EDGE Science Fiction and Fantasy Publishing has announced that they are accepting submissions for Professor Challenger Anthology. J.R. Campbell and Charles Prepolec are editing the anthology and submissions close May 31, 2012.

What They’re After

A broad range of new and original stories built around Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Lost World character Professor George Edward Challenger. Stories derived from the aftermath of events in the Lost World are welcome however simply revisiting or rehashing the Lost World without good cause is not. Challenger is a man of science first and foremost, not an explorer. Mash-ups or crossovers with public domain literary characters are welcome.

For inspiration think X-Files, Quartermass, DR. Who, cryptozoology, aliens among us, supernatural occurrences, science gone awry in a Dr. Moreau, Invisible Man, Dr Jekyll vein, nature run amuck, monsters large and small, world threatening cataclysm, Lovecraft mythos, think H.G. Wells, Jules Verne, E.R. Burroghs, John Wyndham, Nigel Kneale, alternate history, new lost places, steampunk, whatever – Be creative.

Mine the potential for all it’s worth! Push it out there, get weird, play, have fun!

Submission Details

• The anthology is part invitation and part open submission. Priority will be given to invited authors but an invitation to submit is not a guarantee of acceptance. A minimum of two slots will be held for open submissions. Acceptance is based entirely on suitability of story and quality of writing.
• The maximum length for stories is 10,000 words, with shorter works preferred.
• Deadline: May 31, 2012 – midnight).
• Do not query before submitting.
• Email submissions to: Charles@bakerstreetdozen.com
• Emails MUST contain the word “submission” in the subject line, or they will be deleted automatically by the server. Please also include the story title in the subject line.
• Submissions MUST come in an attachment: Rich Text Format (.rtf) or Microsoft Word (.doc) are the only acceptable formats.
• Emails MUST contain a cover letter in the body of the email; for security reasons, email attachments with no cover letter will be deleted unread and unanswered.
• Cover letter: include your name, the title of your story, your full contact information (address, phone, email), and a brief bio. Do not describe or summarize the story.
• Reprints (stories having previously appeared in English in any format, print or electronic, including but not limited to any form of web publication) will NOT be considered.
• Submission format: no strange formatting, colour fonts, changing fonts, borders, backgrounds, etc. Leave italics in italics, NOT underlined. Put your full contact information on the first page (name, address, email address, phone). No headers, no footers, no page numbering. DO NOT leave a blank line between paragraphs. Indent paragraphs. ALWAYS put a # to indicate scene breaks (a blank line is NOT enough).
• ALWAYS include your full contact information (name/address/email/phone number) on the first page of the attached submission.
• This is a professional market paying up to 5 cents per word plus a single copy of the book. Full rate to 7,500 words, half rate for balance to 10,000 words.
• Rights: for original fiction, first World English publication, with a two-month exclusive from publication date; for all, non-exclusive anthology rights; all other rights remain with the author.
• Spelling: the editors will consider stories using British, Canadian and American spellings.
• Response time: initial responses (no / rewrite request / hold for further consideration) will be prompt, usually within fifteen days. Please query if you’ve not heard back within 30 days.
• We do not advise that you submit more than one story.
• Simultaneous submissions are not encouraged but are acceptable. Should you receive a “rewrite request” or “hold for further consideration” response, please indicate immediately whether your story is under consideration anywhere else.

Publication date: TBA (trade paperback & ebook).

Email submissions to: Charles@bakerstreetdozen.com

The following market report on the anthology, Unspeakable Horror 2, as well as the follow-up interview are courtesy of Market Scoops by D.L. Snell.

The Market

Anthology: Extreme Planets
Editors: David Conyers, David Kernot and Jeff Harris
Pay Rate: US 3¢/word plus three copies
Response Time: Acceptances after closing date. Rejects during and after submission period.
Reading Period: Until 30 June 2012
Description: A science fiction anthology of short stories set on or about alien worlds that push the limits of what we believe is possible in a planetary environment. To be published by Chaosium Inc.
Complete Guidelines: Writer’s Guidelines

Note: Horror author D.L. Snell conducted the following interview to give writers a better idea of what the editors of this specific market are seeking; however, most editors are open to ideas outside of the preferences discussed here, as long as they fit the basic submission guidelines.

The Scoop

1. What authors do you enjoy, and why does their writing captivate you?
The science fiction authors that I have enjoyed whose ideas and style are relevant to the Extreme Planets anthology include Alastair Reynolds, Iain M. Banks, Greg Egan, Peter F. Hamilton, David Brin, Neal Asher, Ken Macleod, Charles Stross, Stephen Baxter, Robert Reed and Greg Bear. These authors can write tales with a pace, have good characters and most of all leave me with a sense of wonder. When I finish reading their works I feel like the universe is bigger and more wondrous than I had ever imagined, and that the scale of space is just huge. They also get the science and technology right, creating believable futures.

2. What are your favorite genres? Which genres would you like to see incorporated into submissions to this market?
I like thrillers, stories with a sense of will or won’t the protagonist get through to the end of the story in one piece after facing numerous obstacles, dangers and antagonists out to stop them. I also like a sense of adventure. For example, in Extreme Planets, a story might involve a group of planetary explorers working together to determine the best way to alter a planet’s atmosphere to make it breathable for them. This might be an okay story on its own, but if there was a time frame to solve the problem because the only air recycler on their spaceship has failed, and that someone in the team is deliberately sabotaging their efforts, then this adds extra tension, pace and mystery that a story would otherwise lack. We’ve set story lengths up to 10,000 words so authors get the opportunity to play with and develop their ideas.

3. What settings most intrigue you? Ordinary or exotic locales? Real or fantasy? Past, present, or future?
This is an anthology about planets that push the boundaries of what is possible in an alien environment, so my co-editors (David Kernot and Jeff Harris) are looking for stories set on or about these kinds of worlds, what it would be like for humans to observe, explore or live there (or fight wars or plunder its resources for that matter), and how the environment might affect any life that might have evolved there. So if this is an anthology about alien worlds, then we want far future science fiction stories involving spaceships (or equivalent) and the technology that goes with it, or the technology to observe these worlds from afar. Technology similarly needs to be sufficiently developed to create a believable future.

We are also interested in stories about pantropy (re-engineering humans to survive in alien environments) and terraforming.

We are not interested in steampunk or fantasy extreme worlds.

4. Explain the type of pacing you enjoy, e.g. slow building to fast, fast throughout, etc.
I want to see action unfolding as the story is being told, not recounts of what has happened in the past, or detailed essays as to why the characters are where they are or how technology works. Details like that should come out in the narrative. Lastly, I want to see dialogue. Stories without any dialogue at all really don’t work for us. And stories have a pace, don’t get bogged down with too much description when it is not needed and don’t race through scenes that need a little more description to set the scene.

5. What types of characters appeal to you the most? Any examples?
Science fiction is about problem solving, so I want characters that at least try to solve problems facing them. They may not succeed but I want to see them give it a go. Protagonists hold more appeal to readers when they are active, not passive. They don’t wait for things to happen, or for someone else to take the lead, they drive the action themselves. If a spaceship is going to crash into a black hole, then the main character in this particular story is the one working very hard to ensure this rather unpleasant end doesn’t come to be, even though she or he might be faced by a whole host of secondary events or characters, willingly or unwillingly, trying to see her or him fail.

Also, I like characters that care about something, and stand up for what they believe in. I like characters that are also human, in that they have failings as much as they have positive traits. I like to see characters evolve, learn something about themselves and come out the other end of a story as a better person.

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 said earlier I like the thriller style, where there is a sense of action and danger. I like stories where I am compelled to turn the next page because I want to know what happens next. I want to be surprised by twists and turns that I didn’t see coming.

I’m a huge fan of Alastair Reynolds – now he knows how to write a story with pace and energy that grabs my attention. If submitters can write a story as good as his, then they will be in for sure.

7. What is your policy for vulgarity, violence, and sexual content? Any taboos?
Violence towards children and minors will be extremely hard to sell. Vulgarity, violence or sexual content just for the sake of shock value isn’t appropriate. I don’t care if your story has words like ‘fuck’ in it, or there are sex scenes or bloody demises of characters, but we’re not after gory horror tales either. There is one main rule to follow: make vulgarity, violence and sexual content appropriate to the story. If in doubt, less is definitely preferable to more. Implication is better than graphic description.

8. What kind of themes are you seeking most in submissions to this market? In general, what themes interest you?
Simply, we want stories about the most bizarre but plausible (in a science fiction setting) world that can be imagined. Then we want to see what life is like on these worlds and how humans would survive there, or stories about observing or discovering these worlds.

There are so many speculative worlds out there, both in science and science fiction literature. We want stories about super-sized ocean worlds with sea hundreds of kilometers thick and deeper layers of hot ice, carbon worlds with diamond mountains and petrochemical seas, iron worlds with extreme magnetic fields and alien life forms that have evolved with iron in their biochemical makeup, and planets with super gravities and atmospheres so thick it is like walking in liquid. But we’re also keen to see artificial worlds along the same vein as Larry Niven’s Ringworld, the lattice structure in Alastair Reynold’s Pushing Ice, artificial Jupiter sized spaceships like Robert Reed’s Marrow, Shellworlds like in Iain M. Bank’s Matter, Alderson Disks like in Charles Stross’ “Missile Gap,” and anything else anyone out there has the imagination to conjure up.

9. Overall, do you prefer downbeat or upbeat endings?
Don’t care, so long as I’m dragged into the story because I’m enjoying it and I want to see how it ends. Protagonists should fight the good fight. Sometimes they win and sometimes they lose. The main criterion is that they fight for what they believe in.

10. Any last advice for submitters to this market? Any critical do’s or do not’s?
Be a fan and avid reader of science fiction, otherwise you are unlikely to understand the nuances that make the genre what it is, and what we are looking for. Also, read current works out there, because science fiction changes a lot, even in a decade. Some good examples of recommended reading are Asimov’s Interzone and Analog magazines, and anthologies such as The New Space Opera by Gardner Dozois and Jonathan Strahan, and Mindblowing SF by Mike Ashley, but there are plenty of other examples out there, such as the works by authors I recommended earlier. Also, science magazines like Cosmos, New Scientists and Scientific America also have lots of great articles to kick-start the imagination.

A critical point: if your only understanding of science fiction comes from watching science fiction movies and television series, then you are doing yourself a huge disservice, because the ideas in the visual media pale in comparison to the ideas in the literature and are about 50 years behind in their concepts. If this is your only influence, your stories will look amateurish in comparison to those who read in the genre.

Critical do not’s, that’s easy. Ensure that your story does not include any of the following: vampires, elves, fairies, werewolves, unicorns, magic, religious stories where god is a real person, Lovecraftian monsters, medieval settings, immortal godlike humans calling themselves ‘Thor’ or equivalent, superhero stories and stories set in universes with a similar set-up to Star Wars, Star Trek, etc. No horror unless it is a science fiction story with horrific elements, and no fantasy.

Very few science fiction anthologies appear in the open submission market, so we ask authors to make their work count. We want good science fiction stories about worlds that push the limit of what we think is possible.

One last note, we will consider reprints from professional authors, but they are going to be really hard to sell if we get really good original tales to compare them against. Query if you think you have a reprint story for us, we won’t discount them. Query if you have any idea that you think might interest us.

Ellen Datlow has put out a call for submissions for the next The Best Horror of the Year anthology.

Here’s what she had to say:

“I edit the anthology series The Best Horror of the Year (Night Shade Books) and am currently reading for the fifth volume, which will include all material published in 2012.

“I am looking for stories from all branches of horror: from the traditional-supernatural to the borderline, including high-tech sf horror, supernatural stories, psychological horror, dark thrillers, or anything else that might qualify. If in doubt, send it. This is a reprint anthology so I am only reading material published in or about to be published in 2012. Submission deadline for stories is December 1st 2012. Anything sent after this deadline will reach me too late. If a magazine, anthology, or collection you’re in or you publish is coming out in December, you can send me galleys or manuscripts so that I can judge the stories in time. No email submissions. I strongly suggest that authors check with their publishers that they are sending review copies to me as I don’t have time or energy to nag publishers to get me material. I request it once (maybe twice) and that’s it.

“There is a summation of ‘the year in horror’ in the front of the volume. This includes novels, nonfiction, art books, and ‘odds and ends’ – material that doesn’t fit elsewhere but that I feel might interest the horror reader. But I must be aware of this material in order to mention it. The deadline for receipt of material for this section is December 15th, 2012.”

Ellen Datlow
Best Horror of the Year Volume Five
PMB 391
511 Avenue of the Americas
New York, NY 10011-8436

Datlow goes on to note: “I do not want to receive manuscripts from authors of stories from venues that it’s likely I already receive (like Interzone, Black Static, Crimewave, Cemetery Dance, Postscripts, Weird Tales, F&SF and the other digests, etc) or from anthologies and collections, unless I don’t have or can’t get that anthology or collection. Please contact your publisher and ask him/her to send me the magazine or book.

“For online publications, I prefer print submissions, so if your publisher doesn’t send them out please do so yourself. I will also accept printouts of stories produced and first “published” in 2012 as podcasts.

“Please do not send a SASE. If I choose a story you will be informed. If you want to confirm that I‘ve received something, enclose a self-addressed-stamped postcard and I will let you know the date it arrived. For stories that appear on the web, please send me (or have the publisher send me) print-outs of your story.

Thanks.”

Ellen Datlow, Editor

Coming soon from Chaosium, edited by Brian M. Sammons and Glynn Owen Barrass, it’s Steampunk Cthulhu!

The age of steam meets the age of Cthulhu, in a past where technology unbound warps Victorian Britain and the world at large into a dark Steampunk reality.

In Steampunk Cthulhu (yes that’s only a working title) they are looking for stories set in a world where futuristic visions of technology, advanced machines undreamt of in the Victorian era, are powered by steam, or sometimes the inscrutable minds of dark, god-like beings.

Undreamt of yes, and maybe a nightmare here, think of what would happen if HG Wells had sent his Time Machine to a past when the Elder Things ruled the globe, or Jules Verne’s Captain Nemo was an evil acolyte of Cthulhu? Of course they don’t want you to limit yourselves to fictional characters of the genre, but you can use these historical personages and your own protagonists and cultists of Cthulhu.

Space travel, journeys to the center of the earth and 20,000 leagues under R’lyeh, they want to see Victorian globetrotting adventurers and wild technologies in the Wild West. Think zeppelins crossed with tomes of forbidden knowledge, steam powered automatons battling indescribable beasts from beyond time and space, fanciful high-tech gadgets and blood drenched arcane artifacts, the wonders of tomorrow meeting the horror of inescapable doom, and if you can put your own unique spin on both the steampunk setting and the Cthulhu Mythos, so much the better.

Authors should be well versed in both the stempunk setting and Lovecraftian horror as a good blending of both is what they’re after. If you’re looking for info on steampunk, check the Wiki for a brief overview and a small selection of authors and books to get you started. If you need to bone up on your Cthulhu Mythos you can read all of H.P. Lovecraft’s stories online for free here: H.P. Lovecraft, or just look around your local bookstore – if you’re still luckily enough to have a local bookstore – as the Cthulhu Mythos has never been hotter.

This book will be published by Chaosium. Authors will receive .03 a word and 3 complementary contributor copies, with the option to purchase more at a 50% discount.

The deadline for submissions is July 31. Please send submissions as .rtf files to both editors below. If you have any questions, feel free to ask:

• Brian M. Sammons
• Glynn Owen Barrass

The following market report on the anthology, Dark Faith 2, as well as the follow-up interview are courtesy of Market Scoops by D.L. Snell.

The Market

Anthology: Dark Faith 2
Editors: Maurice Broaddus and Jerry Gordon
Pay Rate: 5 cents/word
Response Time: 90 days after deadline
Reading Period: January 1st – January 31st
Description: Everyone believes in something and we want you to put those beliefs to the test. We’re looking for the story only you could write, something deeply personal and at the same time universal. We’re looking for smart, literate stories that don’t proselytize or stereotype. Stories that make you think, that comment on the human condition and the social order. Stories that are rich in their use of language.
Complete Guidelines: Writer’s Guidelines

Note: Horror author D.L. Snell conducted the following interview to give writers a better idea of what the editors of this specific market are seeking; however, most editors are open to ideas outside of the preferences discussed here, as long as they fit the basic submission guidelines.

The Scoop

1. What authors do you enjoy, and why does their writing captivate you?
Gary Braunbeck, Cat Valente, Toni Morrison, George Pelecanos, Octavia Butler, Nick Mamatas, Amy Hempel, Ray Bradbury, Michael Chabon, Tom Piccirilli. What they have in common is the poetry of their language use, their deft characterizations, their distinct voice, and the originality of their ideas.

2. What are your favorite genres? Which genres would you like to see incorporated into submissions to this market?
Maurice is a crime fiction junkie. Jerry leans more toward literary science fiction, fantasy, and horror. For the sake of this market, genre with a dark and speculative/fantastic edge is what we’re looking for.

3. What settings most intrigue you? Ordinary or exotic locales? Real or fantasy? Past, present, or future?
Interesting ones.

4. Explain the type of pacing you enjoy, e.g. slow building to fast, fast throughout, etc.
We want pacing that’s true to the story you’re telling. That said, the story should grab us early and let us know, as readers and editors, that we’re in good hands.

5. What types of characters appeal to you the most? Any examples?
Fully developed characters with a distinct voice.

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?
This is not an easy thing to describe because while the overall tone of stories is dark, that doesn’t rule out a humorous or uplifting tale. One of the best ways to get a feel for the type of stories we like is to pick up a copy of the first Dark Faith.

7. What is your policy for vulgarity, violence, and sexual content? Any taboos?
As long as it is germane to the story, we’re good with it. Gratuitous anything is bad.

8. What kind of themes are you seeking most in submissions to this market?
In general, what themes interest you?Personal explorations of faith particularly interest us because they feel more genuine.

9. Overall, do you prefer downbeat or upbeat endings?
We prefer good endings.

10. Any last advice for submitters to this market? Any critical do’s or do not’s?
Don’t annoy us. Do buy us drinks at conventions. While Maurice loves talking animal stories, Jerry is quick to veto them. DO READ THE GUIDELINES.

Lynn M. Thomas is the new editor-in-chief of Apex Magazine. In addition, Apex is going back to an email system, moving away from the HeyPublisher form. They will be finishing up the submissions already sent in through 12/31/2011, so for those who have already submitted, things will proceed as normal, but new submissions should be sent to: apex.submission@gmail.com. The maximum word-limit is dropping to 5000, and they are no longer accepting unsolicited poetry.

The complete guidelines are available here: Apex Magazine Guidelines

JournalStone is holding its 2nd annual HORROR publishing contest. Their first one turned out so well they decided to do it again, and again, and again. If you are not familiar with last year’s winner please check out That Which Should Not Be by Brett J. Talley. That could be you next year.

If you are interested please submit your 75,000 words or more manuscript/novel to joel@journalstone.com on or before April 1, 2012, and you will be entered. The winner will receive a $2,000 advance against future royalties and have his/her novel published by JournalStone. Grammar counts, have it edited before you submit your entry.

Scared about not winning? Second prize gets a $500 advance and a published novel. Yes, you have to sign a contract first. Third place gets a $200 advance and for the last time, also gets a published novel. Not one of the top three? No worries, you might still be good enough to get your novel published, you will just have to earn your money on the royalties. We only have so much to give out for free.

Worried about costs? JournalStone is a small press publishing company, not a vanity press. We pay all the costs associate with publishing your novel. All an author is required to do is submit a freakishly scary book and rock our world. There are no entry fees.

Genre: Horror only. Nothing else counts in this contest. If you have any questions on content, please send an e-mail to christophercpayne@journalstone.com or joel@journalstone.com.

Word Count: 75,000 words or more. No exceptions.

Submission Deadline: All submissions must be received no later than 11 p.m. Pacific time April 1, 2012. JournalStone highly recommends you submit your work early.

Editing: Please have your work edited prior to submission. Can’t afford editing? If your work is absolutely awesome, we still might read it. It might even win, but you will be one step behind the others from the start. So you are better off just getting it edited beforehand.

To submit your work, please send in a Microsoft Word document in Times New Roman 11-point font, single line spacing to joel@journalstone.com. In the subject line you must put “JournalStone’s $2,000 Advance in 2012.” You must include your name, address and e-mall address with the submission. Take credit for your work, please don’t force us to investigate who you are or what entry goes with some crytpic e-mail address.

The tentative publication date resides in the year 2012 for winning novels.

If you have been curious to find out what JournalStone Publications is all about, but didn’t know how to go about it, now is your opportunity.

Minimum of 20 entries required to validate contest. If last year’s contest is used as a barometer this is not even close to an issue.

Judges will be added as we finalize:

1. Christopher C. Payne – President of JournalStone. My vote should count more than the others, but it probably won’t.

2. Joel Blaine Kirkpatrick – is an author/blogger from Southwest Colorado. He has self-published four novels, and is in awe of the Indie talents he began to discover last year. Joel also claims to be influenced by classical authors from Edward Lear to Bulwer Lytton.

3. Colleen Wanglund – is a self-described gorehound, bookwhore and metalhead. She lives in NYC with her two grown children, her boyfriend and her dog Manning. Colleen’s writing can be found in The Horror Fiction Review, Monster Librarian, Cinema Knife Fight, Mondo Film and Video Guide and More Horror.

4. Brett J. Talley – Winner of JournalStone’s $2,000 in 2011 contest and author of “That Which Should Not Be”. A native of the South, Brett Talley received a philosophy and history degree from the University of Alabama before moving to witch-haunted Massachusetts to attend Harvard Law School.

Judging Criteria

Plot, Character Development, Setting, Rhythm, Grammar, Structure, Uniqueness, Style, Marketability, Judge’s Objective

Schedule

• The top 10 winners will be announced on June 1, 2012.
• The top three finalists will be announced on June 15, 2012.
• The overall winner will be announced on June 30, 2012.
• Dates are approximate and subject to change.