87 Calls for Submissions in May 2024 - Paying Markets - Publishing ... and Other Forms of Insanity

Something for everyone.

Panzer's trip into the Catosphere today took him to the Publishing ... and Other Forms of Insanity site.  There he found a list of markets accepting submissions.

 Erica Verrillo's list includes markets looking for fiction, nonfiction, poetry, short stories, and essays. All genres are included in the list as well.

Panzer says, "Some on the list have a submissions end date of May 1 and some don't open to submissions until May 1. So read the guidelines closely."

 

Note: This is a long post. You'll need to decide what to bring to snack on.

 

To read the post tootle over to Calls for Submissions

Vying for Theakston Glory - The Rap Sheet

Tell your friends about this so they can vote too.

On a quick trip to The Rap Sheet Panzer found the long list for the Theakston Old Peculiar Crime Novel of the Year.

 

J. Kingston Pierce has the list of the eighteen novels on the long list. There are links explaining the process for choosing the books on the long list. Near the end of the post is a link for readers to vote for their favorite to get the list to the short list.

Panzer says, "Hurry and vote. You only have until May 16 to vote."

 

Note: This is a long post. You'll need to decide what to bring to snack on.

 

To read the post tootle over to Theakston

A Monday Panzerism

 Panzer on true love:

Love conquers all ... including curtains.*

The only thing between me and true love is your window curtains.

And ...

No ...

I don't know why they are on the floor.

*From Cat Wisdom for humans

Your Free Sunday Jigsaw Puzzle: Do you see what I see?

Hint

Here's your Sunday jigsaw puzzle.

As always, remember at the puzzle site to click the square in the lower left corner to see the finished puzzle.

Have fun!

To go to the puzzle tootle over to Do you see what I see?

Free Regency Romance Audiobook: Behind the Lighthouse of Golowduyn

Enjoy the audiobook.

For those of you who like regency romance Panzer found one for you.

 

Behind the Lighthouse of Golowduyn ia a marriage of convenience romance audiobook by Deborah M. Hathaway. It's narrated by Vicki-Jo Eva and 9 hours 38 minutes long.

Wrap up in a warm blanket and enjoy the romance.

To listen to the audiobook tootle over to Behind the Lighthouse of Golowduyn

Free Noir Classic Mystery Movie: Lady in the Fog

An American detective?

Here's a film noir murder mystery movie Panzer found on the Cult Cinema Classics channel on YouTube.

The Lady in the Fog is a 1952 black and white mystery. It's 1 hour 18 minutes long.

Grab your favorite beverage, make a bowl of popcorn and enjoy.

To watch the movie tootle over to Lady in the Fog

Free RomCom Romance Audiobook: Funny Bunnies

Have fun with the bunnies.

If  you like your romances short and cute, Panzer found this one for you.

The sweet romance novella Funny Bunnies is written by Ann Omasta. It's 1 hour 11 minutes long.

Make a cup of hot cocoa, wrap up in a warm blanket and enjoy this small town romance.

To listen to the audiobook tootle over to Funny Bunnies

Free Classic BBC Radio Drama: Maigret at the Crossroads

I like British radio dramas.

For those of you who like classic mystery dramas, Panzer found one on the Joey's Coffee Bar channel on YouTube.

The murder mystery Maigret at the Crossroads is 41 minutes long. It's based on a 1931 short story.

Make a cup of tea, lean back and enjoy this classic British drama.

Note: If you don't like ads in your audio, be advised this one does have ads.

To listen to the radio murder mystery tootle over to Maigret at the Crossroads

Screen Scene - The Rap Sheet

Of course, nothing beats the couch for nap time.

Today, Panzer made a quick trip to The Rap Sheet site. There with just a little digging in the posts our illustrious kitty boy found one about the crime scene world on TV.

J. Kingston Pierce's post gives updates on what's happening in the crime and mystery television series world. Included in the post are links to news about each of the series he mentions.

 

 Panzer says, "This little kitty loves the TV. It's so nice and warm on top when it's on."

 

Note: This is a short medium post. Bring a cup of tea for today's reading.

 

to read the post tootle over to The Rap Sheet

Amazon Is Taking Scammers' Money to Serve Ads for AI-Generated Books on Kindle Lock Screens - Futurism

You need to read the post.

Panzer found an interesting post about Amazon Lock ads at the Futurism site.

 

In the post Frank Landymore explains about the relationship Amazon has with the sellers/scammers of AI-generated books. Through the use of Amazon Kindle Lock Screen Ads the scammers generated page reads on Kindle Unlimited, which they then get paid for. Included in the post are links to previous posts with more information about scammers.

 

Panzer says, "I didn't know about any of this until now."

 

Note: This is a medium length post. Bring a cup of tea and a chocolate chip cookie (biscuit) to snack on while you read.

 

To read the post tootle over to Amazon

72 Writing Contests in May 2024 - No entry fees - Publishing ... and Other Forms of Insanity

Hurry! You don't have much time.

Panzer made a  stop at the Publishing ... and Other Forms of Insanity site. There our inquisitive kitty boy found a post about writing contests with no entry fee in May.

Included in Erica Verrillo's list are fiction, nonfiction, and poetry contests. You'll need to hurry because some of the contests have May 1 deadlines.

Panzer says, "Always read the rules before you submit."

Note: Because there are 72 contests listed, this is a very long post. You'll need to decide what to bring to snack on.

 

To read the post tootle over to Writing Contests

Internet Archive Files Final Appeal Brief in Book Scanning Case - Publishers Weekly

How many times can you say the same thing the same way?

Panzer's first stop in the Catosphere today was at the Publishers Weekly site. There he found a post about the ongoing copyright infringement case against the Internet Archive (IA).

 

According to Andrew Albanese's post, the Internet Archive (IA) filed their final reply in the copyright infringement case they lost. Basically, their brief says the judge made the wrong decision in the case and needs to change it. It reads like the same argument IA has made in the case all along.

  

Panzer says, "To this little kitty it looks like it says it's okay for them to scan your work without your permission and without payment."

Note: This is a long-medium length post. You'll need to decide what you want to bring to snack on while you read.

 

To read the post tootle over to Internet Archive

37 Marvelous Writing Conferences and Workshops in May 2024 - Publishing ... and Other Forms of Insanity

Something for everybody.

Panzer just stopped in at the Publishing ... and Other Forms of Insanity site. There he found a list of the writing conferences and workshops available in May.

 

 Erica Verrillo's list includes conferences and workshops for fiction, nonfiction and poetry writers in numerous genres and in short and long form. Some of them have starting dates as early as May 2, so don't wait to check these out.

Panzer says, "Be sure to read the registration guidelines because some have restrictions."

Note: This is a long post. You'll need to decide what to bring to eat and drink to snack on while you read.

 

To read the post tootle over to Writing Conferences and Workshops

Winnowing Down the Competition - The Rap Sheet

There's an ebook category.

Today, Panzer made a quick trip to The Rap Sheet site. With a little digging in the posts our illustrious kitty boy found one about the 2024 CrimeFest Awards shortlist.

 

J. Kingston Pierce's post lists the seven award categories and the nominees for each. The list also includes links to some of the material.

Panzer says, "The list is so long you'll need to read them yourself."

Note: This is a long-medium length post. You'll need to decide what to bring to eat and drink for your snack while you read.

To read the post tootle over to Competition

A Monday Panzerism

Panzer on tools:

Mom, what do you mean cats can't use tools.

 A little back scratch would be nice too.*

Not true.

I think of you as my P.T.U.

That's Personal Transportation Unit.

Now, pick me up and carry me to the window while you're petting my head, you silly tool.

* From Cat Wisdom for humans

Your Free Sunday Jigsaw Puzzle: I've been berry busy today.

Hint

Here's your Sunday jigsaw puzzle. It's late today because we spent the afternoon planting raspberry bushes.

 

As always, remember at the puzzle site to click the square in the lower left corner to see the finished puzzle.

Today's puzzle is different than our usual kitty puzzle; instead, in honor of all our work today, it's raspberry bushes.

Have fun!

To do the puzzle tootle over to I've been berry busy today.

Free Classic Mystery Movie: The Studio Murder Mystery

1929? Have fun with this one.

For tonight's mystery movie Panzer found one on the Wm. Thomas Sherman channel on YouTube.

 

The Studio Murder Mystery is a 1929 black and white classic mystery movie. It's 1 hour long.

Get your favorite beverage, make a bowl of popcorn and enjoy the mystery.

To watch the movie tootle over to The Studio Murder Mystery

Free Clean Regency Romance Audiobook: An Agreeable Alliance

You'll need some cookies too because this one is long.

If you like regency romances, Panzer found one for you.

 

The sweet Regency romance An Agreeable Alliance is written by Kasey Stockton. It's narrated by Laura Greaves and 7 hours long.

Make a big pot of tea, grab a warm blanket, lay on the couch and enjoy this clean, sweet romance.

 

To listen to the audiobook tootle over to An Agreeable Alliance

Free Classic Mystery Short Story: The Missing Will

It's just the beginning of your fun.

For all you mystery short story lovers Panzer found one on the Audiobooky channel on YouTube.

 

The Hercule Poirot short mystery The Missing Will was written by Agatha Christie. It's narrated by Nigel Cairn and 20 minutes long.

Make a cup of tea, lean back in your chair and enjoy this mystery.

To listen to the audio story tootle over to The Missing Will

Free Clean Romance Audiobook: Lawfully Redeemed

See you tomorrow.

For those of you who like your romance audiobooks clean Panzer has one for you.

The enemies to lovers romance Lawfully Redeemed is written and narrated by Lorana Hoopes. It's 2 hours 7 minutes long.

Get the beverage of your choice, wrap up in a warm blanket and enjoy this short romance.

To listen to the audiobook tootle over to Lawfully Redeemed

Free Cozy Murder Mystery Audiobook:Cupcakes & Chaos

Here's your cozy mystery audiobook for tonight.

For those of you who like cozy murder mysteries Panzer found one for you.

 

The cozy cat mystery Cupcakes and Chaos is written by Lisa Siefert. It's narrated by Trista Shay and 5 hours 31 minutes long.

Make a cup of tea, lean back and enjoy this cute mystery.

To listen to the audiobook tootle over to cozy mystery

Free Classic Mystery Short Story: The Bibulous Business of a Matter of Taste

Here's your first story of the night.

If you like the short mystery form, Panzer found a short story on the Voices of Great Works channel on YouTube/

The Lord Peter Wimsey mystery The Bibulous Business of a Matter of Taste was written by Dorothy Sayers. It's 29 minutes long.

 

Make a cup of tea, sit down  and enjoy this classic mystery.

 

To listen to the episode tootle over to Lord Peter Wimsey

CEO AndyJassy's 2023 Letter to Shareholders - Amazon News

I'd suggest a sleeping bag for a nap in the middle.

Today, Panzer went to the About Amazon news site. There with a little digging, he found CEO Andy Jassy's letter to shareholders.

 

Included in the letter are Amazon financial amounts and percentage increases from 2023 to explain Amazon's revenue increases in sales, in advertising and in different company income streams. There are also explanations about Amazon's different business focuses. There is also a section on Amazon's GenAI plans.

Panzer says, "There is way too much information included in the post for this little kitty to explain it all to you. You need to read the letter yourself."

Note: This is a humongous post. You'll need to decide for yourself what to being to snack on while you read.

To read the post tootle over to CEO Andy Jassy

Guest Post: How a Book Really Becomes a Movie - Writer Beware(R)

Read it. It's important information.

Today's trip into the Catosphere took Panzer to the Writer Beware(R) site. There our traveling, inquisitive kitty found a post about the Book-to-Movie scams going around.

 

Before Jeanne Vellette Bowerman's guest post, Victoria Strauss gives an introduction about the current prevalence of these scams. Immediately after the introduction, Jeanne Vellette Bowerman begins with a list of things authors don't need to do or buy to get their books considered to be made into a movie.  These all involve money going from the author to the scammers. There follows an explanation of the Books-to-Movie parts. The post includes links to more information.

 

Panzer says, "This little kitty thinks this should be required reading for every author."

 

Note: This is a long post because it covers so much information. You'll need to decide what to bring to snack on while you read.

 

To read the post tootle over to Book to Movie

Free Killer Nashville Magazine April 2024 Issue

The fiction is always good.

Panzer made a quick trip to the Killer Nashville Magazine site today. This month's issue is online now.

The current issue has fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and writing craft pieces.

At the site click the Current Issue button next to the front cover. This will take you to the site to read the April issue and March, if you want, too..

Note: This is a short issue.

To read the magazine tootle over to Killer Nashville Magazine

A Monday Panzerism

 Panzer on plausible deniability:

Here's an exercise for my cat friends to try.

You know that key fob Mom has for her new car?

Well, if you pounce on it just right, the car's horn goes off in the driveway.

Me? I was asleep.*

Pounce again and the same thing happens.

For the best results, it needs to be done at 3 a.m.

Just be sure to be curled up in a ball on the chair far away from the key fob, when Mom comes running downstairs at the noise. 

 

*From Cat Wisdom for humans

Your Free Sunday Jigsaw Puzzle: Can you see me?

Hint

Here's your Sunday jigsaw puzzle.

As always, remember at the puzzle site to click the square in the lower left corner to see the finished puzzle.

Have fun!

To do the puzzle tootle over to Can you see me?

Free Classic Mystery Movie: Behind Green Lights*

Finished for today.

Panzer found this noir film on the Timeless Classic Movies channel on YouTube.

 

Behind Green Lights is a 1946 black and white murder mystery movie. It's a 1 hour long classic movie.

 

 Make your favorite beverage and a big bowl of popcorn is enjoy the film.

To watch the movie tootle over to Behind Green Lights

 

 

 

 

*(Panzer accidentally did classic mystery movie night last night. Last week we attended Book Brush's BookMARCon Thursday through Sunday. This week we attended Infostack's AI Summit Monday through Friday. Hopefully, we can rest for a while now.)

Your Free Something Is Going To Happen Mystery Blog Post: ShortCon

Looks interesting.

For those of you interested in writing conventions as much as he is, Panzer stopped in at the Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine's Something Is Going To Happen blog and found something for you.

 

There's a post by Michael Bracken called ShortCon. The post describes a short fiction convention to be held June 22 in Virginia. It lists the presenters and their seminar topics.

  

To read the post tootle over to ShortCon

Free Sweet Romance Audiobook: There I Find Hope

Here's today's romance audiobook for you.

If you like sweet romance sudiobooks, Panzer found one for you.

 

The Christian romance There I Find Hope is written by Jessie Gussman. It's narrated by Jay Dyess and 5 hours 18 minutes long.

 

Get something warm to drink, wrap up in a blanket and enjoy the romance.

 

To listen to the audiobook tootle over to There I Find Hope

Free Classic Mystery Movie: The Ninth Guest

Keep the sound down while I'm napping.

Here's tonight's murder mystery movie. It's from the Sallis65 YouTube channel.

The classic drama The Ninth Guest is a 1934 black and white movie. It's 1 hour and 7 minutes long.

Get your favorite beverage, lean back and try to figure out who-done-it before the movie ends.

To watch the movie tootle over to The Ninth Guest

Free Clean Romance Audiobook: Love and Charity

The AI sounds okay.

If you like romance audiobooks, Panzer found one for you.

The sweet romance Love and Charity is written by Bree Livingston. It's AI narrated and 7 hours and 10 minutes long.

Make a cup of hot cocoa, grab your favorite blanket and enjoy.

To listen to the audiobook tootle over to Love and Charity

Free Classic Mystery Short Story: The Vindictive Story of the Footsteps That Ran

Follow the clues.

If you like the short mystery form, Panzer found a short story on the Voices of Great Works channel on YouTube.

The Lord Peter Wimsey mystery The Vindictive Story of the Footsteps That Ran was written by Dorothy Sayers. It's 33 minutes long.

Make a cup of tea, sit down and enjoy this classic murder mystery.

To listen to the story tootle over to Dorothy Sayers Classic Mystery

AI heats up as OpenAI, Google and Mistral release new models - The Guardian

No more interruptions. It's nap time.

Panzer didn't make it home from his trip to Publishers Weekly before another storm of clapping and cheering got him on a new adventure quest. This time he found himself led to The Guardian site. With no digging in the posts at all he found one about AI (Artificial Intelligence) was the cause of all the jubilation.

Alex Hern says in his post that during a twelve hour period OpenAI announced GPT-4 Turbo's release, Google announced Gemini Pro 1.5's release and Mistral announced Mixtral 8x22B's release. The post goes in,to more details about the releases and reactions to them. It's a long-medium length post, so there's a lot more information.

Panzer says, "Inquiring kitty minds want to know: If all three of them were in a chess match, who do you think would win?"

 

Note: When you get to The Guardian site, the popup ad isn't a paywall. It's asking for a donation to keep the site open. If you don't want to do a donation, click the "X" on the right hand side to disable the wall.

 

 To read the post tootle over to OpenAI Google and Mistral

Rakuten Kobo Releases First Color E Ink Reader - Publishers Weekly

Exciting news.

Today, Panzer was shaken from his nap in his kitty bed by clapping and cheering coming from the Catosphere. Our brave kitty pilot jumped in the Panzermobile and set out on his adventure. Following all the joyous noise took him to the Publishers Weekly site. There he discovered news about Kobo was causing the uproar.

 

According to Andrew Albanese's post, Kobo has announced the upcoming sale of the first color E Ink readers. Kobo has two color readers available for pre-order now. The post includes links to the readers specifications.

Panzer says, "Two color readers available at once."

Note: This is a short post. You won't need anything to eat or drink while you read the post, but, if you want to follow the links, you'll need a cup of tea and a brownie.

 

To read the post tootle over to Rakuten Kobo

Free BookFest Replays Available

I am still recovering from last week.

Last week Panzer and Mom went to Book Brush's BookMARCon. The con ran online Thursday through Sunday afternoon. They had a lot of fun and learned a lot.

 

Because the BookFest con ran Saturday and Sunday, they missed it. However, when Panzer went into the Catosphere today, he discovered BookFest had uploaded both days' events to YouTube. So, if you missed it, you can watch it online.

 

 Note: Each day's video is about six hours long.

 

To watch day 1 of BookFest tootle over to BookFest One

To watch day 2 of BookFest tootle over to  BookFest Two

Printing cost will not change in 2024 - KDP Community Forum

I did it in one sentence.

Panzer discovered in four sentences on the KDP Forum Home page Amazon announced 2024 printing costs won't increase over 2023 costs.

 

 Note: It's a very short post. You won't need any snack while you read it.

 

To read the post tootle over to Printing Costs

Indigo Agrees to Be Taken Private By Trilogy At $2.50 Per Share - CISION*

Look at how the shareholders thingy vote works.

Panzer found an interesting press release at CISION about Canada's Indigo Books and Music Inc.

 

According to the press release the company is going private which means stock shares will no longer be traded on the market.

 

A shareholders vote on the issue will be held in May and the takeover will happen in June.

Note: It's a much longer post than this. Bring a cup of tea and a chocolate chip cookie (biscuit) to snack on.

To read the post tootle over to Indigo

 

 

*A tip of the itty fedora to Nate Hoffelder at Morning Coffee for the original mention of Indigo

A Monday Panzerism

Panzer on imparting information:

Here's a riddle:

Do you know why cats don't talk?

Answer:

Because you wouldn't like what we'd say.

 

You'd expect us to say things like:

Expect something different, did you?*

"Dinner please" and "Thank you for dinner."

Come on.  

 

Cats don't think like that.

 

No. It's "Give it to me now. It's MINE!"

*From Cat Wisdom for humans

Your Free Sunday Jigsaw Puzzle: Hi. What's your name?

Hint

Here's your Sunday jigsaw puzzle.

As always, remember at the puzzle site to click the square in the lower left corner to see the finished puzzle.

Have fun!

To do the puzzle tootle over to Hi. What's your name?

Free Mystery Episode Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine's Fiction Podcast: Schrodinger, Cat

Finished another day.

At Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine's Fiction Podcast Panzer found a new episode,

 

The episode Schrodinger, Cat is written and narrated by Anna Scotti. It's 34 minutes long.

 

Grab whatever your favorite beverage is, sit back and enjoy.

 

To listen to the episode tootle over to Schrodinger, Cat

Your Free Clean Cowboy Romance Audiobook: A Cowboy and His Neighbor

I'll look a little longer.

For those of you who prefer romance Panzer found a clean cowboy romance at the Feel Good Fiction channel.

 

The audiobook A Cowboy and His Neighbor is written by Emily Eugene. It's narrated by Tom Campbell and 6 hours long.

Make a mug of cocoa, wrap up in a warm blanket and enjoy the romance.

To listen to the audiobook tootle over to A Cowboy and His Neighbor

Your Free Classic Crime Movie: The Third Visitor

Let me know if it is scary.

Panzer found tonight's classic movie on the Sallis65 channel on YouTube.

 

The thriller crime movie The Third Visitor is in black and white. There's no date specified and no description provided. It's 1 hour 21 minutes long.

Make a bowl of popcorn, sit back and see if it really is a thriller.

To watch the movie tootle over to The Third Visitor

Your Free Clean Cowboy Romance: Rhett's Make-Believe Marriage

I need a lot of sleep. Up early tomorrow.

If you like clean Christian romances, Panzer found one on the Feel Good channel on YouTube.

The cowboy romance Rhett's Make-Believe Marriage is written by Liz Isaacson and narrated by Terry Clark Lyndon. It's 6 hours 51 minutes long.

Get a cup of hot cocoa, a warm blanket and enjoy this clean romance.

To listen to the audiobook tootle over to Liz Isaacson

Your Free Classic Mystery Audiobook: Spider's Web

It's the expanded version.

Panzer found today's murder mystery audio on the Agatha Christie Radio channel on YouTube.

The classic audio Spider's Web was written by Agatha Christie and is read by Hugh Fraser. It's 4 hours 18 minutes long.

Make a cup of tea, sit back and see if you can solve the murder before the end.

To listen to the audio tootle over to Spider's Web

Spotify price is reportedly going up again - The Verge

Another increase?

Today Panzer was tootling around in the Catosphere when the Panzermobile was buffeted by booing and hissing outside. Following all the noise, took our brave kitty boy to The Verge site.There he found a post about Spotify.

 

The post by Chris Welch quotes from a report by Bloomberg that Spotify will be increasing their prices beginning the end of April in certain countries. The increase will be for Spotify's audiobook listeners.

 

Panzer says, "The post includes a link to the Bloomberg post."

 

Note: This is a short-medium length post. Bring a cup of tea to drink while you read the post.

 

To read the post tootle over to Spotify price increase

Small Press Distrubution Shuts Down - Publishers Weekly

It's not easy to run a small company.

Panzer found some unfortunate news at the Publishers Weekly site today. The Small Press Distribution shut down last week. 

 

According to Jim Milliot's post the SPD shut down immediately on March 28. The post includes quotes from Kent Watson, executive director, about the closure. As the name implies the company distributes materials for small press, but this has proved to be nearly impossible in today's book climate.

Panzer says, "An immediate closure will cause a lot of problems for small presses."

Note: This is a short-medium length post. Bring a cup of tea to drink while you read today.

To read the post tootle over to Small Press Distribution

To CCB or Not to CCB: The Question is Still Out - Writer Beware (R)

Is it hard to file a case?

Today Panzer made a trip to the Writer Beware (R) site. Our traveling kitty boy visited there before. In case you missed those posts, Writer Beware (R) is known for outing the bad individuals/businesses which take advantage of writers. Victoria Strauss runs the site with occasional guest posts.

 

This guest post by Michael Capobianco provides information on the Copyright Claims Board (CCB.gov). The CCB is a place for writers, photographers, musicians, etc. to file copyright claims. The post includes some examples of cases (and some outcomes) which have been filed with the CCB. Links to other posts are also included.

 

Panzer says, "This little kitty plans to look into the CCB. He just might need to use it."

Note: This is a medium length post. Bring a cup of tea to drink while you read the post.

 

To read the post tootle over to The CCB

Monday Panzerism

 Panzer on democracy:

 

She's so funny.*

Mom and I both get to vote on stuff around here.

What I'll do.

Where I'll go.

Isn't it cute how she thinks her vote counts?

*From Cat Wisdom for humans