Good Day / Bad Day

By Michael Seese

So first the bad: I received a rejection for the new and improved Nightmares. Bummer.

Now the good...

My first foray into steampunk (as a contributing author) is out. A Clockworks Orchard: Rivets & Rain is available on Amazon. And I am (ahem) the first author listed.

The publisher was nice enough to send me (and all contributors) a coupon for five free downloads from Smashwords. As soon as I figure out how to use them, I'll create a giveaway.

But in the meantime, stop by Amazon and write a glowing review...regardless of whether you've read it. And while you're at it, do the same at Goodreads.

Just kidding.

Sort of.

By the way, have a happy and safe Fourth of July everyone.

"Never Mind The Nonsense..."

A few posts back, after relating my saga of the speed-writing and last-minute-submitting of "Worm Herding" to Pill Hill Press, I stepped back and reflected on some of their other open submission calls.

One that intrigued me was called "CONQUEST THROUGH DETERMINATION," which will be a compilation of stories in the steampunk genre. If you don't know what steampunk is, don't worry...I didn't either at first. In a nutshell, it's a story set in the late 1800s (the era of steam) that includes some sort of futuristic contraption that runs on steam. The grandaddy of them all is the Nautilus, the fantastic submarine of Jules Verne's 20,00 Leagues Under The Sea.

I really wanted to write something. But the deadline was less than two weeks away. I pondered and pondered, but couldn't come up with even a story idea. I considered reaching out to my friend and past co-conspirator Bill with the thought that we could bounce ideas back and forth and come up with complementary tales...sort of, Around The World In 80 Days, told from two different perspectives.

Actually, I did try reaching out to Bill, but we couldn't connect.

And then...inspiration!

I took the "punk" in steampunk literarlly, and crafted a piece about London's first punk string quartet, who were all the rage in 1879.

Since it's just over 3,000 words, it's too long for this space. But I have posted the entire thing on my "In Progress Stuff" page. It's not due until Monday; if you have any feedback -- especially any typos -- please share it in the comments. 

So without any further ado....

Never Mind The Nonsense, Here’s The Sex Truncheons!

More Pill Hill Press

This is somewhat a continuation of yesterday's post. But since that one included a long text passage, I thought it best to make them separate entries.

After I submitted "Worm Herding," I took a look at the Pill Hill Press Open Submissions page. I have to say, I am really stoked about these folks.


CONQUEST THROUGH DETERMINATION. 

The time of Steampunk is upon us. From the moment the world first watched Jules Verne’s Nautilus explore the mysterious leagues of the sea, to this summer’s release of Cowboys and Aliens, Steampunk has become a fascination, neigh, an obsession to those who see the world through slightly different colored goggles. 
 
Pill Hill Press salutes this vision and is now seeking stunners of stories from today’s Steampunks.

For generations of literary inspiration, look to Morlock Night by K.W. Jeter,  The Difference Engine by William Gibson and Bruce Sterling, or Boneshaker by Cherie Priest, among others.

Hollywood has long been a fan, as is evidenced by The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Wild Wild West, 9, and on television, Warehouse 13.

The downside is that the deadline is February 13. On the upside, the minimum word count is 2,000. If I can get a solid idea, I can knock that out in an afternoon.


USE ENOUGH GUN
Sometimes, a mistake can lead to the hunter missing their quarry. Sometimes, an ill wrought plan can get the hunter injured, or even killed. And sometimes, when the hunter grossly underestimates the prey, worse can happen. Much worse.

Make your stories cautionary tales that highlight the dangers of monster hunting. Tell us of mistakes that can occur when planning is replaced by reckless action, or when weapons malfunction, or when information is held back from those that need it.

Give us a story about what happens when a hunter is simply overmatched by a creature that they never really stood a chance against. Or, tell us of the worst cases, the stories that send chills through the hunter’s bones; tell us what happens when they are turned into the very things that they are sworn to destroy.


3,000 - 8,000 words by May 31. Oh yeah, I am so doing that one.


PSYCHO CINEMA!
We're looking for HORROR stories with a strong CINEMA theme... this can be interpreted by the author in any way that connects the short fiction to the movies, as long as there are strong elements of horror. Things like: horror at the movie theater, horror on a movie set, horror featuring a horror film actor (fiction only, please; let's not kill off real actors), horror at a drive-in theater, etc. As long as HORROR and HORROR MOVIES are present, the story will be considered.

Ditto.

In addition to those, Pill Hill Press is accepting flash fiction, in both the regular and frightening flavors. They will consider up to four stories of 500 words or less. Having written a few of 100 or less for literary agent Janet Reid's contests, I sense a submission to this compilation is forthcoming as well.