The Horror Tree Recent Markets, Articles, Interviews, and Fiction!

Contest / Events / Flat Amount

 by 

Contest: Imagine 2200: Write the future

Deadline: June 24th, 2024
Prizes: First place: $3,000, Second place: $2,000, and Third place: $1,000
Theme: Near-future to 2200 stories that are rooted in creative climate solutions and community-centered resilience, showing what can happen as solutions take root, and stories that offer gripping plots with rich characters and settings, making that future come alive.

Grist is excited to open submissions for the fourth year of our Imagine 2200: Climate Fiction for Future Ancestors short story contest.

Imagine 2200 celebrates stories that envision the next decades to centuries of equitable climate progress, imagining futures of abundance, adaptation, reform, and hope. We are looking for stories that are rooted in creative climate solutions and community-centered resilience, showing what can happen as solutions take root, and stories that offer gripping plots with rich characters and settings, making that future come alive.

In 2,500 to 5,000 words, show us the world you dream of building.

Your story should be set sometime between the near future and roughly the year 2200.

A great Imagine story is not afraid to explore the challenges ahead – the path to climate progress will involve struggle and adaptation, and we invite you to show that – but ultimately offers hope that we can work together to build a more sustainable and just world. We want to see stories that incorporate real world climate solutions and climate science, as well as cultural authenticity (a deep sense of place, customs, cuisine, and more) and characters with fully-fledged identities. We especially want to read – and share – stories that center solutions and voices from the communities most impacted by the climate crisis.

If you’re newer to climate or climate fiction, check out our FAQs page for some resources to get you started in finding inspiration from existing solutions, and some past Imagine stories to look to for examples. Feel free to use these as a jumping off point, or to bring in any climate and justice solutions you find inspiring.

Your story can bring these principles into any genre – we love seeing climate themes show up in love stories, mysteries, adventure, comedy, and more. Climate connects to every part of life, and all sorts of stories can be climate stories, so dream big — envision a world where climate solutions have flourished, and where we prioritize our well-being, work to mend our communities, and lead lives that celebrate our humanity. We can’t wait to read what you come up with.

(more…)

Articles

 by 

Check out the ‘Voyage Into Genre’ Book Tour to see Andrea Hairston, Nghi Vo, Rebecca Thorne, & Veronica Roth live!

In a captivating fusion of the speculative and the sensational, Tor Publishing Group, in partnership with Lit Hub, invites you to an evening imbued with the fantastical—a live rendition of our beloved Voyage Into Genre podcast. For the uninitiated, Voyage Into Genre brings forth bi-weekly dialogues hosted by Drew Broussard, where the luminaries of Tor narrate their tales, discuss the trajectories of their genres, and occasionally, spring a surprise or two. This spectacle aligns with the podcast’s ethos, presenting a cadre of Tor’s trailblazers, each accompanied by a distinguished guest moderator. Make your presence known—RSVP to join the conclave of narrative nomads.

(more…)

Articles

 by 

Indie Bookshelf Releases 04/19/2024

Got a book to launch, an event to promote, a kickstarter or seeking extra work/support as a result of being hit economically by life in general?

Get in touch and we’ll promote you here. The post is prepared each Thursday for publication on Friday. Contact us via Horror Tree’s contact address or connect via Twitter or Facebook.

Click on the book covers for more information. Remember to scroll down to the bottom of the page – there’s all sorts lurking in the deep.

 

Before you scroll down through the books however, please could you consider checking out the ‘Creatives in Crisis’ section. This has been added to help those who need additional support at this time. Please note I keep these up as long as they’re either running or have hit their targets. Those belonging to Claire Fitzpatrick and Bill Spangler continue to need support (11/04/2024). Thank you!

 

(more…)

Anthology / Events / Flash / Pro / Reprints Allowed

 by 

Taking Submissions: Circe

Deadline: June 23rd, 2024
Payment: 8 cents/6 pence per word for original stories, 6 cents/4 pence for reprints.
Theme: Enchantress, goddess, witch, predatory seductress. That isn’t all Circe is, it is time to expand on her story. More details below
Note: Reprints Welcome

We are very excited to announce a new call for submissions which is now open! Please read through the details for submissions carefully before submitting your stories.

Flame Tree are bringing you a brand new gorgeous hardcover series brimming with myths and short stories.

Discover the mythology of humankind through its heroes, characters, gods and immortal figures. Myths, Gods & Immortals brings together the new and the ancient, familiar stories with a fresh and imaginative twist. Each book brings back to life a classic mythological or folkloric figure, with completely new stories alongside the original tales. New and emerging writers from open submissions reveal hidden themes, casting fresh perspectives on well-known stories, alongside specially commissioned text on the origins and the cultural background of the mythology. We’ve already closed submissions for the first two books in the series, Medusa and Odin, where stories are still under consideration. We’re now opening up submissions for the next two books, Circe and Anansi.

(more…)

Artwork / Events / Flash / Flat Amount / Magazine

 by 

Taking Submissions: Electric Spec August Issue 2024

Deadline: July 15th, 2024
Payment: $20 per story or artwork
Theme: Electric Spec prefers science fiction, fantasy, and the macabre, but we’re willing to push the limits of traditional forms of these genres.

submissions at electricspec (dot) com
Please don’t query us about your story submission. We don’t have the manpower to answer such queries. An editor will email you back as soon as possible with the decision about your story. This can take a few days, or, up to three months. We make every effort to get back to authors in a timely manner but we get a lot of submissions so sometimes it’s not possible.

A note on our editorial policy: before publication we may work with the author to edit the story for length or readability. However, we always remain true to the spirit of the story and the author has final approval.

Issues are published at the end of February, May, August, and November. We reserve the right to shift publication date slightly, as necessary.

We have reading periods for each issue, though we never close to submissions.

(more…)

Articles / Reviews

 by 

Epeolatry Book Review: Archangels of Funk by Andrea Hairston

Disclosure:

Our reviews may contain affiliate links. If you purchase something through the links in this article we may receive a small commission or referral fee. This happens without any additional cost to you.

Title: Archangels of Funk
Author: Andrea Hairston
Genre: Sci-Fantasy
Publisher: Tordotcom
Release Date: 7th May, 2024

Synopsis: Run from your past. Hide from your future. Protect your present.

The Water Wars have scrambled the world. Flood refugees are on the run. Disrupters and the nostalgia militia roam the roads wreaking havoc. Invisible Darknet Lords troll the internet, solidifying their power, while Cinnamon, her three Circus-Bots, and two dogs work with a community of farmers, Motor Fairies, and Wheel-Wizards to provide housing, health care and education for flood refugees.

As Cinnamon confronts threats from the Darknet Lords and the nostalgia militia, she must determine how best to honor her elders and her history while building a future for herself and her charges.

It’s not going to be easy.

(more…)

Anthology / Events / Flash / Pro / Reprints Allowed

 by 

Flame Tree Press Is Re-Opening Submissions For ‘Anansi’

Deadline: June 23rd, 2024
Payment: 8 cents/6 pence per word for original stories, 6 cents/4 pence for reprints.
Theme: Stories featuring Anasi: a creator god, a trickster folk hero, a wily spider and a heroic symbol of resistance. More details below
Note: Reprints Welcome

We are very excited to re-open our call for submissions for this title! Please read through the details for submissions carefully before submitting your stories.

 Flame Tree are bringing you a brand new gorgeous hardcover series brimming with myths and short stories. 

Discover the mythology of humankind through its heroes, characters, gods and immortal figures. Myths, Gods & Immortals brings together the new and the ancient, familiar stories with a fresh and imaginative twist. Each book brings back to life a classic mythological or folkloric figure, with completely new stories alongside the original tales. New and emerging writers from open submissions reveal hidden themes, casting fresh perspectives on well-known stories, alongside specially commissioned text on the origins and the cultural background of the mythology. We’ve already closed submissions for the first two books in the series, Medusa and Odin, where stories are still under consideration. We’re now opening up submissions for the next two books, Circe and Anansi.

All previous submissions for Anansi are still under consideration and authors will be contacted in due course, within 4 months of the new deadline.

(more…)

Contest / Events / Flat Amount

 by 

Contest: Pulp Asylum Fiction Contest

Deadline: May 15th, 2024
Prize: $10 US (payable via PayPal only) plus a copy of Pulp Asylum’s first novella, When Harry Comes to Call
Theme: Rebirth/Renewal

Call for Submissions
Pulp Asylum Fiction Contest
​
I am looking for drabbles for this contest.  A drabble is a story of exactly 100 words, no more and no less.  Do not count the title or your byline, just the body of the text itself.  Entries not meeting the 100-word requirement will not be considered.  Keep the following guidelines in mind:

— The theme for this contest is rebirth/renewal.   Your entry should connect with this theme in some way.  For this contest,  I will be considering drabbles that fall into the following genres: crime, mystery, horror, suspense,  fantasy, science fiction, western, or just plain weird.

(more…)