Hi Friends:
Because the function of writer’s block is to trigger belief in everything you’ve imagined, this issue includes:
A sip…
For the muse, it isn’t the spooky that makes the witching season… it is the Black Magic.
A shout out…
Regardless of your position on whether Black Speculative Fiction is a subset of one or more genres, note that traditional publishers recently credit Tananarive Due with defining what is sought in similar voices.
An author, educator, film historian, and producer whose accolades include recipient of the American Book, British Fantasy, Carl Brandon Kindred, Ember, Ignyte, and an NAACP Image, she is the creator of a wildly popular University course that explores racism and survival through the lens of Black horror film and fiction who also happens to have received two Bram Stoker nominations.
A former resident of Tallahassee, the first Florida city to host a reading of the Emancipation Proclamation, she lauds having been parented by a civil rights activist and a civil rights attorney with her reverence for Black history and ability to interpret themes and experiences of trauma inflicted on those struggling with factual racial challenges.
An alumnus of Northwestern University and the University of Leeds (England), and a former Cosby Chair in the Humanities at Spelman College, she is featured in the 2019 documentary Horror Noire: A History of Black Horror and collaborates on screenplays with her author husband, Steven Barnes.
Active for more than twenty years, she has penned countless short stories and more than a dozen novels including My Soul to Keep, which borrows its title from a beloved childhood prayer for guidance and protection.
A sentence…
Prompts gleaned from My Soul to Keep:
They don’t stop to say I can’t or Should I, they just do.”
“Love what you have while you have it, before it’s gone. Isn’t that what you were always trying to tell me?”
“How ironic it was that mortals, who had the least time of all, were willing to waste so much of it away from the people they love.”
“Religion was a crutch, a way people rationalized away their pain in life, like the slaves yearning for a better existence. A denial. When there is no fear of death, David had told her once, there is no need for religion.”
“My mother used to say to me that she collected sorrows and put them in her pocket. Walking around with them that way, by and by, you just learn to carry them all a bit better, to stand up a bit straighter. That’s all life is, on this earth anyway.”
A few useful tips…
To haunt and horrify readers:
Write what scares you.
Write as if you know readers expect to be very afraid.
Make the haunting or horror occur consistently throughout.
Ensure that character choices are logical and align with the plot.
Trust the process. And try to enjoy it. Your readers can tell when you're having fun.
Never go with the twist ending your mind first conjures. It's often too easy and obvious.
Write the truth. Bad writing is untruthful writing. Even in fiction. Even (especially!) in horror.
Write characters people will care about. The hero deserves to be bad sometimes. The witch/demon/serial killer needs to do something good or at least understandable.
Read widely and often. Horror, yes, but poetry, too. Then, let those ideas, those words, into your writing.
If you feel strongly about your own writing (if you make yourself cry or give yourself goosebumps), you're on the right track.
A few book review opportunities…
Boston Review is currently open for essays and reviews.
Cleveland Review of Books is open for reviews, essays, interviews, and excerpts.
The Masters Review is open for book reviews.
Strange Horizons is seeking in-depth reviews of speculative art and entertainment, especially books, films, and television.
A few contests/competitions…
The International Association for the Fantastic in the Arts' Imagining Indigenous Futurisms Award
Screencraft Cinematic Book Competition
Screencraft Cinematic Short Story Writing Competition
Screencraft Family Screenplay Competition
A few grants/fellowships/retreats/scholarships…
Screenscraft Screenwriting Fellowship
A few freelance opportunities…
Betches is looking for pitches from brides who want to share their honest POV on the stresses of wedding planning.
Conz is seeking pitches from people who regret signing a prenup.
A few submission opportunities…
433 is seeking nonfiction, fiction, poetry, and art.
Apex Magazine is seeking short fiction submissions.
Bulb Culture Collective is seeking previously published poetry and prose.
Spooky is seeking dark and scary, but playful and approachable plot-driven submissions.
A few sessions & workshops…
October 30th
October 31st
November 1st
The Art of Writing a Graphic Novel
November 2nd
November 3rd
November 5th
Ongoing
And a final thought…
This installment is a collaborative effort; the craft tips were provided by Macey, author of
(and whom I cannot thank enough).It also contains an affiliate link, I earn a commission when you purchase books using that link (or if inclined, buy me a coffee).
Thanks for reading,
So. Much. Good. Stuff! It was a pleasure to work with you...I LOVE your content!
Agreed, such powerful content shared here, especially the quotes and writing tips! Thank you for sharing!