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- Weird Circular #29 February
Weird Circular #29 February
The February Weird Circular
This month's Weird Circular is live with submission ideas, prompts, and more!
Welcome to the Weird Circular
Dear Fellow Weird Writers,
This month's Weird Circular is Edward Gorey themed. Happy birthday to the man who is well known for his illustration but was also a rather clever writer. Gorey is said to have owned 21 fur coats and wear converse sneakers to the ballet. He once said, "I am a person before I am anything else. I never say I am a writer. I never say I am an artist . . . I am a person who does those things." How often do we put "being a person" behind "being a writer"? It's easy to get distracted in the pursuit of the perfect word, the perfect book, the perfect agent, whatever.
But you are a human first, fellow weirdo. So wear those converse shoes to the ballet--before you die and you regret not having experienced all the strange and lovely things that make us human.
Your corporeal host,
Holly
Submission Calls
Upcoming Submission Windows:
Nonbinary Review, deadline 2/7: Theme: Books of Blood by Clive Barker. Flash, Short Fiction, Essay (Up to 5k words), poetry (up to 5 poems, max 3 pages each) Pays .01/word or $10/poem
Houston Poet Laureate, deadline 2/13. 2-year term paying $20,000 to established Houston poets who want to create a community project. Guidelines available on website.
Luna Station Quarterly, deadline 2/15. Work by women-identified authors. Short fiction (500-7000k words). Pays $5/story
2020 Texas Poetry Calendar, deadline 2/20: Poetry (1-3 poems, 35 lines or less). Pays unlisted amount.
Split Lip Magazine, deadline Feb.28-Mar 1: Flash (under 1k words), Fiction (Up to 2.5k words), Memoir (Up to 2k words), Poetry (1 poem).
Alternating Current, deadline Mar. 1: Various genres from flash to hybrids to book projects. Check guidelines for full word counts.
Need more submission ideas? Check the
newest markets,
, Duotrope's
,
, or Literary Mama's
.
YOU SHOULD BE WRITING
"Books, cats, life is good."
--Edward Gorey
Prompt #1: Write your very own dark alphabet. You can use this format in essay/memoir, poem, or short story form. Challenge yourself to choose creative words to represent the letters of the alphabet.
Bonus Round: Bonus points if you can work in a rhyming scheme!
Prompt #2: Borrow the title of an
that you've never read. Write a story, poem, or essay using that title. When you're done, go back and change the title to a completely original one. (And maybe read the original book!)
Bonus Round: Bonus points if your piece is in limerick form.
Prompt #3: Write a shuffled story, essay, or series of poems along the lines of The Helpless Doorknob.
Bonus Round: If you include a mysterious message or code in your shuffled story, I'll give you a cookie because who doesn't love cookies and secrets?
Editing tip of the month: Try doodling in the margins of your manuscript. Even if you're not an artist, getting your brain thinking in a different way can help.
Inspiration from the Ether
♛ Weird Story of the Month: In the City of Martyrs by Bonnie Jo Stufflebeam ♛
➳ Craft Article of the Month: I’m an Award-Winning Short Story Writer and I Don’t Know What I’m Doing Either ➳
♫ This month's writing music is from The Future Astronauts Podcast ♫
News From Your Corporeal Host
My poem, "Dead-Eye Girl" was nominated for a Rhysling Award for best speculative poem.
I have a new essay up at Medium on Forming a Critique Group 101
New essay up at Medium on Ursula K. Le Guin and her most famous short story
I wrote a new post at Medium on Working with a Freelance Editor to Boost Your Writing Career
I have a new poem up at Kaleidotrope - All the Glory of Her Earthly Shell
This month's circular brought to you by men in fur coats.
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