Time's Up!

Or almost up. The fourth annual Watery Grave Invitational Short Story Contest is seeking submissions. You must have a crime fiction story of no more than 3,000 words already published (in any format) between April 16, 2011 and April 15, 2012. Selected authors will have their names dropped into a hat and ten names drawn at random. The drawees will then compete in the contest to write a new original story. And there are prizes! E-mail your story link by 9 p.m. TONIGHT to be entered via the website above.

Time's also running out to submit your novella of 15,000 to 20,000 words in length for the sixth annual Black Orchid Novella Award. The sponsors are seeking original works of fiction in the tradition of the Rex Stout’s Nero Wolfe, which (1) emphasize the deductive skills of the sleuth; (2) contain no overt sex or violence; (3) don't include characters from the original series. First prize: $1,000 plus publication in Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine. But hurry: entries must be postmarked by May 31, 2012.