Flame Tree Fiction

To end the year on a high, we're delighted to present the list of authors set to feature in our upcoming short story collections: American Gothic, and Urban Crime. Following swiftly on the tail of Haunted House, and Cosy Crime, these latest books join our Gothic Fantasy series, and similarly combine classic tales with contemporary stories received by submission. Again, our call for submissions was met with an overwhelming response, so we're excited now to share this final selection! From Urban Crime's thrilling city dangers to the downright unsettling breed of horror running through American Gothic, this latest pair of anthologies promises a healthy dose of the fascinating and strange in 2019. See below for the line-up...

We're excited to now open for submissions to the next two anthologies set for 2019 publication: American Gothic and Urban Crime. These will join a thriving list of Gothic Fantasy titles, including Supernatural Horror, Robots & Artificial Intelligence, Dystopia Utopia, and more. Again, we are looking for around twenty to thirty short stories by contemporary writers to complement a selection of classic tales in these anthologies. We are keen to encourage new writers, without prejudice to age, background or previous publication history. It’s the story that matters, and the quality of writing.

Submit by email to 2018@flametreepublishing.com

Last week, in Part 1 of the Robots & Artificial Intelligence Q&A, authors revealed the ideas that spawned their stories in our Robots & Artificial Intelligence anthology. As with the companion volume Lost Souls (see the Q&As with those authors here and here), the Robots & AI anthology consists of a healthy mix of old and new stories, with formative tales from the genre complementing the work of contemporary authors. Here, some of those newer authors share which Robots & AI stories have influenced them the most, as well as casting light on their various approaches to story composition...

Our latest anthology to hit the shelves, Robots & Artificial Intelligence, features stories packed with philosophy, humour, sadness and humanity. Questions surrounding the nature of sentience and the risks and rewards of technological advancements give rise to a range of imaginative tales, set in worlds not far removed from the present day. This first part of a Q&A with the anthology's authors gives us fascinating insight into the thought-provoking story ideas that form the core of the Robots & Artificial Intelligence anthology theme.

We’re pleased to announce the line-up for the latest short story anthologies in our Gothic Fantasy series: Haunted House, and Cosy Crime. With over 800 submissions received in response to our call for stories, last month was a busy one! We’re delighted with the final selection and, whether it’s the thrill of a spooky story or the comfort of a classic whodunit, this is a list of stories to settle down with as the nights begin to draw in. Haunted House, with its ghastly ghouls, drifting souls and charming poltergeists, pairs with the armchair detectives and gentle puzzles of Cosy Crime for a January 2019 release, with the following exciting mix of contemporary and classic authors:

The roots of what we now call genre fiction reach back to the beginnings of civilization where humankind sought to explain the dramatic events of nature through myths and stories. Darkness, the supernatural, tales of the unknown, with creatures emerging from the woods, the sea, the skies, these themes still play on our collective fears, even as technology is close to taking us beyond our solar system we still explore the mysteries of the world on our mobiles, movies, streamed TV and, of course, our books. And at Flame Tree, we love this stuff!

Last week saw authors from our upcoming Lost Souls anthology reveal the inspirations behind their story in the book. The collection, due to make its appearance in the world in the next couple of weeks, complements the selection of new writers with classic masters from the genre such as M.R. James, F. Marion Crawford, Mary E. Wilkins Freeman and more. In this second part of the Author Q&A, we asked authors from the anthology to share which existing ‘Lost Souls’ tales they like best, and what sorts of processes they use to produce their own work:

Joining the ranks of our Gothic Fantasy short fiction anthologies, two exciting new books will be published in September: Lost Souls, and Robots & Artificial Intelligence. In anticipation and celebration of these upcoming releases, we asked the featured authors to tell us a little more about their story, their approach to writing, and the tales from the genre that have affected them the most. In this first part of the Q&As, authors from the Lost Souls volume share what led to the creation of their haunting stories...

UPDATE: SUBMISSIONS ARE NOW CLOSED FOR THESE ANTHOLOGIES

We're excited to open for submissions to the first two of four anthologies set for publication in 2019: Haunted House and Cosy Crime. These will join a thriving list of Gothic Fantasy titles, including Supernatural Horror, Robots & Artificial Intelligence, Dystopia Utopia, and more. Again, we are looking for around twenty to thirty short stories by contemporary writers to complement a selection of classic tales in these anthologies. We are keen to encourage new writers, without prejudice to age, background or previous publication history. It’s the story that matters, and the quality of writing.

Submit by email to 2018@flametreepublishing.com

Mermaids have a long history that dates back almost as far as the first humans. Early human civilisations saw gods and magic everywhere. Whether it be on the top of unscalable mountains or in the deepest darkest caves, magical creatures lurked in every corner of the ancient world. Due to the importance of water for survival, many early humans lived near rivers, oceans and lakes. This was the perfect combination to conjure up mermaids.

In this blog we thought we’d look at some of the most famous representations of mermaids in history! From dangerous ancient sirens to modern Disney princesses, mermaids have taken many forms…