Wednesday, February 7, 2018

IWSG: Help! WIHM & Links

It's the first Wednesday of February, so it's IWSG time! Created by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the Insecure Writer's Support Group is a place for writers to gather, talk about our insecurities, and lend support to our fellow insecure peeps. Anyone can participate by clicking on Alex's name and following the directions.


This month's co-hosts are Stephen Tremp, Pat Garcia, Angela Wooldridge, Victoria Marie Lees, and Madeline Mora-Summonte! Be sure to stop by and say hi.

The optional question of the month is: What do you love about the genre you write in most often?

If you've been around here at all in the past, I'm sure you know I could talk about that forever, so I'll keep it short. The genre I most often write in is horror. It gives me the freedom to examine humanity in a way I wouldn't without the genre. To explore the darker side of life in a safe way. And it brings me devilish delight.

Okay, my insecurity for the month. For anyone who's ever self-published their first book, you probably know the laundry list of insecurities I'm feeling right now. My short story collection comes out March 15. I've got so much to do before then! If you're willing, please sign up at the link below to help with my book release for Blue Sludge Blues and Other Abominations. I'll bake you virtual cookies!

BOOK RELEASE SIGN UP

I've got a couple different options on there, so choose whatever works best! I'm so behind where I probably should be right now, but luckily it's my first time, so I won't know how behind I am until it's too late.

February is women in horror month (WIHM). To celebrate, I'll be featuring three female horror authors this month on the blog. The schedule will be as follows:

February 12: DeAnna Knippling
February 21: Ashley Dioses
February 26: J.H. Moncrieff

I hope you'll hop by and visit!

To get you started, here's a list of twenty women in horror.

#

Stat time. Each month I go over my submission stats for the previous month. It keeps me accountable. In January:

Submitted 6 short stories
Placed 2 short stories (Yay!)
Got 4 rejections (two of which asked me to send them something else next month)
I currently have 9 pieces on submission

Not too shabby! The funnest part is that I got my first acceptance for 2018 on January 1. The second acceptance was the second to last day of the month. Nice bookends!

Link time. Please note I am not endorsing these markets, merely passing them along. Always do your own due diligence before submitting.

Accepting Submissions:

Things in the Well is seeking water related horror stories for Beneath the Waves: Tales From the Deep, an anthology. 5000 to 8000 words. Pays $50 AUD. Deadline February 28.

Body Parts Magazine is seeking short stories with the theme Primal Fears. Up to 8000 words. Pays up to $20. Deadline March 1.

The Literary Hatchet is seeking dark fiction short stories and poetry. 1000 to 6000 words. Pays up to $10. Deadline March 1.

World Weaver Press is seeking short stories about Baba Yaga for an anthology. 7500 to 20,000 words. Pays $50. Deadline March 1.

Upstreet is seeking literary fiction and creative nonfiction for its next issue. Up to 5000 words. Pays $50 to $250. Deadline March 1.

Spring Song Press is seeking fantasy/speculative stories in noblebright, grimdark, nobledark, etc. with the theme of shards. 1000 to 10,000 words. Pays $.01/word. Deadline March 1.

Inkubus Publishing is seeking M/M erotica and romance with a pirate theme for A Share of the Booty. 500 to 10,000 words. Pays $15. Deadline March 1.

Goblin Fruit is seeking fantastical poetry. Pays $15. Deadline March 3.

Mslexia is seeking poetry, prose, and short scripts in the theme of Weather. Up to 2200 words. Pays a small, undisclosed payment. Deadline March 5.

What's your favorite genre? Who is your favorite woman in horror? What are your current insecurities? Any of these links of interest? Are you submitting? How'd January go? 

May you find your Muse.




52 comments:

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

Cool you have a release date! Don't know where I sign up, but you know I will announce it for you.

mshatch said...

I tend to like anything with a fantasy/scifi bent and that's usually where I write from though I have ventured into more realistic territory upon occasion.

And I signed up :)

Madeline Mora-Summonte said...

Good luck with the collection - fun title!

And yeh on accepted stories! I've got one coming out later this month. Love WiHM! :)

S.A. Larsenッ said...

I love the idea of exploring a part of life that you don’t live. LOL I didn’t know you were self-publishing. Yay!

Tamara Narayan said...

Horror was the genre I fell in love with as a child. J.H. Moncrieff is awesome. Love her new series.

Chrys Fey said...

Good luck with your release! Self-publishing is new to me. I've been helping my mom to self-publish her children's stories, so I know all about rushing to get support for it. lol

cleemckenzie said...

Here's more good wishes for a successful launch!

Christine Rains said...

Horror was the first genre I loved too. I always wanted to be the first female Stephen King, and I still would love to write a horror. These days, all my dark stuff is in urban fantasy and paranormal romances. Thanks for the links!

Mina Burrows said...

This is very exciting. I signed up. Let me know what you need.

Laura Clipson said...

Good luck on your release! I love writing horror, but I haven't written much of it - I tend to do a lot of horror themed flash fiction more than anything.

L. Diane Wolfe said...

LOL! As a publisher, I certainly know that long list of stuff to get done and the stress that comes with it.

KJ Scrim, Writer said...

Don't forget to send me your info for PPW's Sweet Success! I'll get an email to you with info needed. CONGRATULATIONS!!

Karen Baldwin said...

Congrats on your release date and your submissions. Also the great resources you so generously give.

Jennifer Lane said...

I signed up for the 15th, Shannon. :-) I like what you said about horror allowing you to explore the dark side of humanity in a safe way. Here's a good article about writer insecurity https://www.thecreativepenn.com/self-doubt-imposter-syndrome/?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=SocialWarfare

Loni Townsend said...

Woot woot for the release! Yeah, writing horror is definitely the safer way to explore horror, rather than dabbling with it in real life. :)

emaginette said...

Congrats on the upcoming release. :-)

Anna from elements of emaginette

Cathrina Constantine said...

Yes! Congratulations on your upcoming release. Wishing you great success!!!

Yvonne Ventresca said...

I love that you share your stats! And nice of you to provide market info, too. :)

dolorah said...

Great stats. And congrats on the release. I'd sign up but I barely blog these days and sometimes forget to return comments.

Lisa Southard said...

I couldn't work this out for a while either - but the words BOOK RELEASE SIGN UP are the link. I've just had a coffee too... Anyway, I'm signed up now :-)

Angela Wooldridge said...

well done on the story acceptances, that's fantastic! And good luck with the book release :)

Diane Burton said...

Congratulations, Shannon. I don't read horror (I'm such a scaredy cat) but I'm happy to help you with your new release. I signed up. Best wishes.

Michelle Wallace said...

Congratulations on the upcoming release and everything of the best on your self-publishing path!
Do you have some ready-made tweets? I can tweet for you.

Unknown said...

Congratulations on the upcoming book, and all the best with your writing, Shannon. I can tweet and share as you need, buzz me anytime.

Jennifer Lee Rossman said...

I highly encourage people to submit to the Baba Yaga anthology. The publisher is *awesome* to work with.
My January has been fantastic - I got acceptances for 3 anthologies and am the assistant editor on one of them!

J.L. Campbell said...

Here's to a successful release. Congrats on that! Duly signed up.

Gwen Gardner said...

Hey Shannon, good luck with your new release! I'm not really blogging much these days, but I'll be glad to do some tweeting for you. I wrote you in on my calendar and will stop by to grab the cover and a blurb to tweet on March 15.

Carrie-Anne said...

Congratulations on your two acceptances! I'll pass the info about story submission opportunities along to my writing group.

Hilary Melton-Butcher said...

Hi Shannon - good luck with the release and women in horror ... I'll be having a look. Cheers Hilary

Cherie Reich said...

Those are good reasons to love horror. Congrats on the upcoming release!

Ryan Carty said...

So. Much. Fun. I wish you all success with your release.

Annalisa Crawford said...

Good luck with your new release! I love short stories.

Meka James said...

Congrats on your upcoming release! It is very nerve-wracking to put out that first book. So much to do,leading up to and after the actual release.

Olga Godim said...

Horror is definitely the genre that delves deep into the human psyche. Good luck with your upcoming horror story collection.

Pat Garcia said...

I have to admit I am not a horror fan. It gives me nightmares. But, I wish you all the best with your launch.
Shalom aleichem,
Pat G

Pat Garcia said...

I have to admit I am not a horror fan. It gives me nightmares. But, I wish you all the best with your launch.
Shalom aleichem,
Pat G

Crystal Collier said...

I won't be around the blogosphere much, but shoot me the details and I'll Tweet for you. I do love me a good horror.

Toi Thomas said...

Thank you so much for stopping by my blog. While I do enjoy a good horror story, I usually have to first work up the nerve to read it (I don't always succeed.)
Best of luck with your book release!
Thanks for the submission links.

Joylene Nowell Butler said...

I love Shelley's Frankenstein. Read it in high school and couldn't sleep for the rest of the night. I also like Alexandre Sokoloff. I wasn't ab

Joylene Nowell Butler said...

My system is screwy right now. Wanted to say I'm able to get the link to work. Could you sign me up for a date in March to do a reveal, please. It would be my pleasure, Shannon. Don't be nervous. The excitement wears far too soon. Believe in yourself. Know that you've written a wonderful book that readers will love. I guarantee it.

The Cynical Sailor said...

I can help out with a cover reveal if you're okay with it getting published on Saturday, March 3rd. Hope that works okay at your end, because who doesn't love virtual cookies :-)

Cheers - Ellen

Anonymous said...

I signed up to help with release. After scrolling past the link a couple of times looking for it. (I'm a little tired lately.)

diedre Knight said...

Yay you! I've signed up for the reveal and if I can find my Magic Rub I'll be available for the release as well ;-)
"devilish delight," You should be delighted - you're on a roll!

Liesbet said...

You have been incredibly productive (and successful) in January, Shannon! Yay! Congratulations with all that and with doing the big thing soon, self-publishing your book. How exciting! But, also stressful, I'm sure. Are the stories you submit and contribute to magazines on a regular basis horror-themed as well? Looking forward to your guests in February, especially J.H. Moncrieff!

Victoria Marie Lees said...

Bravo to you, Shannon, with all your writing accomplishments. That's wonderful. It's true, though. I'm a big chicken and can't read horror. But all the luck with your writing, my dear!

Stephen Tremp said...

Hi Shannon. Women in Horror Movies. What a great post. It's more than running from Jason stumbling over their feet and continuing to fall down over and over. There are some really great actresses in this movie genre who deserve to be recognized.

Cynthia said...

Hello Shannon, I didn't know there was a Woman in Horror month. I like many female authors who specialize in spook. One of them is Patricia Highsmith. Great writer.

Juneta key said...

Congrats on the new release. I say I don't read horror but that is not totally true. I have read V C Andrews and Anne Rice and some of Stephen King and not sure if Dean Koontz counts-read several of his.

Anne Higa said...

Congrats on the upcoming release. You can do it! Also, thanks for sharing all the tips on places accepting submissions!
Anne from annehiga.com

Lynda R Young as Elle Cardy said...

Best wishes for your new release. It is scary self publishing for the first time. I'll be doing this year soon.

J.H. Moncrieff said...

Thanks again for featuring me, and congratulations on your upcoming release! The good news is, as your own publisher, you can always change course and try new things. It's never a "done deal."

Michael Di Gesu said...

How exciting, Shannon.... I hope you are better prepared since this was posted! I know it will be a success! ALL THE BEST!