Calls for Submission #3

Once again I bring you Selene MacLeod with Calls for Submission (CfS). You can see all of the CfS columns here. Enjoy, and Happy New Year! - Beverly

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Happy New Year! I hope you had a joyous and wonderful holiday and are feeling productive. Myself, I like to hibernate during the winter months, but this year, there is too much going on.

First, a plea. Crossed Genres Magazine, a pro market and all-around cool e-mag, needs to sell subscriptions to keep going. Check them out here: http://crossedgenres.com. They've got several upcoming submission calls, so be sure to take a look at their guidelines while you're there. 

Pro Markets seeking submissions:

Fantasy & Science-Fiction. Special guest editor CC Finlay. No special theme for the July/August 2014 issue. Deadline January 14, 2014. Pro rates. http://ccfinlay.com/blog/guest-editing-fsf.html

Women Destroy Science Fiction! Lightspeed Magazine special issue. Looking for sci-fi stories by women authors for their June, 2014 issue. Max 7,500 words. Pro rates, deadline February 14, 2014. http://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/special-issues/women-destroy-sf/women-destroy-science-fiction-a-message-from-the-guest-editor/

Resurrection House. Seeking stories 1,000-7,000 words. Deadline March 13, 2014, to be published in the winter of 2015. Theme is XIII. The guidelines say they're looking for “transformative” stories of What Was and What Will Be.http://www.resurrectionhouse.com/2013/12/call-for-stories/

Eggplant Productions. Looking for fairy tales retold to feature POC, LGBT, disabled, and non- “Western” characters. Deadline April 30, 2014. Seeking stories for Spellbound, aimed at children 8-12 (max 2,500 words) and Spindles (max 5,000 words). Pays $0.05 per word, $1 per line for poetry. http://eggplantproductions.com/general-guidelines/guidelines-for-spellbound-spindles/

The Journal of Unlikely Cartography. Looking for stories with a “Cartography” theme (think maps, graphs, GPS, etc.). Max 5,000 words, pays $0.05 per word. Deadline February 1, 2014. Read guidelines carefully, as there are several calls on this page but only one is currently open. http://www.unlikely-story.com/fiction-submissions/

Two anthologies from Exile Editions (Michael Matheson): Start a Revolution: QUILTBAG Fiction Vying for Change. Reading period January 1, 2014-March 31, 2014. Looking for speculative stories 2k-10k, pays $0.05 per word. Theme is revolution and community building. This Patchwork Flesh. Seeking QUILTBAG horror (think Queer Fear Vol I and II). Prefer stories under 7,500 words. Pays $0.05 per word. Reading period open June 1-August 31, 2014 (so you have lots of time). Both anthologies will feature primarily Canadian writers. http://michaelmatheson.wordpress.com/start-a-revolution/

Semi-pro markets seeking submissions:

Third Flatiron Publishing. “Astronomical Odds” theme anthology. Looking for sci-fi/speculative stories 1,500-3,000 words. Pays $0.03 per word, deadline January 15, 2014.  http://www.thirdflatiron.com/liveSite/pages/submissions

Aercastle Narratives. Quarterly magazine. First issue (March 2014) deadline is February 1, 2014. 500-2,000 words, no restrictions on theme. Pays $0.02 per word. http://aercastle.com/submissions/

The Midnight Diner, who I listed last time around, has extended their open submissions call until the end of January. Seeking short fiction 3,000-6,000 words, pays $60. Also seeking artwork. http://www.themidnightdiner.com/submit-your-work/

New Myths. Quarterly, has specified reading periods. Next period: January 1-February 28, 2014. Looking for all types of speculative fiction (no graphic horror), max 10,000 words. Also looking for non-fiction and poetry (must deal with some aspect of sci-fi or fantasy). Pays $50 for short stories and non-fiction articles, $20 for poetry or flash fiction (under 1000 words). http://www.newmyths.com

SubTerrain. Literary market, but magical realism/slipstream would probably work. Max 3,000 words, deadline February 1, 2014. Postal submissions ONLY. Pays $50 per page. Theme is “Coincidence.” Publishes 3x/year, so there are other upcoming deadlines on the site. http://subterrain.ca/about/35/sub-terrain-writer-s-guidelines

Token and royalty-paying markets seeking submissions:

Grinning Skull Press Little Monsters: Horror for Kids, by Kids. Seeking horror stories by young writers (age 5-12). Subject matter is open but G-rated. Deadline June 30, 2014. Pays a $25 gift card. 500-3,000 words, deadline June 30, 2014. Note: Grinning Skull also has an open call for a charity anthology of Christmas-theme horror stories, and an annual unthemed horror anthology. http://www.grinningskullpress.com/Submissions-Guidelines.html

Blank Fiction. Looking for noir stories for their second issue. Deadline January 15, 2014. Pays an honourarium of $50. Also looking for sci-fi stories for their third issue, deadline not yet determined. Stories must be under 15,000 words. http://blankfictionmag.com/submissions/

Angelic Knight Press. That Hoodoo, That Voodoo That You Do. Anthology of dark ritual themed stories, edited by Lincoln Crisler. Max 5,000 words. Pays royalties, reading period January 1-June 1, 2014.  http://lincolncrisler.info/?page_id=1870

Contests:

The 2014 Jim Baen Memorial Writing Contest. Looking for sci-fi stories set in the near future (50-60 years), max 8,000 words. No entry fee, deadline is February 1, 2014. First prize is publication (pro payment), a cool award and swag. http://www.williamledbetter.com/contest.htm

The Carter V. Cooper – Exile Short Fiction Competition. Deadline March 10, 2014. Postal submissions. Entry fee $30. Sponsored by Gloria Vanderbilt in her son's memory. $10,000 in the emerging writer category and $5,000 in the senior writer category. Max 10,000 words (30 pages). No restrictions on subject matter and style. Finalists will be published in CVC Short Fiction Anthology Book Three. http://www.theexilewriters.com/poetry-and-fiction-competitions/ 

The Fifth Annual Gemini Magazine Short Story Contest. Entry fee $5 (per story). Grand prize is $1,000 Deadline March 31, 2014. No restrictions on style, content, genre, length. http://www.gemini-magazine.com/contest.html

The Eckleburg Review Franz Kafka Award in Magical Realism. Entry fee $10, max 8,000 words, deadline July 1, 2014. Prize is $1,000. http://thedoctortjeckleburgreview.com/bookstore/product/franz-kafka-award-in-magic-realism/

Amazon Exclusivity and KDP Select: Book Marketing without B.S. #7

Book Marketing without B.S. is a weekly publicity and marketing advice column for writers and other creators who prefer a realistic, clear, and no-nonsense approach. My goal is to help you cut through the bullshit with direct, understandable advice you won't be embarrassed to follow. Send your questions to beverly@beverlybambury.com.

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Once I began working independently of a publisher, I ran into an issue that I hadn’t dealt with before: exclusivity with Amazon's Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) Select program. From a publicity perspective I found it frustrating, as I have contacts affiliated with other book-buying outlets and I am unable to call on them in exclusivity situations. Why would they help with a book they can’t sell, after all? Still, I know it is more complicated than that, so here are some thoughts. I hope you'll share yours, too.

I want to make clear that I have no problem with authors and publishers who choose to use the KDP Select program. I understand why. What I am bothered by is Amazon's program itself. Since people make a large percentage of sales through Amazon, they’re often going to be tempted by the higher royalty rate, or rather, seek to avoid the punishment of the 35% royalty rate. There are other benefits as well, such as five days of being able to offer your ebook for free download (though Amazon has nerfed the impact of that  by changing the visibility of the top free books list) and members' books are available for free borrowing by Amazon Prime members, which may net more reviews and definitely nets a share of money.

In a fascinating article by Eoin Purcell,  he compares KDP Select's desire for exclusive content to Netflix’s production of exclusive content. The point that sticks out the most to me is that it reduces user churn. In other words, Netflix wants to keep its current viewers as much—if not more—than it wants to attract new ones. It does this in part by producing and purchasing content that only appears on Netflix. Netflix then promotes this content and funnels it to viewers' eyeballs.

While we have no direct evidence of this one way or another, it makes a lot of sense that Amazon may be trying to do something similar. It wants to keep people paying for Amazon Prime membership, and one of those benefits is free borrowing of ebooks exclusive to Amazon Kindle. It’s no-overhead income for Amazon. Indeed, retaining subscribers is a big moneymaker for pretty much anyone who does subscriptions. While Purcell contends that Amazon is getting this exclusive content without paying for it, I’d argue that it's paying for it with higher royalty rates. Still, they’re not paying publishers and authors what they probably should be given the extent of the benefit to Amazon, and given that all the work of writing, editing, layout, marketing, advertising, and publicity falls squarely on the creators and publishers.

Purcell raises another interesting point when he says that Amazon also gets to see how self-published authors sell during this exclusivity period, which gives them an edge in possibly offering publishing contracts for Amazon Publishing, and of course scads of general sales and marketing data, all paid for (in many ways) by publishers and writers.

One thing that was previously difficult for creators and publishers to control was the timing of promotional pricing. It was hard to predict exactly when it would kick in. Now Amazon has introduced Kindle Countdown, which lets one set parameters of timing. But, naturally, one has to sign up for KDP Select to use it, creating yet more pressure for exclusivity, when someone really ought to be able to schedule the dates and pricing anyway.

How big is the benefit to creators? Many argue that it’s not worth the exclusivity to limit yourself. I myself don’t have any experience that is definitive one way or another. Two publishers I’ve worked with prefer to go this route, but others don’t. I can't argue with the ones who like it when they feel they get a consistent benefit from it, after all. Still, both publishers are fairly young and neither had large marketing and publicity campaigns (of which I am aware, anyway!) prior to doing the exclusive arrangement.

This piece by Jane Litte over at Dear Author raises a really good point that gets to one of the reasons I feel uncomfortable with exclusivity. It starts to feel (to me, not in Litte’s words) a bit like the “company store” phenomenon. What Litte does say is that it can be dangerous because with all your eggs in one basket, what happens if the bottom drops out of the basket? Remember when Amazon removed lots of erotica? What if they come for what you write next for some reason? I know that’s a long shot, but exclusivity gives them complete control over that if they choose to exercise it. What if they decide to change terms in some other legally-covered way? You’ve undoubtedly agreed to a host of terms and conditions when you go with KDP Select, and Litte points out that Amazon changes terms at other times writing, “Just recently they increased the amount you have to buy in order to get free shipping from $25 to $35.” Do you fully understand what you signed when you joined KDP Select?

She also argues that exclusivity harms readers, too. Litte says that by reducing or eliminating competition, some of the drive for innovation—and thus perks for customers—disappears. If Amazon has no competition, they don’t need to win your business. They’ll be the only game in town, then we’re back to the company store of books. Again, though, I can’t blame people for doing it. When most of your sales come from Amazon, and Amazon sweetens the deal, then what’s a struggling small publisher or self-publisher to do?

In any case, many people have looked at this more closely than I have, and authors have generously written about their experiences. You can read, in addition to the above, the below interesting posts, and I am certain that a quick search will net more.

• CJ Lyons on Jane Friedman’s blog: Amazon KDP Select: Is It Worthwhile for Authors?
• M.A. Demers of The Global Indie Author: Kindle Countdown – just another example of Amazon extortion? (An inflammatory title, I know, but I thought there was good info in this.)
• James Calbraith on his own blog: KDP Select – a week later. The price of one’s soul.

To sum up, on a purely theoretical basis I encourage people not to use Amazon’s KDP Select/exclusivity; but, in the pragmatic sense, I understand why people use it, and I still gladly work with publishers who are part of the program. We all have to work with the resources at hand, and when money is tight (and when isn’t money tight for a small publisher?) then we take what we can.

I am really interested in your experiences and I can even do a follow-up post about what readers are willing to share. Contact me at beverly@beverlybambury.com if you want to discuss your KDP Select experiences. I imagine there is a wealth of experience out there!

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Keep those questions coming, and sign up to get my posts sent directly to your email by clicking here. Thank you once again for your continued support.

Remember, I am on blog hiatus until the second week of January. Happy New Year, everyone!

Calls for Submission #2

Greetings! Thanks to Beverly, and to you readers, membership on the Facebook Call For Submissions groups is growing every day.

In this week's column, I'd like to bring everyone's attention to the upcoming changes to the SFWA's membership requirements. At present, both the Horror Writers' Association (HWA) and SFWA (Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America) consider professional payment to be $0.05 per word. In order to become a member of the SFWA, one must have three paid sales to a Qualifying Professional Market, for a cumulative total of at least $250. As of July 1, 2014, in order to qualify as a professional market, the minimum payment will be raised to $0.06 per word. The HWA has not announced any plans to change their membership requirements. Note: Any sales made prior to June 30, 2014 at the old rates still qualify.

As with most changes, there will be positive and negative returns. The concern is, of course, that writers should always be paid, and the SFWA requirement for a Qualifying Market means that writers might be paid a little more. This is good news for writers. However, it may (somewhat) limit the number of Qualifying Markets and in effect make membership to the SFWA a little more exclusive. For more information, please visit the SFWA page.

In that spirit, here are a few markets that currently qualify for the new SFWA rates. Be aware, competition is stiff. These are very tough markets. Most have ongoing deadlines, and prepare for a long response time. And yes, sci-fi tends to pay better than fantasy or horror.

• Analog Science Fiction and Fact. Pays $0.07-0.09 per word up to 7500 words. Monthly. http://www.analogsf.com/information/submissions.shtml
  
• Asimov's Science Fiction. Pays $0.07-0.09 per word. http://www.asimovs.com/info/guidelines.shtml
  
• Clarkesworld. Sci-fi. Pays $0.10 per word up to 4000 words and $0.06 per word above that. http://clarkesworldmagazine.com/submissions/
  
• Daily Science Fiction. Pays $0.08 per word, 100-10K words. They're especially interested in shorter stories and flash fiction. http://dailysciencefiction.com/submit/story/guidelines (Note, Daily Science Fiction will be closed for submissions December 24, 2013 until January 2, 2014).
  
• Fantasy and Science Fiction. Bi-monthly. Pays $0.07-0.12 per word, max 25000 words. Especially looking for science fiction and humour. http://www.sfsite.com/fsf/glines.htm
  
• Lightspeed. Pays $0.08 up to 7500 words. Re-opening January 1, 2014. http://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/about/guidelines/
  
• Strange Horizons. Pays $0.08 per word, prefer under 5000 words. http://www.strangehorizons.com/guidelines/fiction.php
  
• Cicada Magazine. Pays up to $0.25 per word. Children's/tween market. Read guidelines carefully, as they publish more than one magazine and have strict guidelines and a long response time. http://www.cicadamag.com/node/110 NOTE: This publisher has several markets. Another upcoming call is for Calliope's "The Life of the Vikings" theme (deadline December 27, 2013).
  

Now, heat up the computers and sharpen your pencils, because December is going to be a very busy month! Read guidelines carefully before you submit, and I hope some of these listings end up as a happy holiday surprise. Have a great holiday and I'll be back the first week of January with more.

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Pro Rate ($0.05 per word) Paying Markets currently accepting fiction submissions:

• The Dark. Ongoing deadlines. Dark, weird fiction max 5,000 words. http://thedarkmagazine.com/about-us/guidelines/
  
• Shimmer. Looking for "beautifully written speculative fiction with an emotional core." Hard sells: paranormal romance, sword and sorcery, hard SF, space opera. 4k range preferred but will take up to 7500 words. Also looking for artwork. No deadlines listed. http://www.shimmerzine.com/guidelines/fiction-guidelines/
  
• Jamais Vu: Journal of the Strange Among the Familiar. 2k-4k words, next deadline January 15, 2014. Quarterly. http://www.jamaisvujournal.com/submissions.php
  

Semi-pro paying markets accepting submissions:

• Lamplight. Quarterly market. Looking for "literary dark fiction," 2k-7k, pays $150 for stories ($50 for flash up to 1000 words). Next deadline: January 15, 2014. http://lamplightmagazine.com/submissions/
  
• Tesseracts 18. For Canadian writers only. Theme: Wrestling with the Gods (Faith in Sci-fi/Spec-fic). Max 5000 words, deadline December 31, 2013. Pays $50-150 for short stories and $20 for poetry. http://tesseracts18.com/tesseracts-18/
  
• Weird Tales. No deadline listed. Upcoming themed issues: Tesla (must have inventor Nikola Tesla as a character) and The Ice Issue. Pays $0.03 per word. http://weirdtalesmagazine.com/submission-guidelines/
  
• The Midnight Diner. Quarterly publication. Looking for hardboiled fiction, 3000-6000 words, with "a Christian slant." Not interested in hard sci-fi or sword and sorcery. Pays $60 for fiction, $40 for non-fiction, and $20 for poetry. Deadline December 31, 2013. http://www.themidnightdiner.com/submit-your-work/
  
• Insert Title Here. Fablecroft's unspecified spec-fic anthology. Pays $75 (AU) and a contributor's copy. http://fablecroft.com.au/about/submissions Deadline February 28, 2014
  

Token and Royalty Markets accepting submissions:

• Industrial Horror Anthology. Spectral Press. Open til Filled, and payment not set yet. Looking for stories in the 8,000-12,000 word range. http://spectralpress.wordpress.com/2013/11/19/submissions-call-industrial-horror-anthology/
  
• Rite of Passage: Road to Nicodemus. Steampunk anthology to acompany a feature movie (must be set in their world, so follow guidelines carefully). 3k-10k words, pays $25 on publication. Deadline December 31, 2014. http://chroniclesofharriet.com/2013/10/16/get-ready/
  
• The Grotesquerie: An Anthology of Women in Horror. Mocha Memoirs Press. Token payment of $10. Deadline December 31, 2013. Looking for stories 1500-6000 words. http://mochamemoirspress.com/about/submission-guidelines/
  
• Ruins Excavation Anthology. Hadly Rille Books. Looking for stories (Romance, Sci-fi, Historical, and Mainstream) with an Archaeology theme. Protagonist must be a woman of colour who is also an archaeologist, working in Ruins. 1500-6000 words, pays a token $20. Deadline January 31, 2014. http://ericreynolds.livejournal.com/100520.html
  
• The Conqueror Womb: Lusty tales of Shub-Niggurath. 1500-5000 words. Deadline December 15. Looking for bizarre Cthulhu erotica. Token payment $10 and an e-copy. http://martianmigrainepress.com/submissions
  
• Bugs and Creepy Crawlies anthology. Great Old Ones Publishing. Looking for stories about bugs/insects/spiders/etc. 3000-6000 words. Pays $25 and one contributor's copy. Deadline January 31, 2014. http://www.greatoldonespublishing.com/new-anthology-opens-november-9th-2013-and-closes-january-31st-2014-bugs-and-creepy-crawlies/
  
• Good Mourning Publishing. Looking for romance stories set in a superhero universe (at least one love interest must be a superhero or villain). Original heroes only, no fan-fiction. Pays $30 and a paperback copy. Deadline December 31, 2013. http://www.goodmourningpublishing.com/call.html
  
• Despumation. Looking for stories based on metal songs (be sure to read guidelines for "metal" definition), 3k-5k. Pays $10 and a contributor's copy. Deadline February 28, 2014. http://despumationpress.com/submissions/
  
• Enter at Your Own Risk. Firbolg Publishing. Nature/horror/apocalyptic fiction, 3k-5k. Pays $40. Deadline December 31, 2013. http://www.firbolgpublishing.com/submissions-enter-at-your-own-risk-volume-four/
  
• Angelic Knight Press Demon Rum anthology. 3-7k, shared royalties. Stories must feature alcohol (think "The Cask of Amontillado" dark fiction). Deadline December 31, 2013. http://www.angelicknightpress.com/p/upcoming-projects.html
  
• Geek Force Five. I'm including these guys here because they just accepted one of my stories (yay, shameless self-promotion!). Royalty split, 10% of shared sales among five stories from the issue in which your story appears. Looking for speculative fiction (sci-fi, horror, noir, etc., and/or crossover mainstream fiction) with appeal to "geeks." Interests include music, film, pop culture. https://geekforcefive.submittable.com/submit
  

Contests

• THE DARK CRYSTAL: Looking for an author to write a prequel novel (50,000 words +) set in the Dark Crystal world, set during the Gelfling Gathering. Major publisher contract, send in 7500-10,000 words. Deadline December 31, 2013. http://www.darkcrystal.com/authorquest/
  
• Merry Little Apex Flash Fiction Contest. Maximum 250 words (firm). Looking for dark sci-fi, horror, fantasy with a holiday theme. Limit 3 entries per person, deadline December 16, 2013. Prize is publication, payment of $0.05 per word, and a critique of a short story (max 5000 words) by Apex publisher Jason Sizemore. http://www.apexbookcompany.com/2013/11/a-merry-little-apex-christmas-flash-fiction-contest/
  
• AMOK: Short Sharp Shocks Volume 1. April Moon Books. Five editors' picks $30 each. 2k-5k words, deadline February 28, 2014. http://www.aprilmoonbooks.com/#!amok-submission-guidelines/cv7a
  
• Friends Of Merrill Speculative Short Fiction Story Contest. $5 entry fee. Speculative fiction stories, maximum 5000 words. Deadline February 15, 2014. First prize is $500 (Canadian). http://friendsmerrilcontest.com/guidelines/
  
  

Calls for Submission #1

Figuring out where to submit your short stories and novels? This is the first of a reoccurring column by Selene MacLeod, who administers Facebook groups Call for Submissions: Poetry, Fiction, Art and  Open Call: Science Fiction, Fantasy and Pulp. Sign up to receive this blog's posts by email; make sure you don't miss useful stuff in the social media shuffle!

Today's post is an introduction as well as a listing. With that, I'll leave the rest to Selene.

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Greetings to Beverly's readers! Whenever I see Beverly's name, I always think of that nursery rhyme "with bells on her fingers and bells on her toes." Kind of hard to type that way, but it's a pretty picture.

As promised, I will be giving you a taste of some of the listings that pop up on groups I administer. Aside from the groups mentioned in the intro, I'm also one of the more active members on the groups Open Call: Horror Markets, Open Call: For the Love of Horror, and Open Call: Crime, Thriller and Mystery Markets. I actually "met" Beverly over on Ravelry, so I feel I should also point out that I'm one of the admins on the Poets and Writers who Knit group there. In fact, I'd probably write a lot more if I spent as much time writing as I do researching markets! 

Why do it, if it takes so much time? Well, it started when Duotrope started charging fees. I understand why they do, and it's a very reasonable fee ($5 a month) I don't mind paying, although the debate rages on about markets that charge fees to cover reading costs, and For the Love (FTL)/unpaid markets, and a whole lot of bickering among writers. You can read my blog about FTL markets here, if you like. 

I'm hoping to avoid too much debate here. Instead, I will always try to list markets that pay at least royalties, and stick to speculative fiction (which includes horror, science fiction, fantasy, magical realism/slipstream/weird western, and so on). I will also note if they're paying professional rates ($0.05 per word or more), token-paying, royalty split, etc. If I list a FTL market, rest assured it will be because I think the market is unassailably cool. Likewise, there is the sticky matter of fee-charging markets. I only post if the fee is $5 or less, or if it's a contest where there's a giant prize at stake. Cool factor also applies.

I'm sure if you're reading Beverly's blog, you're familiar with the submissions process, but I will remind you to follow guidelines carefully for every publisher, especially document formatting (William Shunn has the best tips and resources on his page), and to read some samples from the market before you submit. 

Now, on to the good stuff. November and December are going to be GREAT months for submitting work.

Pro Markets Accepting Submissions:

• Apex Publications. War Stories: New Military Science Fiction. Max 7500 words, pays $0.05 per word. Deadline November 30, 2013. http://warstoriesanthology.com/submissions/
• Fractured: Tales of the Canadian Post-Apocalypse. Deadline November 30, 2013. Canadian writers only. http://silviamoreno-garcia.com/blog/2013/07/fractured-tales-of-the-canadian-post-apocalypse/
• Shock Totem. Pays $0.05 per word, maximum $250 (5,000 words maximum). Looking for dark fantasy, horror, suspense, etc. Deadline November 30, 2013. http://www.shocktotem.com/guidelines/
• Musa Publishing: Penumbra. Bi-monthly, themed magazine. Be sure to only submit work during open period for the theme. Pays $0.05 per word, max 3500 words. Upcoming themes: Egyptian Mythology (ends December 1, 2013), A Night at the Villa Diodati (ends January 1, 2014). http://penumbraezine.blogspot.ca/p/submissions.html
• Crossed Genres Magazine. Sci-fi/fantasy. Monthly, themed. Pays $0.05 per word, 1000-6000 words (firm). Upcoming themes: Conspiracy (November 1-30, 2013), Runaway (December 1-31, 2013). http://crossedgenres.com/submissions/magazine/
• Kaleidoscope Anthology. Looking for YA (so teen protagonists) sci-fi and fantasy stories. Must feature diverse main characters (read guidelines for a full description). $0.05 per word, 2500-10,000 words. Deadline December 31, 2013. http://kaleidoscope.twelfthplanetpress.com/?page_id=42

Token and Royalty-Paying Markets Accepting Submissions:

• Mammoth Book of SF Stories By Women. Reprint market only (must be previously published). Max 10,000 words. Pays $0.02 per word plus a contributor copy. Deadline November 30, 2013. (Note, I find it hilarious that the subject line has to be "MAMMOTH WOMEN.") http://www.alexdallymacfarlane.com/2013/10/call-for-reprint-submissions-mammoth-book-of-sf-stories-by-women/
• Imaginarium 2014: The Best Canadian Speculative Writing. Reprint market. Looking for work published in 2013. Canadian speculative fiction authors only. Deadline January 31, 2014. http://www.chizine.com/content/imaginarium-2014-open-submissions
• Scheherezade's Bequest. Updated fairy tales, themed issue. From the Sea: Something Rich and Strange. Deadline December 31, 2013. $30 for fiction, $15 for poetry. Max 4000 words. http://www.cabinetdesfees.com/2013/scheherezades-bequest-updated-guidelines/
• World Weaver Press. Krampus Anthology. Looking for dark fantasy and horror stories about Krampus (sort of the anti-Santa Claus). Max 10, 000 words. Pays $10 and a copy of the anthology. Deadline November 30, 2013. (Note: They have enough Santa as serial killer and gore stories, looking for psychological horror). The publisher also has an open call for their upcoming Fae Anthology. Pay rates, deadline, and word count are the same. Looking for dark fantasy takes on the Fae (urban fairies, goblins, pixies, etc.). http://worldweaverpress.com/submissions/calls-for-anthologies/
• Solarywyrm Press. Asia-Pacific Speculative Fiction. Looking for speculative fiction set in the real world, Asia-Pacific region. Read guidelines for specifics. 1000-8000 words. Pays half a cent a word, max $40. Deadline November 30, 2013. http://solarwyrm.com/
• Lectores Coffee. Literary market, but slipstream/magical realism would work. Looking for short fiction (no more than 500 words), creative non-fiction, and poetry. Must be short, as the entire piece has to fit on a coffee label. $1.50 submission fee (or $6 with a coffee sample). Pays $25 and a bag of coffee. http://www.lectorescoffee.com/pages/submit
• Chupa Cabra House. Primarily a horror market, has several anthologies open. Stories should be 3,500-9,000 words. Pays royalties, although some anthologies also offer a token payment (check guidelines). Upcoming: Small Town Futures (apocalyptic stories set in small towns, deadline April 1, 2014). New Whakazoid Circus (Circuspunk, which encompasses horror, bizarro/slipstream, must be a circus/freak show/carnival setting, deadline January 31, 2014). Weird Westerns, deadline February 1, 2014.  http://www.chupacabrahouse.com/search/label/submissions

I'll be back in a couple of weeks with more listings. In the meantime, if you're interested in a cool vacation and want to work on your horror writing, consider a retreat at the world famous Stanley Hotel (basis for The Overlook in The Shining) next October. 

How Far in Advance to Hire a Publicist and a Book Marketing Plan Timeline: Book Marketing without B.S. #4

Book Marketing without B.S. is a weekly publicity and marketing advice column for writers and other creators who prefer a realistic, clear, and no-nonsense approach. My goal is to help you cut through the bullshit with direct, understandable advice you won't be embarrassed to follow. Send your questions to beverly@beverlybambury.com.

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Today brings another pair of related questions. The first is "How long before my book comes out should I hire a publicist?"

It depends to a certain degree what you're looking for and on how in-demand the publicist is. My business is relatively young, so six months is plenty of lead time for me, and I can absolutely work with much less if required. I've even done emergency publicity!

Ideally, for prose novels, pre-work work for publicity should start anywhere from 4-6 months before release (for long lead-time review spots such as Publishers Weekly, Kirkus, and Library Journal). It is helpful to give your publicist plenty of time before that to plan and, if necessary, work with your publisher. Graphic novels and comics can work with a bit less lead time.

While this represents the ideal, it's possible to do good work with much less time, too. Just bear in mind that for the biggest and busiest review spots that if you don't give them at least a few months you aren't likely to get reviewed. Other than that, 1-3 months is plenty for most reviewers and for setting up a lot of your publicity.

What if you try it yourself and suddenly realize, right before (or right after) release that you want some help after all? You can get help at the last minute, too, but it's important to understand that many major spots won't accept books that are either close to or post-release. Many excellent reviewers and sites will; however, so all is not lost. Just realize that you're not going to get The New York Times from a book that is already released. Not even John Scalzi's Big Idea, for that matter.

So for you TL;DR types: the best time to contact a publicist (at least for this publicist) is 5-6 months before release, but anything can work (even post-release books) as long as what you expect from your results is realistic.

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The next question is "What timeline should I use to plan my book marketing?"

As  I mentioned above, if your book is eligible to be reviewed by Publishers Weekly, Library Journal, Book Slut, and other long lead-time publications., then send those review copies/galleys out 4-6 months before release date. Send these with a one-sheet, which is important to include with mailed copies.

For the rest, you'll query. (Unless they say it is OK to send a book, of course, then you send the book with a one-sheet or via email/NetGalley, depending on the reviewer's preferences.) A query is just seeing if a blogger or reviewer wants to look at the book and of course an offer to send one. As far as the timing, my assumption is that you've read other websites' and publications' and bloggers' review and publicity submission guidelines. If you have, you'll know how to stagger the rest of the schedule. Some will need to go out 3-5 months, some 1-3 months, some 5-6 weeks. This is one of the more time-consuming things: finding the right targets and making sure that you have them scheduled correctly. Don't be shy about writing these down in order or using an electronic calendar to keep track. 

Make sure that as you query--particularly blogs and media you know accept guest posts and do interviews--ask for what you want from that site. Something along the lines of "If you like the idea or the book enough, I'd love the chance to do a guest blog post for you. I can do it on (sample topic 1) or (sample topic 2), or if you have something you'd like to hear about, I'll gladly write that instead."

2-4 months before release: if you want to set up book signings or readings, now is the time. Note that very popular reading series, such as KGB, may require 6-7 months of lead time. 

3 weeks to release date: handle your correspondence and write guest blog posts as required. If you have an interview or need to finalize any in-person events, make sure you have what you need. If you do book signings/talks, then you'll want a poster of some kind to take with you.

What about those queries? Once it's been 2-3 weeks, it is OK to follow up with people to whom you have sent QUERIES. If you've already sent an actual book (often those long lead time publications from above,) then don't follow up. While we're at it, if you ever send a press release (and usually you do not send those for books,) don't follow up on those, either. Anyway, queries you can follow up, but they should be super polite and low pressure. 

At release time and after: make sure you're meeting your deadlines and following through on commitments. If you get a good review or a guest blog or an interview, share it. Share when your book is released, too. Anything like that is fine. A bit more often on Twitter than on Facebook. Don't forget though: if all you do is push your books, people will stop listening to you.

You may also find it helpful to revisit 5 No-BS Twitter Tips for Authors and 5 Steps to a Quality Blog Tour. 

Anyhow: this is a very rough and basic guideline. Each project will have to be planned based on its own requirements and based the resources of you and your publisher. As always, let me know if you have any questions about your situation.

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That's all for this week. Keep an eye out for the first of the semi-regular calls for submission columns. 

Keep those questions coming, and sign up to get my posts sent directly to your email by clicking here. Thanks for all the support!

Coming Soon: Calls for Submission Column

In the next week or two I'll have the first of a reoccurring column aggregating calls for submission. It will be by Selene MacLeod who also administers the successful Facebook group Calls for Submissions (Poetry, Fiction, Art).

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