The Spirits Call…
Midnight Seance: 1920’s-themed Mini-Event Announcement and Guidelines
Life is a hideous thing, and from the background behind what we know of it peer daemoniacal hints of truth which make it sometimes a thousandfold more hideous. -H.P. Lovecraft
Hello Friend,
They are calling again. The spirits. I hear them, faintly, in the night, yes, but also in the quiet moments of the day. Their voices urgent, gripped with emotion, yet perceived as the mere ghosts of whispers, for though I possess the ability to perceive the wall separating Live from Dead and press my ear to it, I confess my powers insufficient to pierce the barrier fully. I need help.
Your help.
Consider this an invitation to a gathering. A channeling. A seance. Lend your powers to mine, and together we can explore the mysteries of the other side. Together, we will make their stories known to the world. I pray the world has the fortitude and wisdom to listen.
Your Medium, Guide, and Fellow Seeker,
-J. Brandon Lowry
Submission Guidelines
As we step into a new decade, we want to take some time to look back and resurrect the spirit(s) of the past. Interest in the occult exploded during the 1920’s. Magic, sprits, and powers ineffable were everywhere in the popular consciousness. Mediums wove together pseudoscience and eastern mysticism into a patchwork of rituals meant to commune with the dead. We want you to wrap yourselves in this tapestry and deliver stories and poems inspired by the Roaring Twenties.
Note that your interpretation can be pretty loose. You don’t have to write about spirits or magic if you don’t want to; a pulp fiction detective tale set in the 20’s is totally fine. As long as it can be classified as “dark” and/or “weird” and somehow connects to the decade, WE WANNA SEE IT. And now for the details:
— Try to keep your entries to 2,000 words or less. A little over is fine; a lot over will incur the wrath of your editor’s dead eyeballs.
— Preferred genres: Horror, Sci-fi, Fantasy. Feel free to incorporate other elements (Romance, Detective/Noir, etc.) but should match the “Dark & Weird” theme of the pub.
— Submission period: Jan. 5th — Jan. 20th. Publication begins on the 20th. Late submissions will still be considered. EVEN IF YOU ARE A WRITER FOR US, please use the form linked below to submit your stories.
Inspiration
Need to get in the creative mood? We got you covered! Here’s a collection of events and movements that shaped the Roaring Twenties, along with some quotes from notable authors of the time:
There are horrors beyond life’s edge that we do not suspect, and once in a while man’s evil prying calls them just within our range.
— H.P. Lovecraft, The Thing on the Doorstep
- The Great War, which ended in 1918, claimed millions of lives. Part of the resurgence in occult interest was driven by grief. This conflict was so horrific that some dared to believe it would spell the end of all war. What stories would the spirits of those soldiers have to tell?
- Women during this time began to assert their independence. Flappers were scandalous, doing all the things that “decent” women of the time weren’t supposed to do: wear short hair or short skirts, drink, smoke, dance in public, drive, or vote.
- Hollywood is born during this decade, as is America’s obsession with celebrity culture. Many influential actors and actresses fall in with esoteric cults. Rumors of secret rituals, animal sacrifices, orgies, and more fuel the spread of secret societies across the country. You could even learn to lead your own cult via correspondence courses taken through the mail!
- Gangsters and outlaws also become celebrities. The likes of John Dillinger, Bonnie and Clyde, Al Capone, and others become household names.
Here’s to alcohol, the rose colored glasses of life.
— F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Beautiful and Damned
- Prohibition went into effect on Jan. 17th, 1920. Drinking alcohol was not illegal, but the production, sale, or transportation of spirits or beer was. Speakeasies popped up everywhere to meet the public demand, often watched over by crooked cops.
- The first issue of Weird Tales is published in 1923. This pulp magazine would introduce the world to H. P. Lovecraft and his Cthulhu mythos. Meanwhile, Nosferatu and The Phantom of the Opera are frightening moviegoers, and Bela Lugosi makes his stage debut playing Dracula.
And I will show you something different from either
Your shadow at morning striding behind you
Or your shadow at evening rising to meet you
I will show you fear in a handful of dust
— T.S. Eliot, The Waste Land
