I just updated my list of Short Fiction Markets, so take a look and prep your work. There's a lot of opportunity out there! If you've got something at hand, there are a few fab magazines open right now but closing soon: Prism is open on the theme of "Revelry" till June 15th (prose to… Continue reading Litmag Love: Market Update
Are writing prompts really useful -- or just pleasant procrastination? My short story "Get Away," freshly published in DarkWinter Literary Magazine, opens with a first-line prompt from my Tarot Prompts for Writers page: "The road lay behind him in the darkness...." I would never have come up with the story without that prompted first line.… Continue reading Writing with Prompts (New short fiction: “Get Away”)
[May 2026 Update: This year's contest is done and you can Meet the Awesome Authors Youth Writing contest winners on the OPL website. Their works will be published in the fall; more on that later.] Original post: The Ottawa Public Library's Awesome Authors Youth Writing Contest is open for entries! Young writers of the nation's… Continue reading Awesome Authors 2026 is on!
I have mixed feelings announcing my latest short story, "Victim Impact Statement, freshly published in On Spec. I'm super pleased with the story and the excellent home it found, but I'm deeply saddened by the closing of this unique independent magazine. Cover art by Janice Blaine This is the final issue for On Spec, which… Continue reading New Short Fiction: “Victim Impact Statement”
I'm pleased to have a new story freshly published in this season's filling Station. Cover Art by Var(mit) Mayors Since 1993, filling Station has been publishing innovative and experimental prose, poetry, literary journalism, and visual art. It's a gorgeous print magazine published three times a year out of Calgary, Alberta. This is my first piece in… Continue reading New Short Fiction: “Lighting fires in memoir class”
Catherine Austen 