Submissions for Mighty Real: An Anthology of New Black Gay and Lesbian Writing

Edited by Royce Bryant Smith and Darius Omar Williams

This is a call for submissions for a book titled, Mighty Real: An
Anthology of New Black Gay and Lesbian Writing. The anthology will offer a collection of poetry, fiction, and essays by black gay and lesbian writers throughout the U.S. and abroad. Not only will this book reflect contemporary issues of racism, sexism, and homophobia, it will give literary and political voice to the experiences of brothers and sisters from numerous black SGL communities. Finally, this book will introduce new black gay and lesbian writers in addition to introducing new work by more established writers.

Please submit five poems, three short stories, or a critical essay on a topic of your choice reflective of your individual identity and aesthetic. Feel free to submit work from all three genres. Documented articles should follow MLA format. Previously published work will be accepted. Please email hard copies of your submission(s) along with full contact information and a short bio (to be included in
anthology) to:

Darius Omar Williams
sanghatheatre@yahoo.com

or

Royce Bryant Smith
roycebsmith@yahoo.com

NOTE: THE DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS IS NOVEMBER 1, 2009!

Paper Bag Press Wants Submissions - "We Only Discriminate Against Bad Writing!"

A friend told me that this erotica ebooks site is looking for submissions, so I went to their site and thought they were great, so I decided to post it! That, and the site struck me as having a wonderful sense of humor and as I looked through the site, I couldn't stop laughing. Who knows? Perhaps one day there'll be an update stating that I have a new short story available to buy. It can't hurt to give it a try! I posted their submissions page and then a couple of answers from their FAQ. Yay for equal opportunity, totally consensual porn!!!
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Call For Submissions!We at Paper Bag Press are looking for the highest-quality erotic short stories on the planet. Our official storefront, located at paper-bag-press.com, made its debut on February 14, 2009. We are always looking for more quality e-books. That's where you come in.

We are seeking new or established authors for exclusive publication. We want writers who can craft a short story with a strong plot that revolves around sexual experience. The stories are not necessarily romantic — the sex is the focus. If the characters are in luuurv, that’s fine, as long as the sex is hot.

We know that you are taking a chance on us since we are new. Because of this, we are offering a 5% royalty bonus beyond our normal royalty rate of 30% for the first 25 stories that are accepted for publication.

All kinds of stories are being considered, including:

•Heterosexual
•Homosexual
•Bisexual
•Groups
•BDSM
•Fetish
•Anal
•Oral
•Vampire
•Fantasy
•Cowboy/Western
•Futuristic/Sci-Fi
•Historical
•Paranormal


If you have an erotic story that you'd like to us to consider for publication, go to the Submit Your Story page to tell us about it! We are seeking stories from 1,000 to 15,000 words. However, we are not draconian about the word count. These are just guidelines and not strict observance.

We are strict about what we will not accept:

•Pedophilia — all characters involved in sexual situations will be 18 years old or older.
•Bestiality — no humans having sex with animals.
•Rape — absolutely not allowed. All sex must be consensual.
•Toilet issues — must we go there? The answer is no.
•Physical abuse as titillation — again, the sex must be consensual. No characters harming each other within the sexual framework (no snuff, no stabbing, none of that). In BDSM, it must be made clear that the people involved have consented and are enjoying themselves.
•Necrophilia — again, must we go there? The answer is still no.
•Incest — once again, must we go there? The answer is absolutely, unequivocally no.
Other than that, we are an equal opportunity smut peddler.

Please read our Submissions FAQ for more information. Questions? Drop us a line.

Ready to submit your story? Complete the Submit Your Story form. Your story should be in Microsoft Word (.doc) or Rich Text Format (.rtf), size 12 font, double-spaced.

Have fun writing!
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Further Content Clarification from the FAQ

My story is about transgendered folks. I don't see that as an option. Are you interested in stories like this?

Yes, we are interested in all sorts of stories. Our submissions page outlines what we absolutely will not accept. Everything else is under consideration. We do not discriminate against a story if it is about GLBTQ folks at all. We only discriminate against bad writing. If we should contract an author for a story, and we don't have a genre listing particular to it, we will create one.

How "raw" are you looking for, regarding description of sex? I don't want to write porn, but I would be okay with a "hard R" or a "soft X."

We are looking for "soft X" to "hard XXX." We want you to write porn. We expect to see the following words: cock, dick, penis, pussy, cunt, vagina, cream, lick, suck, fuck, ass, asshole, anus, orgasm, come, cum, slide, ride, and squirt. And/or many more words, for that matter. If you are not comfortable reading that list, then your writing is probably not for us. If that list makes you laugh and think, "Yeah, that's my writing!" then please, submit it. (I DID laugh!!!)

Does the story I'm submitting have to be previously unpublished?

Yes. We are interested in first rights to your story. If your story was published online in your blog or a friend's blog, on a friend's website, in a magazine, in a newspaper, or book, in a podcast, or in any other way made available to the public, then it is considered "previously published." If you had your writing group read and critique the story, that does not count as being published.

All Time is Valuable-Don't Squander It in Unsafe Spaces

I thought this site was a great idea-an inclusive feminist community-who wouldn't want that?! I mean, this was supposed to be a community where anyone could contribute any kind of post they wanted-whether it be an essay, a poem, a painting, music, a recipe, a joke, whatever, as long as the language was inclusive and that no one's privilege was held over another. I was going to let it be a safe space, meaning that there were going to be no trolls if I could help it. But no one's contributed.

I also wanted to promote feminist/womanist events from across the globe and while I have been posting what I have found and I really could post a lot more, as I am pretty involved in the community, I haven't received any news from readers either.

This is not supposed to be a solitary blog-I am the moderator, but I really, really long for a communal, supportive space. In fact, that is why I am deleting a blog from my links list. It's one of my favorites - I am a frequent commenter there and I think the blogger has a lot of important things to say. She is also extremely well-known in the feminist/womanist blogging sphere and it's not like she's getting any extra traffic from my site... But I don't always feel safe there, because of the nastiness that is allowed to carry on among the trolls and for that reason I cannot link to her site, although I still encourage people to read her very important work, but one may not want to read the comments.

Why do I care about making this site a safe space, even in the links? It's mostly selfish!

I'm going through a tough time right now, as I was just diagnosed with fibromyalgia. My health status fluctuates constantly throughout the day, so that I am only productive for short periods of time and I have come to realize that my short span of productivty is too valuable to waste in spaces where there is significant potential for extra pain. Darvocets only ease the physical pain, don't ya know?

I can guarantee that this will be a safe space for fellow paradigm-shifting folk and if it isn't, then I will close up shop!

I can guarantee that the topics will not be mainstream and that creativity is always welcomed!

But I cannot guarantee to keep this site and my dream of an inclusive, safe, creative feminist/womanist blog if there are no submissions. I just don't have the energy to provide as much as a blog like this should.

Now I am going to advertise this site a lot more heavily soon by making flyers and posting them at places that might house creative and open writers and artists. I am even going to advertise at DragonCon-the world's best sci-fi and fantasy ever! Why at a convention? Because I am serious when I say that I want to reach out to those who are usually not included, the creative, and those who have alternative ideas of reality to offer than the messed-up reality that is offered by this world.

Please submit-don't wait to let your voice be heard! femination@yahoo.com

Most importantly, do not wait for something dramatic, like a chronic illness, to teach you that all of your time is important, so do not waste your time on things that make you feel bad and/or unsafe. You are worth more than that!

You really are.

"Imagine"

My own artwork!

It's a collage that uses magazine cutouts, sheet music, metallic paper pasted on posterboard painted with bright watercolors. (My Mom used the posterboard for experimenting painting techniques and I didn't want it to be thrown away!)