Vastarien: A Literary Journal Is Open for Submissions

[dr. locrian]

Vastarien is now open for submissions again until March 1st, 2018.

You may submit your work here.

WE WANT:

• Nonfiction from 2,000 to 7,500 words. Scholarly and/or critical articles pertaining to Ligotti or associated authors (see below). As for contemporary authors to add to this list, Livia Llewelyn, S.P. Miskowski, Matthew M. Bartlett, T. E. D. Klein, Gemma Files, Ramsey Campbell, Allyson Bird, Laird Barron, Nicole Cushing, Mark Samuels, and many more have produced work that we would love to see subjected to intelligent critical analysis and discussion.
• Literary Horror Fiction from 750-6,000 words. Note: We are looking for original work inspired by Ligottian and/or related themes (regarding which, see the list on our main page).
• Poetry at a length of no more than 50 lines, dealing with subjects and themes that fall within our area of interest.
• Artwork that similarly addresses our subject matter.

The following authors and their work are of especial interest to Vastarien:

• Charles Baudelaire
• Thomas Bernhard
• Aloysius Bertrand
• J.L. Borges
• William S. Burroughs
• Angela Carter
• Louis Ferdinand Celine
• E.M. Cioran
• Charlotte Perkins Gilman
• Douglas Harding
• Shirley Jackson
• U.G. Krishnamurti
• H.P. Lovecraft
• Vladimir Nabokov
• Emile Nelligan
• Flannery O'Connor
• Michael Persinger
• Edgar Allan Poe
• Maurice Rollinat
• Arthur Schopenhauer
• Bruno Schulz
• Paul Valery
• Peter Wessel Zapffe

LENGTH: See the specific guidelines above for length requirements for different types of submissions. Additionally, in no case will a submission over 7,500 words be considered for publication without prior approval. Words subject to inclusion in the overall word count shall include the body of the submission and any explanatory footnotes; citations shall not be included in the overall word count.

PAYMENT AND RIGHTS: We pay 1 cent ($.01) per word for nonfiction and prose fiction, to a maximum of $50. Poetry pays $20 flat. Payment for artwork is negotiable. We purchase first serial and electronic rights. Upon publication, rights revert to the author, but we retain the right to continue selling back issues of the journal and the right to archive your work online.

HOW TO SUBMIT: Submission is via Submittable only:

ACCEPTABLE FILE TYPES: DOC, DOCx, and RTF

RESPONSE TIME: We aim to respond to submissions within two weeks (though final selection can take longer). If you have waited longer than 60 days, feel free to query us at vastarien@zoho.com, with QUERY plus the title of your submitted work in the subject line.

INTERNATIONAL AUTHORS: Vastarien welcomes submissions from authors outside the United States.

DIVERSITY STATEMENT: Vastarien believes in promoting a range of excellent writing and artwork from authors of diverse backgrounds, genders and sexual orientations. We encourage submissions from authors and artists traditionally underrepresented in horror and pieces that reflect these varying perspectives

VASTARIEN DOES NOT ACCEPT THE FOLLOWING:

• Multiple submissions
• Unsolicited reprints (defined as essays, articles, stories, or poems that have already appeared anywhere online or in any other published form)

[dr. locrian]

Gorgeous Issue 1 cover design by Anna Trueman (art by Dave Felton) finalized. Kickstarter campaign will drop early next week.

[Freyasfire]

I just LOVE that cover!!! If that is a depiction of the afterlife, I say bring it on!

[Nemonymous]

Just ordered first issue, and apparently it’s guaranteed to arrive this Easter Monday!

[Nemonymous]

Quote Originally Posted by Nemonymous

Just ordered first issue, and apparently it’s guaranteed to arrive this Easter Monday!

I shall be keeping a beady eye on this. With no personal association.

[dr. locrian]

Cover art for Vastarien, issue 2, by Yves Tourigny. Cover design by Anna Trueman.

[bendk]

I'm only familiar with a couple of the names. That's fine. There are unknown voices out there that have a lot to say. And I am confident in the editors.

Great cover. I find it disturbing for some reason.

[dr. locrian]

I sat down with the estimable Gordon B. White at Hellnotes recently, and we talked chiefly about Vastarien--what's different about us, what our scope is, the appeal of Thomas Ligotti's work, where we're headed as a journal, and what we're hoping to see more (and less) of in the future. We also discuss the "all-male" controversy/misunderstanding that put Vastarien in the spotlight for a bit, why it happened, and what to expect from our journal regarding diversity in the future. Finally, we touch on some of the writing and narrating projects I'm working on or that have been released recently.


Interview with Jon Padgett, Co-Editor of Vastarien: A Literary Journal