Hello, friends!

I want to say “long time no see,” but you haven’t seen me before. So hi hello and good day to you all, my name is anna, and I’ll be your guide to cool writing stuff that, much like J-Lo’s love, don’t cost a thing. Being a writer is hard enough without having to pay for your place in this world every step of the way. So I’ll pop in twice a month to share curated lists of free contests, events, resources, and happenings, because cool girls don’t gatekeep.

This week, I’ve got creative workshops, I’ve got spooky open calls, I’ve got big dreams for you, I’ve got it all. Let’s get right to it.

Free sh!t going on this month

1. If you can find just one hour to dedicate to writing this week, I suggest you join Europeana Writers’ Room on October 7. In honor of Black history month, you’ll explore Black women found in the Europeana archive and let them inspire the themes of home, identity and memory in your writing. You don’t have to write in English, you don’t have to share what you’ve written, and, of course, you don’t have to pay to participate. Oh, and if you like it there, they’ll reconvene on the first Wednesday of next month, and the month after that, and the one after that. Themes might be different, but entrance will stay free.

2. Lovers and writers of YA fantasy, mark your calendars: Vancouver Writers Fest will host an “Of Magic and Monsters” panel on October 21. Join online for free to hear three authors share insights on engaging worldbuilding and keeping readers hooked until the very last page.

3. Should you find yourself in a poetic mood on a beautiful fall night in Austin, feel free to attend Carrie Rodriguez’ Laboratorio from 7 to 8.30 pm on October 27. Admirers of Pablo Neruda should especially enjoy this musical evening inspired by his Odas Elementales.

4. Bonus for London readers, writers, and creatives: London Literature Festival has a lot going on during its week-long run in late October, but if I were you, I’d make a beeline for the Creative Encounters workshops. There’s “Poetry and Ink” on October 21, where you’ll work on creating a larger-than-life collaborative visual poem with stamps, and “Manifesto Library” on October 28, where you’ll join artist Zoe Thompson for an evening of zine-making inspired by an archive of books that refuse to be silenced, aka Livraria Lello’s Manifesto Library. Make. Things. With. Your. Hands. Y’know?

Free submission calls

All hail the All Hallows’ Eve-themed free things! Spooky season is here, which means a bunch of themed open calls:

1. Trash Cat Lit wants your flash musings on “microbial apocalypses, deadly dinners, unexplained gross stuff, encounters with the natural or unnatural that cause change, things you shouldn’t poke or sniff, alien biomes, mutated fauna, newly zoonotic infections, sentient waste” for their first Halloween-themed issue. Br-r-r! Submit by October 11.

2. Ever thought tinsel was creepy? Me neither. But Edge & Bugsby Press dedicated a whole horror anthology to it. They’re expecting “dread galore” and are willing to pay $30 per accepted story PLUS a free eBook copy. You have until October 15 to come up with 300-800 words on the horrors of a seemingly harmless holiday decoration. Your time starts now.

3. Bilingual escritores y guionistas can submit their horror short story in English or Spanish to Written in the Dark for a chance to win up to $1,500 and pitch it for movie adaptation to Nightmare Street Studios. Submissions close on October 15!

4. If The Wicker Man, Midsommar, and Onibaba are on your annual Halloween watchlist, then I’d dare take you for a folk horror connoisseur. Flame Tree Publishing wants writers like yourself to send them your takes on the genre for their upcoming Dark Ages anthology. They pay up to £240 for accepted short stories, so send them something before October 18.

5. They say “inside you, there are two wolves.” If yours are an essayist and an artist, The Samhain Moon Literary Magazine wants to hear from you. Their Halloween essay & art contest runs through October 23, and they’re craving your spookiest offerings. Three winners will receive small cash prizes.

6. On a more grotesque note, Strange Pilgrims recently dropped the theme of their monthly micro writing challenge. Send them up to 300 words for a chance to win $30 and eternal bragging rights. (It’s closing I hear in just a few hours).

7. And if these aren’t enough to scratch your eerie writing itch, check out our Where to Publish Horror Stories collection.

Free sh!t in the Chill Subs extended universe

• Speaking of collections, we also have a bunch of other free data-backed & community-curated magazine lists if horror’s not your cup of tea. Spoiler: they’re a great way to window shop for mags-you-didn’t-know-existed-but-are-now-dying-to-get-published-in but I must warn you going through them can suck you in like a black hole. Which can be a good thing, actually. I would gladly get sucked into a black hole laden with cool magazines. What a way to go that would be.

• Over at Sub Club, Mole has taken over the lit mag section again, and pulled 12 curious ones to submit to out of his burrow.

• You might already know this, but The Forever Workshop is now part of Write or Die, so you don’t even have to go anywhere else for a dose of free writing education – it’s all right here. But to get you started, here are a few pieces I’d recommend:

If you’re new to the lit mag universe:

If you’re planning on getting your writing degree:

If you’re ready for your first book:

And that’s it from me this time!