CURRENT CALLS

Death by Cupcake

We’re putting together an anthology of delicious cozy mystery stories!

The long of it:

Imagine yourself in your favorite chair. There’s a cat in your lap, a fire in the fireplace, and on the little table at your elbow, your favorite hot drink. The book in your hand is a cozy.

A cozy is a mystery, which, of course, means a tale of crime and intrigue. Often that crime is murder. But although the circumstances surrounding the crime can be ugly, that ugliness—as well as any attendant sex, violence, or cruelty–takes place offstage. Instead, the crime is treated as a puzzle, and the sleuth, a charming amateur, is the hero.

Many cozies take place in small, pleasant towns. Many have female sleuths. Quite a few are organized around themes, such as crafts, hobbies, food, or pets. If your mystery has a recipe or a crime-solving ferret, it’s a cozy, and we’d like to see it.

The short of it: 2K-10K words

Deadline: December 1, 2017

Payment: share of royalties

A few rules:

§ Plot must center on a crime and its solution

§ Amateur sleuth

§ No graphic sex, violence, cruelty, or strong language (including slurs and epithets)

§ Previously unpublished authors welcome

§ Writers from underrepresented groups are particularly encouraged to submit

And, there must be a cupcake somewhere in the story.

What this means is up to you. Does the main character own a cupcake shop? Is the cupcake a murder weapon? Is the victim’s nickname “cupcake”? Does the villain leave a trail of cupcake crumbs wherever they go?

Use your imagination, and send us your best. editorjessfaraday at hotmail.com


Light Space

Elm Books is looking for short story submissions for our next Science Fiction & Fantasy collection. We are interested in short stories (no more than 15,000 words) featuring heroic PROTAGONISTS WITH DISABILITIES (broadly defined) and that fall within ANY SCIENCE FICTION or FANTASY SUB GENRE. Stories may be soft or hard science fiction, fantasy, or slipstream. We are particularly interested in anthropological, feminist, and speculative work that will keep us turning pages in the wee hours. Last time, we received a number of submissions that were quite dark in tone. We are VERY interested, this time, in light and humorous stories. Odd is also always good.

Deadline: December 1, 2017

Undeath and the Age of Steam

We’re looking for Steampunk stories—specifically, mysteries that take place in a Steampunk setting. A mystery is the story of a crime and its solution. As for Steampunk, you can find a good, concise description at Steampunk.com. Supernatural elements are welcome.

Here are the particulars:

Length: Maximum 10,000 words.
Deadline: Contact Jess Faraday immediately if you have a story for this collection - we will be going to press soon!
Submit to: editorjessfaraday at hotmail.com

Format: paperback and e-book
Payment: share of royalties plus author copies
Contract: we use a modified EPIC contract.

Additional Information:

A lot of Steampunk focuses on the European experience. Elm Books is dedicated to promoting diverse authors and stories. Priority will be given to stories that feature characters from traditionally underrepresented groups—main characters of color, female protagonists, differently-abled main characters, LGBTQ main characters, and so on. Also, priority will be given to stories set outside of Europe, especially those examining colonialism from a non-European perspective.

We will not print stories containing graphic sex or violence.

Sound like enough of a challenge? Get writing!

Gen-E Books: Diverse Children’s Literature

Elm Books proudly presents Gen-E Books: Children's books for a diverse America. Help all our children by writing and publishing what they want to read.

We are looking for middle grade and young adult novels (10,000-60,000 words) about kids of color that will grab readers' attentions--mysteries, adventures, humor, suspense, set in the present, near past or near future that reflect the realities and the hopes of life in diverse communities including African American, Latino, Native American, Asian, urban, rural and international. Stories should be aimed at a middle grade audience (2nd to 6th grades) or young adult (7th grade to high school level) and written in clear, straight forward prose. Black and white line illustrations welcome, no color illustrations. No sex, graphic violence, explicit drug use or slavery. No animal stories, fairy tales or graphic novels. Collection to be edited by Lee Mullins and Jess Faraday.

Drop publisher Leila Monaghan a note if interested at Leila.Elmbooks at gmail.com.

Deadline: Ongoing

Payment: Share of royalties

Send: Full outline and first three chapters of novels to publisher Leila Monaghan at Leila.elmbooks at gmail.com.