Author Denver Wheeler won last month’s contest and has agreed to host. Here is this month’s theme:
“The human mind is a fascinating and complex thing—something that hardly any of us fully understands. This month, I want to read stories about the horrors of the human mind. What happens behind the scenes that others can’t see? How far can the mind be pushed? Where does the mind go when the bounds of reality are blurred? Give me your best psychological horror stories that will keep us up all night wondering if we have lost our own minds, too!”
Before we get to the submission guidelines, please know that only the top 15 to 20 stories will be posted on our Patreon page for our patrons to vote on. The winner will receive $0.03 per word, publication in an upcoming Hotel Macabre anthology, and an Author Spotlight on our newsletter and Patreon page. The second-place winner will receive $0.02 a word, and the third place winner $0.01 per word. The winner will also have the option of hosting the following month’s contest for an additional $50.
Submission guidelines:
-Max 1,500 words
-Submit your entry in the body of an email to crystallakesubmissions@gmail.com (no attachments)
-The email subject line should be the story’s title and your author name / pseudonym
-The deadline is midnight at the end of October, wherever in the world you may reside.
-No multiple submissions (only your best story)
-Reprints are allowed if they naturally fit the theme.
-Put your bio below your story (max 500 words).
Please take note… You do not need to be a Crystal Lake Patreon patron to enter. This is a contest and only the top three placing stories receive payment. If you’re chosen as a finalist, our $5-a-month and higher tier patrons will read all the entries, posted one per day, and vote for a winner at the end of the month. Some editors/publishers may consider having your story posted on a subscription-based platform, like Patreon, as a first publication. If your story does not win, we will remove it upon request. Patreon now offers a 7-day free trial, so you can join us on Patreon as a reader or author and give us a chance to impress you. The trials are available on the $5 tiers (there’s one for authors and one for readers). These tiers (and the ones above them) will give you full access to all the stories as well as all our other content.