ |
Max 2,500 words for short stories, but also accepts serials. |
| Mystery Weekly Magazine |
Mystery, including paranormal |
$0.020 |
|
https://mysteryweekly.com/submit.asp |
|
| Sanguine Drip (Pavor Press) ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE TBD (OPENS SOON) |
Horror flash fiction |
$0.020 |
|
https://www.pavorpress.com/anthology-submissions |
|
| Bodies Full of Burning: An Anthology of Menopause-Themed Horror (Sliced Up Press) ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 6/1/2021 |
Horror themed to menopause |
$0.010 |
|
https://sliceduppress.com/submissions-2/ |
|
| Wight Christmas ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 3/15/21 - 3/21/21 |
Christmas-themed horror |
$0.008 |
|
http://tdotspec.com/wight-christmas-open-call-for-submissions/ |
|
| Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine |
SF/F and supernatural horror, especially humorous and lighthearted |
$0.008 |
|
https://andromedaspaceways.com/submissions-manager/ |
Subscribers and AU/NZ authors can submit up to 20,000 words. |
| Speculative Philosophical Fiction (Theme of Absence) ONE-TIME CONTEST - DUE 3/1/21 - 3/31/21 |
Flash fiction themed to philosophical, metaphysical, or epistemological fiction |
|
$500.00 |
https://themeofabsence.com/speculative-philosophical-fiction-contest/ |
|
| Furious Gazelle's Halloween Writing Contest, The ANNUAL CONTEST - DUE 10/01 |
All genres, themed to Halloween |
|
$50.00 |
http://thefuriousgazelle.com/submit/halloween-writing-contest/ |
|
| Pressfuls 2021 Horror and Fantasy Short Story ONE-TIME CONTEST - DUE 3/31/2021 |
Horror and fantasy |
|
$50.00 |
https://pressfuls.com/2021-horror-and-fantasy/ |
Does not specify how many runners-up may be published without pay. |
| Dead Stars and Stone Arches (Timber Ghost Press) ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY TITLE (Utah Horror Writers ANNUAL ANTHOLOGY) - DUE 10/31 |
Horror with an author or story connection to Utah, themed |
|
$35.00 |
https://www.timberghostpress.com/dead-stars.html |
https://utahhorror.org/submissions/ |
| Good Southern Witches (Curious Blue Press) ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - FILLED AND CLOSED EARLY |
Fantasy and dark fantasy themed to Southern witches |
|
$25.00 |
http://www.curiousbluepress.com/submissions |
|
| Tales to Terrify Flash Fiction Contest PODCAST ONE-TIME CONTEST - DUE 2/28/21 |
Horror and dark fantasy, themed to image prompt |
|
$25.00 |
https://talestoterrify.com/flashcontest/ |
|
| A-Z of Horror (Red Cape Publishing) ONGOING ANTHOLOGY SERIES |
Horror, themes change every 2 months. |
|
$13.74 |
https://redcapepublishing.com/submissions/ |
Must not be available elsewhere. ONE-TIME THEMES: 2/1/21-3/31/21 Internet; 4/1/21-5/31/21 Jack-o'-Lantern; 6/1/21-7/31/21 Kidnap; 8/1/21-9/30/21 Lycanthropy; 10/1/21-11/30/21 Medical. |
| It Calls From the Doors (Eerie River Publishing) ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 3/1/21 - 4/30/21 |
Horror themed to doorways, portals, etc. |
|
$11.77 |
https://www.eerieriverpublishing.com/open-submission |
|
| It Calls From the Veils (Eerie River Publishing) ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 9/1/21 - 10/31/21 |
Horror themed to ghosts and the paranormal |
|
$11.77 |
https://www.eerieriverpublishing.com/open-submission |
|
| Of Fire and Stars (Eerie River Publishing) ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 6/1/21 - 7/30/21 |
LGBTQ+ dark fantasy themed to fae encounters |
|
$11.77 |
https://www.eerieriverpublishing.com/open-submission |
|
| Queer Blades (From the Farther Trees) ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 3/31/2021 |
LGBTQ+ adventure fantasy, sword & sorcery, etc. |
|
$10.00 |
https://farthertrees.wordpress.com/queerblades/ |
|
| Re-Enlist Reprint Anthology (Pole to Pole Publishing) ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 5/31/21 OR UNTIL FULL |
Dark SF themed to war and the military, reprints only |
|
$10.00 |
https://poletopolepublishing.com/submissions/ |
Reprints only, must not be available online. |
| Simultaneous Times Podcast |
SF |
|
$10.00 |
http://spacecowboybooks.blogspot.com/p/writer-submissions.html |
|
| Trigger Warning (Madness Heart Press) ANNUAL ANTHOLOGY - DUE 3/1 - 5/30 OR UNTIL FULL |
Disturbing horror, themed |
|
$10.00 |
https://madnessheart.press/submissions/trigger-warning/?v=7516fd43adaa |
|
| Nanoism |
Twitter fiction - up to 140 characters, all genres |
|
$1.50 |
http://nanoism.net/submit/ |
|
| Neon Hemlock Novellas |
Science fiction, fantasy, horror, slipstream, and weird, especially queer stories |
|
|
https://www.neonhemlock.com/submissions |
ONE-TIME 2021 SUBMISSION PERIODS: 6/5/21 - 6/19/21 BIPOC authors only, 10/2/21 - 10/16/21 general submissions open |
| Aurora Wolf Magazine - DEAD MARKET |
Uplifting PG-rated fantasy and SF |
|
$5.00 |
|
|
| Antimatter Magazine - DEAD MARKET |
Flash fiction SF inspired by recent headlines |
|
$20.00 |
|
There is an eternal countdown clock that keeps resetting. Ignore. |
| Nexxis Fantasy Biannual Anthology - DEAD MARKET |
SF, themed |
$0.010 |
|
|
|
| Glittership Podcast - DEAD MARKET (indefinite hiatus) |
All spec-fic, queer protagonist, prefers reprints |
$0.030 |
|
http://www.glittership.com/submission-guidelines/ |
Long response time |
| Crossed Genres - DEAD MARKET |
SFF |
$0.060 |
|
http://crossedgenres.com/submissions/magazine/ |
|
| Hard Universe - DEAD MARKET |
SF |
$0.000 |
|
http://www.harduniverse.com/submission-guidelines.html |
|
| Constellary Tales (DEAD MARKET) |
SF/F |
$0.080 |
|
|
Also takes non-exclusive reprint rights. |
| El Chapo Review - DEAD MARKET |
All genres, including SF/F/H |
|
$100.00 |
|
|
| Zoetrope: All-Story DEAD MARKET (closed to general subs, claims new guidelines coming but it's been at least a year???) |
All genres, literary |
$0.080 |
|
https://www.all-story.com/about |
Snail mail only. |
Keep writing, keep submitting, and good luck!
Abra Staffin-Wiebe, Compiler of Lists
Aswiebe's Market ListAbra Staffin-Wiebe's Author WebsiteAswiebe's Market List Details* Aswiebe's Market List
is a searchable, sortable spreadsheet of paying fantasy, science
fiction, and horror markets. This way it's easy to find, for example,
only horror markets that accept reprints greater than 10,000 words. For more information on what it is and how to use it, see About Aswiebe.com's Market Spreadsheet.
* If you find it useful, please consider donating via PayPal to help support it.* To help prevent these from being flagged as spam, please add this email to your contacts. Thanks!
* If you're so moved, go ahead and link to Aswiebe's Market List on your blog or webpage. * To report a new paying market, go to my contact page.
* To unsubscribe, simply reply to this email with "unsubscribe" in the subject line.*Feel
free to share this newsletter with others by whatever means you like,
as long as you include all of it. * If you received this from a friend and want to subscribe to this email
newsletter, go here.
New Markets Update January 2021: Fairy tale mash-ups wanted ... and other new Aswiebe's Market List updates!
http://www.aswiebe.com/writing/markets.html
The next update of Aswiebe's Market List will be after 2/15/2021.
Permanent link to this newsletter in the archives: http://www.aswiebe.com/writing/archive2021.html#012421
Thoughts in Passing I recently saw a writer posting in distress. They had taken their work to a critique group, where they learned that they wrote with a lot of "filler movement." What does that mean? It means the bits that happen between the action. Opening and closing doors. Walking across a room. Getting out of a car. Traveling somewhere. Getting out a bowl to pour cereal in. Picking up the phone. Opening an envelope. Turning on the lights. Turning on a computer. Unlocking a phone. Getting dressed in the morning.
You get the idea. All of these things can be written as plot-critical, but they usually aren't. And that's okay.
This distressed writer asked how they could stop writing these extraneous bits. I can't answer that question, because I do it too. I often find that I can't move a character from Point A to Point B without writing how they moved there. My visual storytelling brain can't handle it. Otherwise, I might as well have them popping in and out of existence.
In short stories, there's less room for that. But hey, that's what editing is for! Sometimes? You just have to write through something, even if you know you'll take it out in editing. And that's okay!
(Do you have a writing question? Send it to me, either by
replying to this email or by using the comment form on my website, and
it may get answered in the next newsletter.)
What I've been up to lately, writing-wise:
Oof. Not much this month, aside from my regular #vss365 writing exercises. I have a lot in edits, and a lot of general writing-related administrivia to catch up on. Next month (in 17 days!) my kids start going back to in-person school (for however long that lasts). I have so much stuff that supervising distance learning shoved to the back burner, in writing and in general household management and in other life stuff, that I don't even know where to begin. We've been in distance learning for 10 months here, since mid-March 2020. I start by making lists of things to catch up on, I guess.
Things Shiny or Useful
(Yes, it's a new section in the newsletter! Any registration fees are noted.) Capricon, Feb 4 - 7, 2021 ($10): https://capricon.org/
Boskone 58, Feb 12 - 14, 2021 ($25): https://boskone.org/
MarsCon, March 12-14, 2021: http://marscon.org/2021/ Featured Market
Theme: Fairy Tales - choose two of your favorite fairy tales, and a genre of your choice, and mash them up to make something new. Stories may be of any genre as long as they incorporate two fairy tales. We are open to Grimdark, New Weird, Science Fiction, Fantasy, Dying Earth and genre bending/breaking.
Basics: themed speculative fiction, 1,000 - 3,000 words, pays $.08/word, no reprints. Submission window closes 02/28/2021. To see all the details about these new listings and what they're looking for, as well as hundreds of other listings, go to Aswiebe's Market List and download the latest version of the spreadsheet.
| Name |
What they want |
Pay Per Word |
Flat Pay |
Website |
Notes |
| Diabolical Plots |
Science fiction, fantasy, and horror |
$0.100 |
|
http://www.diabolicalplots.com/guidelines/ |
ONE-TIME SUBMISSION PERIOD: 1/1/2021 - 1/31/2021 |
| Strange Horizons |
F/SF/Spec-fic |
$0.100 |
|
http://strangehorizons.com/submit/fiction-submission-guidelines/ |
ONE-TIME CLOSURE UNTIL FEBRUARY 2021. ### Submission periods (December varies): Mondays 1600 UTC - Tuesdays 1600 UTC = 10 AM CDT Mon - 10 AM CDT Tues (Winter, no daylight savings) |
| Uncanny |
SF/F |
$0.100 |
|
https://uncannymagazine.com/submissions/ |
Fast response time. ONE-TIME NOVELLA SUBMISSION WINDOW (17,500 - 40,000 words): 4/1/2021 - 4/30/2021. |
| Analog Science Fiction and Fact |
Hard SF |
$0.080 |
|
http://www.analogsf.com/contact-us/writers-guidelines/ |
Requires science to be correct and doable. |
| Baen Fantasy Adventure Award ANNUAL CONTEST - DUE10/1 - 2/1 |
Near future manned space exploration SF |
$0.080 |
|
https://www.baen.com/contest-jbmssa |
|
| It Gets Even Better ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 2/28/2021 |
All speculative fiction, themed to positive queer possibility |
$0.080 |
|
https://speculativelyqueer.moksha.io/publication/it-gets-even-better/guidelines |
|
| Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction (F&SF) |
All speculative fiction |
$0.080 |
|
https://fandsf.moksha.io/publication/fsf |
|
| Upon a Twice Time (Air and Nothingness Press) ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 2/28/2021 |
All genres, themed to a mash-up of two fairy tales |
$0.080 |
|
http://aanpress.com/submissions.html |
|
| Midnight From Beyond the Stars ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 4/30/2021 |
Alien horror |
$0.060 |
|
https://www.silvershamrockpublishing.com/midnight-from-beyond-the-stars-anthology |
|
| School Magazine, The |
Children's 8-12 fiction, mainstream or fantasy, themed |
$0.060 |
|
https://theschoolmagazine.com.au/contributors/writers |
|
| Tales From the Magician's Skull |
Sword & sorcery |
$0.040 |
|
https://goodman-games.com/tftms/2020/10/20/announcing-open-call-for-sword-sorcery-fiction-for-tales-from-the-magicians-skull/ |
ONE-TIME SUBMISSION PERIOD FOR 2021: 1/22/2021 - 4/1/2021 |
| SNAFU (Cohesion Press) ANTHOLOGY SERIES |
Military SF/horror, themed |
$0.038 |
|
https://cohesionpress.com/snafu-submissions/ |
|
| Sci Phi |
Non-character-driven SF, esp. big idea SF and classic-style SF |
$0.036 |
|
https://www.sciphijournal.org/index.php/submission-guidelines/ |
|
| Gorefest (The Evil Cookie) ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 2/1/2021 - 3/1/2021 |
Horror with gore and carnage |
$0.030 |
|
theevilcookie.com/open-calls/ |
|
| Stupefying Stories |
SF, fantasy, and horror |
$0.015 |
|
https://stupefyingstories.blogspot.com/p/submission-guidelines.html |
Query first for > 10,000 words. |
| Wicked Words Quarterly |
SF/F/H with a twist |
$0.014 |
|
http://www.wickedwords.co.uk/submissions/ |
|
| Best Vegan Science Fiction and Fantasy ANNUAL ANTHOLOGY - DUE 12/1 - 2/28 |
SF/F with only vegan products, published that year, reprints only |
$0.010 |
|
https://books.metaphorosis.com/plant-based-press/best-vegan-sff/vegan-sff-guidelines/ |
|
| Cosmic Horror Monthly |
Horror, dark SF, dark fantasy |
$0.010 |
|
http://cosmic-horror.net/submissions/ |
SUBMISSION PERIOD: 1/1 - 2/28 |
| Exterus Magazine |
Fantasy, horror, and the bizarre |
$0.010 |
|
https://www.facebook.com/Exterusmagazine |
Prefers < 8,000 words. Open submission calls are on their Facebook page. |
| Jewish Book of Horror, The ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 4/30/2021 |
Horror that ties in with Judaism |
$0.010 |
|
https://denverhorror.com/the-jewish-book-of-horror/ |
|
| Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine |
SF/F and supernatural horror, especially humorous and lighthearted |
$0.008 |
|
https://andromedaspaceways.com/submissions-manager/ |
ONE-TIME CLOSURE until 2/1/2021 |
| Not One of Us |
All genres, character driven, about outsiders, misfits, all genres |
$0.003 |
|
https://not-one-of-us.pub/about/guidelines/ |
Prefers < 6,000 words. |
| L Ron Hubbard's Writers of the Future QUARTERLY ANTHOLOGY. |
Spec-fic |
|
$5,000.00 |
https://www.writersofthefuture.com/enter-writer-contest/ |
Eligible if have three or fewer professional pubs - runs every 3 months. Note: affiliated with Scientology, winners report proselytizing and close link to Church of Scientology. |
| Imagine 2200: Climate Fiction for Future Ancestors (Grist) ONE-TIME CONTEST - DUE 4/12/2021 |
Optimistic climate fiction, some fantastic/supernatural elements okay |
|
$3,000.00 |
https://grist.org/fix/climate-fiction-writing-contest-imagine-2200-prizes/ |
|
| Earth Day Short-Fiction Contest (Sapiens Plurum & Future of Life Institute) ANNUAL CONTEST - DUE 4/22 - 6/1 |
SF, themed to optimistic SF |
|
$1,000.00 |
https://sapiensplurum.org/ |
|
| Out There: Into the Queer New Yonder ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 3/1/2021 |
Queer YA SF by queer author |
|
$900.00 |
http://saundramitchell.com/subs/ |
|
| Imagine Little Tokyo ANNUAL CONTEST - DUE 2/28/2021 |
Themed to Little Tokyo past present or future |
|
$500.00 |
https://www.littletokyohs.org/all-news/8th-annual-imagine-little-tokyo-short-story-contest |
ONE-TIME submission link for 2021. See also http://www.littletokyohs.org/ |
| Craft Literary |
Literary, with a focus on writing craft |
|
$200.00 |
https://www.craftliterary.com/submit/ |
|
| Decoded ANNUAL ANTHOLOGY - DUE 2/28 |
SF, fantasy, and horror by queer authors |
|
$200.00 |
https://decodedpride.com/submit/ |
|
| 2021 Web Microfiction Prize for Women Writers ONE-TIME CONTEST - DUE 2/1/2021 - 5/1/2021 |
Microfiction by women writers, themed to metamorphosis |
|
$150.00 |
https://spiderroadpress.com/submissions/webmicrofictionprize/ |
|
| Femme Fatale / Dangerous Women Untitled Anthology (Mango Publishing) ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 05/15/2021 |
Crime themed to femme fatales and dangerous women |
|
$125.00 |
https://horrortree.com/taking-submissions-untitled-crime-anthology-featuring-femmes-fatales-dangerous-women/ |
|
| GigaNotoSaurus |
Science fiction and fantasy, especially long |
|
$100.00 |
http://giganotosaurus.org/submission-guidelines/ |
|
| Storytwigs |
Micro-fiction, with monthly themes |
|
$100.00 |
https://www.storytwigs.com/competition |
All entries will be published on website, without pay. |
| Abyss & Apex |
All speculative fiction, including dark but not horror |
|
$80.00 |
http://www.abyssapexzine.com/submissions/ |
Query first for >10,000 words. Reading periods 1st wk in February, May, August, November. ONE-TIME CLOSURE UNTIL 8/2021 |
| Queer Sci Fi Flash Contest ANNUAL CONTEST - DUE 3/1 - 4/17 |
Queer spec-fic flash fiction, themed |
|
$75.00 |
https://queerscifi.com/flash-contest-rules/ |
RIGHTS: Requires 12 months exclusive. |
| 34 Orchard |
Dark, unsettling fiction, all genres |
|
$50.00 |
https://34orchard.com/guidelines/ |
SUBMISSION PERIOD: Jan 1 - 31, Jul 1 - 31 |
| Misspelled - Magic Gone Awry ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 3/31/2021 |
Themed: magical mishaps |
|
$50.00 |
https://curseddragonship.com/submissions-2/ |
|
| Wild Musette Journal of Music, Mystery, and Myth, The |
Themed to music, dance, relationships, environmental, or fantasy and mythic fiction |
|
$50.00 |
https://wildmusette.com/pages/submissions |
|
| Blood Bath Literary Zine |
Horror, themed issues |
|
$41.14 |
https://bloodbathlitzine.com/ |
|
| Wizards in Space |
All genres, themed |
|
$40.00 |
https://wizardsinspacemag.com/submit/ |
|
| Good Southern Witches (Curious Blue Press) ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 2/28/2021 |
Fantasy and dark fantasy themed to Southern witches |
|
$25.00 |
http://www.curiousbluepress.com/submissions |
|
| No Anesthetic (Splatter Ink Publishing) ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 3/1/2021 |
Extreme horror |
|
$25.00 |
https://horrortree.com/taking-submissions-no-anesthetic/ |
|
| Ghastling, The |
Quiet horror, macabre, and strange |
|
$20.17 |
https://theghastling.com/submit/ |
|
| Antimatter Magazine |
Flash fiction SF inspired by recent headlines |
|
$20.00 |
https://antimatter.submittable.com/submit |
ONE-TIME CLOSURE (maybe). Listed as closed but there's a countdown clock until 2/03/2021 (as of 1/2/2021). |
| Colored Lens, The |
All speculative fiction |
|
$20.00 |
http://thecoloredlens.com/?page_id=8/ |
|
| Speculative City |
All genres, themed to cityscape and issue's theme |
|
$20.00 |
http://www.speculativecity.com/submissions/ |
|
| Handmade Horror Stories ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 4/28/2021 |
Horror themed to art or craft |
|
$19.69 |
https://www.cryoseismpress.com/pages/submissions |
|
| Crunchy With Ketchup (Wolfsinger Publications) ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 5/31/2021 |
All spec-fic, themed: fierce dragons |
|
$15.00 |
https://www.wolfsingerpubs.com/CrunchyWithKetchup.html |
|
| Summer of Speculation (Cloaked Press) ONE-TIME ANTHOLOGY - DUE 4/20/2021 |
SF and Fantasy |
|
$15.00 |
https://www.cloakedpress.com/summerspec/ |
|
| Were-Traveler, The |
Speculative fiction, themed issues. ONE-TIME THEMES: My Job is a Hellholle (DUE 3/31/2021), Down to the Sea in Bits (DUE 2021), The Wyrd, Twisted, & Curst Creature Tarot (DUE 2021/2022) |
|
$15.00 |
https://the-were-traveler.weebly.com/submissions-call.html |
|
| Murderous Ink Press Magazine |
Crime and mystery, including weird and bizarro |
|
$13.61 |
https://www.murderousinkpress.co.uk/submissions.html |
|
| All Worlds Wayfarer |
All speculative fiction |
|
$10.00 |
http://www.allworldswayfarer.com/submissions/ |
RIGHTS: requires 6 months exclusive |
| Swords and Sorcery |
High fantasy and historical fantasy |
|
$10.00 |
http://www.swordsandsorcerymagazine.com/submissions.html |
|
| Whetstone |
Pulp sword and sorcery |
|
$10.00 |
https://whetstonemag.blogspot.com/p/submissions.html |
|
| On the Premises Mini-Contest RECURRING CONTEST |
Themed contests with very limited wordcounts. |
|
$5.00 |
http://onthepremises.com/minis/ |
Mini-contest submission periods: April, May, October, November. |
| Drabble Harvest (Hiraeth Publishing) RECURRING CONTESTS |
Speculative fiction drabbles, themed |
|
$1.00 |
https://www.hiraethsffh.com/drabble-contest |
ONE-TIME DEADLINE: 1/31/2021 |
| On the Premises RECURRING CONTEST |
Themed contests. |
|
|
https://onthepremises.com/current-contest/ |
Submission periods: December, June. |
| Helios Quarterly - DEAD MARKET |
All spec-fic |
$0.060 |
|
https://heliosquarterly.com/submissions/ |
|
| Sword & Sorceress ANNUAL ANTHOLOGY - DEAD MARKET |
PG-13 sword & sorcery with strong female protagonist, contemporary okay |
$0.060 |
|
|
|
| Aurelio Leo - DEAD MARKET |
Speculative fiction, especially graphic novels |
|
|
https://aureliabookcafe.com/aurelia-leo/ |
|
| Brewed Awakenings (Caffeinated Press) ANNUAL ANTHOLOGY |
All genres |
|
$50.00 |
|
Submissions accepted year-round, but volume cut-off is 5/31. Stories/authors with West Michigan ties preferred. |
Keep writing, keep submitting, and good luck!
Abra Staffin-Wiebe, Compiler of Lists
Aswiebe's Market ListAbra Staffin-Wiebe's Author WebsiteAswiebe's Market List Details* Aswiebe's Market List
is a searchable, sortable spreadsheet of paying fantasy, science
fiction, and horror markets. This way it's easy to find, for example,
only horror markets that accept reprints greater than 10,000 words. For more information on what it is and how to use it, see About Aswiebe.com's Market Spreadsheet.
* If you find it useful, please consider donating via PayPal to help support it.* To help prevent these from being flagged as spam, please add this email to your contacts. Thanks!
* If you're so moved, go ahead and link to Aswiebe's Market List on your blog or webpage. * To report a new paying market, go to my contact page.
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