Hey guys,
Music to write by: “Bang Bang” by The Armchair Cynics
Welcome to post 2 in the Markets for New Genre Writers series. If you missed it, the previous post was on the Space Opera e-zine Raygun Revival.
Next up: AlienSkin Magazine. Warning: The home page has sound! May not be office friendly.
Background
Published by Froggy Bottom Press, a publishing company founded in May of 2002, AlienSkin magazine focuses on Science Fiction, Horror, and Fantasy short fiction. Staff includes K.A. Patterson, Kevin Hillman, Elaine Isaak, Rob Shelsky, and Phil Adams. Their goal is to “help fellow writers gain publication for stories that might have been overlooked by other editors, or that might’ve fallen through the cracks of this highly competitive market”. Of course, the site focuses on fiction, but the magazine also highlights writing resources through their non-fiction articles and writing related links.
Why is the magazine attractive to you?
AlienSkin magazine’s site is professional looking and has a great home page, one that your readers will appreciate. They have a growing reputation in the industry and a reliable publication schedule.
One of their best features is that, like Raygun Revival, they tend to offer a few sentences of feedback even on stories that they reject–a definite plus for the author that’s sick of form rejections.
Payment
AlienSkin does pay its contributors 1/2 cent per word up to 3500 words for fiction, well below pro rates, but still respectable.
10 Comments(+Add)
I’ve enjoyed a number of works on AlienSkin. I agree that it is a good electronic publication. Worthy of merit for those who are looking for an in into the industry.
Also, I think the sound may have been taken down because I’ve never had a problem with that coming up when I load the homepage.
Boone,
The sound is still there, but there is a way to turn off “uninvited sounds” through your Internet Explorer control panel. Maybe you’ve done this already?
I love the way AlienSkin is presented. Really professional, which I feel is key for getting not only new subscribers, but also new readers.
Just don’t dare them to ZAP your story. LOL!
Zap your story?
Yep. Haven’t been to their Zap room? One of my stories got Zapped (which they only do if you dare them to). Talk about a harsh critique! It was funny though, and I got a T-shirt out of it as a consolation prize. Hehe. The T-shirt’s retail value was more than what I would’ve gotten if they had opted to accept the story instead of Zap it.
No I haven’t. I certainly should do that though, I’ve got a thick skin and love suggestions on my stuff.
I wonder how can they afford to give out t-shirts for every zap though? They must do a lot of them, no?
No more than two or three a month, assuming anyone’s dared them that month. The Zap is there for everyone to read (but they give the option of you having it under a false name so know one knows who you are. I didn’t take that option).
Scott,
Do you have a link? I’ve read your work. You’re a great writer! I’d love to see how they zapped your stuff.
It was last year, and I don’t see an archives section on their website. The link I have to it on my SR and DKA blogs only goes to the current Zap Room.
It was in the April/May 2006 issue, if you can find it.
But as an addendum, it wasn’t exactly the best story I ever wrote, so…
Heh. A lot of readers felt I sent the story with the intention of getting it Zapped. Eh. Maybe I did. I don’t know. I do tend to get experimental at times.