The Time Has Come & Beta Readers

You may remember I had beta readers look at my novel this past year. I wrote a post about how to work with beta readers for Writing From the Peak, the official blog of Pikes Peak Writers. You can check it out HERE.

As of today, I'm at the Marriott in the lead up to Pikes Peak Writers Conference, where I'll be working as staff AND presenting some workshops. Plus, I'll be selling and signing books. So my husband made me a friend to take.

Turns out there's a bigger one on its way, but he'll be dropping him off at the hotel after I'm already there.

My younger cat is not a fan.

She actually wants to eat it.

3-D printers can make all kinds of cool things, eh? Given, my facehugger pales in comparison to building organs with a 3-D printer. Still, I like it. He and his older brother will be at my signing table.

Have a great week, and I'll see you next Wednesday for the IWSG! Hopefully with some fun news from PPWC. In the meantime, here are some links. Bear in mind that I'm not endorsing them, merely passing them along. Always do your own due diligence before submitting.

Accepting Submissions:

AGNI is accepting fiction, essays, and poetry. Pays $10 per printed page. Deadline May 31.

One Story is accepting short literary fiction. 3000 to 8000 words. Pays $500. Deadline May 31.

Baltimore Review is accepting fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction. Pays $40. Deadline May 31.

67 Press is accepting flash and short fiction. Up to 5000 words. All genres. Pays $25 + royalties. Deadline May 31.

Recompose is accepting speculative flash fiction and poetry. Up to 1100 words. Pays $.06/word. Deadline May 31.

Nashville Review is accepting fiction, poetry, and nonfiction. Up to 8000 words. Pays $25 to $100, depending upon submission type. Deadline May 31.

Chicken Soup for the Soul is accepting short submissions for the theme Positively Happy! Up to 1200 words. Pays $200. Deadline May 31.

CASFWG is accepting short fiction for the anthology When You're Strange: An Anthology of Strangers. Up to 7500 words. Pays $15. Deadline May 31.

Any of these links of interest? Anything to add? Publishing news?

May you find your Muse.

Surprise Book Release! - Maski, Upcoming Workshop, & Links

For anyone Denver adjacent, I'll be doing a workshop for Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers next month!

Saturday, May 13, 2017 - 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. - FREE

Location: Sam Gary Library, Denver

Deconstructing the Horror Genre - Everyone has their own definition of horror, but it's often oversimplified. The genre extends beyond jump scares and slashers. We'll break horror down to its base elements to learn how to build a solid horror story.

Hope to see you there!

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Joylene Nowell Butler's new book Maski: Broken But Not Dead releases today!

Where does the surprise come in, you ask? Joylene had an injury that has her stuck in the hospital right now, unable to partake in the launch of her new book. L. Diane Wolf, her publisher, set this surprise release up for her! We can only hope to have a publisher like this in our writery lives.

EBook release date: April 18, 2017

Maski: Broken But Not Dead

By Joylene Nowell Butler

Psychological Thriller

$4.99 eBook ISBN 9781939844385

An IPPY Silver Medalist!

To the Breaking Point...

When Brendell Meshango resigns from her university professor position and retreats to her isolated cabin to repair her psyche, she is confronted by a masked intruder. His racial comments lead her to believe she is the solitary victim of a hate crime.

However, is all as it appears? After two bizarre days, the intruder mysteriously disappears but continues to play mind games with her. Taught by her mother to distrust the mainstream-based power structures, and with her stalker possibly linked to a high level of government, Brendell conceals the incident from the police. But will her silence keep her safe?

Then her beloved daughter, Zoë, is threatened and Brendell takes matters into her own hands. To save Zoë, Brendell searches for the stalker and confronts not just a depraved madman but her own fears and prejudices.

Purchase Links:

Barnes & Noble 

Kobo

iTunes 

Amazon 

“Joylene Nowell Butler gets straight to the story, taking you from one happening to the next and keeps you turning the page.” - Martha A. Cheves, author

“A psychological thriller filled with suspense, action and drama...” - John Bell, 93.1  CFIS-FM: Prince George, BC

“Riveting and beautifully written. You won't be able to set it down.” Judith S. Avila, author

Joylene, Métis, is the author of Dead Witness, Broken But Not Dead, and Break Time. She and her husband and their two cats reside in Canada for the summers and Nayarit for the winters. They believe life should be an adventure. https://cluculzwriter.blogspot.com/

If you'd like to help get the word out about Joylene's new book, you an tweet the following:

Available now! Amazon- https://tinyurl.com/m63vmxr  B&N- https://tinyurl.com/kah7yj5  iTunes- https://tinyurl.com/kx44u8d  @cluculzwriter

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Now for some links. Bear in mind that I'm not endorsing these, merely passing them along. Always do your own due diligence before submitting to any market or contest.

Accepting Submissions:

Inklings Publishing is accepting short stories for the anthology Eclectically Heroic. Up to 7000 words. Pays $25. Deadline April 30.

Lamplight is accepting short stories in speculative fiction. Up to 7000 words. Pays $.03/word. Deadline May 15.

The Lorelei Signal is accepting short stories, poems, and flash fiction in fantasy. Up to 10,000 words. Any female characters must be strong/complex, not just victims for the rescuing. Pays between $2.00 and $7.50, depending upon submission type. Deadline May 15.

Pedestal Magazine is accepting poetry in the theme of "War." No length or genre restrictions. Can submit up to 5 poems. Pays $40 per poem. Deadline May 21. (Does not start taking submissions until May 1.)

Cloaked Press is accepting fantasy short stories for their annual anthology Fall Into Fantasy. 2000 to 7500 words. Pays $10 + possible royalties. Deadline May 25.

National Lampoon is accepting humorous articles. Up to 1500 words. Pays $70.

IWSG - Beating Self Doubt & Links

It's the first Wednesday of April, which makes it time for the Insecure Writer's Support Group, created by Alex J. Cavanaugh.

The IWSG is open to anyone who would like to participate. It's a place to air your insecurities, and a way to hop around and lend your support to others. Click on Alex's name above to go sign up.

This month's co-hosts are  Chris D. Votey, Madeline Mora-Summonte,Fundy Blue, and Chrys Fey! Be sure to stop by and say thanks for their hard work.

This month's optional question is Have you taken advantage of the annual A to Z Challenge in terms of marketing, networking, publicity for your book? What were the results?

The years I participated in the A-to-Z, I wasn't yet published, so no, I didn't use it for any sort of marketing.

For those of you participating in the A-to-Z right now, I hope you're having a great time! I actually might be able to do it next year, so I'm already considering what I might like to do.

As far as my insecurities, I've been low the last few months, suffering quite a bit of self-doubt, and judging my writing harshly. As a result, I didn't finish anything new for a good part of that time, but I recently broke through it and started enjoying the process again. I'm also being flooded with ideas. Sometimes you just have to soldier through the downs until you can reclaim your love of the writing again.

The first Wednesday of each month is also when I go over my stats for the month, so here are March's stats:

5 submissions
6 rejections (1 personal)
0 acceptances
1 publication

I currently have 9 pieces on submission.

I've gotten a lot of editing done this month, so that's good!

Now for some links. Bear in mind that I'm not endorsing, merely passing along. Always do your own due diligence before submitting.

Accepting Submissions:

Strange Horizons is accepting speculative fiction short stories. Up to 10,000 words. Pays $.08/word.

Red Sun Magazine is accepting speculative fiction short stories up through novella or serialized. They prefer 3000 to 5000 words. Pays $100 for short stories. Other pay varies.

The Flash Fiction Press is always accepting flash fiction. All genres. 250 to 1200 words. Pays $3.

Occult Detective Quarterly is accepting fiction, non-fiction, and artwork. They want stories about those who investigate the odd and supernatural. 3000 to 5500 words. Pays $.01/word.

Phantaxis is accepting short stories, flash fiction, and artwork in science fiction and fantasy. 1000 to 15,000 words. Pays $.01/word.

Daily Science Fiction is accepting speculative flash fiction. Up to 1500 words. Pays $.08/word.

Of Interest:

The Guardian put out an article entitled Rise of Female Monsters Shows Horror Movies Are Not Afraid of Big, Bad Women.

What are your insecurities? How do you pull yourself out of a slump? Have you submitted any stories this month? Are any of these links of interest? 

May you find your Muse.