Press Release:
Albedo One, Ireland’s magazine of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror, is proud to announce the Sixth International Aeon Award Short Fiction Contest, for 2011. Grand prize is 1000 euro and publication in Albedo One. Second and third place prizes are 200 and 100 euro, respectively, alongside publication in Albedo One.
This year we have an added bonus prize for the winning story courtesy of the respected Authorlink.com. The winning story will have the option of free one-year publication in the Storywire section, where authors earn royalties from online readers of their work. Authorlink.com is a news, information and marketing site for editors, agents, writers, and readers with more than 50,000 unique visitors a month and a social network of 6,000+ friends.
The contest is open to stories of up to 10,000 words in any speculative genre, including science fiction, fantasy, horror, or anything in between or unclassifiable. The judges have a very broad definition of what constitutes a genre story. The contest is also open to writers of all nationalities, and the three winning stories will be decided upon by our Grand Judges (whom we will announce shortly). Last year’s Grand Judges were renowned speculative fiction author Ian Watson, Hugo award winning SF author Anne McCaffrey, multiple award winning SF author Mike Resnick and respected Irish horror and crime author, Sam Millar.
The contest is open from 1st of January 2011 until November 30th 2011, and runs in four rounds, at the end of which the interim judges (comprising the editorial team of Albedo One) will announce on the Albedo One website (www.albedo1.com) a shortlist of those entries they feel worthy of further consideration. The 1st round ends March 31st, the second round, June 30th, the third round September 30th and the final round November 30th.
The aim of the contest is to promote new writers and writing in the speculative fiction genres, and previous contests have certainly shown us that speculative fiction at the shorter lengths is alive and well, despite its many detractors and those who would pronounce the decline of SF, horror, fantasy etc. or the death of the short story.
Previous winners have been announced at the World Science Fiction Convention and European SF Convention, they have been reprinted or received Honourable Mentions in the prestigious Year’s Best Science Fiction and Year’s Best Fantasy and Horror volumes, and have been translated into other European languages and published in their national magazines (e.g. Galaxies SF, in France, and Phase X in Germany). So entering the Aeon Award will certainly get some attention for the respective authors and their work, never mind the prize money and publication in Albedo One.
A modest entry fee of 7 euro applies to all entries, and can be paid easily and securely via PayPal at the Albedo One website. Entries may be submitted to fraslaw@yahoo.co.uk Full details may be found at the following link: http://www.albedo1.com/aeon_award.html
For more scoops, go to marketscoops.blogspot.com.
D.L. Snell writes with Permuted Press. He edited Dr. Kim Paffenroth twice, John Dies at the End once, and provided a constructive critique to Joe McKinney on his next major novel after Dead City. You can shoot D.L. Snell in the head at www.exit66.net.
To reprint this article, please contact D.L. Snell.
Showing posts with label contest. Show all posts
Showing posts with label contest. Show all posts
Saturday, February 12, 2011
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Snell's September Update
BLOOD LITE: OVERBITE
My short story "Dick and Larry" will appear in the second Blood Lite anthology, Overbite, September 28. The anthology, put out by the Horror Writers Association and published by Pocket Books, is a collection of humorous horror stories from authors such as Heather Graham, Kelley Armstrong, and Jeff Strand. The cover for the anthology, and the Amazon pre-order page, recently went live. Check it out.
My short story "Dick and Larry" will appear in the second Blood Lite anthology, Overbite, September 28. The anthology, put out by the Horror Writers Association and published by Pocket Books, is a collection of humorous horror stories from authors such as Heather Graham, Kelley Armstrong, and Jeff Strand. The cover for the anthology, and the Amazon pre-order page, recently went live. Check it out.
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Often Inspired Magazine
THE MARKET
THE SCOOP
1) What authors do you enjoy, and why does their writing captivate you?
John Steinbeck, Dashiell Hammett, Raymond Chandler, Robert Heinlein, Arthur C. Clarke, Rex Stout— they have in common just enough description to get the job done, precise dialogue, good solid plots, and colorful characters that pull you right into a story.
2) What are your favorite genres? Which genres would you like to see incorporated into submissions to this market?
I enjoy: Mystery, Horror, Fantasy, Science Fiction—unsurprisingly these are the submissions we accept.
3) What settings most intrigue you? Ordinary or exotic locales? Real or fantasy? Past, present, or future?
The mundane can be made fascinating by skillful writing, the exotic can be painted in your mind by a colorful author, real or fantastic, past present or future. If you bring me into the scene, that's what I love.
4) Explain the type of pacing you enjoy, e.g. slow building to fast, fast throughout, etc.
Pacing should be fit to the genre—mysteries build a pattern of clues, and then have a faster pace towards the end; fantasy has a consistent pace where cycle leads to cycle of exposition; horror just starts and then builds, builds, builds until you shriek. But any story can be subtle and slow in its pace throughout if you have a compelling tale.
5) What types of characters appeal to you the most? Any examples?
Earthy. Direct. Poignant. Lennie and George from Of Mice and Men by Steinbeck. The characters in The Maltese Falcon by Hammett.
6) Is there a specific tone you'd like to set in your publication? What kind of voices grab you and keep you enthralled? Any examples?
I want our magazine (and our forum) to be friendly and accessible to readers and member authors. Fun, creative, fascinating. People who are creative and love to share, but have that competitive fire. We run a contest/meet centered around National Novel Writing Month (nanowrimo.org) and you see the fire in our writers come out in November.
7) What is your policy for vulgarity, violence, and sexual content? Any taboos?
We like to keep to a standard of PG-13 for most of our work. Some curse words are inevitable in describing conflict, anger, or outright terror. We don't accept stories that overuse profanity and vulgarity. Please don't submit toilet humor or needlessly gruesome work. Think mature themes, but not obscenity.
8) What kind of themes are you seeking most in submissions to this market? In general, what themes interest you?
Our scope is wide. Think big. We avoid fanfic, slash, or writing heavily derivative of someone else's work (except when we run parody).
9) Overall, do you prefer downbeat or upbeat endings?
Both are good. Lift or fall, but take me somewhere.
10) Any last advice for submitters to this market? Any critical dos or don’ts?
Polish your work. Correct your spelling and grammar. Format your paragraphs so we don't confront a wall of text. Keep politics, religion, and topical subjects out. Make your work timeless. Don't disappoint the reader and we'll get along just fine.
For more scoops, go to marketscoops.blogspot.com.
D.L. Snell writes with Permuted Press. He edited Dr. Kim Paffenroth twice, John Dies at the End once, and provided a constructive critique to Joe McKinney on his next major novel after Dead City. You can shoot D.L. Snell in the head at www.exit66.net.
To reprint this article, please contact D.L. Snell.
- Zine: Often Inspired Magazine
- Editor(s): William V. Burns
- Pay Rate: Individual 2000-5000 word short stories from $25 to $100
- Response Time: One to two weeks after contest end or submission
- Reading Period: One week
- Description: Often Inspired is a magazine that celebrates the bond between writer and reader. We exist to encourage writers to improve their craft by showing examples, having fun, and constructively giving advice and counsel.
- Submission Guidelines: Editorial Guidelines | Contest Rules
THE SCOOP
1) What authors do you enjoy, and why does their writing captivate you?
John Steinbeck, Dashiell Hammett, Raymond Chandler, Robert Heinlein, Arthur C. Clarke, Rex Stout— they have in common just enough description to get the job done, precise dialogue, good solid plots, and colorful characters that pull you right into a story.
2) What are your favorite genres? Which genres would you like to see incorporated into submissions to this market?
I enjoy: Mystery, Horror, Fantasy, Science Fiction—unsurprisingly these are the submissions we accept.
3) What settings most intrigue you? Ordinary or exotic locales? Real or fantasy? Past, present, or future?
The mundane can be made fascinating by skillful writing, the exotic can be painted in your mind by a colorful author, real or fantastic, past present or future. If you bring me into the scene, that's what I love.
4) Explain the type of pacing you enjoy, e.g. slow building to fast, fast throughout, etc.
Pacing should be fit to the genre—mysteries build a pattern of clues, and then have a faster pace towards the end; fantasy has a consistent pace where cycle leads to cycle of exposition; horror just starts and then builds, builds, builds until you shriek. But any story can be subtle and slow in its pace throughout if you have a compelling tale.
5) What types of characters appeal to you the most? Any examples?
Earthy. Direct. Poignant. Lennie and George from Of Mice and Men by Steinbeck. The characters in The Maltese Falcon by Hammett.
6) Is there a specific tone you'd like to set in your publication? What kind of voices grab you and keep you enthralled? Any examples?
I want our magazine (and our forum) to be friendly and accessible to readers and member authors. Fun, creative, fascinating. People who are creative and love to share, but have that competitive fire. We run a contest/meet centered around National Novel Writing Month (nanowrimo.org) and you see the fire in our writers come out in November.
7) What is your policy for vulgarity, violence, and sexual content? Any taboos?
We like to keep to a standard of PG-13 for most of our work. Some curse words are inevitable in describing conflict, anger, or outright terror. We don't accept stories that overuse profanity and vulgarity. Please don't submit toilet humor or needlessly gruesome work. Think mature themes, but not obscenity.
8) What kind of themes are you seeking most in submissions to this market? In general, what themes interest you?
Our scope is wide. Think big. We avoid fanfic, slash, or writing heavily derivative of someone else's work (except when we run parody).
9) Overall, do you prefer downbeat or upbeat endings?
Both are good. Lift or fall, but take me somewhere.
10) Any last advice for submitters to this market? Any critical dos or don’ts?
Polish your work. Correct your spelling and grammar. Format your paragraphs so we don't confront a wall of text. Keep politics, religion, and topical subjects out. Make your work timeless. Don't disappoint the reader and we'll get along just fine.
For more scoops, go to marketscoops.blogspot.com.
D.L. Snell writes with Permuted Press. He edited Dr. Kim Paffenroth twice, John Dies at the End once, and provided a constructive critique to Joe McKinney on his next major novel after Dead City. You can shoot D.L. Snell in the head at www.exit66.net.
To reprint this article, please contact D.L. Snell.
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