Anthology | Cathy C. Hall Writes

First off, I opened my Gwinnett Daily Post to find a veritable smorgasbord of zombie news. A review of the movie “Zombieland” got the living dead ball rolling, but then I found this neat story about a guy at Netherworld (a local horror spot that’s so scary, the Beneficent Mr. Hall refuses to go. But then, he won’t go down the street in the dark, either.) and how parts of this zombie-tastic movie were filmed there (No pun intended. Wait, I think I will intend that pun.)

I also read how the University of Florida had included a response plan for the zombie apocalypse on a disaster recovery site. Now that’s what I call being prepared. Apparently, the powers that be failed to see the prudence of having a plan in case of an attack of the living impaired. The zombie plan has already been removed. All I can say is, heaven help Florida if the zombie apocalypse starts there.

If you have a great idea for a zombie story, you should check out the Library of the Living Dead Forum. By my last count, there were 8 anthologies with open submissions for all things zombie-tastic. I’ve got a great story in mind, about a zombie attack in a Southern state, that had a plan and foolishly threw it out. Heads rolled.

According to my calculations, you have about a week to pull yourself and your writing together and submit something, somewhere.

Now, I know it’s summer. I know it’s too hot to think up settings, or characters, or heaven forbid, a plot with a twist. And I completely understand that you can’t possibly do a thing while So You Think You Can Dance is on. But it’s time to shake off the sand, get your feet out of the kiddie pool, and fire up the grill, um, gray cells. ‘Cause if you don’t use it, you’ll lose it. And by “it” I mean your mad writing skills. So, try one of these fine destinations for your sizzling stuff:

Glimmer Train has all kinds of contests, all year long. June happens to be Open Fiction. How sweet is that? Those folks must know you’re in no mood to write anything new. They’re expecting you to send in something you’ve had lying about for awhile. However, they expect it to be amazing. That’s why the entry fee is $20. (First place wins $2,000. Yes, $2,000.)

June’s Contest Challenge at Cool Stuff4Writers is titled “Chaos.” Just create chaos in your scene, in 300 to 500 words and you could win $25.00. I create chaos every day; in fact, Sally the crazy dog is a pro at creating chaos. Even the beneficent Mr. Hall creates his fair share of chaos. So, I’ve got this contest in the bag if things ever settle down enough for me to actually write about the chaos. Oh, and there’s no entry fee. Whee!

But I know that not all of you write fiction. So, I’m going to remind you about A Cup of Comfort for a Better World. Maybe you thought you missed the deadline. But the deadline was extended to July 1st. So, if you’ve got between 1,000 to 2,000 words on a story that celebrates compassion, or volunteerism, or generosity, then start writing now.

Because time, tide, and writing deadlines wait for no man (or woman).