Edited to Add: Due to life events, the two folks who planned to start this e-zine had to table it for the foreseeable future, and all story rights have been returned to the authors.
E-zine startups are a dime a dozen, so why am I announcing one? Because Qu33n of Spades is Kayla Rose Graham, a lady I've known for a while. She was one of the early commenters on A Fistful of Fire, back when it was still 17k words long, called "Evonalé", and posted on FictionPress.com. Kayla gave me some good content feedback, even on that early version, helping me make sure my characters were solid, not Mary Sue-ish.
I think this will be one enjoyable 'zine—and I say that not knowing whether they'll accept my submission or not. As far as I'm aware, they haven't even finished hammering out all the details for how the 'zine will work, but I think Kayla will do a good job with it.
Qu33n of Spades' Fiction Magazine accepts fiction and poetry. (No reprints.)
Fiction: Genre or literary fiction, up to 8k words long, though not erotica or excessively mature content. (So no gratuitous sex, violence, or objectionable language.)
Poetry: 1 poem of no more than 50 lines or up to 5 poems of no more than 30 lines each. (Same content guidelines as the fiction.)
Rights: specific rights still getting hammered out, but looks like it'll be a form of first rights, archival rights, and 6 months' exclusivity
Payment: income share
Submission Deadline: May 31, 2012
(for June issue)
E-mail qu33nofspades [dot] fiction [at] gmail [dot] com for more details.
As I mentioned above, I've submitted. It's a story that I think fits Kayla's goals for the 'zine, though she's not yet told me if I'm right.
From a business standpoint, submitting to a startup is always a gamble. There's no track record for how well that specific company will sell, how long they'll be around, or how they treat their authors (or editors). I'm trusting that Kayla get the e-zine off the ground—and in a worst-case scenario, I'm looking at that "6 month exclusivity" and thinking I can live with not releasing that particular short story for another 9 months, if it comes to that. (Assuming 3 months to verify that the 'zine isn't coming out late.)
But startups can't get off the ground if nobody submits, so each writer has to decide if they'll participate for themselves. Personally, I like working with startups.
What do you think of the sound of Qu33n of Spades' Fiction Magazine? Do you think you'll check it out to read or submit to?
—Misti
