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Call for Submissions – Book Worms #11

Book Worms Horror Zine – Summer Edition

Pack your poisonous bug spray, your Blair Witch map, and your messiest mess kit—then join us for our campiest issue yet!

This summer, Book Worms Horror Zine is heading to camp, and we want your creepiest, campiest horror stories to share around the fire. We’re talking classic summer scares like Friday the 13th, Sleepaway Camp, and The Evil Dead—but don’t be afraid to blaze your own twisted trail. Conjure a new type of monster crawling up from the pond scum, turn a Kumbaya sing-along into an alien abduction, or dream up something so strange and disturbing we’ll never leave home again.

So…

stoke the fire, sharpen your pencils, and tell us a tale that’ll have us sleeping with one eye open in our sleeping bags.

Submission Guidelines:

Please read ALL before submitting! You’d be amazed (we are) how many great stories are turned away each submission period because writers fail to follow the rules. Please don’t waste your (and our) time and stick to the following…

Deadline: June 15, 2026 (must be received by deadline, so please mail early).

Word Count: 1500 words or less (we mean it).

No reprints, please. Exclusive print rights for six months after publication.

Payment is 8 cents a word for fiction and non-fiction, $25 for poems 20 lines or less.

ACCEPTING MAIL-IN SUBMISSIONS ONLY! (*see exception below)

Mail your submissions to: La Regina Studio/Grundy Commons/925 Canal Street/Bristol, PA 19007

Decision notices are sent through email so there is no need to include a self-addressed, stamped envelope. Please include your email address and your mailing address with your submission. All submissions must be typed (cover letters preferred but not mandatory) and be properly formatted. Also, if you have a social media presence, please include those beneath your email.

Be sure to:

  • Send only one submission, meaning don’t send multiple short stories or poems or a combination of both. Send only one piece and send your best.
  • DO NOT send your submissions using registered mail or any kind of correspondence requiring a signature. It probably won’t get to us and you’ll be wasting your money.
  • *If you’ve had work previously published in Book Worms (you know who you are) you may email your submission to bookwormssubmissions@gmail.com (same deadline) Please write Returning Author Submission in the subject line.
  • Please use the EXACT mailing address listed above. Please don’t write Book Worms on the address. This is a side project and our mailman might get confused. The mailbox is in a huge industrial complex and unfortunately, letters have gotten lost in the past, so please follow the instructions and mail as early as possible.

We can’t wait to gather ‘round the fire and read your tales. Curious what’s lurked in our pages before? Check out Book Worms Horror Zine.

NaNoWriMo Update

Well, it’s day 20. We survived an election and the Thanksgiving holiday looms. Life is as stressful as ever, and yet every day (except one), I’ve met my word count in my latest NaNoWriMo project.

It’s a good feeling. It hasn’t required much effort to make the roughly 1,700-word count every morning. I am already thinking of the next book I want to write. Shiny object syndrome notwithstanding, I feel like I’ve established an excellent daily writing habit this November.

That’s the good news. The bad news, I suppose, is that at this point, my fantasy story is a great big mess. I never wrote so quickly without going back and revising clunky turns of phrase, nonsensical hypotheses, and god-awful dialogue. That will all be waiting for me at the finish line. But what’s important now is that I get there. Barring sudden illness (God forbid) or force majeure, I think I’m going to make it this time.

Are you participating in NaNoWriMo this year? If so, let me know how you’re doing and we can cheer each other on.

Another year, another Nano

I’ve decided to start this Monday morning’s NaNoWriMo writing stint by updating my long-neglected blog. This year has been strange, and with tomorrow’s Election Day looming, I expect it to get even weirder. But here I am doing another NaNoWriMo writing challenge. I feel more prepared this year than I ever have before. For one thing, since my Covid lay-off, I have a lot more time on my hands. That can be a blessing or a curse for procrastinators, but I’m usually good at knocking out my daily words first-thing in the morning when my brain is fresh, and the caffeine is pumping.

For this year’s Nano, I’m writing the sequel to my Wattpad fantasy book. It’s called Hyperia Rising, and I already have this lovely cover by Consuelo Parra to inspire me. I love using Wattpad to try out different genres. I know fantasy readers are a tough crowd to please, so before I release this into the Amazon jungle, I want to have at least three completed books in the series ready to go. But that’s getting ahead of myself. For now, I have to write this sucker, and I’m only 2000 words in. Here’s book one of the series on Wattpad if you’re interested taking a look.

I’m attempting to up my word count this year (50K is about half the average fantasy book). So, I’m setting the goal for least 2000 a day, maybe more if I’m feeling particularly inspired.

And because I’m not quite ready to face the blank page yet, here are some tips I’ve learned from doing previous Nanos (completed or not).

  • Write at the same time every day. It helps to establish the habit. I like to write in the morning before the world rushes in, and my brain is alert. Like exercising, getting it over early in the day keeps that dark cloud of procrastination from following me around. Find the time of day when you have the most energy and put in a good hour or writing with no interruptions.
  • Get in the zone. I listen to mediation music from the YouTube channel Yellow Brick Cinema every time I write. It’s become such a habit that just hearing the first droning chords signals my brain to get in the writing zone.
  • Just write. Don’t rewrite. This is difficult for me to do. When I know the sentence I just wrote is horrible, I do sometimes pause to revise, but in general, I try not to stop. I know I’ll be going over it again and again and again…
  • Know what you’re going to write each day. Some writers (planners) have elaborate outlines. Some make it up as they go along (pantsers). I do both. For this novel, because fantasy generally has more characters and complicated storylines, I created a more detailed outline than usual.
  • Try to complete your word count in one sitting.

Well, I think I’ve procrastinated enough this morning. The coffee is kicking in, and I’m ready to face the blank page. If you’re participating in NanoWriMo this year, feel free to add me as a buddy so we may spur on each other’s progress. Let’s have fun this year!

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