Is It Halloween Yet?
I love Halloween, and it's right around the calendar corner. The munchkins in their costumes, the candles flickering in the crisp New England air, and the doorbell. Well, maybe not the doorbell...makes the dog insane, but I digress. If you want to do something extra fun for Halloween, go to the Keene Pumpkin Festival. I took the barfing pumpkin pic there a couple of years ago. It's a hoot. Thousands of carved pumpkins and building-size pumpkin towers, and at dusk, ALL the jack-o-lanterns lighted and eerily beautiful. If you don't mind a hefty crowd, check it out...and remember to take your camera!
Apex Halloween CoupAnother fabulous thing about Halloween is the annual Apex Digest Halloween Short Fiction Contest. As you all probably know by now, Apex is my favorite mag, and getting a story published within its yummy pages is a sweet coup for any writer. Writing the winning "post-apocalyptic" story will give you that privilege, plus a hot C-note ($100US) and a load of excellent prizes. Second place ain't too shabby either. For the full scoop, Go to Apex for the Contest Guidelines.
And while you're there, please be sure to check-out APEX ONLINE for some excellent FREE fiction, interviews and reviews. Btw, APEX is now open for regulare submissions, as well!!
Noctem Aeternus Needs A Swift Kick!
The upcoming, and much anticipated, Noctem Aeternus online magazine needs a kick...a kick start, that is. They pay 10 cents a word to their writers, which in today's zine market, is SUPER-FABOO. How can they do this? With advertising dollars! And big fat lists of subscribers is what advertisers need to see. SOOO, what NA needs from us, is a little help via our vast empires of family and friends. AND, they're willing to pay for the privilege to one lucky subscription contest winner who will receive an amazing haul of literary loot. If you love supporting the small press and/or you'd like a shot at the following list of excellent titles for your own library collection...
Run On Over to Shocklines to Get the Full Contest Details
The Loot:
* The Mothers And Fathers Italian Association by
Thomas F. Monteleone Signed #366 of 1000 Limited BP
Hardback.
* A Little Brown Book of Bizarre Stories by Thomas F.
Monteleone Signed #103 of 500 limited BP Hardback.
* A Little Brass Book of Full Metal Fiction by
Douglas E. Winter Signed #461 of 500 limited BP Hardback.
* Darker by SimonClark – Delux Limited (1000) Signed CD
Hardback.
* The Other End by John Shirley – Signed Limited (1000) CD
Hardback.
* Midnight Premiere edited by Tom Piccirilli – Signed Limited
(1500) CD Hardback.
* Prodigal Blues by Gary Braunbeck – Signed Limited (1000)
CD Hardback.
* Wild Things by Douglas Clegg – Signed Limited (1500) CD
Hardback.
* Dark Harvest by Norman Partridge – Signed Limited (2000)
CD Hardback.
* Camp Stalag by Bill Walker – Signed Limited (1000) CD
Hardback.
See, I wasn't kidding you - that's a sweet list of loot! And Michael Knost, the editor of Noctem Aeternus, is a friend of mine, and I know this mag is going to be a sensation. If you haven't signed-up for the FREE mag, do it today and send all your friends and family there, too. The contest deadline is September 30th, so get your peeps clickin' RIGHT HERE!
Jeesh, I've got tons more to tell you, but it'll have to wait until next time. Writing to do, places to go! I hope you're all having a fantastic weekend. And to you US folks, Happy Labor Day Weekend. Grill somethin' rare and juicy for me! *wink*Wickedly Yours,
Fran Friel
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