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The Dark Sire wishes to promote authors, poets, and artists even more than it already does. Thus, The Dark Sire Awards was born! Creatives are invited to enter the first annual awards from 12:01am (EST/New York) on July 7, 2020 to 11:59pm (EST/New York) on October 30, 2020. Finalists will be announced on January 15, 2021 with winners announced at an award ceremony held on Feb. 20, 2021 in Dover, Ohio.
CATEGORIES
FICTION
Short Story (1,000-7,000 words) POETRY Any Form (1-4 pages) ART Abstract (non-representational) Realism (representational) Photography (abstract or representational) SUBGENRES
(All submissions must fit in the following subgenres) GOTHIC
Victorian style or modern gothic accepted. Think Edgar Allan Poe and Anne Rice. HORROR Scary things that go bump in the night. Gore, blood, violence, and language are permitted. Think Mary Shelley and Stephen King. FANTASY High and low fantasy accepted. Dark fantasy welcomed. Think J.R.R. Tolkien and George R.R. Martin PSYCHOLOGICAL REALISM Darker tales with deep, inner character development. Think Fyodor Dostoevsky. |
WINNERS
PUBLISHED CREATIVES. Creatives that have published at least one work in their lifetime will be considered for the regular awards. One creative in each category and genre will be selected as the winner. There are three categories to enter and each category has three to four subgenres to choose from:
Short Fiction Poetry Art *All subgenres
Gothic Gothic Abstract
Horror Horror Realism
Fantasy Fantasy Photography
Psychological Realism Psychological Realism
UNPUBLISHED CREATIVES. For those creatives who have NOT been previously published prior to submitting to the TDS awards, one award per category will be given to the creative as the represented Emerging Artist. This award, specifically, recognizes that a creative need not be published to be talented in their field, and thus gives them a place to feel welcomed in the professional world of publishing. There are only three categories, as all genres are combined, for a total of 3 awards:
Emerging Author Emerging Poet Emerging Artist
TDS CREATIVES. Special categories and genres exist for previously published creatives of The Dark Sire. Any author, poet, or artist published in TDS from October 31, 2019 to July 31, 2020 will automatically be considered for the following 6 awards:
The Masque & Guise The Quill The Palette
Gothic All Poetry Abstract
Horror Realism/Photography
Fantasy/Psychological Realism
THE COVETED SIRE. The final award is the coveted Creative Sire Award, the heighest honor of TDS awards. This award is given to the creative who is considered to be the best in show and thus crowned BEST creative of the year. All authors, poets, and artists entered into the TDS awards are automatically eligible for this award.
All together, there are 21 awards scheduled for the first annual TDS awards ceremony.
*Any category/genre with less than 4 entries will be combined with another compatible category/genre.
Gothic Gothic Abstract
Horror Horror Realism
Fantasy Fantasy Photography
Psychological Realism Psychological Realism
UNPUBLISHED CREATIVES. For those creatives who have NOT been previously published prior to submitting to the TDS awards, one award per category will be given to the creative as the represented Emerging Artist. This award, specifically, recognizes that a creative need not be published to be talented in their field, and thus gives them a place to feel welcomed in the professional world of publishing. There are only three categories, as all genres are combined, for a total of 3 awards:
Emerging Author Emerging Poet Emerging Artist
TDS CREATIVES. Special categories and genres exist for previously published creatives of The Dark Sire. Any author, poet, or artist published in TDS from October 31, 2019 to July 31, 2020 will automatically be considered for the following 6 awards:
The Masque & Guise The Quill The Palette
Gothic All Poetry Abstract
Horror Realism/Photography
Fantasy/Psychological Realism
THE COVETED SIRE. The final award is the coveted Creative Sire Award, the heighest honor of TDS awards. This award is given to the creative who is considered to be the best in show and thus crowned BEST creative of the year. All authors, poets, and artists entered into the TDS awards are automatically eligible for this award.
All together, there are 21 awards scheduled for the first annual TDS awards ceremony.
*Any category/genre with less than 4 entries will be combined with another compatible category/genre.
ELIGIBILITY
ALL writers, poets, and artists are eligible to enter works created or published between October 31, 2019 and October 30, 2020. As long as the work submitted adheres to these dates, posted genres, guidelines, and submission policies, the creative and work is eligible. International, minority, LGBTQ+ creatives are welcome!
Regular categories are for those creatives who have had their work previously published in another publication (magazine, e-zine, book, traditional, independent) that was not TDS. If you have been published anywhere outside of TDS, you are considered a published creative. As a published creative, any work you wish to submit is eligible, published or unpublished. IF published, be sure to give the professional details of recognition for the first-rights publication.
Emerging categories are reserved for creatives who have not been previously published - at all. This means that a creative could have written or created work for years but has never had their work printed in any kind of publication (magazine, e-zine, book, traditional, independent). As an unpublished creative, you may submit any piece that you wish for consideration.
TDS creative categories are only for previously published creatives of The Dark Sire. Any author, poet, or artist published in Issue 1-4 is automatically eligible for a TDS creative award. The piece published in TDS is the piece that will be entered for consideration.
ALL entries will be considered for the Creative Sire Award.
Regular categories are for those creatives who have had their work previously published in another publication (magazine, e-zine, book, traditional, independent) that was not TDS. If you have been published anywhere outside of TDS, you are considered a published creative. As a published creative, any work you wish to submit is eligible, published or unpublished. IF published, be sure to give the professional details of recognition for the first-rights publication.
Emerging categories are reserved for creatives who have not been previously published - at all. This means that a creative could have written or created work for years but has never had their work printed in any kind of publication (magazine, e-zine, book, traditional, independent). As an unpublished creative, you may submit any piece that you wish for consideration.
TDS creative categories are only for previously published creatives of The Dark Sire. Any author, poet, or artist published in Issue 1-4 is automatically eligible for a TDS creative award. The piece published in TDS is the piece that will be entered for consideration.
ALL entries will be considered for the Creative Sire Award.
SUBMISSION GUIDELINES
When submitting shorts and poetry, please be sure that each work follows Shunn's story or poem formatting and is:
- Formatted correctly, including 1" margins on all sides, double-spacing, page numbers, and American Letter (8.5"x11", not A4)
- Typed in Garamond 12-point font using the TAB key for indents (do NOT use the ruler, paragraph, indent, or spacing features)
- No longer than 7,000 words (fiction) or 4 pages (poetry)
- Written in English
- Saved in WORD Document (.doc/.docx) format with TDS Awards, SS (short story) or P (poem), author's last name, shortened title, and genre (EX: TDSAwards_SS_Stephens_TheVampireArgos_Gothic)
- High-quality photography (300 dpi/high resolution)
- Saved as a .jpeg
- Original work
- Labeled with TDSAwards, artist's name, title of piece, material, and year created
(EX: TDSAwards_Stephens_Argos_Acrylic_2018)
JUDGES
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Dan Stout lives in Columbus, Ohio, where he writes noir with a twist of magic and a disco chaser. His prize-winning fiction draws on travels throughout Europe, Asia, and the Pacific Rim as well as an employment history spanning everything from subpoena server to assistant well driller. Dan's stories have appeared in publications such as The Saturday Evening Post, Nature, and Intergalactic Medicine Show. He is the author of The Carter Archives, a series of noir fantasy novels from DAW Books. To say hello, visit him at www.DanStout.com.
Dan is represented by Nat Sobel at Sobel Weber Associates and can be found on Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads. |
Bre Stephens is a writer of gothic and psychological fiction who specializes in short fiction. Her biggest influence is Edgar Allan Poe. She loves to create stories that not only delve into the human psyche but also question reality. When she realized that censorship was stifling some authors, she founded a new literary magazine that would "give a voice to the voiceless." The Dark Sire literary magazine debuted on Halloween 2019. To learn more about her writing, visit her website.
Bre has an MA in English and Creative Writing, is an ESL professional and a professional editor, and teaches English composition at two Ohio universities. Bre can be found on Facebook and Twitter. |
PRIZES AND ENTRY
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PRIZES
Each category/genre winner will receive: TDS trophy Certificate Publication in a special edition of TDS The Dark Sire: Accolades (March 1, 2021) |
FEES $10 (USD) PER ENTRY
Creatives can submit as many entries as they wish. However, each submission must be separate with a separate entry fee. Example: 1 short story entry ($10 USD) and 1 poem entry ($10 USD) are 2 separate entries, equalling $20 USD in entry fees. |
HOW TO ENTER
Entry is simple and fast. Just follow the two-step process below:
1) Pay the entry fee
1) Pay the entry fee
Short Story Entry |
Poetry Entry |
Art Entry |
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2) Send a query letter with your attached work via email to darksiremag@gmail.com. In the query, be sure to confirm all the details of your entry: category and genre, title of work, word/line count (fiction/poetry), medium/dimensions/substrate of piece (artwork), whether you are a published or an emerging creative, and publication details of work (if applicable).
GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!
