Lucky Thirteen Presents will at times be looking for submissions from artists and writers.
Mermaid Tales: an Anthology
Currently Lucky Thirteen is accepting submissions from fantasy writers for an anthology of short stories prominently featuring mermaids as the subject matter. All rights of the story remain with the author to continue to sell for other projects as well. Lucky Thirteen does not seek ownership of your stories, only the the right to publish them in this singular volume. The final product will compiled in large paperback format with a full color cover and pages printed in black and white — all beautifully illustrated. The product will be made available for purchase and printed through Lulu.com and potentially Amazon. I cannot afford to purchase a copy for each contributor, however the book will be available for a window of time at cost (which should be around $6 or $7) until such time as the release date is chosen. Payment for inclusion in the Mermaid Tales anthology will be as follows:
SHORT STORIES: Approved stories between 3,000 and 10,000 words will receive a one time payment of $10. Over 10,ooo words, but no longer than 20,000 words will receive a payment of $20. Please only send a brief synopsis of your proposed story at first and we will take it from there.
POETRY – There will be consideration for poems, however no payment can be offered.
ART – may be submitted, but will not likely be accepted, as illustrations for this project will be done by illustrator, David Ayala.
Payment via Paypal ONLY and due upon completion of approval of completed story and signed contract by the author is received.
No fan fiction will be considered. Please no stories about “the Little Mermaid”. No R-rated content. Submissions in English only. Only one submission at a time please, as each author will be allowed only one entry into the anthology. Editor reserves the right to reject any submission for any reason.
Deadline for submissions is currently until project is full.
Other Projects
Lucky Thirteen Presents currently has no other plans for anthologies, but is interested in the following types of stories: comics, graphic novels, and prose work all in the realm of fiction including horror, sci-fi, fantasy, and works of humor. As Lucky Thirteen is largely in its start-up phase, the types of projects it will consider will center around the body of contributions. The time is ripe to get on board.
For submissions or inquiries, please send an email to:
David L. Ayala
Editor
LuckyThirteenPresents AT Yahoo.com
I have a few mermaid stories if you are interested in them. What are you looking for ? Some have some sexual material others are for anyone to read.
Hi Ed,
Thanks for the inquiry. I’d prefer to keep stories rated PG-13 and grounded with more traditional lore… nothing crazy like robot-space-mermaids. I’d also like no more than one (approved) submission per author so as to give plenty of people a chance. Beyond that, I would like the author to feel free to create. If you could, please direct all further correspondence to LuckyThirteenPresents@yahoo.com
E-mailed you the story. Hope that it is OK. Let me know if any changes need to be made.
Could you please specify if the pieces of poetry should be exactly about mermaids? What if i have a couple pieces that generally it into the category of fantasy but have nothing to do with mermaids and are rather descriptive than narrative? Do I still stand a chance?
Mermaids are the theme of the anthology and should be the stars of the show. Thank you for your inquiry.
I just saw the part about synopses–does that mean that we should email a synopsis, rather than a completed short story, and only send the story if the synopsis is accepted? (As you probably know, this is unusual for short story submissions so I wish to clarify.)
Also, have you considered going with CreateSpace or Lightning Source instead of Lulu for the print version? Everything I’ve heard about POD publishing says that the first two are much better, less expensive and easier-to-use options.
Hi, thanks for the reply. I’ll answer your questions as best as I can.
I personally prefer a synopsis, as I’d rather not actually have a completed copy of your story unless I’m truly interested in purchasing it. This protects both you and myself. It also saves me a bit of time.
I’m not exactly thrilled with Lulu, but the books look nice an they ship quick. I suppose no matter who I choose to POD, someone will prefer the competitor! The grass is always greener on the other side, as they say. That said, I will look into each a little more. Thanks again.
Thanks for the quick response! I understand, and I’ll write up a synopsis.
Sorry if I’ve made more work for you–it’s just that I’ve heard so many times that Lulu is the worst choice for POD, and I don’t want this anthology to turn out to be a huge pain and expense!
Oh, for the record, I did wind up switching to Createspace. You were right. Much thanks goes to you for the tip!
Great! Glad I could help!
By the way, since you’re responding to comments, do you know when I can expect a response to my submission? I sent in a synopsis a couple of weeks ago and I’m beginning to be concerned that you didn’t receive it. I know you’re busy, so I just want to make sure it didn’t get lost.
I have a good 50 to 60 submissions to go through. I do have one of yours, I believe, entitled “Sironomelia”.
Oh, great, thanks for the response. Now I can stop worrying about it!
I was wondering if you were still accepting submissions.
Thank you!
Yes. Still accepting submissions. Thanks!
[...] Mermaid Tales: An Anthology will be published by Lucky Thirteen. They want stories of up to 20, 000 words about mermaids–other than The Little Mermaid, that is. Being a start up, they can only afford to pay $10 for stories of up to 10, 000 words and $20 for stories of up to 20, 000 words. However, this looks like a fun little anthology to be involved in and contributors will also be allowed to buy copies at production cost for a certain period of time. [...]
Hey I was just curious, if we’re unsuccessful will we hear back from you, or will you only email those whose stories you wish to publish?
I am attempting to let everyone know one way or another. It will take a bit of time to get to everyone. I understand the waiting is difficult — I’ve been there myself!
Oh no that’s fine! I don’t mind waiting, if I know that I *am* waiting, if that makes sense! So I really appreciate it. It’s so much nicer to get an actual rejection rather than just nothing, leaving you always wondering for months… (of course getting an acceptance is even nicer
How many poems can we submit and in what format? Do you want them in the email body or an attachment? Thanks!
You can submit as many as like, however I will accept no more than one per author. And please remember, I m unable to pay for poetry at this time.
Are you open to science fiction stories about mermaids as well?
I wouldn’t say absolutely not, but odds are Pretty good I would reject it. It really depends how far they are taken out of their natural settings. Mermaids flying around in space shooting aliens? No chance. Hope that helps!
So when you say you have no other projects in the works for the future as of yet, does that mean we should still submit fantasy stories to you? Also, is the mermaid anthology still open to submissions. Thanks.
After the Mermaid Tails Anthology is completed, chances are I my look to begin a new project, but I currently do not now what that may be. Currently the project is still underway. I’m still working on illustrations and have a large number of submissions to go through. Submissions are still open, yes. I can’t ay when the project will be nearing completion just yet — this isn’t my day job, so it depends on how much time I can muster up. Thanks for your inquiry and interest!
How close are you to closing submissions?
Not very.
I submitted on 16th June – the poem Ocean View. Did you receive it. do you know?
Thanks,
Cathy
Yes, I did receive it. It’ll be a while before I get to all the submissions. Thanks for your patience.