Blog
Ahoy, Critterfolk!
New entry May 20
Critter Notices
Critters is 25!
Last November, Critters turned 25 years old! Wow! Thanks so much to all of you, who've made it such a resounding success!
Books from Critters!
Check out Books by Critters for books by your fellow
Critterfolk, as well as my list of recommended books for writers.
The Sigil Trilogy
If you're looking for an amazing, WOW! science fiction story, check out THE SIGIL TRILOGY. This is — literally — one of the best science fiction novels I've ever read.How to Write SF
The Craft of Writing Science Fiction that Sells by Ben Bova, best-selling author and six-time Hugo Award winner for Best Editor. (This is one of the books your ol' Critter Captain learned from himself, and I highly recommend it.)
(Also via Amazon)
Interviewed!
I was interviewed live on public radio for Critters' birthday, for those who want to listen.
Free Web Sites
Free web sites for authors (and others) are available at www.nyx.net.
ReAnimus Acquires Advent!
ReAnimus Press is pleased to announce the acquisition of the legendary Advent Publishers! Advent is now a subsidiary of ReAnimus Press, and we will continue to publish Advent's titles under the Advent name. Advent was founded in 1956 by Earl Kemp and others, and has published the likes of James Blish, Hal Clement, Robert Heinlein, Damon Knight, E.E. "Doc" Smith, and many others. Advent's high quality titles have won and been finalists for several Hugo Awards, such as The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction and Fantasy and Heinlein's Children. Watch this space for ebook and print editions of all of Advent's current titles!
Book Recommendation
THE SIGIL TRILOGY:
The universe is dying from within...
"Great stuff... Really enjoyed it." — SFWA Grandmaster Michael Moorcock
Announcing ReAnimus Press
If you're looking for great stuff to read from bestselling and award-winning authors—look no further! ReAnimus Press was founded by your very own Critter Captain. (And with a 12% Affiliate program.) [More]
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FEATURED BOOK
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Woo-hoo!
My unscientific estimate is that members of Critters are around 10X more likely to make sales than non-critters (but cause and effect? who knows?). Regardless, this page is to celebrate our successes!
Critter Robert Qualkinbush has analyzed the reports below and created a summary page of how many sales Critters have had. Fascinating, and astounding! Good going to you all.
If you have something to report, tell me immediately!
Free ads on the Critters site are also provided as a benefit of membership.
Congratulations to...
| Renan Bernardo, whose short story, "Eight Steps to Steal a Yacht and Build a Hospital" is now out in the current issue of Solarpunk Magazine #8. {It has also been optioned to be developed into a screenplay! } [May 2023] |
| Ron Fein, whose (Critter'd) short story, "A Dragon Looks at Four Thousand" is now out in the current issue of MetaStellar. {Thanks to all who helped critique and improve the original draft! } [May 2023] |
| Jordan Chase-Young, whose short story, "The Fall" is now out in the current issue of Clarkesworld. [May 2023] |
| Douglas Kolacki, whose (Critter'd) short story, "Not from Saturn" is now out in the current issue of Allegory. [May 2023] |
| Douglas Kolacki, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "When It's Invented" to Tender Fury magazine. [May 2023] |
| Kevin Stadt, who sold his (Critter'd) novel, "Warped Brood" to Planet Bizarro Press. [Apr 2023] |
| Michael Stevens, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "Electric Memories Don't Fade in the Evening Sun" to HyphenPunk. {Thanks to everyone who helped this story to come to life. It was the very first story I submitted to Critters so I'm delighted it has finally found a home. } [Mar 2023] |
| Ron Fein, whose (Critter'd) short story, "A Daronite Fence" is now out in the current issue of Tales of Fear, Superstition, and Doom anthology (Redwood Press). {Thanks to all that critiqued it! } [Mar 2023] |
| Ron Fein, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, " Excerpts from After-Action Interviews Regarding the Incident at Penn Station" to Nature: Futures. {Thanks to all those who critiqued it! I made a number of changes based on the critiques (including the title) and it was accepted by the exact market that I envisioned from the outset. It will appear in April or May. } [Mar 2023] |
| Jamie M. Boyd, who sold her (Critter'd) short story, "Wicket 2.0" to Mysterion . {Thanks to all who offered feedback and made this story better! } [Mar 2023] |
| Renan Bernardo, whose short story, "A Short Biography of a Conscious Chair" is now out in the current issue of Samovar Magazine. {It's a novelette and was published both in English and Portuguese } [Feb 2023] |
| Douglas Kolacki, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "Recruiting for the Gaspee" to SolidaRity, a Rhode Island anthology. [Feb 2023] |
| David Lee Zweifler, who sold his short story, "The Laughing Wolverine" to Calliope Interactive. {This was a ghost story that I wrote for my son more than a year ago. It was important to me, and I loved it, but it was a bit of a tough sell because it was slightly funny and not very scary. It had a lot of near-misses and positive, personalized rejections but it had more than 70 submissions and 50 (!!!) rejections. Did I consider trunking it? You betcha! But I didn't. And now it has sold at near-pro rates. (Keep hustling without shame, my friends!) } [Feb 2023] |
| Renan Bernardo, who sold his short story, "Short Biography of a Conscious Chair" to Samovar Magazine. {It's going to be published both in English and Portuguese. } [Feb 2023] |
| Andrew Giffin, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "The Hard Problem of Consciousness" to Drabblecast. {Thanks everyone who provided feedback! } [Feb 2023] |
| LindaAnn LoSchiavo, who has won the Thirty West Publishing Company's "Fresh Start" award for her poem, "a.k.a. Pyewacket Sent Me". {My piece was a #VISPO designed to be a prose-poem disguised as a Barnes and Noble cash register receipt. As such my #VISPO does not actually have a "title" - - hence the a.k.a. designation. Thirty West Publishing has organized a group reading for the five winners for 8 February 2023 on ZOOM. If you want a Feb. 8th link, D.M. me. } [Jan 2023] |
| LindaAnn LoSchiavo, who sold her book, "Felones de SE: Poems about Suicide" to Ukiyoto. {Summary: With a sprinkling of dark humor and a full measure of compassion, "Felones de Se: Poems about Suicide" is surprising, quirky, and a riveting read. Inspired by actual suicides, one of them a blood relative, these poems are resonant, impossibly moving, bittersweet, and strange. Tagline: A pen dipped in truth serum leavened with lyrical language } [Jan 2023] |
| David Lee Zweifler, who sold his short story, "Running In Circles" to The Paramnesia Anthology from Grendel Press. [Jan 2023] |
| Richard Zwicker, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "Sandstorm in the Hourglass" to Mythic. [Jan 2023] |
| Douglas Kolacki, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "Trade You Valentine's Day for Halloween" to Three Crows magazine. [Jan 2023] |
| Dwayne Minton, who sold his short story, "Mementoes of My Lives (Un)lived" to Manawaker Studio’s Flash Fiction Podcast. {So happy to see this one find a second life as a podcast. This one originally appeared a few years ago in Nature. } [Jan 2023] |
| Dwayne Minton, whose short story, "The Illusory Truth of Magical Mike's Page Six" is now out in the current issue of Etherea Magazine. [Jan 2023] |
| Jordan Chase-Young, who sold his short story, "The Fall" to Clarkesworld. [Jan 2023] |
| Jordan Chase-Young, who sold his short story, "The Fall" to Clarkesworld. [Jan 2023] |
| Renan Bernardo, whose short story, "Great-Granny Bethany's Memories of Space" is now out in the current issue of Future Science Fiction Digest. [Dec 2022] |
| Russell Adans, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "Pretending to Live" to Apocalyptia Anthology. {Availability is TBD. } [Dec 2022] |
| Dwayne Minton, who sold his short story, "The Illusory Truth of Magical Mike's Page Six" to Etherea Magazine. {This one didn't go through the queue, but thank you to all the people who have crittered my work. Your feedback has made me a better writer. } [Dec 2022] |
| Laura F Sanchez, whose (Critter'd) novel, "Alien Crossings" is now out from Aakenbaaken & Kent. {Thanks particularly to dedicated readers Noeleen Kavanagh and Scott M. Reed, who offered many helpful suggestions back when the ms was called either Tunguska's Other Children or Mayfly (It was quite a long time ago.) } [Dec 2022] |
| Renan Bernardo, who reports "My story The Norms From Up Here, published at The Dread Machine, was nominated for a Pushcart Prize!". [Dec 2022] |
| Andrew Giffin, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "A Language Older Than Words" to DreamForge Magazine. {Thanks to everyone who offered feedback! } [Nov 2022] |
| Andrew Giffin, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "Dirt As Both Fixed and Unfixed Shapes" to Dark Recesses . {This one went through the queue probably the most out of all my stories, under many names (After the First Death, The First Stage of Grief is Dirt, etc). I’m really happy it has found a home. Thanks to anyone who provided feedback! } [Nov 2022] |
| Jordan Chase-Young, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "Something Rich and Strange" to Aurealis. {Big thanks to Scott Davis, crit38952, Thomas Beck, Jeff Richardson, Jennifer Scott, John Papiewski, Ross Middleton, Garrett Menning, and Holden Lee for their critiques! } [Nov 2022] |
| Guy McDonnell, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "A Twisted Run" to Dark Matter Presents Zero Dark Thirty: the 30 Darkest Tales From Dark Matter Magazine, 2021-’22. {https://darkmattermagazine.shop/products/dark-matter-presents-zero-dark-thirty } [Nov 2022] |
| Marc Fleury, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "Aaron's Lock" to ZNB Presents. [Nov 2022] |
| David Lee Zweifler, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "The Best Buggy Whip You Ever Saw" to Shortwave Books (Obsolescence Anthology). {I just sold my crittered story about an obsolete robot looking for purpose in all the wrong places to Shortwave Books for its Obsolescence anthology. Thanks for everyone who took a look. } [Nov 2022] |
| Renan Bernardo, whose (Critter'd) short story, "The Walking Mirror of the Soul" is now out in the current issue of Apex Magazine #134. [Nov 2022] |
| LindaAnn LoSchiavo, who reports "My newest book got a rave review". {"Messengers of the Macabre: Halloween Poems" by LindaAnn LoSchiavo and David Davies {USA: Audience Askew, October 18th, 2022, ISBN: 979-8841254102, $9.99] received a rave review by Billy Mills (formerly the Literary Editor of The Guardian) https://ellipticalmovements.wordpress.com/2022/10/24/recent-reading-october-2022/ } [Oct 2022] |
| Renan Bernardo, whose (Critter'd) short story, "You Blossoms of Their Seeds" is now out in the current issue of Wyldblood Magazine #10. {My short story “You Blossom of Their Seeds” is out now at Wyldblood Magazine #10! It’s a second person narrative set in a world where people with uterus can get pregnant through spores inadvertently discharged in the air by men. What parenthood means? How does shared responsibility work? How do people avoid getting pregnant? Thank you for all the Critters who gave me feedback on this one! } [Oct 2022] |
| Renan Bernardo, who sold his short story, "Callis Praedictionem" to Etherea Magazine. {This story was originally published in Dark Matter Magazine #5 and is going to be reprinted in Etherea Magazine. } [Oct 2022] |
| David Lee Zweifler, who sold his short story, "Wasted Potential" to Analog. [Oct 2022] |
| Nick Garrett, whose (Critter'd) short story, "Grief Eating" is now out in the current issue of The Arcanist. {"Grief Eating" was sold and won 2nd Place in The Arcanist's "Rest in Peace" Halloween Contest! } [Oct 2022] |
| Russell Adams, whose short story, "Chance Encounters" is now out in the current issue of Fusion 2 Anthology. {The anthology is free-to-read at Kindle Unlimited and nominally priced on Kindle. https://www.amazon.com/Fusion-2-Sydnie-Beaupré-ebook/dp/B0B3RSFT67 } [Oct 2022] |
| Dwayne Minton, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "Carbon Zero" to Lightspeed Magazine. {Than you to everyone who commented on this on--they greatly improved the final story. So happy to see this one find a great home. } [Oct 2022] |
| David Lee Zweifler, who sold his short story, "Wasted Potential" to Analog. [Oct 2022] |
| David Lee Zweifler, whose short story, "Getting Better" is now out in the current issue of The Dread Machine. {I have sold many stories at this point, but this is the first one where I feel like the "something important to say" and the "knowing what I'm doing" circles overlapped on the Venn diagram of my writing. I am so pleased that it found a home in one of my favorite publications. } [Oct 2022] |
| Larry Hodges, whose (Critter'd) short story, "Nanogod" is now out in the current issue of Dark Matter Magazine. [Oct 2022] |
| Larry Hodges, whose (Critter'd) short story, "99 Sextillion Souls in a Ball" is now out in the current issue of Dark Matter Magazine. [Oct 2022] |
| Larry Hodges, whose (Critter'd) short story, "Journey to Perfection" is now out in the current issue of Unidentified Funny Objects 9. [Oct 2022] |
| Larry Hodges, whose (Critter'd) short story, "Soul Testing in Major League Baseball" is now out in the current issue of Daily Science Fiction. [Oct 2022] |
| Larry Hodges, whose (Critter'd) short story, "Madam Hitler" is now out in the current issue of New Myths. [Oct 2022] |
| Larry Hodges, whose (Critter'd) short story, "Prototype Solar System with Strings Attached" is now out in the current issue of Galaxy's Edge. [Oct 2022] |
| Larry Hodges, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "War Around the Clock" to Bullet Points Magazine. [Oct 2022] |
| Larry Hodges, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "Small Step " to Abyss & Apex. [Oct 2022] |
| Larry Hodges, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "The Vampire on the Tesseract Wall " to Dark Matter Magazine. [Oct 2022] |
| Larry Hodges, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "Global Warming is a Hoax Said the Alien in the Spare Bedroom" to Galaxy's Edge. [Oct 2022] |
| Andrew Giffin, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "Paper and Pencil" to The Dread Machine. {Thanks to everyone who provided feedback! } [Sep 2022] |
| Nicholas Marconi, who has won the NYC Midnight 2022 100-word Microfiction Challenge 1st Place award for his short story, "A Recipe For You In The New World". [Sep 2022] |
| Renan Bernardo, who sold his short story, "The Walking Mirror of the Soul" to Apex Magazine. [Sep 2022] |
| Marc Fleury, whose (Critter'd) short story, "He Drinks Her Into His Lungs" is now out in the current issue of Seize The Press. [Aug 2022] |
| Jordan Chase-Young, who sold his short story, "Gather Me a Treasure" to The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction. [Aug 2022] |
| Renan Bernardo, who reports "My story "The Eight Hundred Legs of the Rio-Niterói Bridge" is listed in the Nebula Recommended Reading List". {This story was published in Podcastle last June. If you're an SFWA member who liked the story, I kindly ask that you consider upvoting it in the Nebula Recommended Reading List :) Thank you so much! https://www.sfwa.org/forum/reading/work/6280-the-eight-hundred-legs-of-rio-niter%C3%B3i-bridge/ } [Aug 2022] |
| Álex Souza, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "Amber Alert" to Interzone. [Aug 2022] |
| Andrew Giffin, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "Dog Years" to Dragon Gems. {Thanks to everyone who provided feedback! } [Aug 2022] |
| Richard Zwicker, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "New Cessations" to Dragon Gems. [Aug 2022] |
| D. R. Oestreicher, whose (Critter'd) novel, "The Ecology Club: A Cozy Mystery (and How to Save the Planet)" is now out from Omega Cat Press ([URL]). [Aug 2022] |
| David Lee Zweifler, whose short story, "Do You Know Why We Stopped You" is now out in the current issue of The Dread Machine. [Jul 2022] |
| David Lee Zweifler, who sold short story, "Getting Better" to The Dread Machine. [Jul 2022] |
| Jordan Chase-Young, whose (Critter'd) short story, "The Vaulting Vandals of Termina Celeste" is now out in the current issue of Escape Pod. {This novelette is a reprint; it first appeared in The Colored Lens in 2020. Many thanks to the wonderful Critters who helped me improve it in 2018! } [Jul 2022] |
| Renan Bernardo, who sold his short story, "Soil of Our Home, Storm of Our Lives" to Future Fiction Magazine (Germany). {My Solarpunk short story Soil of Our Home, Storm of Our Live, originally published in English at Apex Magazine was sold to Future Fiction to be published in German. } [Jun 2022] |
| LindaAnn LoSchiavo, whose book, "Messengers of the Macabre" is now out in the current issue of (USA: NAT 1 L.L.C., 2022). {CRITTERS: if you review books and/ or blog about poetry chapbooks, please request an ARC. Now available for pre-orders: "Messengers of the Macabre: Halloween Poems" by SFPA poets LindaAnn LoSchiavo & David Davies [USA: Nat 1 LLC, October 22, 2022] https://www.amazon.com/Messengers-Macabre-Halloween-LindaAnn-LoSchiavo-ebook/dp/B0B3NK7QG6/ref=sr_1_1 } [Jun 2022] |
| Alex Souza, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "Lorelei" to Swords & Sorcery Magazine. [Jun 2022] |
| Jamie M. Boyd, whose (Critter'd) short story, "The End of Sleep" is now out in the current issue of Luna Station Quarterly . {Thank you all who critiqued this story! } [Jun 2022] |
| Jamie M. Boyd, who sold her (Critter'd) short story, "On Sacrifice" to Brave New Worlds, a sci fi anthology by Zombie Needs Brains. {Thank you all who critiqued this story very long ago! } [Jun 2022] |
| Renan Bernardo, whose short story, "The Eight Hundred Legs of the Rio-Niteroi Bridge" is now out in the current issue of Podcastle. {I’m happy to announce that my story The Eight Hundred Legs of the Rio-Niterói Bridge is out at Podcastle, narrated by Diogo Ramos from the Brazilian magazine A Taverna, and hosted by Matt Dovey. This is a deeply meaningful story for me as a Brazilian. Rio-Niterói bridge is the most important bridge in Rio de Janeiro. It was built during the most harsh period of our military dictatorship. During its construction, 100s of workers were concreted alive; forever unacknowledged while the government squealed about progress. In 1992, journalist Geraldo, whose father died during the bridge’s construction, learns about strange sightings and wrecks near the bridge’s columns. He’s going to investigate… But sometimes, the past resurfaces to be acknowledged. } [Jun 2022] |
| Amit Gupta, whose (Critter'd) short story, "India World" is now out in the current issue of Tor.com. {https://www.tor.com/2022/06/01/india-world-amit-gupta/ It’s a reverse-immigration sci-fi tale about an Indian-American that goes to India to find economic opportunity. It’s optimistic! } [Jun 2022] |
| Russell Adans, who sold his short story, "Chance Encounters" to Fusion 2 Anthology. [May 2022] |
| J. M. Eno, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "The Tale of the Rat King" to Zooscape. {Thanks to all the Critters who helped me shape up the story! You guys rock! } [Apr 2022] |
| Douglas Kolacki, whose short story, "From the Journal of Dr. Alyaksandr Novikova--The Valkyrie" is now out in the current issue of The Lorelei Signal. [Apr 2022] |
| Chris Hepler, whose (Critter'd) short story, "The Torturer of Camelot" is now out in the current issue of New Mythology Press. {This short story was a finalist in the FantaSci writing contest, which ensured that it was published in the anthology. It then went on to win first place. Thanks to everyone that critiqued it! } [Mar 2022] |
| Ron Fein, whose short story, "Notes on the Debates in the Federal Convention Concerning a Council of Oracles" is now out in the current issue of Sci Phi Journal. [Mar 2022] |
| Renan Bernardo, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "Anticipation of Hollowness" to Escape Pod (reprint). {I'm so glad to announce that my story Anticipation of Hollowness (a novelette, actually, with about 7,550 words) is going to be reprinted and narrated at Escape Pod! Anticipation of Hollowness was originally published in Italian (2020) and English (2021) in Solarpunk - Come Ho Imparato Ad Amare Il Futuro and World Science Fiction #2, respectively. There are also versions in Chinese and Portuguese in preparation, and also a comic book version in Italian. } [Mar 2022] |
| Andrew Giffin, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "Everyone’s a Critic" to Forest Avenue Press's Disabled Science Fiction/Fantasy Anthology. {Thanks for anyone that provided feedback! } [Mar 2022] |
| Richard Zwicker, whose (Critter'd) short story, "The Tomorrow Man" is now out in the current issue of After Dinner Conversation. [Mar 2022] |
| Michael Stevens, whose (Critter'd) short story, "How To Catch a Finch" is now out in the current issue of Tall Tale TV. {Thanks to Critters who helped me out with this one. I'm greatly indebted to you. } [Mar 2022] |
| Russell Adams, whose (Critter'd) short story, "The Sea Child" is now out in the current issue of Neo-opsis Science Fiction Magazine Issue 33. {http://www.neo-opsis.ca/Thirty-Three.htm } [Mar 2022] |
| Andrew Giffin, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "Reptilian Barbarian and the Templum Solarium" to Planet Scumm. {Thanks to everyone who provided feedback! } [Mar 2022] |
| Renan Bernardo, whose (Critter'd) short story, "The Whittler" is now out in the current issue of Translunar Travelers Lounge #6. [Feb 2022] |
| David Zweifler, whose short story, "Early Riser" is now out in the current issue of Freeze Frame Fiction. {This wasn't a critter story, but some critters here helped me with feedback, so thanks to all of you. } [Feb 2022] |
| Renan Bernardo, who sold his short story, "The Small Shop of Me" to Daily Science Fiction. [Feb 2022] |
| Michael Stevens, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "Goat Island" to Noctivagant Press. {I got some great guidance from Critters on this story. Thanks, everyone! } [Jan 2022] |
| Ron Fein, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "Upper Beta Great Alcove Very Happy" to Daily Science Fiction. {This was my first sale. } [Jan 2022] |
| Russell Weisfield, whose (Critter'd) short story, "There's No Barking on Mars" is now out in the current issue of Wyldblood Magazine. [Jan 2022] |
| Michael Stevens, whose (Critter'd) short story, "When Love Goes Down the Drain" is now out in the current issue of HyphenPunk. {Thanks to everyone on Critters who helped make this story come to life. } [Jan 2022] |
| Larry Hodges, whose (Critter'd) short story, "99 Sextillion Souls in a Ball" is now out in the current issue of Dark Matter. [Jan 2022] |
| Larry Hodges, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "Madam Hitler" to New Myths. [Jan 2022] |
| Larry Hodges, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "Prototype Solar System with Strings Attached" to Galaxy's Edge. [Jan 2022] |
| Larry Hodges, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "Global Warming is a Hoax Said the Alien in the Spare Bedroom " to Galaxy's Edge. [Jan 2022] |
| Larry Hodges, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "Soul Testing in Major League Baseball" to Daily Science Fiction. [Jan 2022] |
| David Lee Zweifler, whose (Critter'd) short story, "The Inevitablist" is now out in the current issue of Little Blue Marble. {Thanks for all the valuable feedback on this story, my first pro sale. } [Jan 2022] |
[Click here to see the full list of Woohoos going back to 1996.]
