Weird Circular #51 (January)

The January Weird Circular

January 07, 2022

This month's Weird Circular is live with submission ideas, prompts, and more!

Welcome to the Weird Circular

Dear Weirdos,

It's a new year and I know it's tempting to make writing resolutions, but maybe this year...you don't have to? I want to think about the prospect of focusing less on process and more on ideas. You've probably had the experience of feeling fired up when you get a new idea you want to write about. Goals, deadlines, and achievements are all a part of writing. But what if we could learn to connect deeper with our creative process? What if we could build an awareness about where our inspiration comes from?

It sounds nebulous, but that's what I'm aiming for this year. A deeper creative understanding of who I am as a writer, with less worry about whether I'm hitting the right goals or milestones. After all, a milestone that's unreached is just dead weight. Don't let it weigh you down. 

This isn't to say making plans isn't a good idea and that you won't be able to reach your goals. It's just to say, maybe they aren't the end of the world. We're in a strange time in the world. Embrace the liminality of it all. 

Your corporeal host,

Holly 

Submission Calls

Upcoming Submission Windows:

January

  • Flame Tree Gothic Fantasy Anthology Series, Deadline 1/9: Theme: Compelling Science Fiction / Christmas Gothic: Short stories 2k-4k words. Pays .08/word.

  • Fantastic Other, deadline 1/10. Theme: Subversion. Short stories (up to 3.5k words), poetry (50 lines or less, under 3 pages). Pays $5.

  • Typehouse Magazine: Deadline 1/2-31 (free for all contributors), 2/1-28: In honor of Black History Month, no-fee submissions are open for all Black creators, not limited to those in the US. Short stories (500-5k) up to 3 per author, poetry (up to 6 poems), Pays $25.

  • Apparition Lit, deadline 1/14: Theme: Ekphrastic flash fiction (under 1k). Monthly from the 1st to 14th. Pays $30. 

February 

  • Nonbinary Review, deadline 2/1: Theme: Shared Worlds. Flash (up to 1k, 5 pieces), Short stories (up to 3k words), poetry (up to 3 pages). Pays .01/word / $10/poems. 

  • Qwerty, deadline 2/15: Theme: Folklore & Fairytales. Short Stories/CNF (up to 5k), poetry (up to 6 pages) Pays $10 CDN. 

  • Apparition Lit, deadline February 15-28, Theme: Wanderlust. Short stories (1k-5k). Poetry (up to 5 poems). Pays $.05/word or $50 for poems.

  • Cast of Wonders, deadline 2/28, Theme: Halloween. Short stories (up to 6k words), Flash Fiction (under 1k). Pays pro rates.

Need more submission ideas? Check the

newest markets, Duotrope's

,

, SFPA's

, Moksha's

or Literary Mama's

.

My book of bone poems came out last year and I would love you to the depths of my bones if you considered reviewing it on Amazon! :) 

YOU SHOULD BE WRITING

Exercise

: It's a new year. What's one word you wish you could irradicate from your writing? Write it on a piece of paper and burn it. 

Bonus Round

: Write a piece that describes that one word, but doesn't use it anywhere in the piece. Try to evoke it without saying it. 

Exercise: Write a piece inspired by the above image. 

Bonus Round:

If you get stuck, use the following words in your piece: bombic, kirsch, japanophilia, cimelia, soft, basin, clash, restless, cherry

Exercise: Answer one of these questions, as your character or yourself (or in poem form): 

  • What sound will instantly melt your heart?

  • What's the strangest situation you ever found yourself in?

  • What's your favorite ritual?

Bonus Round:

 What's stopping you from finishing this piece?

Editing tip of the month: What's the one thing your piece of writing is missing? What does it have too much of?

Inspiration from the Ether

♛ Weird Book of the Month: Witch, Pilgrim, Heretic by K.D. Hume  ♛

News From Your Corporeal Host

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