some new books, random news

For anyone looking for new books to read (or give as gifts), two new books have just cropped up from Sam's Dot Publishing. The first is a collaboration from poets Joshua Gage and J.E. Stanley titled Intrinsic Night. The book is a collection of cinquain, and it can be pre-ordered from the Genre Mall for $5.85 plus shipping. There are some sample poems from the book on Josh Gage's blog.

The second book is a novella by Niteblade editor Rhonda Parrish, "Shades of Green." The scheduled release date is January 1st, 2010, so it should be available for pre-order sometime before then. The book is set in the same world as her story "Sister Margaret," which has gotten some great reviews.

In other news, Necrography has just announced it will be closing. Another good magazine gone by the wayside. If you haven't read the first (and only) issue, copies are still available from the website.

For haiku enthusiasts, Don Wentworth (editor of Lilliput Review) has just announced the 2nd Annual Basho Haiku Challenge. Up for grabs this time is a copy of Bashō and His Interpreters: Selected Hokku with Commentary, edited by Makoto Ueda, as well as a 15-issue subscription to Lilliput Review. Winners will also be published in the contest anthology (and receive free copies). Entry is free, and the deadline is Oct. 31st.

some featured markets

There are many haiku and horror markets out there, so I thought every now and then I'd spotlight a few of the paying ones. Here are two horror markets and one haiku market:

- Three Crow Press: Looking for dark fantasy and horror fiction 500-3000 words long. Pays 1 cent/word for fiction. Only accepts unpublished email submissions. Replies within three weeks.

- Necrography: Buys horror fiction and poetry. Pays $10-30 for fiction (500-6000 words) and $1-10 for poetry (3-1000 lines, up to 5 poems per submission). Pays on acceptance. Contributors also receive a copy of the issue their work appears in. (Necrography is currently closed to subs, but will hopefully reopen soon.)

- Wisteria: A small-format journal publishing haiku, senryu, and tanka. Pays $1 to contributors who submitted by mail. No simultaneous submissions or reprints. Usually responds within two weeks.

The new issue of Barbaric Yawp is out now, and editor John Berbrich was kind enough to review my chapbook, Bits and Pieces. This issue contains poetry by some well-known names, including Gary Every and Michael Kriesel. There is an excellent haiku-like poem, "Ruins," by William Michaelian. I've never heard of him before, but he obviously has a knack for writing short poetry.

The Haiku Calendar, some books sales, some haiku markets

This year's Haiku Calendar Competition closes on April 30th, so drop your poems in the mail soon. There is a prize pool of $600 that will be split between the winners, and previously published poems can be submitted. The entry fees are $5/poem, $10 for three haiku, or $20 for up to ten.

If you're in search of good reading, you're in luck. The debut issue of Necrography is now available, and it looks to be a good one. It contains nine short stories, including one by veteran writer Ken Goldman, and poetry by the likes of Alexis Child and Aurelio Rico Lopez III. The magazine is currently open to submissions.

Apex Book Company is having a wicked sale that runs through Friday. A number of books are half-priced, including the awesome anthology Aegri Somnia.

Not to be left out, Small Beer Press is also running a book sale. Check out their list of $1 books (hardcover and paperback). I don't know too much about any of them, but at a buck a book, do you really have to?

For those poets who can't afford the postage to enter the Haiku Calendar Competition, here are some magazines that not only publish haiku, but will in fact pay for it:

- Astropoetica: pays $5/poem for poetry about science or astronomy.
- EveryDayPoets: pays $1/poem.
- Farming Magazine: pays $5/poem plus a contributor's copy for poetry related to rural living or the farming life.
- Mayfly: pays $10/haiku.
- The Sigurd Journal: pays 50 cents/line.