When I was 14, some 55 years ago, I took two summer courses – literature and creative writing. Each day I biked two miles in sun or rain from the family’s country home to the Theodore Roosevelt High School in Wyandotte. It was a time when I read “Tale of Two Cities” by Charles Dickens and “Kon-Tiki: Across the Pacific in a Raft—from South America to the Polynesian Islands” by Thor Heyerdahl. It was a time when I learn how to write essays and one-thousand word fiction.
In those days schools did not have air conditioning so while sitting in the library reading or writing sweat would row off your brow. Gazing out the window across to the Coca-Cola bottling observation window you could see bottle after bottle being filled. A taste would rush into my mouth. But all I could do was watch those bottles roll by. So I turned back to my reading my writing and let the sweat roll down my face.
That was a good summer — Carl D. Fredsti
The Word—The Form
Give us your writing . . . give us your art. Take us into your storytelling your adventure.
The art of storytelling—voice, breathing, body, language, and all the human elements of communication that’s used in communicating ideas, messages, thoughts that is the soul of the writer . . . the artist.
After you have spent hours, weeks, or months on your writing, on your artwork, finding a place for publication, a place for exhibition can seem like a daunting journey filled with twists, turns and steep climbs. Here at Mountain Tales Press we offer a place to hone your craft. We accept emerging and experience writers and artists works of literature and visual culture. You are encouraged to send works of memoirs, folklore, flash literature poetry, prose poetry, essays, short-fiction, serial novel, serial poetry, narrative, novelette and novel excerpts; and drawings, paintings, sculptures, photography, photographic essays and printmaking.
We want writing and art that is original unpublished work which is sharp, relentless, coursing with energy and able to thrive in the harshest of places—the reader the viewer, all while maintaining a vulnerable, succulent interior. Make us swoon. Dazzle us.
We are proud to have brought to our digital and print readers since 2012 works from all over the United States, Canada, England, Grand Cayman, Israel, Russia, India, and South Africa of emerging and experience writers and artists works of literature and visual culture.
Whisperings
Mountain Tales Press imprint Whisperings magazine publication accepts the following work.
Literary Genres
Flash Literature —
Fiction, prose poetry, essay and vignette – between 330 and 1,500 words
Fiction —
Folktales, legends, short stories – between 1,500 and 7,500 words
Narrative – between 1,500 and 7,500 words
Prose Poetry – between 1,500 and 7,500 words
Novelettes – between 7,500 and 17,500 words
Novella – between 17,500 and 40,000 words
Novel excerpts – between 1,700 words and 7,500 words [Excerpts from larger works must be able to stand on their own]
Works of novelette, novella and novel excerpts must be accompanied by a brief synopsis—attached as a separate document.
Non-fiction —
Memoirs – between 2,300 words and 5,000 words
Essay – between 2,300 words and 5,000 words
Narrative – between 2,000 and 7,500 words
Poetry —
You must state as to which type | form the poetry is in the header of each poem.
Poetry should have a length should not less than 500 words, and not greater than 3,380 words. For a poem totaling less than 500 words you must submit multiple poems for publication. Poetry of greater length shall be published in multiple series in Whisperings.
For children’s poetry do not submit either free verse or haiku. Mountain Tales Press is most receptive to narrative and limerick, and a storyteller’s verse that is humorous, and/or talks about animals, and/or the enjoyable familiar experiences.
Mountain Tales Press encourages ekphrasis poetry—a rhetorical and poetic writing that comments upon another art form, and serial poetry—a sequential or kaleidoscopic story as told in verse. In submitting ekphrasis poetry you must pair your writing with the artwork’s title, artist and year of work. For length of ekphrasis poetry see above. Serial poetry total word count must not be less than 2,500 words and not greater than 7,000 words. Do not submit a long poem as serial poetry.
What we will not accept … epic and long poetry, oral history writings and essays of academic nature.
Fine Visual cultural – Art and photography
Fine visual art style/form that Mountain Tales Press will consider are drawings/sketches—paintings—sculpture—printmaking—photography. Whose artistic genre are contemporary art, art nouveau, art decó, constructivism, plakatstil, dadaism, futurism, postmodern, installation art, folk art; and whose photography genre are fine-art photography, panorama, pictorialism, monochrome photography, narrative photography, street photography.
Mot Juste Series™
Mountain Tales Press imprint Mot Juste Series™ book publications accepts the following work.
Literary Genres
Folklore, legends, short stories, flash literature (flash fiction and vignette) series, narratives, novelettes, novella, novel excerpts, poetry, ekphrasis poetry, prose poetry, and series poetry.
What we will not accept … epic and long poetry, oral history writings and essays of academic nature.
Mot Juste Series™ single volume publication will consist of not less than 9,800 words, but not more than 11,500 words—this may be a single work or several works. A manuscript greater than 11,500 words will be published in multiple volumes.
If your completed manuscript does not meet the minimum word count it shall be merge with a work by another other writer of like literary genre at the discretion of the Mountain Tales Press.
Accompany your work with a short author’s third person bio (not more than 150 words), and a synopsis (not more than 360 words) of the work.