Thursday, December 13, 2012

New Poem: Chasing Philosophy at Red Fez


The December issue of Red Fez just went live! You can find my poem, Chasing Philosophy, listed under the poetry tab. An excerpt:


Per their website, “Red Fez is an artist-run organization determined to publish and promote creative, meaningful and accessible artistic pursuits and collaborations. Our mission is to provide opportunities for writers, artists and musicians to create, promote, publish and profit (in kind, in cash, in notoriety, in backrubs - hey artists will take whatever they can get these days!) from their work; and for readers, art enthusiasts and music fans to discover, connect and support art and artists meaningful and entertaining to them. We believe in accessible art and an accessible artistic community. Red Fez is a melting pot of people interested in creating, sharing and discovering writing, music, art and more.”

Submission guidelines can be found here.

Thank you, Michael Grover and all the staff at Red Fez.

Wednesday, December 12, 2012

2012 MicroHorror Story Contest: The Blood Worms is a Winner


Nathan Rosen, editor of the horror flash fiction site, MicroHorror, has announced the winners of the 2012 Short Story Contest. Three winning entries were chosen. It thrills me to announce my story, The Blood Worms was one of them.

My sincere thanks goes out to the judges: Nathan Rosen, Oonah V. Joslin, and Michael A. Arnzen.

And a big congrats to my fellow authors and their winning tales:
Chiseled by Caelin Beaty
Disturbing Art by Mara Morrigan

Saturday, December 8, 2012

The Incurable Weight of the Breathless at eSteampunk


eFiction publishes a variety of genre magazines (adventure, fantasy, horror, noir, romance, sci-fi, Steampunk, humor) every month. Submissions guidelines for their Steampunk issues can be found here. I highly recommend you spend some time exploring the many offerings they have available.

My poem, The Incurable Weight of the Breathless, appears in their latest Steampunk issue, eSteampunk December 2012. The following is an excerpt of my poem:


My thanks to editor, Mandy Brown, whose valuable feedback was most appreciated.

Friday, December 7, 2012

Friday Reading Recommendation: Krystal Lambert at Doxa Literary Journal

Today’s recommendation is a departure from the often horrific, darker works I normally pimp. These particular poems explore one woman’s spirituality, spoken with a passionately, soothing persistence. This collection of nine poems by Krystal Lambert appears at Doxa: Nebraska Christian College's Undergraduate Literary Journal. From the opening lines of Pale Joy:

dear somber and sorrow
stop sleeping on my doorstep
stop sinking my heart

to the soulful pleas of her heartbreaking For Lovers:

breathe of beasts and baubles and beauty
wrap me in worth
torture me in tenderness
crown me in color
love me in lavender
that i might not find my heart in ashes

I was enamored with her honest and plainly-spoken prose. No matter what walk of faith you cling to, I believe a bit of her quiet divinity can offer something to ponder for days to come. Let’s face it, we can all benefit from a dose of optimism. I leave you with a passage from her thoughtfully stirring Temple of Bones:

Within my flesh
despite my filth
You place Your Spirit
among the wreckage.

Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Simultaneous Submissions: To Do or Not To Do

Most online and print publications clearly state their preference for simultaneous submissions. Some will accept them; no problem. Some will accept them with stipulations. Some will absolutely not have anything to do with them.

By definition, a simultaneous submission is a completed manuscript (and here you can insert whatever specific type you choose: poem, flash fiction, short story, novella, novel, etc.) that the writer sends out to more than one publisher / editor. Every publication has a different response time, so the idea is for the writer to submit copies of their work to multiple publishers, thus increasing the chance for a ‘timely’ acceptance / rejection notification.

Examples of publisher preferences for simultaneous submissions:
Yes— Sundog Lit
Yes (with stipulations)— Boston Literary Magazine

If a writer’s work is accepted by one particular journal / magazine/ online pub/ press, it then becomes her responsibility to contact all the other publications she submitted to and inform them her work is no longer available for consideration.

This is where editors often run into a problem. They might love this writer’s work and want nothing more than to publish it but, unknown to them, it’s been accepted somewhere else… and the writer may have forgotten to communicate this fact. They may have already cleared the page space and closed submissions for their latest issue, and now they’ve lost the opportunity to present this writer’s work.

I guarantee this writer will never be welcome to submit to them again. For reals.

In my own opinion— and as the majority of publications I submit to are unpaid gigs— I see very little benefit in simultaneous submissions. Using myself as an example, I don’t let just any stranger hold my baby (my crafted words). I carefully choose where and to whom my work is sent. I want that publisher to take their time and really give my submission a fair shake before passing judgment. If rejected, I move on to plan B (always have a plan B thru Z) and submit elsewhere. And in reality, what’s the big hurry anyway? Use that anxious waiting time to continue creating new works.

The only time I consider submitting the same work to more than one publisher at a time is when there’s an opportunity to receive payment (if the selected publisher is open to this option). The benefit here is obvious— ker ching, ker ching… $$. BUT, if you’re lacking follow up skills, don’t bother as failing to alert publishers of acceptance elsewhere may burn bridges you may like to one day walk across.

In a nutshell, for me, I just don’t do it.

How do you feel about it?