I continue to be impressed by the quality of the submissions I’ve been getting here at Plan B. I’m very happy to announce that I’ve already accepted over half the stories for the first anthology.

If the pre-order campaign in successful, expect to see stories by:

• Nick Andreychuk
• Gary Cahill
• Sarah M. Chen
• Laird Long
• Josh MacLeod
• Kou K. Nelson
• Tom Ward

And I still have submissions in the queue to be read, so this is only the beginning!… Read the rest

I like classic mystery stories as much as the next person; I can happily get lost in a Philip Marlowe or the Continental Op adventure. However, I’d love to see more stories featuring protagonists who aren’t straight white guys. I’d also like to see stories set in locations other than American cities.

This doesn’t mean I won’t print stories with a John Smith detective set in LA. It means I don’t see a lot of the other kinds of stories and I’d love for that to change. There are mysteries everywhere, crime touches all kinds of people. I’d like to see some genre stories reflecting that reality.… Read the rest

The Short Story:

The mystery/crime short fiction market is tiny and still based on paper magazine sales. It’s time to bring mystery stories into the 21st century.

The Long:

I am a writer, who mainly works in the Science Fiction genre. I write other things, too, but SF is where I began and it’s where I’ve done most of my short fiction submissions.

A few years back, the state of the science fiction and fantasy short fiction marketplace was abysmal. Magazines were folding right left and centre, and there were hardly any markets left for new writers to approach. People were, rightfully, worried.… Read the rest

The Short Story:

As of yesterday, I am trying to give constructive feedback when I decide to pass on a story submission.

The Long Story:

I was a writer before I was an editor, and I want Plan B to be a magazine that is supportive to writers. This is why I’m endeavouring to make the ‘zine a paying market, it’s why I read the stories before I read the cover letters. I don’t want to pre-judge based on experience or credits.

As I’ve been going through the submissions, I’ve struggled with what to say when I decide that a story isn’t right for Plan B.… Read the rest