That's a wrap, August!

Hey, legends! What's happening? Hope life is being kind to you. I'm rounding off the month with a few more publication acceptances – two originals and one reprint. Two of them, I can announce, right here, right now:

The Screaming Garden - Flash Fiction Online I'll start with the reprint, because FFO is a literary market I'm especially stoked to crack. Check out their past issues, and you'll see why I am so excited to be part of their future line-up. Bold, brief, and beautiful, indeed! Big thanks to editor Rebecca Halsey and the team for deeming me worthy.

"The Screaming Garden" is scheduled for publication in 2026 (likely USA springtime; details to come).

Speaking of springtime, it's the last day of winter here in Australia (Melbourne hasn't got the memo yet) which means blossom trees and longer days are just around the corner. It also means Swooping Season is imminent. For those who don't know, our sweet magpies turn from songbirds to swoopers in September, and the FOBS (fear of being swooped) is real. I'm hoping the family of maggies in our backyard still think we are cool tomorrow. How good is nature, though? Always keeping us on our toes. After the magpies are done attacking, we'll have hatchlings of baby brown snakes and that's always a treat (disclaimer: brown snakes are not a treat and should never be touched, harrassed or ingested)

...which brings me to the next round of Cheesy Australian Segues. Ingesting squirmy things is the subject and bizarro is the answer.

Something Burrowed, Something Blue - Bizarro Circus of Madness

I'm stoked to announce that my bizarro horror "Something Burrowed, Something Blue" has been accepted into the forthcoming anthology, Bizarro Circus Of Madness. What exactly is bizarro, you might ask? To quote a quote within a quote, here's some insight from editor, Riley Odell: "Simply put, it’s the genre of really weird stuff. Matt Clarke, publisher at Planet Bizarro Press, describes it this way: Think of the weirdest thing you’ve ever read, then times that by potato. Bizarro can be comedy, it can be horror, it can be romance—there’s really nothing it can’t be, as long as it’s bizarre."

More details to come for this one.

I can't share specifics of the third publication yet, but I can tell you this – it's my first historical horror fiction and my fourth audio production. Did someone say Christmas special?

And, on the subject of seasonal holidays, pre-order is now available for the following holiday antho's:

~Underland Press's Kozy Krampus, edited by Frances Lu-Pai Ippolito & Mark Teppo. Featuring my story "Dead Wood".

~Black Beacon Book's Samhain Screams, edited by Greg Chapman and Cameron Trost. Featuring my story "Candy Train".

In other news, my novel is bumping along—slowly, quietly—and I have to say, I am a tad obsessed with the setting and characters. It's so much fun to explore this semi-fictional town as a writer. I just want to park up and live there for a while. Short-story wise, I currently have five submissions pending (three originals, two reprints) with more publications in the pipeline. I'll update as they happen.

That's about all for now, friends. Thanks for sticking around.

Read well. Stay safe.

Em