Rick Ollerman at The Rap Sheet

Over at The Rap Sheet there's news from editor Rick Ollerman that the Bill Crider Prize for Short Fiction deadline has been extended.  He also notes that he's editing this year's Bouchercon Anthology and he's still looking for submissions.  You can find all the information here.

Author Gigs and Deadlines - Closed Down

Market resource Author Gigs and Deadlines has disappeared into the ether.  It's a shame as they were a great resource for finding short story markets.

Also closed down is Writing Career another great source for finding markets.

Quartermarch Press - Open for Novels and Novellas - Texas Authors

Quartermarch Press is a new press based in Texas.  They're currently looking for genre (romance, mystery, and horror) novels and novellas (Beach Read Series) based on Texas themes or settings.  They're also interested in seeing work from Texas authors.  They don't list pay specifics but they do state that if your work is accepted they'll contact the author and negotiate payment.  So it is a paying market.  They also have an open anthology call "Keep Texas Salty" but there's no payment for this one.  You can find the details here.

28 Paying Markets for March

Over at the Publishing...and Other Forms of Insanity blog Erica Verrillo has posted her list of paying markets for March.  Thanks, Erica!

Belanger Books - Sherlock Holmes Anthology Calls

Belanger Books has posted their anthology calls for 2019.  There are six anthologies all relating to Sherlock Holmes.  Deadlines differ as do some of the submission guidelines so read them carefully.  Payment for all is $50 plus royalties and there will be Kickstarters.  You can find the details here.

Here are the titles in order of deadlines:

Sherlock Holmes and the Great Detectives
Sherlock Holmes and the Occult Detectives.  More details on this one here.
The Early Adventures of Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson
The Necronomison of Solar Pons
Sherlock Holmes:  Adventures in the Realms of Edgar Allan Poe
Beyond the Adventures of Sherlock Holmes

Prospective Press - Anthology Call

Prospective Press has posted an anthology call for "Predators in Petticoats".  They're looking for stories of 4000 to 7000 words featuring female predators.  Stories can be in any genre.  They also want flash fiction under 1000 words.  The deadline March 31, 2019 and payment is 4cents a word if their Kickstarter is successful.  You can find the details here.

Castrum Press - Anthology Call

Castrum Press has posted an anthology call for "Alien Days".  They're looking for stories of 3000 to 10,000 words that highlight the interaction between humanity and aliens.  Genres they're looking for are science fiction, fantasy, or horror.  The deadline is February 29, 2019 and payment is a royalty split.  You can find the details here.

Crystal Lake Publishing - Open for Novella Submissions

Crystal Lake Publishing has an open call for Novellas.  They're looking for novellas of 20,000 to 40,000 words featuring elements of horror or dark fantasy.  The deadline is April 15, 2019 and payment is a $500 advance against royalties.  You can find the details here.

Wickedly Abled - Anthology Call

Editor Sumiko Saulson has posted an anthology call for "Wickedly Abled".  They're looking for dark fantasy and horror written by disabled artists featuring disabled protagonists.  Stories should be 1500 to 5500 words.  Reprints are okay but they do list specifics for them.  The deadline is March 31, 2019 and payment is $10.  You can find the details here. 

Angie's Desk - Anthology Calls

Angie has posted her February listing of paying anthology markets.  Thanks, Angie!

Yellow Mama - New Issue

The February issue of Yellow Mama has hit the virtual streets.  Read it for free here.

A Book Question

I don't know if it's fair to ask this question but I was wondering.  I just finished reading Alafair Burke's "Dead Connection".  I enjoyed it and was looking to purchase the next book in the series but, and here's the question.  Does Ellie Hatcher ever solve the mystery of her father's death?

At the end of the first book she's going home to look at the case but the next book in the series is all about a new case in New York.  I want to know if we're going to find out the truth or if this is just "baggage" she's going to carry around through the whole series.  A trope I'm not fond of because in the end I'm usually disappointed.  No spoilers if possible, it's not fair to other readers :)

Help?

B Cubed Press - Anthology Call

B Cubed Press has posted an anthology call for "Tales From the Space Force".  They're looking for stories (and poems) of 500 to 5000 words that answer the question What would an American Space Force do?  The deadline is April 15, 2019 and payment is 2cents a word with flash stories and poems being given the option of a flat payment of $25.  Reprints are okay but will be held to a higher standard.  You can find the details here.

Apparition Lit - Open for Submissions

Apparition Lit has opened submissions today for speculative fiction stories of 1000 to 5000 words using the theme of Ambition.  The deadline February 28, 2019 and payment is 3cents a word.  You can find the details here.

Pulp Modern - Open for Submissions

Don't forget that today February 15, 2019) is the only day for submitting to Pulp Modern's next issue.  For this call only they are looking for science fiction, horror, and Westerns.  They haven't changed the date on their submission page but today is the day :)  You can find the details here.

Switchblade Magazine - New Issue

Switchblade #8 has now hit the marketplace.  You can find the details and a link to purchase here.  Just scroll down the page.  They're also still open for submissions until March 1 for their 2019 issues.

Post to Print Publishers - Anthology Call

Post to Print Publishers have opened submissions for their anthology "From a Cat's View Vol. II".  They're looking for stories of 3000 to 7000 words written from the cat's point of view.  The cat's character should impact the plot in a significant manner.  All genres are welcome.  The deadline is April 15, 2019 and payment is $25.  You can find the details here.

Malarkey Books - Anthology Call

Malarkey Books has an interesting anthology call for "Dear Writer:  Stories That Just Aren't the Right Fit at this Time".  They're looking for stories of 2000 words or more in any genre that have been rejected at least ten times.  The deadline is February 28, 2019 and payment is $30.  You can find the details here.

Serial Magazine - New Issue

Issue #2 of Serial Magazine is now available for purchase.  You can check it out here.

Speculative City - Open for Submissions

Speculative City magazine opened submissions for their third issue.  They're looking for speculative fiction stories up to 5500 words that take place within a cityscape.  The theme for this issue is OCCULT.  The deadline is March 25, 2019 and payment is $20 to $75 depending on length.  You can find the details here.

Lethe Press - Anthology Call

Lethe Press has posted an anthology call for "Hatchet Job".  They're looking for stories under 10,000 words that involve the threat or concept of the axe murderer.  Most of the stories will be reprints paying 2cents a word.  They will accept original work but you must query the editor with a synopsis.  For originals they'll pay 4cents a word.  The deadline is April 30, 2019.  You can find the details here.

Orbannin Books - Anthology Call

Orbannin Books has an anthology call for "Letters from the Grave:  A Collection of Epistolary Horror".  They're looking for horror stories up to 10,000 words that use letters or any type of written or electronic communication to tell the story.  The deadline is March 31, 2019 and  payment is 5cents a word.  You can find the details here.

Occult Detective - New Issue

Issue #5 of Occult Detective is now available for purchase.

The Impotence of Editing by Peggy Christie

There's a funny tongue-in-cheek essay about editing your own work over at The Horror Tree.  You can check it out here.  Along with the fun is a very serious look at being a professional writer.

Indie Author Murder Mystery Anthology Call

I'm on the fence about posting this but because it's a crime fiction market...

The call is posted by Stephen Bentley and he's looking for indie authors to contribute to an anthology of "Murder Mystery Short Stories".  There is a "Good Reads Event" thingie that you need to sign up for.  He wants each author to submit three stories of 1000 to 3000 words using the theme of Murder Mysteries but also the three stories need to have another theme (your choice) that ties them together.  The deadline is May 1, 2019 and payment is a royalty split.

Now here's the catch.  Each writer will have to pay a share to have the stories edited and if they decide to do a paperback edition you'll have to pay a split for that also.  Now if you are an indie author you probably know what to expect in the way of fees for this one.

You can find the details here.

UPDATE:  As of February 8, 2019 Mr. Bentley has filled all his open slots and the call is now closed.

Pulp Modern - Advance Notice Submission Period

Pulp Modern has announced on their Twitter feed that the next one day submission period will be February 15, 2019.  For this issue they are only looking for science fiction, horror, and Western stories.  You can find the submission guidelines here.

Alone in a Room by Kent Harrington

I've been reading some of the old essays about writing that helped me as I was growing into a proper writer and this one by Kent Harrington is a beauty.  I'm still not a proper writer as I haven't been writing much for the last few years.  Always starting, rarely finishing, and never submitting even though I see markets that stir the juices.  Right now I'm working my way back to my joy.

Mystery Weekly - New Issue

The February issue of Mystery Weekly is now available for purchase.  Check it out here.

Buckshot - Open for Submissions

Buckshot is currently open to submissions of flash stories up to 2000 words in any genre.  Payment is $20 US ($25CAD).  You can find the details here.

Shotgun Honey - Anthology Call

Shotgun Honey has opened submissions for their fourth (untitled) anthology.  They are looking for crime, noir or hard-boiled stories of 1000 to 5000 words.  The deadline is March 31, 2019 and payment is $25.  You can find the details and submission form here.

PMMP Newsletter - Calls for Submissions

I subscribe to quite a few magazine newsletters and PMMP's came through yesterday with links to four short story markets, all paying.  Rather then post all of them here I'll just pass along the link to their newsletter.  The market listings are at the bottom of the page.

Switchblade - Open for Submissions

Switchblade Magazine opened submissions today for crime short stories of 2000 to 4500 words.  They will be picking all the stories for their 2019 regular issues during this period.  The deadline is March 1, 2019 and payment is $15.  You can find all the details here.