Retreat! Retreat!

Hello, from The Stanley Hotel in Estes Park! Pennywise and I are on an impromptu writing retreat. Despite his bossiness, I'm going to fit some side ventures in between writing and editing. (But only a little. Who wants to invite the wrath of a demon clown? Not I.)

I made the mistake of hopping onto Facebook during a writing break, and now he's watching me like a hawk.

He doesn't really approve of me doing a blog post either, so I have to run. But not too far. The ghosts in the hallway are bigger than him. And there are these two little girls whose parents don't appear to be supervising them at all. How much longer are they going to play in the hallway?

Parents these days. Yeesh.

What are you up to? Get any writing done this weekend? Or do you take weekends off from writing? When are you most productive?

May you find your Muse.

[Mostly] Wordless Wednesday - The Snowy Stanley & Links

Okay, I finally re-installed Picasa, so here are some photos from my two night trip to Estes Park:

The Historic Stanley Hotel, Estes Park, CO

Some cool clouds saying goodbye to me as I packed up the Jeep

Now for some links.

Accepting Submissions:

Slice Magazine is open for submissions of short fiction, non-fiction, and poetry. Reading period closes March 1. The current them is "Hope." Maximum 5000 words. Pays $100 for fiction and essays, $25 for poems.

Circlet Press has several calls for submissions. Hard as Stone: Dwarven Erotica closes for submissions March 1. $25 for the ebook anthology ($25 more if it goes to print). Like a Haunted Trail: Erotic Tales of the Weird Wild West closes March 15. Like a Circlet Editor: Erotic Fantasies of Circlet Press closes March 22. Physics Need Not Apply closes March 31. Pay is the same for all, and all are intended as ebook anthologies first, with a possible print book to follow.

DarkFuse is looking for horror flash fiction for their Horror d'oevres website. 99-999 words. Pays $.05/word. Dark fiction only. They're also taking submissions of short dark fiction for their magazine, which pays $50 per story. 2,000-5,000 words. They publish four anthologies per year with short dark fiction. Pay is $50, plus royalties. They also publish novels and novellas. All guidelines can be found at the initial link.

The Sun publishes essays, interviews, fiction, and poetry. They pay between $100 and $2000, depending upon the format you send in.

The Chicago Review is seeking poetry, fiction, and book reviews. Pays in contributor copies. Submissions by snail mail.

Contests:

February Furs is holding a monthly short story contest. I may be mistaken, but it looks like a new site. Free to enter. 750-1000 words. Requirements will be posted each month, with a deadline of the 25th of each month. This month, the highlights are a fur, dignity, and a confession. Them is dignity. Deadline is February 25.

Hektoen International is holding an essay contest. Must be related to medicine and culture. Deadline March 1. 1500-2000 words. Grand prize $1500, plus publication in their Summer 2014 issue. No entry fee.

Any of these interest you? Anything to add? Any publishing news to share? Have you seen clouds like these?

May you find your Muse.

Cool Places to Visit for Movie Fans

Since I'm currently visiting the Stanley Hotel in Estes Park, Colorado, the inspiration for Stephen King's The Shining, I thought I'd list a couple places movie fans might enjoy visiting.

First, of course, I must talk about the Stanley. Stephen King lived in Boulder, Colorado for a time, which is why some of his books are actually set in Colorado instead of Maine. He stayed in Room 217 of the Stanley, at one point, and was inspired to write The Shining, though he only developed the concept there. It has been rumored in the past that he wrote most of it there, but this isn't true. The Stanley was not used in Kubrick's film version of the book, but it was used in King's mini-series version for some of the scenes.

One can't mention filming locations and The Shining in the same post without also mentioning the Timberline Lodge in Mt. Hood, Oregon. This is where the exterior shots of Kubrick's version of The Shining were filmed. Stephen King wasn't happy with this setting, but a lot of people have seen the film, so it's worth mentioning. The interior shots were done on sound stages, which Kubrick made to look like various hotels he had visited.

Playing a bit of Six Degrees here, I've mentioned the sign before, but you can visit various places in Oregon where One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest was filmed. Jack Nicholson starred in both this film and Kubrick's version of The Shining. You can view the duck crossing sign in Salem, Oregon, as well as the Oregon State Mental Hospital it was filmed in. Depoe Bay, Oregon was also in the movie. It's a great little coastal city to visit along the Pacific Coast Highway, especially if you enjoy beaches, whale sightings and kite flying.

Also in Oregon, you can visit the neat little homes from The Goonies in Astoria, Oregon. Several other movies were filmed here, including Kindergarten Cop and Short Circuit ("No disassemble!") Getting back to The Goonies, you can view Mikey's house, still intact. The bridge from just about every movie filmed here is still standing and stretches across to Washington to give you a nice little jaunt across the bay.

Lastly, for you Harry Potter fans out there, how about a visit to Edinburgh, Scotland, where J.K. Rowling found inspiration for Hogwarts looking out the window of The Elephant House cafe. The photos are of The Elephant House and Edinburgh Castle, from one of hubby's business trips (No, I've never gotten to go there, but golly gee whiz, I did get a coffee cup from there! phlbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbt!). They were taken by one of his co-workers. I had to edit the hubster out of the castle photo, and the Elephant House photo is the only one he wasn't in to begin with, so they aren't the best:

These are but a very few of the places you can visit to see visible remnants of the movies you love. Feel free to throw out any others you'd recommend!

What would you consider a great place for movie fans to visit?

May you find your Muse.