December has been a busy month for Apex! On the magazine side, we’re done releasing our original fiction for the year, we put out an annual report, and we migrated to a brand new, brand unified, website! On the book side, we’re releasing Breath of Life by LH Moore and getting ready to release ChloroPhilia by Cristina Jurado.
We want to thank you for being with us through 2024. We are grateful to be able to release dark, beautiful fiction and never forget that it is our community that makes this possible. We are looking forward to 2025 and, despite trepidation about the state of the world, we hope you are too. Fiction that challenges, exposes, and inspires has never been more important.
Issue 148
Issue 148 of Apex Magazine will release on January 7th. Original fiction by Lindz McLeod, Wil Magness, Allison Thai, and Monte Lin, flash fiction by Colton Kokoa Neves and Abigail Kemske, essays by Zin E. Rocklyn and Rob Cameron, reprints from Russell Nichols and Amal Singh, plus our regular Words for Thought column from A.C. Wise.
Our cover art this month is by Vibhav Singh, titled “Odyssey Ruins”.
Issue 147
Issue 147 of Apex Magazine continues to release on our new website. Original fiction by Rachel Bolton, Rachael Severino, Danny Cherry Jr, Avra Margariti, Garrett Ashley, flash fiction by Parker M. O’Neill and Juniper White, reprints from Danian Darrell Jerry and DaVaun Sanders, essays from Robert V.S. Redick and Zohair, with our regular nonfiction from AC Wise, plus an excerpt from the new release Island of the Dead by Brian Keene and two book reviews.
The cover art is by Asya Yordanova, who has done Apex covers in the past.
Letters from Nowhere by Asya Yordanova
Snap Judgment Episode 12 with special guest Sloane Leong Rescheduled
Every quarter, industry professionals Lesley Conner, Rebecca E Treasure, and a special guest offer live feedback on the first pages of anonymous submissions, which are read aloud by our brilliant host and narrator, Aly Grauer. We are pleased to announce that our special guest editor for this event is Sloane Leong!
Due to an illness on the team, Snap Judgment 12 was canceled and will be rescheduled in early 2025! We’ll have a final date soon – stay tuned!
2024 Apex Magazine Annual Report
Our managing editor Rebecca E. Treasure pulled together a pile of data, including demographics and submissions statistics, for a report on Apex‘s authors, team members, publications, and more.
We made a number of changes in 2024, including this being the first year of Editor in Chief Lesley Conner’s solo leadership, changing our reading system from a one-reader system to a two-reader system, and running a Kickstarter with a different approach.
In 2025, our goal will be to improve our accessibility and diversity, especially in regards to voices from the global south.
You can check it out here: https://www.apexbookcompany.com/a/blog/apex-magazine/post/apex-magazine-2024-annual-report.
Out in January: ChloroPhilia by Cristina Jurado
Kirmen is different from the other inhabitants of the Cloister, whose walls protect them all from the endless storm ravaging Earth. As a result of the Doctor’s cruel experiments, his physical form is gradually evolving into something better fit for survival in the world outside.
Kirmen worries about becoming a pariah, an outcast among the other denizens of the domes. But his desire for affection and acceptance, and his humanity, fade away as the Doctor’s treatments progress. What will happen when the metamorphosis is complete? What will be left of Kirmen and the group of survivors that he knows and loves?
In English for the first time (translated by Sue Burke), ChloroPhilia, an Ignotus Award-nominated novella by Cristina Jurado, is a strange coming-of-age story while addressing life after an environmental disaster, collective madness, and sacrifices made for the greater good.
Closed to General Submissions
Until we finish reading all this year’s submissions, we won’t have a specific date for re-opening submissions. We’re working hard to get through all the stories shared with us, return those we won’t be keeping, and make final decisions. We thank you for your patience!
New Releases from Apex Book Company!
Orders are open for Breath of Life by author and poet LH Moore!
Breath of Life is a collection of the works of author and poet LH Moore, whose history- and Afrofuturism-inspired speculative short fiction, poetry, and essays move between and blur the genres from horror to science fiction to fantasy. With themes of family and identity, rooted solidly in history and imagining the unknown—both here on Earth and beyond—Breath of Life is an exploration of the unexpected.
Writer, poet and historian LH Moore’s Afrofuturism- and history-inspired speculative fiction and poetry have been in numerous publications and anthologies, such as all three groundbreaking Dark Dreams anthologies of Black horror writers; Bram Stoker Award Finalist anthology Sycorax’s Daughters; Black Magic Women; Chiral Mad 4 and 5, SLAY, Conjuring Worlds, StokerCon 2019, Humans Are the Problem anthologies; and Fireside, Apex, and FIYAH magazines.
Not even death is an escape from the… ISLAND OF THE DEAD.
World Horror Grand Master Brian Keene returns to zombies in this relentless sword and sorcery horror epic!
Einar, an enslaved barbarian, plots his escape from a war galley transporting troops and a mysterious weapon to far enemy shores. But when an apocalyptic storm at sea leaves Einar and his fellow captives shipwrecked on a strange, uncharted island, friend and foe alike must band together against a ravenous, steadily growing horde of the undead… and even worse dangers.
Apex Flash Fiction
The Flash Fiction Contest for December 7-31—themed Tarot Cards—will close on December 31. The theme for January 7-31 will be announced and will open to the public on January 7th for flash fiction submissions. Themes are chosen by Patrons at the end of the month and announced to Patrons on the 1st of each month. Submissions will be open to the public on the 7th of each month. Submissions close on the last day of the month at midnight (US Central Time).
Good news! The flash fiction contest will continue to run and be open to submissions monthly throughout 2025. Issues will now include 3 flash pieces instead of 2! In March 2025 the flash contest will be open to Unpublished Authors Only for our Unpublished Authors issue later next year.
The winner will be paid $0.08/word or $10, whichever is more. The winning story will appear on our Patron Hunt as an exclusive and will be included in a forthcoming issue of Apex Magazine.
Discord Happenings
As always, we have a fun community on our Discord, offering critique swaps, co-writing opportunities, and general community support for writers. (Rejectomancy, anyone?) We recently added opt-in private channels for LGBTQ+, BIPOC, ESL/International, and neurodivergent communities! Join us by subscribing or backing the Patron Hunt.
Patron Hunt Exclusives
Here on our Patron Hunt, we have an exciting lineup of exclusives for our Patrons from the Authors of Issue 148. We’ll have our usual interviews, critique opportunities, and some story insights. Keep an eye on our Patron Hunt!
Not a Patron? Join us for as little as $3/month to get access to these exclusives and the magazine in your inbox!
To add the Apex Events Calendar to your google calendar, follow this link: https://tinyurl.com/4c74rext
To submit anonymous feedback to Apex Magazine‘s editorial team, please visit this link: https://forms.gle/7B9TcFxB5V3zTS5o7
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