This was awaiting me when I got home from work the other day. Columns by Stephen Volk, Chris Fowler and Mike O'Driscoll, book reviews by Peter Tennant and fiction! Fiction by Tim Lees (excellent) with more by Simon McCaffery, K Harding Stalter and RAMSEY CAMPBELL! Oh, and me. Yup, I'm in there with a short story called 'Dermot'. It's a bleak, nasty little tale and I like it a lot. Feel free to check it out. The magazine as a whole is, as always, well worth your time.
5 comments:
Hi Simon, enjoyed the story and happened across your blog while trying to find out more about the origins of "Dermot". Have you submitted many pieces to Black Static before being successful?
Hi Paul! First of all thanks- really glad you enjoyed the story.
'Dermot' was my first sub to Black Static, although I'd tried its predecessor, The Third Alternative, quite a few times over the years without success.
How are they with feedback? I have been flirting with the idea of submitting something for a while, I have a back log of unfinished stuff as well as some bits that might be more suited to Interzone. By the way if you are busy please exucse my blathering but its unusual to have the luxury of speaking to someone who is much further down the road than me. I read your interview on Ginger Nuts and completely understood where you were coming from with regard to the overwhelming urge to write what you think will make you the next rock n roll star novelist as opposed just doing it because you feel a need to create. It's way less frustrating if you just do what comes naturally :)Anyway I fear I may be bordering on the stalkerish here (mind already filing this idea away for a story - so don't even think about using it!) but I would massively grateful if you could throw some links my way of forums or chat boards or anything where aspiring wordologists go to hang out on t'internet.
Hi Paul- the main online forum I visit is the Ramsey Campbell Message Board (if you go to Ramsey's website at http://www.ramseycampbell.com you'll find it.) There are others such as Shocklines and Vault of Evil out there, depending on your tastes.
Not sure how BS are with feedback... in the Third Alternative days you had a form rejection slip with a a brief handwritten note on it (e.g. 'some nice writing, but too long') but of course that might have changed.
If you've got stuff you think might suit them, then send it out. It's easy to convince yourself your work's no good, or not as good as X's, or not good enough for X. Send your stuff out and keep sending it out, basically.
When I started as a writer (about fourteen years ago now- Jesus!) there was a thriving fanzine scene- a lot of small press magazines produced as labours of love, which is where I cut my teeth. That scene isn't really there anymore, though, so it's a bit hard to gauge how I'd start now. But there are plenty of small press anthologies (print and digital) out there. Check out www.ralan.com for information about magazines and markets...
Hope the above helps!
Really appreciate the pointers, thanks mate :)
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