New issue of paper wasp, some more contests

Yep, it's true... the new issue of paper wasp is out. No surprise that it's filled with high-quality haiku by Stanford M. Forrester, Mark Arvid White, and Bob Lucky, as well as a few poems by one of the editors, Katherine Samuelowicz. But it is surprising to find a haiku by speculative author Charles Gramlich nestled among the pages. If you've never read an issue of paper wasp, volume 14 number 3 is a good one to start with. You can order a sample copy from their website for only $8.00 (shipped from Australia).

Here are two contests currently being run by Fanstory.com, a site I know very little about, but it appears you have to be a member to enter their contests.

- Fanstory.com Haiku Poetry Contest: For this contest they're looking for traditional 5-7-5 haiku, one entry per person, with a $100 Visa gift card as the prize. Second and third place winners receive "member dollars." Deadline is October 14th.

- Fanstory.com Halloween Poetry Contest: This contest is for horror or thriller poems, also one entry per person with the same prizes. No line limit and the deadline for this one is October 31st.

The site says their standard membership is $2.80 a month, but there's some sort of free membership you can get, too -- not sure if that will allow you to enter any contests. But it looks like it could be a neat site. Check it out if you have time.

Also check out the current issue of Writers' Journal if you get a chance. It's got the three winning stories from this year's Horror/Ghost Story Contest, as well as details about upcoming contests. New this year is the Science Fiction/Fantasy Contest, which is open to entries ($7 entry fee) until November 30th. Top three prizes are $250/$100/$50. Submit unpublished stories up to 2000 words.

Contributor copies... a poor man's best friend

Got some contributor copies this week, so now i have something to read (in between Choke by Chuck Palahniuk, Selected Poems of Langston Hughes, and Holocaust Poetry).

Talebones #36 has apparently been out for a while now, but thanks to the USPS I just got my copy this week. It's a great issue, full of the likes of James Van Pelt, Paul Melko, and Mikal Trimm. Talebones, in my humble opinion, is one of the most consistently good dark fantasy magazines out there.

Also arrived this week is issue #103 of the recently-revived Space & Time. The editors were kind enough to include my poem (a tribute to Ray Bradbury) in this issue. Haven't had a chance to read it yet, but the cover and lineup look great.

For those of you haiku lovers out there, the new issue of paper wasp is out, and it's as filled with quality poems as ever. There are a few poems by Fran Masat, Carolyn Cordon, and Amitava Dasgupta that really stand out.

Not a contributor copy, but I did receive in the mail from talented writer and poet Tony Bernstein a copy of the new Tales of the Talisman. Tony wrote a very favorable review of my chapbook, Bits & Pieces, so buy a copy of the magazine and check it out (or buy a copy of my chapbook -- or both).

All of these magazines are currently open to submissions, except Space & Time, which is taking a short break but should reopen soon.