NEWS

Feb 7, 2010
So issue #1 is still on sale. No wonder we've been selling a lot of copies! I'll keep the sale going until next Saturday. So if you're looking for a great deal, take advantage of it.

The better news here is that issue #2 is now filled! We closed things out with nine stories, over 20,000 words. That's less than we had in issue 1, but it was necessary to make room for some nonfiction and—due to a number of requests—a bump up in font size. And this will hopefully keep the price at $5.99 per issue.

I'm hoping for a mid-March release.

We're also in the midst of our first flash fiction contest. Eighteen authors submitted stories based on a prompt provided by John's son. They had a week to write the story. And we got some great ones! We will announce the winner this coming Saturday.

Jan 22, 2010
Tomorrow we're launching what will be a monthly flash fiction contest. In a nutshell, we'll have a contest each month except for June and December. During those two months we will pick the best out of the five previous winners, which will then be published in the next issue of Shock Totem. And prizes go to all winners.

You can read all the details here.

You will need to join our forum and request access to the contest group. Each participant is required to give feedback on each story. This will likely keep it more intimate and friendly, as people will be less inclined to just drop a story and cross their fingers, never intending to return unless they win.

If you are interested, create an account, log on, and let us know.

Jan 20, 2010
This update is for Adrian Preston. Our e-mails are getting bounced back to us; that's why you never got a response to your story. We also cannot reply to your status query.

If you're reading this, please contact us through Facebook or MySpace. And if anyone knows Adrian, please pass this message along. Thanks!

Jan 6, 2010
All stories submitted in 2009 have been responded to. Unfortunately, we continue to have problems with some of our e-mails disappearing between us and the recipient. There is little we can do about this until we have our new website and submissions management system in place.

So if you submitted to us in 2009 and have not heard back, please e-mail us.

Jan 1, 2010
And we're back, open for business. I see a few of you have camped outside, waiting to submit somethingjust after midnight. Haha.

By the way, our 40% off sale is still going on. Please grab a cheap copy of issue #1.

Right! We've got reading to do. Hope the holidays rocked!

Dec 15, 2009
Christmas sale!

From now through the new year, we'll be selling issue #1 at 40% off. That's $3.59 per issue! This deal is good for sales through our store and Paypal. Just visit the SHOP link above.

If you go through our store, please use the code HEBMPP5L at checkout. If you use Paypal, just select the appropriate location and the price should already be adjusted. Unfortunately, we cannot offer discounts through Amazon.com.

We have a limited number of issues signed by two of our favorite people, Kurt Newton and Mercedes M. Yardley. Those will be mailed on a first-come first-served basis, of course.

Please spread the word.

And from all of us, we hope you have a great Christmas and New Year's celebration! Our first year has been a great one, and we owe a lot of that to you guys. You all rule! Thank you!

Dec 1, 2009
And we're closed!

Any submissions received during the month of December will be deleted (with sadness, of course). We will reopen on Jan 1. Hopefully the new year will bring in the stories we need to seal the deal on issue #2. Either way, we should have more info about issue #2 to share at that time.

Check back soon for sale info on issue #1. Happy holidays, folks!