That 2024 looks out of place, but in a few weeks we'll be used to it. We hope the end of 2023 is a positive conclusion for all our readers and supporters and that the new year is greeted with anticipation and hope. We've published some amazing fiction this year and are grateful to each and every one of you for being with us on this journey.
For a full review of our 2023 original fiction, including award eligibility, go here: https://apex-magazine.com/apex-blog/apex-magazine-2023-award-eligibility/
As a reminder, Apex Magazine general submissions are closed for the month of December. However, flash fiction is open for SOLITUDE stories from 12/7-12/31 and The Map of Lost Places is open until 12/31. General submissions will reopen at 12:01am January 1.
Finally, some mild foreshadowing. Novella writers, watch for an exciting announcement early in 2024!
Issue 142
Issue 142 releases January 2. Cover art by Adrian Borda, original fiction byDelilah S. Dawson, Nadia Bongo, KT Bryski, and Elisabeth Ring, flash by Nadia Radovich and Kanishk Tantia, essays by Somer Canon and John Wiswell, and reprints from M.M. Olivas and Eugen Bacon. A.C. Wise continues the wonderful Words for Thought short fiction review column. This is a dark, unsettling issue, perfect for the dark quiet months at the start of the year.
Snap Judgment Episode 9 with Special Guest Brent Lambert
Apex Magazine is excited to present SNAP JUDGMENT Episode 9 of our rapid-fire, live-streaming critique series.
Every quarter, industry professionals Lesley Conner, Rebecca E Treasure, and a special guest offer live feedback on the first page (up to 250 words) of genre short stories or novels. These first pages are read aloud by our talented host and narrator, Aly Grauer.
We are pleased to announce that our special guest editor for this event is author and editor Brent Lambert!
Brent Lambert is a Black, queer man who heavily believes in the transformative power of speculative fiction. He resides in San Diego but spent a lot of time moving around as a military brat. Currently, he manages the social media for FIYAH Literary Magazine and just had an anthology produced with Tor.com titled Breathe FIYAH. He can be found on Twitter @brentclambert talking about the weird and the fantastic.
Snap Judgment episode 9 will be livestreamed on Thursday Jan 25 at 1 p.m. ET (12 pm PT / 10 p.m. CT / 3 p.m. UTC).
Resurrections by Ada Hoffmann
Resurrections by Ada Hoffmann released December 19th! Buy your copy today: https://www.apexbookcompany.com/collections/all-books/products/resurrections
This collection of short stories and poems by Ada Hoffmann traverses extraordinary universes packed with faeries, cyborgs, talking otters, punitive gods, lovestruck sea creatures, fossil hunters, extraterrestrials, and much more. Exploring themes of love and self-existence, community and otherness, and perseverance, Resurrections is a wondrous blend of genres and literary forms.
Each universe contains an intricately crafted history, cast of characters, places, and paradoxes. From layered magical realms to beauty supply storerooms, Hoffmann brings often-overlooked characters and perspectives to life and lets their unfettered reality expand our imaginations. Resurrections is a glimpse into the spectrum of human existence, flitting from world to world in Hoffmann’s spectacular style.
Check out our recorded book launch with the author: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0efWz-IShFg
The Map of Lost Places Submissions
Editors Sheree Renée Thomas and Lesley Conner are looking for stories about places where weird things happen. Places that have strange histories, their own traditions and customs, their own dangers. These can be based off real folk tales or old wives tales - think the Mothman in Point Pleasant, WV - or ones that you come up with all on your own. But your story should tell of someone going to one of these places - either intentionally or they just stumble across it - and what happens when they encounter the frightening/strange thing that is in or occurs in that location.
In order to avoid duplicates in the open submission call, locations already chosen by the featured authors are listed below. This list will be updated as the authors make their decisions, so be sure to check our guidelines for updates!
- Indiana
- Monroe, GA
- Underwater cave in the Caribbean Sea
- The Forbidden City in Beijing, China
- Central Pennsylvania
- Arkabutla Lake in Coldwater, Mississippi
Submissions period is December 1st through December 31st, 2023. Submissions Guidelines here: https://apexbookcompany.moksha.io/publication/the-map-of-lost-places/guidelines
Strange Locations: An Anthology of Dark Travel Guides
As part of our successful Map of Lost Places Kickstarter, we are excited to announce the upcoming Strange Locations microfiction anthology, the third in the brilliant series of microanthologies edited by Marissa van Uden. Submissions will be open from January 15 to February 15.
We are looking for speculative microfiction in the form of tourist brochures, travel blogs, and travel guides to the strangest, darkest places you can imagine.
Tell us a story while guiding the reader down hidden trails into eerie landscapes, weird biotech gardens, creepy scifi cities, surreal forests, or secret magical places. We’re looking for pieces that reveal intimate stories of loss, horror, or yearning in the voice of the fictional travel writer, or that use specific setting details to show whole new worlds between the lines.
We love dark fantasy, science fiction, horror, eco-horror, clifi, Weird fiction, folk horror, and body horror. Don’t be afraid to mix genres and experiment!
Get all the details here!
Holiday Horrors Drabble Contest
We are delighted to announce that longtime Apex Magazine first reader Kai Delmas is taking the editorial chair for the return of our Holiday Horrors - this time as a Drabble Contest! Submissions closed December 15, stay tuned for the announcement of the winners in early January!
Writing Classes with Apex
The Reach Your Apex initiative is our way of making the knowledge and skills of publishing professionals available to those individuals who are seeking to improve their literary craft. While a majority of our offerings target the craft of writing, we will intersperse our curriculum with workshops/webinars covering various topics about the art of editing and the business side of publishing. We launched a website dedicated to our classes and workshops, including on-demand recordings!
You can find our current list of classes here. We also now offer pre-recorded on demand classes as well as critiques and query feedback!
Apex Flash Fiction
The Flash Fiction Contest for December 7-31—themed Solitude—will close on December 31. The theme for January 7-31 will be announced and will open to the public on January 7th for flash fiction submissions. Themes are chosen by Patrons at the end of the month and announced to Patrons on the 1st of each month. Submissions will be open to the public on the 7th of each month. Submissions close on the last day of the month at midnight (US Central Time).
The winner will be paid $0.08/word or $10, whichever is more. The winning story will appear on our Patreon as an exclusive and will be included in a forthcoming issue of Apex Magazine.
Discord Happenings
As always, we have fun and community on our Discord, including critique swaps, co-writing opportunities, and general community support for writers. (Rejectomancy, anyone?)
Patreon Exclusives
On our Patreon, we have an exciting lineup of exclusives for our Patrons from the Authors of Issue 142. We'll have our usual interviews, critique opportunities, a recipe or two, and some story insights. Keep an eye on our Patreon!
Not a Patron? Join us for as little as $3/month to get access to these exclusives and the magazine in your inbox!
To add the Apex Events Calendar to your google calendar, follow this link: https://tinyurl.com/4c74rext
