cornerofmadness

The theme of this post is doing your due diligence. I did not, for example, with that wedding anthology a few weeks back and totally missed the homophobic coding in the language. Needless to say I'm not submitting to that one. I am, however, working on that other wedding horror story (I'm at the I hate everything I write stage) and I went back to look. It says nothing about LGBT so knowing I'm not sending in things as Jana I used her email to ask. Yes you can send LGBT weddings to this one. I wish they had put that in the open call but there's not really a nice way to say that but I'll try.

Another place you need to do your due diligence is in editing. I know as a self publishing author you have to decide how to spend your money in getting your book out there. It all costs, marketing, editors, cover artists. How do you decide where the money goes? I don't know because I haven't done it yet but if you are, you need to read up on it, watch some YouTubes, something.

I picked up a self pubbed urban fantasy at Tsubasacon with an amazing cover check it out here. I see others had the same issue as me. I don't even see a credit page in my version but they claim there was an editor. This is twice in recent months that I've picked up a self pub with claims of an editor.

That leads me to the next due diligence, check out the editor you hire. If either of these books honestly had one, that editor sucks. The above mentioned book has the worst editor ever if they exist. The book has interesting ideas and characters and it hurts that this book series will fail in its current state. The tenses change from sentence to sentence. You know how some people sprinkle commas like glitter? This author did it with periods. PERIODS. Just randomly in it. I'm not even sure how a reader (which most authors are) gets grammar this badly messed up (tenses maybe but periods. just jammmed in. wherever. like i just did??

So how about all of you? Do you have an editor you love and trust? How about a cover artist? Voice actors? Feel free to share them. It will help everyone.

OPEN CALLS


here is that wedding horror open call again

Elder Things Expeditions Lovecraftian open call, pays pro rates

Solar Punk Magazine January 2025 Window also pays very well

Plasma Pulp Retro-future adventures fun theme but the call ends this weekend coming and it's royalties...

Space Opera Stories Why have I stopped writing space operas?


Modern Mummies

Silk and Foxglove – A BIPOC AnthologyEco-horror BIPOC authors only

Heartlines Spec Spring 2025 Issue Speculative fiction focused on long-term friendships and relationships

Foofaraw 2025 Stories inspired by either of the definitions of “foofaraw”: A great fuss or disturbance about something very insignificant OR an excessive amount of decoration or ornamentation, as on a piece of clothing, a building, etc.

5 Paying Literary Magazines to Submit to in January 2025

wildscape. literary journal: Now Seeking Submissions

41 Themed Submission Calls and Contests for January 2025



From Around the Web

The Power of White Space on the Page

How to Deepen a Story with Thematic Echoes

Should You Hire a Professional Designer for Your Book Interior?

The One Simple Tool that Helped Me Sustain a Writing Practice

How to Make an Author Website in 8 Steps

How to Write a Book Series

What’s the Difference Between a Preface, Foreword, and Introduction?


From Betty


Why Real Events Aren’t Always Believable in Fiction

A Storyteller’s Guide to Criticism

Are Blank Characters Too Blanking Blank?

The Difference Between Relatable and Mediocre Heroes

The Three Ways to Keep Your Story Short Note to self memorize that

Which Is Worse: Narrative Distance or Passive Voice?

In Search of the Well-Crafted Sentence

Charting Your Course: How should you publish?

The Problem With Prologues

Should You Write a Prequel?

How to Deepen a Story with Thematic Echoes

How to Find Your Writing Niche and Connect with the Right Readers

Character Secret Thesaurus Entry: Knowing About a Cover-Up

The Mirror and the Arrow

Are Misconceptions and Old Ideas Burdening Your Writing Life?

4 Ways for Writers to Stay Committed to New Year's Resolutions

How is it that time of year again? How are we to the point of me summing up my year and laying out my goals for the next year? HOW?!?

I did have a good year though. As much as I am disappointed and hurt by how badly These Haunted Hills sold I am so proud of this novel and if it is the last novel I write as Jana I'm happy with it. I just wish it had reached more people.

I had three anthologies come out with my stories in them Anna Karenina Isn't Dead: The Rewritten Lives of Literary Legends which is as sadly neglected as my novel. I still think it was a cool idea and I like my story (but actually I haven't had time to read it so I feel bad about that)

GASPS: A Quiet Horror Anthology which at least found some audience and I'm still chuffed someone gave my story 5 stars

Minstrels in the Galaxy: Stories in the Key of Tull, Volume 1 Probably my favorite of the bunch. I had such fun with this story.

Yesterday I was told my shortlisted story didn't make it (again) however, one of the editors for this horror/sf/f press was so taken by my story she wants to interview me. That is cool.

What I succeeded in doing : I finished the 1980s monster hunter novel. Finally. It shouldn't have taken this long (we all know I was writing fanfic instead of making it a priority) I've started editing it. I will need to find a beta reader.

What I failed to do: Edit the YA seer/werewolf thing. Again. To be fair, I started it. It was in the first 5 nanos so nearly 20 years old. I have gotten better. Tastes have changed. I was encouraged to update once upon a time. Now I would prefer to return it to the late 1990s and to do some major changes to Killian and his abilities. (No need to change anything diversity wise. That was nailed the first time round) So it's slowing me down, frustrating me and it got abandoned.


My goals for 2025
1. balance fanfic better with original (ha, like it'll happen)
2. edit both of the above mentioned novels so I can DO something with them
3. Maybe start the novel in head right now, just to get some of it out of there
4. reread the numerous unfinished nano novels, find the most likely to be finished and FINISH THEM
5. keep up with the open calls because it's fun

How about you? What are your writing goals? Good luck whatever they are

Reminder to self for next writerly ways ghostbusters vs specter of the gun

Open Calls

NonBinary Review theme: Epiphany

A Bon Jovi music INSPIRED anthology I'm full on mad I didn't see this til now because the deadline is tuesday but Im sharing it in case some of you have science fiction that you can hammer into a Bon Jovi song inspired mold

Witch Craft Folk Horror that deals with what it means to be a witch

Robert’s Recurring Nightmares this one doesn't pay but it IS for charity if anyone's interested

Notes from the Editor’s Desk: December 2024

Cosmic Daffodil: Now Seeking Submissions

10 Feminist Literary Magazines and Anthologies


From Around the Web

Business Book Publishers vs. Self-Publishing Companies

The Delights and Dangers of First-Person Narration

Creative Clarity: Focus, Self-Care, And A Little Bit Of Tough Love

Creating Convincing AI Characters

Lightning Stories: AKA Flash Fiction!

Writing Fiction: When to Consider Summary

A Quick Start Guide to Children’s and Young Adult Publishing


From Betty

Five Ways to Generate Suspense

Understanding Exploitative Plots


Six Consequences of High Magic

Using Dialogue Tags: Easy Methods That Look Professional

How Indie Authors can Connect with Librarians

Disrupting Your Author Website

The Power of Motivation in Your Writing: Understanding Your Character’s Inner Drive

Still exploring the themes from last week, bad teachers/schools. There are very problematic themes in a lot of YA dark academia stories, where part of the dark is just how bad the teachers are (which isn't the point of dark academia) In this situation (so very prevalent in Harry Potter) the teachers fail these students time and again (imagine the fact there is no social workers with Hogwarts and they keep sending Harry home to physically/mentally abusive caretakers)

But a lot of Goodread/Netgalley arcs I've seen take it one step further; the students have to fight to the death in some cases. School competitions, no problem we have that literally everywhere. Fighting for position in the academy, fighting to not getting expelled, fighting to the death is a level above, sort of taking the idea of 'you have to have high stakes' a bit too far. Would you send a student to a school who was going to fight your child until they're killed? Would you want to be that student? I recently struggled thru an early Stephen King The Long Walk where 18 year old boys are walked non stop for hours/miles until there is just one. Fall behind? You get shot.

So this is not a new thing but it has certainly gained popularity after the Hunger Games. I would love to see other high stake things happening in a school that doesn't involve harming kids/teens


OPEN CALLS

Phantom Worlds: The Cellar Door Looking for horror stories that take place when alternate realities invade our own.

In The Mood: The Future

Robots Past & Future

Wyrd Wytchy West

Last Girls Club Spring Issue Theme: Lost at Sea

Brink Literary Magazine January 2025 Window Hybrid fiction with the theme of Renewal

Submissions: If I Die Before I Wake, Volume 10: Tales of Cryptid Chaos

Five Paying Literary Magazines to Submit to in December 2024

Beaver Magazine: Now Seeking Submissions

24 Manuscript Publishers Always Open To Submission

37 Themed Submission Calls and Contests for December 2024


From around the web


How to Use Exposition to Evoke Emotion

5 Ways to Fight Your End-of-Year Writer’s Fatigue

Top 8 Lessons I’ve Learned as a Writer in 16 Years



From Betty

Building Temeraire: How Novik Included Diversity and Justice in a Historical Setting

How to Write Three Types of Friendship Arcs

Why Breaking Stereotypes Makes Stronger Characters

Don’t Like “Forced Diversity” in Stories? Let’s Talk About It

A Distribution Primer

Weathering Disruption with Creativity Intact

Social Media Words of Wisdom

Every Story is a War

The Ripple Effect: How to Weave Plot with Character

Character Secret Thesaurus Entry: Being Pregnant

Turning Off the TV in Your Mind

The Benefits of Brainstorming for Writers: Part 2

3 Tips for Finishing Writing Projects in Time to Enjoy the Holidays

Learn to Love Accuracy in Writing



Advent Joy

Day 15 - Write a short story or poetry. Done

Day 15 tea apple cinnamon coffee cake - this is one of ones I bought the same day I bought the advent calendar. It's more like almond flavored. That's about it. It's tasty but it's not apple cinnamon coffee

So I was proud of myself thinking look at me finishing my 20th nano (even if we were doing it adjacent to them this year) Nano kept saying I started in 2004 But I always thought I had done my first you while living in FL. Then I remembered that nano had lost data years ago. Well they must have recovered it. It was year 21 this year....I DID start in FL in 2003 (I remember it doing a story Evil Little Dog still likes and asks about) Either way, I've done good. We're not talking about finishing today though. Nope not ready.

I was thinking more about talking about dating your story. Okay every story will have some datedness as time goes on but there are ways of making that worse. But let's get to that in minute.

Sometimes we want to date a story to set it in its time frame. Like my abovementioned monster hunter story which I started for nano 19 and finished two days ago or so. It's set in the 1980s and you need more than no cell phones/lap tops to set that time period. I use popular clothing choices (gloria vanderbuilt jeans, swatch watches), music and even movies to set it perfectly in 1986 (Aliens, though I need to check, I might have messed up and had them going to Princess Bride which is 87). This is a good form of dating. I want you to feel the 80s. (Nothing I hate more is someone making a big deal of their time period or their setting, let's say Paris, and it could be any time and any city because there's nothing to set it there)

On the other hand, putting in too many trendy references in a story you don't necessarily want dated. I just finished skimming (because it wasn't great) a book pubbed in 2006 and maybe it was written 10 years before because so many of the references were from the late 80s early 90s. And the author used them so damn often. it was like...fill in dated reference. Some things are timeless (Wizard of Oz, The three stooges) and even if we think they are, they probably aren't. My students, for example, may not know who the stooges are.

So maybe use those references sparringly. If you comparing your character to someone you run that risk of someone reading a book 10-20 years down the road (like me and the aforementioned boredom) we have no idea who you're talking about (this is the one thing that's great about fantasy, no worries on datedness)

OPEN CALL

Little Ghosts Is Open To Novellas Submissions Horror fiction between 17-40k words. I need to do a pitch... but I think I parred the novella down to 10K....dammit


Silk and Foxglove Eco-horror with a sexy or erotic spin
Note: Only open to BIPOC authors

Noncorporeal III: Nightfall Spooky stories that aren’t horror which contain at least one paranormal entity and ideally will include a scene at night or take place at night

Lured Into The Deep All mermaids (and their kin), kraken (sea monsters), underwater civilizations, etc. stories are welcome. All genres are accepted.

Vassar Review: Now Seeking Submissions

Eight Exciting New Literary Journals (November 2024)


From Around the Web

Horror Tree’s 2024 Gift Guide: Gifts For Writers

What Are Your Characters Thankful For?

Black Friday Deals for Writers 2024

How To Stay Sane While On Submission

HarperCollins Sells Rights to Books for AI Training; Amazon KDP to Stop Serial Releases; 4 Submissions Opportunities That's right screw up Harper Collins. Penguin books on the other hand said NO to selling to AI (right now)

10 Magazines Accepting Books for Review

Overcoming the Loneliness of Being a Writer

Custom Book Cover Printing Options for Self-Published Authors

How to Promote A Book on Goodreads

When Should I Use a Colon, Semicolon, and Dash?

Con-Tinual: The Con That Never Ends also here on Youtube.


From Betty

Why Storytellers Fail at Grimdark and How to Fix It

Six Character Archetypes for Love Interests

Five Obstacles to a Realistic Interstellar Empire

Using Limiting Beliefs To Go Deeper With Characterization

Structural Words of Wisdom

What is Your Character’s Wounding Event?

Character Secret Thesaurus Entry: Is Safeguarding Someone’s Secret

Newsletters: A Writer's Best Marketing Tool I keep hearing this? Have you found it so? All I know is I delete 99% of author newsletters unread as soon as they hit my inbox.

So this week's writing post is self indulgent. It's part of my process is to talk to others when I get stuck and that often helps me to get things moving. I was talking to evil_little_dog last night and thought this would be a neat thing to continue here.

I'm ready for the penultimate chapter in a former nano novel. Up until now, the older magic user (rogue, think of her as Ethan Rayne for all the Buffy fans out there) has been using a teenaged minion to wreck havoc and do the monster summoning. After the last chapter this is no longer possible for her and that chapter had a huge battle scene.

However that leaves me with how to stop the rogue. I have no idea how I want to deal with her and honestly after a couple reviews of the last novel have me second guessing myself especially after a reviewer who is usually really good with my reviews didn't like the ending because I think they were expecting a Ghostbuster's style ending but I did a more realistic paranormal investigating end.

Even though you know that it is impossible to make everyone happy, it rolls around in your head. I was also thinking that I've seen all the endings you can have for this (heck I think all the ones I can come up with have been in Harry Potter). My options are:

1. the teen monster hunters go after her in her house and there's another big battle (with a different monster)

2. the teens mentors step in (which is my least favorite option) because it's mostly their story

3. She comes for them but that probably takes me to another big battle (which I'm afraid might feel redundant)

4. She's summoning demons and they haul her to hell (i.e. Hellraiser)

Anything I've not thought of? Anything you're sick of seeing? I'm interested in your input.


Open Calls

The First Line – Spring 2025

Never Whistle at Night, Part II Incredible pay rate but you must be Indigenous (also the original anthology is really cool)

Future States of Stars Stories in the dystopian sci-fi genre with a Black Mirror or Twilight Zone vibe. Authors are encouraged to explore themes of the near-to-far future of states, whether set here on Earth, in space, or in other dimensions.

Take a Breath: A Collection of Claustrophobic Horror

The Thing With Feathers

Fusion Fragment

Memento Mori Book One: Relics

5 Paying Literary Magazines to Submit to in November 2024

Portland Review: Now Seeking Submissions



From Around the Web

Nightmares and Sweet Dreams

10 Tricks To Organizing Your Speculative Writing After Enjoying Weed

3 Items To Jumpstart Your Story

Don’t Make This Conflict and Tension Mistake

Why It’s Important to Finish What You Start (I'm terrible at this! I need to be so much better)

One Day It Happens: How One Author Got Published Just Before Turning 70

The Top 44 Publishers for New Authors

How to Write a Book Hook (With 4 Examples)

Finding Your Voice as a Writer

What is BookTok: 4 TikTok Strategies for Authors


From Betty

The Keys to a Great Opening Scene

Why Tossing In Calamity Won’t Make Your Story Exciting (this might be the issue with my ending)

Five Common Mistakes That Put Your Heroes in the Wrong

How to Choose Point of View Characters for Your Novel

Balancing “Showing” with “Telling” in Fiction

How to Overcome Writing Anxiety

Writing Past Discouragement (I'm there right now)

Solving the Mystery of TOD

Does Your Story Have a Full Circle Moment?

Four Dialogue Tips

Four Things That Make Your Writing Boring (and how to fix them!)

The Building Blocks of a Synopsis

Writers point the way forward

The Benefits of Brainstorming for Writers: Part 1

Let's talk about series and the formula. I think this might be a bit more noticeable in mystery series than other genres. I'm not saying it's a bad thing either but I also wonder if maybe breaking away from the formula a little might help. I'm going to look at two series I read. First is C.S. Harris's Sebastian St. Cyr series, one of my favorite historical mystery series (I think there's 19 now). Lifting this from my review of last year's book (that I just read last week) we have a very noticeable formula

1. Hero will help and also help Harris shine a light on social justice issues
2. Sebastian will dress up as a poor man and get into a fight and/or get his family threatened
3. Hero's father will be lurking in the shadows and be in the way/or involved somehow but ultimately helps Sebastian somehow
4. Hendon will be disapproving of his son but also ultimately helpful
5. Sebastian's gossipy old aunt will have some clue
6. Ditto Kat Sebastian's ex-lover and actual daughter of Hendon
7. Lovejoy will be there to enable Sebastian (including dealing with any self defense killings) but ultimately not be that helpful in solving the case.


And J.D. Robb's Eve Dallas In Death series (which I think I just saw reached 60 books. Between Robb and Nora Roberts pen names, I have to wonder is she a machine, amazing or are some of these ghost written). Actually I'm leaning toward the latter since some are great and some are almost 1 star material.

Now I have not read all 60 books but I've read more than a dozen. Robb's formula is much more noticeable than Harris' and more annoying (mostly because a lot of it does not move the plot along)
1. Eve will be abusive to her underlings
2. Eve will be very abusive to Roarke's man servant
3. Will hear about her coffee (a rarity) ad nauseum
4. She will have a ptsd nightmare
5. She'll have no idea what normal women do
6. Eve will have kid-phobia
7. Eve will find some reason to bring Roarke into the case
8. Eve and Roarke will fight over nonsense that most people wouldn't
9. they'll have boring make up sex
10 Eve will have to run things past her friends, the journalist, the psychologist and the pop star.


So if we look at the two formulas I think that Harris' bothers me less as almost all of it moves the plot. Robb's does not.

Do you use a formula? How do you use it? Does it make things flow more easily for you (I assume that they would especially when you're expected to turn out a book a year at a min.) I actually haven't written enough series to say that I have a formula. If I do, I certainly hope it moves the plot.

On a random note before the links, I finished a short story today so I'm happy. I'll put up a tidbit (need to get it beta read)


OPEN CALLS


Sometimes Hilarious Horror

Latin American Shared Stories A story that, at its core it is likely to concern, celebrate or give agency to Latin American characters and issues

Rabid Otter Horror Is Open To Novels And Novellas

Springtime Fair Stories that center around a craft, recipe, or ritual AND each author will provide a set of instructions to make/enact the craft, recipe, or ritual that was featured in their story

Dracula Beyond Stoker Issue 6 Theme: Jonathan Harker (this was the one I was short listed with for Lucy's other suitors and invited to write for other options but not sure I have a Jonathan story in me)

Glen Must Die! This one sounds fun

Eleven Wonderful Canadian Literary Journals

The Imagist: Now Seeking Submissions

40 Terrific International Literary Journals


From Around the Web

Extended Metaphor: Meaning, Structure, Examples, How To Use

My Easiest Tool for KDP Keywords and Categories

Don’t Demonize Print on Demand

Why I Stopped Tracking My Daily Word Count

Kurt Vonnegut’s 8 Rules For Writing A Short Story

Comparing Matte vs. Glossy Book Cover Finish

How to Choose Amazon KDP Keywords for Books


From Betty

Five Common Reasons the Hero Is Too Powerful this is why I'm often not fond of god-like characters and one of the reasons I drifted away from the Dresden Files

Eight Ways to Add Deadlines to Your Story

Starting Your Scenes with a Bang!

How to Write Irresistible Character Relationships, Part Two

Make Your YA Story Feel Real

On Politics (Not Really) And Other Life-Plots

How to End a Scene

Best Communities for Marketing Your Writing

Why Every Writer Should Try Their Hand at a Horror Story

Character Secret Thesaurus Entry: Covets Someone Else’s Life

“Okay, but Why Do They Want It?” — 3 Questions All Novelists Should Ask About Their Protagonist’s Goal

LitRPG Goes Mainstream

Pros and Cons for Writers Sharing a First Draft

Genre Expectations: Writing All the Punks

When Writing in Deep POV Should I Use First or Third Person?



Nano tidbit - (i.e. my short story bit as I'm doing whatever I want here)



Being at the front desk, he knew who checked in with a party, who came with a significant other and who came alone. The latter he committed to memory and could visit with later. The downside to the big hotel versus his old gwesty was it wasn’t a quick nip down to the corner pub. He’d have preferred to have a few of those up his sleeve so he could meet them away from where he worked. It was just better that way.

I'll tell you all about the Renn fest tomorrow. I figured it is time to touch on this writing topic I've been trying to do for months but since it's been a week of politically related posts it's time. I started having thoughts about a year ago about this and then about 4-6 weeks ago someone on Rainbow Snippets that I participate in as Jana said something to the effect that 'the far right want to imprison us for writing LGBT stories.' Have to admit I had a bit of a spin out over that comment because like I said it's been in my head since These Haunted Hills dropped.

It's not actually that out there. We all know about McCarthyism (or at least we SHOULD if we're here in the States). And one of the things we're voting on in OH is a measure that wants to make it an offense to even teach about abortion (which I have to do when I talk about ectopic pregnancies) there's some who want to make it a sex offense (ditto librarians/teachers allowing young people to read LGBT books).

Could it happen? I don't think it could quite as easily as it did in the 50s because there wasn't much in the way of LGBT rep then. If I look at Goodreads giveaways a good quarter if not more every day are LGBT (or at least have LGBT+ characters in them) Someone else (Here on DW I think or was it Bluesky??) that was part of panel at World con talking about is this the gayest era in fiction? I'm going with yes. In the 90s when I first wrote my gay vampires Arrigo and Luc (who were in New Orleans at the time because I make bad choices) the big book of open markets (I can't even remember the name of that book now, pre-internet obviously) and MANY of them had threats in them about 'do not do homosexual characters or you'll get blackballed.'

I remember when Mercedes Lackey used her privilege as a bestselling author to have Vanyel, one of the first modern gay characters in Fantasy I remember seeing and everyone was going 'she's ruined herself.' 'No one will touch her now.' They were luckily wrong (but I am not sure how much the blow back hurt her sales at the time.)


Now I was considering retiring as Jana to begin with after how badly my last two novels tanked. I didn't expect Soldiers of the Sun to do great since it's niche but then Blood Red Roulette failed. I didn't get it. (Now Arrigo and Luc were in Vegas). Vampires are still popular. The cover was stellar. It flatlined and I'm not sure if it truly did because that's when all the Dreamspinner drama started and I had to wonder if I had been lied to.

But These Haunted Hills hasn't done well (another popular theme, another amazing cover). So do I republish those old Dreamspinner books? Do I do it myself? I have talented artist friends I could commission for covers but honestly my sales have been so bad even with a publisher that I wouldn't even make back what I paid for a cover.

So I'm here wondering do I try to republish? Do I try to write the sequel to These Haunted Hills (which was requested)? Do I walk away especially with the political environment? Is that cowardly? (probably) I don't know but I DO know it's kept me from writing anything as Jana for almost 2 years now. (gay fanfic I'm churning out like I have no care in the world).


OPEN CALL


Shatter the Sun: Queer Tales of Untold Adventure.

Flashpoint Science Fiction 2024 Drabble Open Window

Cosmic Roots And Eldritch Shores November 2024

The Lost Poetry Club Season 1 Episode 9

Dishsoap Quarterly: Now Seeking Submissions

49 Romance Publishers Open to Direct Submissions



From Around the Web

7 Great Gifts for Aspiring Writers

3 Secrets Every SFF Writer Should Know

3 Ways Writers Can Instantly Spot Telling

Susan J Morris: Five Things I Learned Writing Strange Beasts

How To Find More Book Buyers

Affect vs. Effect: How to Choose the Right Word

How to Write a Book Series


From Betty

How to Make Unhappiness Into Effective Stakes

How Much Agency Can Marginalized Characters Have?

How to Write Irresistible Character Relationships

3 Ways Writers Can Instantly Spot Telling

Three Ways You’re Losing Your Reader’s Trust

Character Secret Thesaurus Entry: Monitoring Someone Without Their Knowledge

Connective tissue is wildly underrated in storytelling

I've been thinking about how to convey complex emotions in fiction. How do you all approach it? It's often more than one feeling/action that we should see. I'm thinking about it for a few reasons today 1) I'm having the weird symptoms again, feels like asthma but isn't. Is it GERD? Is it my heart? This is when I should go to the urgent care to be checked out and there is all the emotions, the 'you're blowing it out of proportion' you're too busy' the I'm afraid it is something serious, the I'm afraid of wasting time, the is this just anxiety?

That is a lot to try to communicate in a character without bogging down the narrative.

Also thinking about it when I opened FB this morning to see my friend's halloween party was yesterday which is why none of my steampunk friends were at the thing yesterday. Oh. I didn't get an invite. I'm not mad but I am disappointed, a little sad, again with the complex emotions. How would I convey this in a character? Me not being invited wasn't malicious. He usually just puts up the invite in the chat/on his FB and that is SUCH a broken forum. I didn't see it, didn't get a notification. I put up the query earlier in the week to the group about yesterday's thing but most of them probably didn't see it either. (one of the ones who usually goes to the party did say she'd meet me at the winery but that was the last I heard so possible she didn't get an invite or didn't remember) So there's the complex emotion of disappointment, the sadness and being left out, the annoyance that I didn't think to check because I KNOW when it is yearly.

FB gave me more complex emotions today as well. The person heading up Rainbow Snippet a weekly group I've been active with for years, died last week. When I went to look for the weekly post last week there was no new posts showing. Today I go back as well to look for the post and found out that were posts saying she had died. Here I come in a week late and a dollar short with sympathies. So the complex emotion here is guilt-annoyance -sadness which feels different from the similar. Emotions are strange and hard to write.


OPEN CALLS (REALLY good paying ones this time)


Ten Manuscript Publishers Open to Submissions in October 2024

Penstricken: Now Seeking Submissions

Were Wolf Short Stories

The Orange & Bee Issue #4 Original works of fiction, poetry, and non-fiction that engage in a significant way with the long history of fairy tales

Silent Nightmares December 2024 Window Dark holiday horrors

Silent Nightmares will be open for submissions the month of December, 2024. This anthology of dark holiday horrors will be co-edited by Chuck Palahniuk and Michael Bailey, who will be eagerly sifting the slush for Haunting Stories to Be Told on the Longest Night of the Year. Bolding this because of who is involved. Holy crap.



Cursed Dragon Ship Publishing January 2025 Open Novel WIndow


Once Upon a Moonless Night Suspenseful stories about what goes bump in the night

Sundog Literature 2024 Window #2 Writing that attempts to salvage something pure from the collision of warmth and cold, that says what it can about the world it finds itself in.

Plott Hound Magazine Speculative stories about animals where animals are the protagonists

Into the Dark Dark fantasy and fantastical horror



From Around the Web


How and Why Authors Should Write for Other Websites and Their Own

The Golden Era of Writing & Reading on Twitch Has Begun!

What I've Learned After Publishing My First Book

How Do You Know if Your Writing is Getting Better?

What’s the Difference Between the Main Character and Protagonist?

How to Get a Self-Published Book into Bookstores

How to Add Research for Your Next Book Project



From Betty

Five More Underused Settings in Spec Fic

What Does and Doesn’t Make a Signature Weapon Cool

Twelve Sources of Wish Fulfillment for Your Story

Why a Villain POV Isn’t a Good Source of Tension

The problem with “fantasy races” (and what to use instead!)

How Small Setting Elements Can Pack Big Emotional Hits

The Golden Era of Writing & Reading on Twitch Has Begun!

Write Fight Scenes The Comic Book Way

How to Identify Your Writing Business Relationship Type

Character Thesaurus Entry: Uses a False Identity

Genre Expectations: Writing Gothic Horror and Standard Horror

How We Use Weather in Our Writing

How to Add Deep POV in a Scene You're Writing

How to Write First Person POV: Flashback

Face Your Fears and Don't Let Blogging Scare You

Otherwise known as the writerly ways edition. So I did as I said I would, got up early and arrived at Point Pleasant for the Mothman Festival. It was cool and FOGGY. I could barely see the memorial silver bridge and while there was no traffic, the tiny public lot (reserved for the handicapped) had 2 places left at twenty after nine (it opens at 10). I took one. At least I could have parked close at the 20$ a car lots if not for that.

This was a good idea. It was still relative cool half the time I was there (close to 90 when I left at 12:30) The crowds weren't too bad but the coffee shop had people out the door. Hard Pass. I remembered last year there were food trucks and coffee in this small green space (where a building used to be) and bingo. Coffee no line. While there I checked out the vendors and one turned out to be one of my former students now an occupational therapist who does yoga in Gallipolis. We talked a while, I'll take her name to the wellness committee to come help with the faculty and tell the dean of students (because she was really hoping to work with students) about her. so that was nice.

On that end of town were the Imperial Storm troopers and Boba fetts raising money for suicide prevention (here's some cash) and I got into one of the stores I had spotted last time I was in town but the rain stopped me. It's barely bigger than my living room with t-shirts and tumblers and I don't see much of a future for it. Oh well.

The line to the get your mothman selfie was long. To get into the mothman museum even longer (hard pass on both since I'm local. I can go any time) I did sneak around back because there was SO much money stuffed into the shiny hiney I had to get a pic (hope it came out because now the sun's boiling and my screen is barely visible)

Many of the usual suspects were there vendor wise. New to the scene was the guy from
Expedition Bigfoot Yes I got his books (shame, Dana shame) I actually only bought 1 other book from Dave Sprinks. I passed on Weird Willis's work but only because I called over the giant line, James, you gonna be in Jackson Library next month? Yes, cool, buy from you then. (he's another paranormal investigator that I've gotten to know over the years) I even ran into the guys I bought the stuffed Nessie from at the Kecksburg UFO festival.

I could have bought so much more but I behaved myself. I got cheapo sasquatch earrings and got holidays gifts. I found hazbin art of all things and I spoke to the Ghostbusters (making up the direct opposite end of the festival from the stormtroopers) raising money for heart disease studies. Sadly the ladies said their base is a firehall in Charleston WV (a little far to go for meetings for me) but we got to talking about Husk and Hazbin Hotel (one of them hadn't seen it yet, me and her friend were enablers) I mentioned I'd be in Charleston soon for Tsubasacon and they're event runners for it. She was excited I might wear my steampunk (as the theme is cyberpunk vs steampunk) and even more so if I come as Edalyn in her PJs like I did last year.

As I told mom sadly I'm not even 100% sure I can go because of the angiogram and in talking to mom I realized oh...I can wear my expensive steampunk daydress but NOT the corset. That backpressure could pop the clot from the angiogram.

Anyhow after my wallet wept big fat tears and I'd been there for 3 hours and it was getting hot/crowded I left. I would do this again next year same bat time same bat channel because it worked for me. The only downside is a) some stuff was sold out but who cares really? It's not like I NEED this stuff b) all the talks are in the afternoon and sure I could have hung in there for another half hour but eh, I've heard most of this before and I'll probably hear it again at the Loveland Frogman Fest next year.


But by this time I was hot and I had to PEE because I refused to pee in a gross portapotty on the sidewalk. I drove up the university to pee and to go look at the links I forgot to do yesterday (and snitch some gloves so I could work on the tv stand (more on that tomorrow)


So let me get to the writerly ways. I personally find these festival artistically stimulating so who is YOUR favorite cryptid? Who could you see writing into a story? Who have you already done? There is one romance series there about the mothman. I read book one and it was very obviously written by someone who hadn't been to Point Pleasant...or even Google Earthed it. I didn't bother with second two but that was in my head thinking up this question.

And in writing news I just finished my penultimate chapter of my wipbigbang by the time I get the last chapter done and all the editing it'll be 90K. I am crying.


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I am currently too tired to think of much in the way of a writerly ways but I am curious do you write about topics that make you angry? How do you handle it? Does it make you emotionally worse?

These questions brought to you by my research. Today I learned Harvard only took women into their school of medicine in the 1940s because WWII left so little men the program couldn't run and even then it was contingent on a study they planned to run to see if women could actually handle being a doctor. at this point women had been graduating other medical schools for 100 years and Harvard still believed we couldn't handle it.

I have another story out there I never finished because it started incorporating my anger at the Evangelical Christians and their mission to destroy women's rights and I abandoned it because it was making my anxiety worse and worse and would like to return to it and make that less of a theme for my own sanity.

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