Halloween People have until Oct. 1 to submit for BookLife Spotlight
Authortunities #80 │September 21—October 19
🌳What’s in this issue?
Thanks to moving house and travel I’m still wrapping up the middle grade submissions, but for Space and Time we are now down to the final selections. I’ve also been hanging out in the Authortunities Hub a lot.
🍃Bullet Points
And speaking of the Authortunities Hub, we are 1 member away from 60 with the official opening over a week away. We now have a bi-weekly open mic,
Stephen Schwartz
running Smalltown Tales story game events and Nikki DeKeuster from
exploring the intersection between neurodivergence and astrology. Membership to the Hub is free.
I was happy to find Inujini made the HWA Bram Stoker Award® Reading List along with so many books I loved this year. See them all here.
Inujini also got an awesome review from BookLife here.
I got to be a part of a BIG virtual book fair with
Dale L. Roberts
and
and there’s voting! Vote for How to Be an Authortunist (or any of the books) and get a chance to win a $50 Amazon gift card when you visit DaleLinks.com/VirtualFair.Halloween People, don’t forget to submit your books here by October 1 for BookLife’s Indie Spotlight feature, both online and in print in Publishers Weekly magazine.
Ryan Aussie Smith (aka my husband) is on a push to make Twitch Partner, so any likes, follows and lurks appreciated. Thank you everyone! He streams Saturday-Tuesday here: Twitch.tv/Aussiemanplays.
More good news… this issue of Authortunities is stuffed with submissions… the drought is over!
Authortunities may contain affiliate links that might earn a small fee for Authortunities at no extra cost to you. Comments, questions, compliments or concerns?
🦝This calendar is organized by emoji! Use [ctrl F] to find what you want fast.
🟢 opening subs
🔴 closing subs
⭐ networking
💼 conference
🎤 open mics
🎓 education
♻️ reprints
🏆 awards
💰 grants
🟢 BookLife runs the Indie Spotlight feature, a thematic roundup of self-published books from a broad range of genres and topics, both online and in print in Publishers Weekly magazine. Each Indie Spotlight is open to all types of books as long as they match the month's topic. Submit your works of horror, mystery, and the supernatural until October 1.
https://booklife.com/about-us/booklife-s-indie-spotlight.html
🟢 Reedsy Prompts is open until the following Friday for short fiction between 1,000 - 3,000 words based on one of five prompts. Writers have until the following Friday at 11.59 pm EST to enter. No fee to enter and have work posted. $5 fee to be eligible for the $250 cash prize. New prompt every Friday. This week’s prompt is: Magical Objects with Tracy Gold 🔮.
https://blog.reedsy.com/creative-writing-prompts/
🟢 SEP 21 · DreamForge seeks “science fiction and fantasy stories with a positive vibe” until October 14th for $0.08/word for original fiction up to 7,000 words. Payment on acceptance.
https://dreamforgemagazine.com/submission-instructions/
🟢 SEP 21 · Jake Adam York Prize for a first or second poetry collection, a collaboration between Copper Nickel and Milkweed Editions, is open until October 15 for book-length (i.e., more than 48 pages) poetry manuscripts. Winner receives a $2,000 cash award and the opportunity for publication through Milkweed Editions. Be accepting online submissions of book-length (i.e., more than 48 pages) poetry manuscripts. $25 reading fee includes a one-year subscription to Copper Nickel.
https://copper-nickel.org/bookprize/#JAYGuidelines
🟢 SEP 21 · Griffith Review is open until October 13 for nonfiction and fiction submissions on the theme "No Place Like Home," what it means to us, why it matters and how it shapes our sense of self. Payment is $0.75 AUD per word for fiction and nonfiction, $200 AUD per poem and $500 per piece AUD per work commissioned for GR Online.
https://www.griffithreview.com/submit-to-griffith-review/
🟢 SEP 21 · Translunar Travelers Lounge is open until October 15 for speculative fiction submissions. Payment is $0.03 per word with a $20 minimum.
https://translunartravelerslounge.com/submissions/
⭐🎓 SEP 21 · PARSEC, Pittsburgh’s premier Science Fiction & Fantasy Organization, welcomes the public to their monthly meetings held the third Saturday of each month beginning at 12:30 pm EST. Virtual Zoom meetings are available for those unable to attend in person. Timons Esaias will be September’s guest as he leads a discussion on “Finding the Future in the Past.”
https://parsec-sff.org/monthly-meetings/
🎓 SEP 21 · Celebrating Authors Summit: Getting to Know Your Readers Are You Writing for Yourself or Your Readers? Sometimes you start out writing for yourself, and afterward it's a revelation where your message will have the most impact. If you have a professional goal and you know who you want to see you in a particular way, join this summit to learn from the experts who understand avatars and how to learn their characteristics so you can create your book in a way your intended audience will hear you. Free to attend live.
https://go.eventraptor.com/summit/copy-of-celebrating-summit-2409-1/angelayurikosmith
⭐🎤 SEP 22 · Rattlecast livestreams, is part interview and open mic with a prompt-based open mic. Hangout with Rattle editor Timothy Green and Katie Dozier. Each Rattlecast begins with an interview, a writing prompt, and poets reading from the last week’s prompt. | Rattlecast at 8 pm EST.
⭐ SEP 22 · GoIndieNow presents This Week In Indies for 2024 a weekly Sunday chat show that covers issues relevant for Indie artists and the scoop on who is publishing what and where you can get it. Broadcasting every Sunday at Noon ET/11a CT/10a MT/9a PT. This week features AJ Mullican, C.L. Cannon, Lily Luchesi, JD Estrada and Natalie D'Amore.
🟢 SEP 22 · Astrolabe opens to fiction, creative nonfiction, and photography/art for $50 USD flat rate with free submissions until October 22.
https://www.astrolabe.ooo/submissions
⭐🎓 SEP 24 · Navigating the Self-Publishing Ecosystem: A Deep Dive Join Nick Thacker, VP of Author Success at Draft2Digital, to explore the comprehensive ecosystem of Draft2Digital, AuthorEmail, and SelfPubBookCovers.com, providing you with actionable insights to succeed in today's competitive publishing landscape.
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUkce2gqz0qG9SLYZx_l5izJPTxKlImmRlz#/registration
🔴 SEP 25 · Off Topic Publishing’s Poetry Box closes to submissions of poetry to be sent out as a physical card with tea and chocolate to subscribers. Payment is for $30 CAD.
https://offtopicpublishing.com/opencalls/
🔴 SEP 27 · Rattle Magazine’s “Poets Respond” challenge calls for poems inspired by “a news story or public event from the previous week, and has been written in the time since.” Selected poems will appear as the Sunday poem at Rattle.com which appear to over 10,000 people via RSS feed and daily email service. Poets will receive $100 and a free print magazine subscription. Each week's deadline is Friday midnight PST.
https://rattle.submittable.com/submit/30232/poets-respond-online
⭐🎓 SEP 27 · Rattle Magazine’s livestream Poetry Critique of the Week Rattle's editor hosts a livestreamed poetry critique on YouTube and Facebook, offering suggestions and feedback. The viewing audience is encouraged to participate. The goal is to help us all become better poets through the honest sharing of our reactions, similar to the experience of an MFA roundtable workshop. Critique of the Week at 4 pm EST.
https://www.youtube.com/@RattlePoetry/featured
🟢 SEP 27 · Reedsy Prompts calls for short fiction between 1,000 - 3,000 words based on one of five prompts. Writers have until the following Friday at 11.59pm EST to enter. No fee to enter and have work posted. $5 fee to be eligible for the $250 cash prize. New prompt every Friday.
https://blog.reedsy.com/creative-writing-prompts/
⭐ SEP 29 · GoIndieNow presents This Week In Indies for 2024 a weekly Sunday chat show that covers issues relevant for Indie artists and the scoop on who is publishing what and where you can get it. Broadcasting every Sunday at Noon ET/11a CT/10a MT/9a PT. This week features AF Stewart, Lily Luchesi, Sarah Tasz, David Green and Bryan Tann.
🔴🏆 SEP 29 · The Edgar® Awards, sponsored by the Mystery Writers of America, honor the best in mystery fiction, non-fiction, television, film, and theater. Submissions close for books published in August. Books must be submitted during the month of publication. In addition, the book MUST arrive to the judges within 30 days of sending the submission form to the national office.
https://mysterywriters.org/edgars/edgar-submission-information/
🔴 SEP 30 · Split Lip Magazine closes free submissions for poems, memoirs, flash, fiction, art, interviews/reviews, and mini-reviews. Payment is $75 per author for poems, memoirs, flash, fiction, and art, $50 for interviews/reviews, and $25 for mini-reviews.
https://splitlipthemag.com/submit
🔴♻️ SEP 30 · Short Story on Substack is closed for short stories from 6- 10,000 words in any genre. Payment is $100 + 50% of subscription revenue to be sent by Paypal, Zelle, or check. Selected story to be announced on the 15th. Reprints welcome.
https://shortstory.substack.com/
🔴🏆💰 SEP 30 · The PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction submission period closes September 30. The winner will receive $15,000 and finalists will receive $5,000 each. $95 entry fee
https://www.penfaulkner.org/our-awards/pen-faulkner-award/
🔴 SEP 30 · Rattle Magazine’s Ekphrastic Poetry challenge calls for poems inspired by a visual art prompt posted on their site. Poets have until the end of the month to write. Two winners will receive online publication and $100 each.
https://www.rattle.com/ekphrastic/
🔴 SEP 30 · The Kenyon Review closes submissions for short fiction and essays (up to 7,500 words), flash fiction and essays (up to 3 pieces, up to 1,000 words each; please format and submit as a single document), poetry (up to 6 poems; please format and submit as a single document), plays (up to 30 pages double-spaced), and excerpts (up to 30 pages double-spaced) from larger works for payment of $0.08 per published word of prose (minimum $80, maximum $450) and $0.16 per published word of poetry (minimum $40, maximum $200).
https://kenyonreview.org/submit/
🔴 SEP 30 · Event Poetry and Prose closes free submissions for poetry and prose. Payment is $40/page for poetry and $35/page for prose, up to a maximum of $500.
https://www.eventmagazine.ca/submit/
🔴 🏆💰 SEP 30 · 2023 Willie Morris Awards for Southern Poetry, seeks poems that evoke the American South. Winner will receive a $3,000 prize and an all-expenses-paid trip to Oxford, Mississippi, for the awards ceremony in April 2024. Judged by Susan Kinsolving. No entry fee. One entry per person and 3 pages maximum for the poem.
https://www.williemorrisawards.org/submissions
🔴 🏆 SEP 30 · The Iowa Short Fiction Award & John Simmons Short Fiction Award seeking merging short fiction writers. No entry fee. Winning works will be published by the University of Iowa Press
https://uipress.uiowa.edu/resources/prospective-authors/iowa-short-fiction-award
🔴 SEP 30 · Rattle Magazine’s Ekphrastic Poetry Challenge closes for ekphrastic poetry in response to selected visual art posted on their page. Two winners receive $100 and publication online.
https://www.rattle.com/ekphrastic/
🔴 SEP 30 · Event Magazine closes for poetry or “when our allowable unpaid submission limit is reached (whichever comes first).” Payment is $40 (CAD) per page.
https://eventmagazine.submittable.com/submit
🔴 SEP 30 · The Other Stories Podcast closes for 2,000 word speculative fiction on the theme of SHAKESPEARE. “Pay homage or re-imagine the Bard’s timeless works. We’re looking for stories of star-crossed lovers, tragic heroes, cunning jesters, and more.” Payment is $15 GBP.
https://theotherstories.net/submissions/
🔴 SEP 30 · DreamForge seeks “science fiction and fantasy stories with a positive vibe” until September 30 for $0.08/word for original fiction up to 7,000 words. Payment on acceptance.
https://dreamforgemagazine.com/submission-instructions/
🔴 OCT 1 · The Last Line opens for fiction, poetry, and nonfiction using the last line “I didn't want to admit it, but Lee was usually right.” Payment: $20–$40 for fiction. The story should be 300 to 5000 words. There are also related submission calls for their sister publication, The First Line.
https://www.thelastlinejournal.com/submission.htm
🔴💰 OCT 1 · Horror Writers Association Scholarships close for applications for their variety of scholarships to assist writers looking to pursue a career as a writer of horror fiction, nonfiction, or poetry. They also offer one endowment to libraries to expand their young adult reading programs. HWA membership is not a requirement.
The available scholarships are:
💰The Horror Writers Association Scholarship, $2500
http://horrorscholarships.com/hwa-scholarship/
💰The Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley Scholarship, $2500 http://horrorscholarships.com/mary-shelley-scholarship/
💰Up to 4 Diversity Grants, $500
http://horrorscholarships.com/diversity-grants/
💰The Dark Poetry Scholarship, $1,250
http://horrorscholarships.com/dark-poetry-scholarship/
💰The Dennis Etchison Young Writers Scholarship, $500
http://horrorscholarships.com/dennis-etchison-young-writers-scholarship/
💰Up to 5 Young Adults Write Now endowment program, $250
http://horrorscholarships.com/young-adults-write-now-endowment-program/
🟢 OCT 1 · Last Girls Club opens for feminist horror short stories and poems. Payments for short story-2,500 words or less is $0.015 USD per word ($37.50 USD max); Flash Fiction-less than 1,000 words $0.015 USD per word ($15 USD max); Payment for poems $10 USD.
https://duotrope.com/duosuma/submit/last-girls-club-lImp7
🟢 OCT 1 · Solarpunk Magazine opens until October 14 for submissions of prose and poetry that will “stir readers with themes of defiance, change, and achievement.” Pro rates paid as defined by the Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA): $.08 per word for fiction ($100 minimum), $40 per poem, $75 for for nonfiction, $100 for reprint cover art, $200 for original unpublished cover art, $50 for reprint interior art, and $100 for original unpublished interior art.
https://solarpunkmagazine.com/submissions/
🟢 OCT 1 · Apparition Lit’s 2024 Flash Fiction Contest opens until October 14 for submissions of speculative flash fiction (under 1k words) prompted by “Bread of the Dead.” The writer of the selected story will be notified and their story published the following month. The prize is $30 USD.
https://apparitionlit.com/submissions/
🟢 OCT 1 · Rattle Magazine’s Ekphrastic Poetry Challenge opens until the last day of the month for ekphrastic poetry in response to selected visual art posted on their page. Two winners receive $100 and publication online.
https://www.rattle.com/ekphrastic/
🟢 OCT 1 · New Orleans Review opens for fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. Payment is $300 for prose and $100 for poetry. In celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, there are no submission fees for Latinx writers from September 15th to October 15th. $3 submission fee otherwise.
https://www.neworleansreview.org/submit/
🟢 OCT 1 · Riddlebird opens until October 26 for literary fiction, personal essays, and genre fiction from 650-5000 words focusing on humor and lighthearted pieces until full. Payment is $100.
https://duotrope.com/duosuma/submit/riddlebird-Ae4Nk
🟢 OCT 1 · Last Girls Club opens until November 1 for feminist horror short stories and poems. Payments for short story-2,500 words or less is $0.015 USD per word ($37.50 USD max); Flash Fiction-less than 1,000 words $0.015 USD per word ($15 USD max); Poems-less than 200 words $10.
https://duotrope.com/duosuma/submit/last-girls-club-lImp7
🟢 OCT 1 · Brick opens until October 31 for literary non-fiction. Payment $65–720, “depending on the length of accepted work, plus two copies of the issue the work appears in and a one-year subscription to the magazine.”
https://brickmag.com/submissions/
🟢 OCT 1 · Chestnut Review opens until November 30 for poetry, prose, or hybrid chapbooks of 15-25 pages of poetry, or 15-35 pages of prose: Submission fee is on a sliding scale between $6-$12. Payment is $150 USD, 50 copies of their chapbook plus 30% royalties on all Amazon sales of the chapbook, paid annually.”
https://chestnutreview.com/chapbooks/
🟢 OCT 1 · Electric Spec opens for speculative fiction stories of “science fiction, fantasy, and the macabre” between 250 and 7000 words for their November issue until October 15. Payment is $20 per piece.
http://www.electricspec.com/Submissions.html
🟢 OCT 1 · Off Topic Publishing’s Poetry Box opens to submissions of poetry until the 25th of the month. Selected poems to be sent as a physical card with tea and chocolate to subscribers. Payment is for $30 CAD.
https://offtopicpublishing.com/opencalls/
🟢 OCT 1 · Strange Horizons opens for speculative poetry submissions year-round, including at times when they are closed to fiction submissions. The editors operate on a rotation system, so the person who reads and replies to your poem will depend on when you send it. This month Lisa M. Bradley (she/her/hers) is the editor. Payment is $50 USD per poem, regardless of length or complexity.
http://strangehorizons.com/submit/poetry-submission-guidelines/
🟢 OCT 1 · Bourbon Penn is open now for 2000-7500 word “highly imaginative stories with a healthy dose of the odd… looking for genre / speculative stories and are quite partial to slipstream, cross-genre, magic realism, absurdist, and the surreal." Payment is .04 cents per word.
https://www.bourbonpenn.com/submission
🟢💰 OCT 1 · PEN America’s U.S. Writers Aid Initiative opens applications until October 31 for the PEN America Writers Emergency Fund, which offers grants for “writers in the United States facing acute financial need following an emergency situation.” Applications received on or before the following quarterly deadlines will be reviewed before the last day of that month. (For example, an application received on or before January 1, 2024 will be reviewed before January 30, 2024.)
https://pen.org/us-writers-aid-initiative/
🟢 OCT 1 · Split Lip Magazine opens tip jar submissions for poems, memoirs, flash, fiction, art, interviews/reviews, and mini-reviews until October 31. Payment is $75 per author for poems, memoirs, flash, fiction, and art, $50 for interviews/reviews, and $25 for mini-reviews.
https://splitlipthemag.com/submit
🟢 OCT 1 · The Forge Literary Magazine calls for fiction and nonfiction under 3,000 words including flash and micro fiction for $100 flat rate until the free submissions quota is full. “If there is no free link, we’ve hit our quota.”
https://forgelitmag.com/submit/
🟢 OCT 1 · Flame Tree Fiction Newsletter calls for monthly themed submissions from newsletter subscribers only (free to subscribe) up to 1k words for $0.08 per word USD for original fiction.
https://www.flametreepress.com/submissions/
🟢 OCT 1 · Diet Milk Magazine is open until October 31 for submissions of “micro and flash fiction for its December series, IN THE BLEAK MIDWINTER.” Payment is $3 for micro fiction, $5 for flash fiction.
https://duotrope.com/duosuma/submit/diet-milk-magazine-rv29z
🟢♻️ OCT 1 · Short Story on Substack opens for short stories from 6-10,000 words in any genre. Payment is $100 + 50% of subscription revenue to be sent by Paypal, Zelle, or check. Selected story to be announced on the 15th. Reprints welcome.
https://shortstory.substack.com/
🟢 OCT 1 · The Nimrod International Journal, a nonprofit literary magazine published by The University of Tulsa, is closed for poetry, short stories, creative nonfiction pieces, and translations on the theme of refuge up to 7,500 words; poetry may be up to 7 pages. $3 reading fee, payment is $10/printed page with a $200 maximum. Closes October 1.
https://nimrodjournal.submittable.com/submit
🎓 OCT 1 · Adding Intrigue & Action To Your Prose—Don Bentley is the latest offering from the Outliers Online Ongoing Writers Conference where all classes are taught by working, best-selling authors with two classes per month, every month on the 1st and 3rd Tuesdays at 4 pm PST. “Learn how to add intrigue and action to your writing with hands on editing exercises as well as thoughts from today’s top thriller writers and editors“ Costs $45.
https://www.outlierswritinguniversity.com/ongoingconference
⭐🎓 OCT 1 · Publishing Wide, Leveraging Kickstarter, and Direct Sales Join this insightful Q&A session with Russell Nohelty, a seasoned author and publishing expert from Writer MBA. This webinar will explore how authors can expand their reach and revenue by publishing wide, with a focus on two powerful strategies: Kickstarter campaigns and direct sales. Hosted by Evan at StoryOrigin. Free registration.
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZEsfugrTIjGdx7dZDvQ9Yl2HeNLF7Q4qLl#/registration
🟢♻️ OCT 1-2 · Cosmic Roots and Eldritch Shores is open for new work, reprints, poetry (up to 40 lines) and prose from 1,000 words and up. Payment is .08 per word for new fiction, .02 per word for reprints, .02-.08 for new fact based work, .01-.04 for reprinted fact based work, $1 per line for original poetry, .50 per line for reprinted poetry. No simultaneous or multiple submissions.
https://cosmicrootsandeldritchshores.com/submissions/
🟢🏆 OCT 2 · The BookLife Prize for Nonfiction opens until January 31 for “unpublished or self-published books–works for which the author has subvented the cost of the book’s publication–in the English language” for a chance at a cash prize of $5,000 as well as a profile in Publishers Weekly. All entrants will receive a Critic’s Report, which includes a score and a brief written critical assessment of their novel by a Publishers Weekly reviewer.
https://booklife.com/about-us/the-booklife-prize.html
⭐🎓💼 OCT 2-5 · Indie Unconference - Europe 2024 will be an in-person event in Florence, Italy with “a unique opportunity to learn the ins and outs of professional self-publishing.” Registrations begin at €112.50.
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/indie-unconference-europe-2024-tickets-763354573077
⭐ OCT 4 · First Friday - Third Thursday Quick Read features 6 authors each reading a selection of speculative fiction for 8 minutes. There will be time for questions & answers at the end and a giveaway from the authors. This free event is hosted by Strong Women - Strange Worlds and features Stephanie Ellis, Deborah Wilde, Tiffany Putenis, Melanie Bell and Laura McPherson. Pre-register.
https://strongwomenstrangeworlds.weebly.com/
🔴 OCT 4 · Rattle Magazine’s “Poets Respond” challenge calls for poems inspired by “a news story or public event from the previous week, and has been written in the time since.” Selected poems will appear as the Sunday poem at Rattle.com which appear to over 10,000 people via RSS feed and daily email service. Poets will receive $100 and a free print magazine subscription. Each week's deadline is Friday midnight PST.
https://rattle.submittable.com/submit/30232/poets-respond-online
🟢 OCT 4 · Reedsy Prompts calls for short fiction between 1,000 - 3,000 words based on one of five prompts. Writers have until the following Friday at 11.59pm EST to enter. No fee to enter and have work posted. $5 fee to be eligible for the $250 cash prize. New prompt every Friday.
https://blog.reedsy.com/creative-writing-prompts/
⭐🎓 OCT 4 · Rattle Magazine’s livestream Poetry Critique of the Week Rattle's editor hosts a livestreamed poetry critique on YouTube and Facebook, offering suggestions and feedback. The viewing audience is encouraged to participate. The goal is to help us all become better poets through the honest sharing of our reactions, similar to the experience of an MFA roundtable workshop. Critique of the Week at 4 pm EST.
https://www.youtube.com/@RattlePoetry/featured
⭐🎓💼 OCT 4-6 · “Scares That Care” AuthorCon IV will be an in-person event in St. Louis, Missouri. “Scares That Care! is an all volunteer charity. Net proceeds from all organization events are provided to… organizations and families with a child affected by illness, burns or women fighting breast cancer.” Hosted by Brian Keene. Registrations begin at $35.
https://scaresthatcare.org/author-con-iv
⭐🎤 OCT 5 · Rattlecast livestreams, is part interview and open mic with a prompt-based open mic. Hangout with Rattle editor Timothy Green and Katie Dozier. Each Rattlecast begins with an interview, a writing prompt, and poets reading from the last week’s prompt. | Rattlecast at 8 pm EST.
This is the end of the free authortunities, but do you know what else is free? The Authortunities Hub where the full month is posted early for members each week. Join us at authortunitieshub.com.
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to Authortunities to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.