Friday, May 31, 2019

My List of Thanks, in Winning the 2018 Bram Stoker Award, Category of Fiction Collection


It’s been nearly three weeks since I won the Bram Stoker Award® for: THAT WHICH GROWS WILD: 16 TALES OF DARK FICTION in the category of “Superior Achievement in a Fiction Collection”, and I’m still coasting on an adrenaline rush! 

I realize, also, that already too much time has gone by, that I haven’t yet written this following, so apologies for my tardiness… I had a number of people to thank during the acceptance speech, and although I got through most of them, there were some I didn’t name, so I wanted to list everyone properly here in writing. 

Thank you, first and foremost, to my acquiring editor Norman Prentiss who bought this collection, helped mold it into something publishable, and without whom this journey never would have occurred. 

Thank you to Cemetery Dance for publishing this! Specific thanks to Richard Chizmar and Brian James Freeman who tirelessly run CD and who made this all possible (and of which I’ve been a fan for many, many years). 

Thank you to cover artist Lynne Hansen who graced this book with a marvel of visual beauty and intrigue. 

For writing and career guidance, thank you to Lisa Morton who, besides running Horror Writers Association for the past five years, has also been of great friendship, advice, and support. 

Ditto, thank you to Weston Ochse, who was my “official” mentor when I first joined HWA, and helped me get started, and since then has continued to be a friend and inspiration. 

(Note: For those interested in this, HWA continues to run a very successful mentor program for members. See: http://horror.org/hwa-mentors/) 

And thanks of course to the Horror Writers Association itself, who have been an immense resource of technical information, guidance, and insight, especially my local friends in the Los Angeles chapter, who, monthly, vitalize me with awe and encouragement, especially co-chairs Lisa (again) and John Palisano. 

And immense gratitude to the following editors/ publishers who first printed each of the stories included within my collection. 

“A Case Study in Natural Selection and How It Applies to Love” © 2015 by Eric J. Guignard. First published in Black Static #47, July: TTA Press. Acquired by Andy Cox.
“Last Days of the Gunslinger, John Amos” © 2014 by Eric J. Guignard. First published in buzzymag.com, July: Buzzy Magazine. Acquired by Joy Poger (edited by Laura Anne Gilman).
“Momma” © 2015 by Eric J. Guignard. First published in Nightscript I, edited by C.M. Muller: Chthonic Matter.
“Footprints Fading in the Desert” © 2013 by Eric J. Guignard. First published in +Horror Library+ Vol 5, edited by R.J. Cavender: Cutting Block Press (Farolight Publishing).
“The House of the Rising Sun, Forever” © 2016 by Eric J. Guignard. First published in Out of Tune II, edited by Jonathan Maberry: JournalStone Publishing.
“The Inveterate Establishment of Daddano & Co.” © 2016 by Eric J. Guignard. First published in Nightscript II, edited by C.M. Muller: Chthonic Matter.
“Last Night . . .” © 2015 by Eric J. Guignard. First published in Mark of the Beast: A Collection of Werewolf Stories, edited by Scott David Aniolowski: Chaosium, Inc.
“Those Who Watch From On High” © 2016 by Eric J. Guignard. First published in Chiral Mad 3, edited by Michael Bailey: Dark Regions Press / Written Backwards
“Vancouver Fog” © 2011 by Eric J. Guignard. First published in 2012 Daily Frights, edited by Jessy Marie Roberts: Pill Hill Press.
“A Curse and a Kiss” © 2012 by Eric J. Guignard. First published in Evil Jester Digest Volume Two, edited by Peter Giglio: Evil Jester Press.
“Whispers of the Earth” © 2014 by Eric J. Guignard. First published in Night Terrors III Anthology, edited by Marc Ciccarone, Theresa Dillon, and G. Winston Hyatt: Blood Bound Books.
“A Serving of Nomu Sashimi” © 2013 by Eric J. Guignard. First published in Eulogies II: Tales from the Cellar, edited by Christopher Jones, Nanci Kalanta, and Tony Tremblay: Horror World.
“Certain Sights of an Afflicted Woman” © 2016 by Eric J. Guignard. First published in Cemetery Riots, edited by T. C. Bennett and Tracy L. Carbone: Awol From Elysium Press.
“A Journey of Great Waves” © 2017 by Eric J. Guignard. First published in The Beauty of Death 2—Death by Water, edited by Alessandro Manzetti and Jodi RenĂ©e Lester: Independent Legions Publishing.
“A Quaint Ol’ Bigfoot Tale” © 2012 by Eric J. Guignard. First published in Bigfoot Terror Tales Vol. 1, edited by Eric S. Brown and A. P. Fuchs: Coscom Entertainment.
“Dreams of a Little Suicide” © 2014 by Eric J. Guignard. First published in Hell Comes to Hollywood II: Twenty-Two More Tales of Tinseltown Terror, edited by Eric Miller: Big Time Books. 

Lastly, greatest thanks go to my lovely wife and wonderful children, who support me and keep me invigorated and inspired on a daily basis! 

### 

For official video of the ceremony, beginning with my category announcement, as presented by Kaaron Warren and Josh Malerman, and through my acceptance speech, cut to marks: 4:44.35 through 4:49.00 of the Banquet Awards Stream uploaded by HWA onto YouTube, here: https://youtu.be/ZlX7HwmXKiU?t=17075 

Immense congratulations and well-deserved accolades also to all other nominees and award recipients of the 2018 Bram Stoker Awards, particularly those in my category who have published amazing works. Here is the listing of the nominees on the ballot (of whom I would have said I was the least): 

Superior Achievement in a Fiction Collection
Gemma Files – Spectral Evidence (Trepidatio Publishing)
Eric J. Guignard – That Which Grows Wild (Cemetery Dance Publications)
Lucy A. Snyder – Garden of Eldritch Delights (Raw Dog Screaming Press)
Tim Waggoner – Dark and Distant Voices: A Story Collection (Nightscape Press)


And THANK YOU to all readers and reviewers who supported this book and others—without you, writing would be like shouting into a void!



Tuesday, May 21, 2019

Cover Reveal for DOORWAYS TO THE DEADEYE


Cover Reveal!! This, my first full length novel, has been graced with a layer of grandeur by this gorgeous wraparound cover design. Thanks so much, again, to JournalStone, and to artist extraordinaire Mikio Murakami!

Coming, July 26, 2019: DOORWAYS TO THE DEADEYE

“A Depression-era hobo rides the rails and learns the underlying Hobo Code is a mystical language that leads into the world of memories, where whoever is remembered strongest—whether by trickery, violence, or daring—can change history and alter the lives of the living.”


Monday, May 13, 2019

I won the 2018 Bram Stoker Award for Superior Achievement in a Fiction Collection!!!!

Although it’s been a day-and-a-half since the announcement, I’m still running on an adrenaline high as the realization continues to settle in that on Saturday night I was awarded something like the culmination of a dream: The Bram Stoker Award for my collection, THAT WHICH GROWS WILD: 16 Tales of Dark Fiction!!!

Awestruck, humbled, and honored to receive this esteemed recognition, something I will cherish the remainder of my life.

I’m going to write more on this later, but I at least wanted to holler the news from this (virtual) mountaintop this morning, after the long travel home and from celebrating/ prioritizing Mother’s Day activities.

Thank you so much to my acquiring editor Norman Prentiss and to my publisher Cemetery Dance. I have a miles-long list of other thanks I’m going to write up and share soon, but in lump sum, THANK YOU also to all my supporters, reviewers of this book, and to the family that is The Horror Writers Association!!

And immense congratulations also to all other nominees and award recipients of the 2018 Bram Stoker Awards!!

Full list here: http://horror.org/2018-bram-stoker-award-winners-nominees/


Tuesday, May 7, 2019

May, 2019 Dark Fiction Short Story Markets

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


Helios Quarterly Magazine
https://heliosquarterly.com/submissions
Payment: 6 cents a word
Story Length: up to 7,500 words
Deadline: June 1–30, 2019
Reprints?: No
Response: 2–3 weeks
Description: Quality horror, science fiction, and fantasy.


El Chapo Review
https://elchaporeview.wordpress.com/submissionsr
Payment: $100 flat rate
Story Length: up to 1,000 words
Deadline: June 1, 2019
Reprints?: No
Response: unknown
Description: Anything. Any genre for fiction: sci-fi, fantasy, crime, neo-noir, literary, historical, absurdist, surrealist, magic realism, romance, horror, mystery, bizarro, gonzo, fairy tale, et cetera. It makes no difference. We love great writing above all else.


DreamForge Magazine
https://dreamforgemagazine.com/call-for-submissions
Payment: 6 cents a word (slightly less for reprints or online-only option)
Story Length: up to 12,000 words (up to 5,000 preferred)
Deadline: June 30, 2019
Reprints?: Yes
Response: 6–9 weeks
Description: Positive (and “clean”) science and fantasy fiction.


Nature Futures
http://blogs.nature.com/futureconditional/2015/04/19/how-to-write-for-nature-futures
Payment: $130
Story Length: 850 and 950 words
Deadline: ongoing
Reprints?: No
Response: 1 month
Description: Original science fiction (generally near-future, hard SF).


Crossed Genres
http://crossedgenres.com/submissions/recognize-fascism-submissions
Payment: 8 cents a word
Story Length: 250–5,000 words
Deadline: June 3, 2019
Reprints?: No
Response: unknown
Description: Stories of the moment when people see the fascism in front of them for what it is, accept it as real, and make the choice to fight it. Who are the canaries in the coal mine? When can the long-hidden voice no longer be ignored?


illicit (anthology by Bronzeville Books)
http://www.bronzevillebooks.com/writers/anthology-submissions
Payment: 5 cents a word
Story Length: up to 3,500 words
Deadline: June 30, 2019
Reprints?: No
Response: T
Description: Erotic crime stories: people, sex, and bodies not usually seen in mainstream ideas of sex and sexy, and tight, fun crime plots.



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

Chew on This! Anthology (Blood Bound Books)
https://www.bloodgutsandstory.com/chew-on-this
Payment: 3 cents a word
Story Length:
3,000–7,000 words
Deadline: June 30, 2019
Reprints?: No
Response: None listed; estimate 2-3 months
Description: Horror regarding food-related stories! (every subgenre of horror from quiet and unsettling physiological tales to extreme and bizarre). Well written, imaginative, frightening, and unique perspectives that make readers afraid to visit restaurants, try cuisine in a foreign lands, attempt new cooking recipes, etc.



Negative Space: An Anthology of Survival Horror (*New Publisher)
https://www.darkpeninsulapress.com/negative-space.html
Payment: $25 flat “token” pay
Story Length: 3,000–8,000 words
Deadline: August 1, 2019
Reprints?: No
Response: 2-4 months after submissions close
Description: Survival horror (particularly by video game definition), in which the protagonist(s) must face dire situations in locations far off the beaten path by using the environment, or items found in the environment, to survive.