My 2019 Publication End-of-Year Wrap-Up

As most indie writers can relate, I suffer the malaise of feeling like I never get enough writing accomplished. However, looking back over the year of 2019, I feel like I should be satisfied, or at least can assure myself that the year has been productive “enough”... especially as I have day jobs, a family, and am involved in volunteer organizations for my children! Additionally I can look forward to a number of great projects already lined up for next year of 2020. So for purposes of self-accounting (i.e. bragging), here are my publication highlights for the year:

1. I published my first novel:

DOORWAYS TO THE DEADEYE (JournalStone, July, 2019)
https://www.amazon.com/Doorways-Deadeye-Eric-J-Guignard/dp/1947654977/


2. I published my favorite (and most ambitious) anthology to date:

Pop the Clutch: Thrilling Tales of Rockabilly, Monsters, and Hot Rod Horror (Dark Moon Books, January, 2019)
https://www.amazon.com/Pop-Clutch-Thrilling-Rockabilly-Monsters/dp/1949491056/


3. I published a smaller anthology of reprint stories as part of a project series:

Strange Tales of the Macabre: Post-Apocalyptic (5X5 Publishing, July, 2019)
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07VNHYR79


4. I published the fourth Primer book in my series EXPLORING DARK SHORT FICTION.

Exploring Dark Short Fiction #4: A Primer to Jeffrey Ford (Dark Moon Books, September, 2019)
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07X5MW4PS


5. I gained 14 more short story publication credits (8 of these are reprints)

Top 3 originals are:

•  “Carmine Lips and a Fade into Oblivion” for Cemetery Dance Online
https://www.cemeterydance.com/extras/cd-ebook-spotlight-that-which-grows-wild-eric-guignard/

•  “A Notable Incursion of Dinosaur Ants” in Red Sun Magazine, issue #5
https://www.amazon.com/Red-Sun-Magazine-Eric-Guignard-ebook/dp/B07R651M3Z

•  “Deep Down, the Lake of a Thousand Graves” in the anthology Tales of the Lost Volume 1
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1704811627/


6. PLUS I continue to run, publish, and promote my own indie press: DARK MOON BOOKS
www.darkmoonbooks.com


7. And, I’m still incredibly elated to have won this year’s Bram Stoker Award for Superior Achievement in a Fiction Collection for my debut collection: That Which Grows Wild: 16 Tales of Dark Fiction (Cemetery Dance, July, 2018)
https://www.amazon.com/That-Which-Grows-Wild-Fiction/dp/1949491072

All-in-all a respectable year, if I do say so! And hoping for 2020 to be even better!!

My Birthday Wish

It has been brought to my attention that it’s my birthday tomorrow… again! As much as I try to avoid it, it seems to be an annual occurrence. I do appreciate all the birthday comments and well wishes (emails, P.M.s, calls, texts, tweets, and their ilk) but I ask only ONE birthday favor, ONE request from ye celebrators… While you’re in the mood to write me, PLEASE also write an Amazon review for something I’ve written, ANY project I’ve ever been involved in!!!!

As many of you know, it’s a dreadful commentary that the worth of indie authors is measured by 5-star reviews, but such is the state of current commerce. Thus my greatest and dearest wish (combination Christmas-Birthday, in fact) is simply for you to click the below hyperlink, and write a few words of appreciation for any writing or anthology editing I’ve done, a task that takes only 30 seconds! :)

I’ll even send you a complimentary e-book of anything you’d like, in exchange for such review—just ask.

THANK YOU, and happy holidays all!

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Here’s my full Amazon page: https://www.amazon.com/Eric-J.-Guignard/e/B004QJ1YTC

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Here are some direct links for specific titles:

Doorways to the Deadeye:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07VF7S58B


That Which Grows Wild: 16 Tales of Dark Fiction: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1949491005


Pop the Clutch: Thrilling Tales of Rockabilly, Monsters, and Hot Rod Horror
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1949491056


The Five Senses of Horror
https://www.amazon.com/Five-Senses-Horror-Eric-Guignard/dp/1949491048


A World of Horror
https://www.amazon.com/World-Horror-Kaaron-Warren/dp/194949103X

Review me!

December, 2019 Dark Fiction Short Story Markets

HWA L.A.: December, 2019

New or Reopening Market Listings/ Notes
At Minimum Pro-Paying (5 cents+ per word)

Clarkesworld Magazine

http://clarkesworldmagazine.com/submissions/
Payment: 10 cents per word for the first 5,000 words, 8 cents for each word over 5,000
Story Length: 1,000–16,000 words
Deadline: Intermittent.
Reprints?: No
Response: Unknown
Description: Science fiction and fantasy (include. All associated sub-genres); Science fiction need not be "hard" SF, but rigor is appreciated. Fantasy can be folkloric, contemporary, surreal, etc. Horror can be supernatural or psychological, so long as it is frightening.


Daily Science Fiction
http://dailysciencefiction.com/submit
Payment: 8 cents a word
Story Length: to 1,500 words (prefer less than 1,000)
Deadline: Continually open (EXCEPT during December 24, 2019–January 2, 2020)
Reprints?: No
Response: 1 month
Description: Speculative fiction, such as science fiction, fantasy, slipstream, etc. Daily publications.


Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine
https://www.themysteryplace.com/eqmm/guidelines/
Payment: 5-8 cents a word
Story Length: 2,500–8,000 words soft range (additionally, ‘Minute Mysteries’ of as little as 250 words)
Deadline: Ongoing
Reprints?: No
Response: Three months
Description: (Not Horror, but Mystery and Crime) -- Every kind of mystery short story: the psychological suspense tale, the deductive puzzle, the private eye case—the gamut of crime and detection from the realistic (including the policeman's lot and stories of police procedure) to the more imaginative (including "locked rooms" and "impossible crimes"). We need hard-boiled stories as well as "cozies."


Gumshoe Review (Mystery/ Crime, monthly e-mag)
http://www.gumshoereview.com/php/Review-id.php?id=1852
Payment: $50 flat payment (thus, 5 cents a word or more)
Story Length: flash fiction to 1,000 words (also non-fiction welcome to 1,000 words)
Deadline: Continually
Reprints?: No
Response: vague… est. 1 to 3 months
Description: Stories is a complete mystery in 1,000 words or less. We don't want character studies or mood pieces. We'd like it to lean towards noir but being a mystery. Stories where the investigator is the protagonist, or at least a significant character, and the focus is on solving a solving a crime, or getting someone out of a jam, or seeking some sort of justice."


Frozen Wavelets e-zine
https://earthianhivemind.net/frozen-wavelets
Payment: 8 cents a word
Story Length: up to 750 words
Deadline: December 15, 2019
Reprints?: Yes (up to 1,500 words at 1 cent/ word)
Response: within 30 days
Description: Non-themed speculative flash fiction and poetry. All forms of horror, fantasy, and science fiction welcome.


Beneath Ceaseless Skies
http://www.beneath-ceaseless-skies.com/submissions/
Payment: 8 cents a word
Story Length: Up to 15,000 words
Deadline: None at present. Closes intermittently
Reprints?: No
Response: Two to seven weeks
Description: “Literary adventure fantasy”: stories with a secondary-world setting and some traditional or classic fantasy feel, but written with a literary approach. We want stories set in what Tolkien called a “secondary world”: some other world that is different from our own primary world in some way. It could be different in terms of zoology (non-human creatures), ecology (climate), or physical laws (the presence of magic). It could be set on Earth but an Earth different from our primary world in terms of time (the historical past) or history (alternate history). It could have a “pre-tech” level of technology, or steampunk technology, or magic as technology, or anything else that’s not advanced or modern technology. However, the setting should contain some element that is in some way fantastical.



***Non-PRO-Paying Market, but Eric J. Guignard’s “Pick of the Month”

Twenty Thousand Leagues Remembered (Pole to Pole Publishing)
http://poletopolepublishing.com/submissions
Payment: 2 cents a word
Story Length: 3,000–5,000 words
Deadline: Jan. 1, 2020–Apr. 30, 2020 (OR until filled, whichever is earlier)
Reprints?: Yes
Response: unknown (before June, 2020, most probably)
Description: Twenty Thousand Leagues Remembered will contain short stories that pay tribute in some way to Jules Verne’s novel. Set your story in any time or place; use characters from Verne’s novel or make up your own. You need not write in Verne’s style. Aim to capture, in your own way, the sense of wonder and adventure for which Jules Verne is famous. The connection between your story and Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea must be obvious and significant.


Triangulation (Parsec Ink)
http://parsecink.com/submission-guidelines
Payment: 4 cents a word
Story Length: up to 5,000 words
Deadline: February 29, 2019
Reprints?: No
Response: March 31, 2019
Description: Theme of EXTINCTION: Every day, another species creeps closer to extinction, often brought on by things out of their control. The world changes every time an insect, a rhino, a macaw ceases to exist. These changes are tangible. Tell us about them. Bring us stories of imposing threats, extraordinary creatures brought low, stories of those warriors who fight tooth and nail for their survival. What does extinction mean to you? We like our stories to be profound, relatable, poignant yet familiar. Tell a tale for the ages; we want gritty commentaries and hopeful ruminations.


Best of Hardcore Horror, Volume 5 (Best Of/ Reprint antho) (edited by Randy Chandler and Cheryl Mullenax; publ. by Comet Press)
http://www.redroompress.com/submission-guidelines/years-best-hardcore-horror/
Payment: 1 cent a word (reprints only)
Story Length: to 6,000 words
Deadline: December 31, 2018
Reprints?: Reprints only (including stories from self-publishing, online, single-author collections, etc.)
Response: unknown
Description: Hardcore Horror stories that were published in 2019 (bloody, gory, outlandish, pushing boundaries, etc.)

November, 2019 Dark Fiction Short Story Markets

HWA L.A.: November, 2019
New or Reopening Market Listings/ Notes
At Minimum Pro-Paying (5 cents+ per word)

Community of Magic Pens anthology (published by Atthis Arts)
https://www.atthisarts.com/magicpens
Payment: 8 cents a word
Story Length: up to 3,000 words
Deadline: Between Dec. 15, 2019–Jan. 15, 2020
Reprints?: No
Response: Unknown
Description: Open to any speculative fiction genre: Stories must play in some fashion on the idea of magic pens. Not just about writing, but about magic pens.


Rebuilding Tomorrow anthology (published by Twelfth Planet Press)
http://defyingdoomsday.twelfthplanetpress.com/rebuilding-tomorrow-submission-guidelines
Payment: 8 cents a word
Story Length: 2,000–6,000 words
Deadline: Jan. 31, 2020
Reprints?: No
Response: Unknown
Description: Science fiction or speculative fiction (or similar genres) focusing on disabled and/or chronically ill protagonists rebuilding, set in a significant time after an apocalyptic disaster. We want stories that show society getting back on its feet and people who have moved past (or are in the process of moving past) subsistence-level existence into a new, sustainable world, even though it’s one that has been irrevocably changed by an apocalypse.


TWO SEPARATE ANTHOLOGIES from Flame Tree Publishing
http://blog.flametreepublishing.com/fantasy-gothic/fall/autumn-2019-submissions-announcement
Payment: 8 cents a word (6 cents/ word for reprints)
Story Length: 2,000–4,000 words (soft range)
Deadline: Dec. 1, 2019
Reprints?: Yes
Response: 3 months

1. Bodies in the Library (Crime & Mystery): Tales of crime in stately houses, lonely mansions, ancient castles.

2. Footsteps in the Dark (Horror & Suspense): Tales of terror of the alleyways, the edges of the town, the frontier shacks, the winter forests and lonely mountain hideaways. An emphasis on heightened senses would differentiate the best stories from the rest!


Strange Horizons
http://strangehorizons.com/submit/fiction-submission-guidelines/
Payment: 8 cents a word
Story Length: up to 10,000 words (under 5,000 preferred)
Deadline: Intermittent
Reprints?: No
Response: 40 days
Description: Imaginative, good speculative fiction, broadly defined (not pure horror), particularly from diverse perspectives; Unusual yet readable styles and inventive structures and narratives.


Midnight in the Pentagram anthology (published by Silver Shamrock Publishing)
https://www.silvershamrockpublishing.com/midnight-in-the-pentagram-anthology
Payment: 6 cents a word
Story Length: up to 6,000 words
Deadline: March 31, 2020
Reprints?: No
Response: unknown
Description: Occult/Demons/ Possession/ Satanism horror stories with an Exorcist/ The Omen/ Rosemary’s Baby/ Hereditary meets EC Comics/ Creepshow/ Tales From the Crypt kind of vibe.


Unfit Magazine (see also Unreal Magazine)
http://unfitmag.com/submit
Payment: 12 cents a word (1 cent/ word for reprints)
Story Length: 500–5,000 words
Deadline: Intermittent
Reprints?: Yes (paid at 1 cent/ word)
Response: 30 days: NOTE: This market ONLY responds to accept. No response within 30 days means rejection.
Description: High quality Speculative Fiction and Science Fiction; Quantum Fiction, Cyberpunk, Alternative Histories and Steampunk.


Unreal Magazine (see also Unfit Magazine)
http://unrealmag.com/submit
Payment: 12 cents a word (1 cent/ word for reprints)
Story Length: 500–5,000 words
Deadline: Intermittent
Reprints?: Yes (paid at 1 cent/ word)
Response: 30 days: NOTE: This market ONLY responds to accept. No response within 30 days means rejection.
Description: High quality fantasy (including Magical Realism and Experimental Fiction). Well written, intelligent, and enjoyable to read. Stories with metaphors and emotional ambience and imaginative descriptive writing. Stories that define the rules of magic at this indefinite point in time.



***Non-PRO-Paying Market, but Eric J. Guignard’s “Pick of the Month”

Dark Moon Digest (quarterly)
https://darkmoondigest.submittable.com/submit
Payment: 3 cents a word (1 cent/ word for reprints; also $30 flat for nonfiction)
Story Length: 1,500–7,000 words
Deadline: Until monthly quota is filled
Reprints?: Yes (paid at 1 cent/ word)
Response: up to 3 months
Description: Fiction reminiscent of The Twilight Zone, Black Mirror, Tales from the Crypt, and Tales from the Darkside. We want stories with complex characters and ideas spun in ways nobody’s ever conceived. Make our brains hurt. Make our hearts explode with love and terror. Make us fear.


Excalibur 2020: Tales from Beyond Tomorrow Volume 3 anthology (published by Excalibur Books)
http://johnpaulcatton.com/2019/05/excalibur-2020-call-for-submissions
Payment: $100 flat
Story Length: 2,500–10,000 words
Deadline: Dec. 31, 2019
Reprints?: No
Response: T
Description: Speculative Fiction (Science Fiction, Fantasy, or Horror) story with a thematic connection to the Olympics (or with a focus on Japanese society)! This will tie in to the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.

October, 2019 Dark Fiction Short Story Markets

October, 2019: HWA L.A.

New or Reopening Market Listings/ Notes
At Minimum Pro-Paying (5 cents+ per word)

Fantasy & Science Fiction Magazine (F&SF)

https://www.sfsite.com/fsf/glines.htm
https://ccfinlay.moksha.io/publication/fsf/guidelines
Payment: 7–12 cents a word.
Story Length: up to 25,000 words
Deadline: None listed. Closes intermittently
Reprints?: No
Response: Two months
Description: Stories that appeal to science fiction and fantasy readers (the SF element may be slight, but it should be present); character-oriented stories. Humor very welcome. (** now allows online submissions)


After Sundown anthology (published by Flame Tree) **NOTE: This Call is not posted online, and is only posted via Flame Tree Newsletter. MUST Subscribe to the newsletter for further details!
https://www.flametreepress.com/submissions
Payment: 8 cents a word
Story Length: “ideally” abt. 4,000 words
Deadline: Open ONLY between: Oct. 21, 2019–Nov. 3, 2019
Reprints?: No
Response: within 4 months
Description: An eclectic, vibrant collection of tales by contemporary writers, both established and new… thrilling stories of suspense, delving into the dark spaces of the night.


Constellary Tales (Magazine AND Podcast) (*New Market)
http://constellary.com/story-submissions/
Payment: 6 cents a word
Story Length: 1,000–3,500 words
Deadline: Intermittent
Reprints?: No
Response: 1 month
Description: Science Fiction and fantasy stories (no straight horror). “Storytelling across time and space… i.e. any great speculative fiction stories.”


The Way of the Laser: Future Crime stories anthology (published by Vernacular Books)
https://vernacularbooks.com/submissions
Payment: 5 cents a word + royalties
Story Length: 4,000–8,000 words
Deadline: Jan. 1, 2020
Reprints?: No
Response: unknown
Description: Crime stories that take place in the future. Preferably these stories will go beyond simple murders or capers to reveal something about how technology and the powers that wield it have changed our world. Is poisoning the nanobots responsible for programming the ads in your neural feed a crime? Is organized crime society’s only hope or responsible for its downfall? Consider what will constitute a crime and what unique problems it poses for your characters.


Invictus: Quarterly Comics & Illustrations (published by Aurelia Leo)
https://aurelialeo.com/invictus-quarterly-comics-and-illustrations
Payment: 8 cents a word
Story Length: 1,500–2,500 words
Deadline: Month XX, 2019
Reprints?: Yes, at 1 cent a word
Response: 2–3 weeks
Description: Speculative (horror, science fiction & fantasy) stories and art for a global audience.


Zombies Need Brains, LLC anthologies (3 separate markets, Similar guidelines)
https://jpskewedthrone.dreamwidth.org/499730.html
NOTE: These are successfully-funded Kickstarter campaigns open for public submissions.

All 3 anthologies:

Payment: 8 cents a word + Royalties
Story Length: to 7,500 words
Deadline: December 31, 2019
Reprints?: No
Response: February 28, 2020

Tone for all: Range of tones, from humorous all the way up to dark; Not looking for torture porn, nor gratuitous violence of any kind.

• 1. Apocalyptic
  Description: Science fiction or fantasy stories set during or after an apocalypse... use the apocalypse in an unusual and unexpected way.
  
• 2. Galactic StewDescription: stories involving food, whether it be poisoning, a cultural or societal ritual, a trade meeting over dinner, etc. (NO cannibalism)
  
• 3. My Battery is Low and it is Getting DarkDescription: stories where some type of tech has outlived its time and yet, during the course of the story, it discovers a new purpose or is used in a new, purposeful way. This theme is inspired by the Opportunity rover, which functioned long past its prime...

***Non-PRO-Paying Market, but Eric J. Guignard’s “Pick of the Month”

Fiends in the Furrows II: More Tales of Folk Horror (Published by Nosetouch Press)
https://www.nosetouchpress.com/call
Payment: 4 cents a word
Story Length: 4,000–8,000 words
Deadline: Jan. 7, 2020
Reprints?: No
Response: unknown
Description: Folk Horror from around the world; isolation, paranoia, depravity, loss of individuality, and rustic madness, etc.


Pulp Horror Phobias Vol. 2
https://lycanvalleypress.submittable.com/submit/140934/pulp-horror-phobias-vol-2
Payment: 4 cents a word
Story Length: 4,000–6,000 words
Deadline: Oct. 31, 2019
Reprints?: No
Response: unknown
Description: Horror stories relating to phobias; defined as an irrational and extreme fear to something. Stories must also have a strong pulp/noir element.

Nice write-up this morning in Publishers Weekly

Nice write-up this morning in Publishers Weekly about a new series of books Leslie S. Klinger and I are heading up!!! The Horror Writers Association Presents: HAUNTED LIBRARY OF HORROR CLASSICS

Beginning with The Phantom of the Opera, to be published on Jan. 7, 2020.

To be published by Poisoned Pen Press, an imprint of Sourcebooks.

https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/publisher-news/article/81354-poisoned-pen-launches-horror-classics-line.html

Latest hardback edition in for EXPLORING DARK SHORT FICTION #4: A PRIMER TO JEFFREY FORD

Received the latest hardback edition of EXPLORING DARK SHORT FICTION #4: A PRIMER TO JEFFREY FORD!

This is the fourth volume in this Primer Series. These beautiful laminate-cased deluxe Library-inspired editions are available through Dark Moon Books or Amazon.com!

Collect them all!

Volume #1: Steve Rasnic Tem (July, 2017)

Volume #2: Kaaron Warren (May, 2018)

Volume #3: Nisi Shawl (December, 2018)

Volume #4: Jeffrey Ford (September, 2019)

Volume #5: Han Song (Scheduled for: 2020) (original translations of his Chinese work by Nathaniel Isaacson, PhD)

Volume #6: Ramsey Campbell (Scheduled for: 2020)

EXPLORING DARK SHORT FICTION #4: A PRIMER TO JEFFREY FORD, available at: https://www.amazon.com/Exploring-Dark-Short-Fiction-Jeffrey/dp/1949491110/

Commentary by Michael Arnzen
Artwork by Michelle Prebich

ARCs for TWO different new books I’ve been working on!

Received ARCs in the mail on the same day for TWO different new books I’ve been working on!!!

Exploring DarkShort Fiction #4: A Primer to Jeffrey Ford. Created by Eric J. Guignard, with short fiction by Jeffrey Ford, Academic commentary by Michael Arnzen, PhD, and gorgeous illustrations by Michelle Prebich.

Available now from Dark Moon Books, here: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0998938386

AND!

The Horror Writers Association Presents: Haunted Library of Horror Classics, VOLUME 1: The Phantom of the Opera. Curated by Eric J. Guignard and Leslie S. Klinger, a new release of the classic novel with ancillary material, including introduction by Nancy Holder!

Coming soon via Poisoned Pen Press, an imprint of Sourcebooks.

Release Day for: EXPLORING DARK SHORT FICTION #4: A PRIMER TO JEFFREY FORD

Release day for the latest volume to this series!!

EXPLORING DARK SHORT FICTION #4: A PRIMER TO JEFFREY FORD

Available now, through Dark Moon Books, this is the fourth volume in a series of scholarly primers, introducing and exploring modern masters of literary dark short fiction:

Immense thanks and gratitude to Michael Arnzen for his insightful commentary throughout the book, and Michelle Prebich for her gorgeous interior artwork, and especially to Jeffrey Ford for inspiring and consenting to this project!

Hardback version: https://www.amazon.com/Exploring-Dark-Short-Fiction-Jeffrey/dp/1949491110

Paperback version: https://www.amazon.com/Exploring-Dark-Short-Fiction-Jeffrey/dp/0998938386

Ebook version: https://www.amazon.com/Exploring-Dark-Short-Fiction-Jeffrey-ebook/dp/B07X5MW4PS

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Author of the fantastic and the bizarre, Jeffrey Ford’s work has won awards and acclaim across the globe for his stories of humor, horror, and unconventional beauty. “Powerful and disturbing in the best possible way” (Gawker) and “Intensely engaging” (Publishers Weekly), Ford crosses speculative genres with literary ideals, which has earned him the World Fantasy Award (seven times), the Shirley Jackson Award (four times), the Edgar Allan Poe Award, and France’s vaunted Grand Prix de l’Imaginaire.

Dark Moon Books and editor Eric J. Guignard bring you this introduction to his work, the fourth in a series of primers exploring modern masters of literary dark short fiction. Herein is a chance to discover—or learn more of—the extraordinary voice of Jeffrey Ford, as beautifully illustrated by artist Michelle Prebich.

Included within these pages are:

•        Six short stories, one written exclusively for this book
•        Author interview
•        Complete bibliography
•        Academic commentary by Michael Arnzen, PhD (former humanities chair and professor of the year, Seton Hill University)
•        … and more!

Enter this doorway to the vast and fantastic: Get to know Jeffrey Ford.

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And more here: http://www.darkmoonbooks.com/Primer_4.html