Thrilling Me Softly

Fear is one of the strongest, base human emotions. It is a driving force, an ancient instinct our primate ancestors evolved to ensure the survival of our species. When faced with danger or perceived threats, a physiological reaction - the fight-or-flight response - is triggered. This floods the body with hormones and chemicals that can help one survive by either running away, or fighting the danger.

Although most of us no longer encounter wild predators trying to eat us these days, the legacy of that primal fear remains, giving modern Man all kinds of neurotic anxieties, irrational phobias and a host of other stress related diseases. Yet it seems many of us continuously seek out stimuli that trigger those fight-or-flight signals.

Humanity’s morbid fascination with the dark side is as old as we are as a species, and an inherent part of our heritage. Throughout our history, a transcendental fear of the unknown has been the fertile soil that has birthed all sorts of horrors. As we have evolved, so have our fears: from yarns whispered around a fire, dark tales told by traveling bards, to the abundance of nightmarish conceptions in literature, radio, film and on the internet today.

Some of us have also taken to physical thrills, and for many, it is a rite of passage as well. Whether it’s visiting a haunted house attraction with hidden ghouls and zombies jumping out at you, riding a death-defying roller coaster or jumping out of a plane with a parachute, the sensory experience elicits a physical and emotional release. The brain produces adrenaline, endorphins, dopamine and oxytocin, powerful chemicals that replace fear with intense relief and satisfaction.

Facing our fears fulfils a deep psychological need that allows for the expression and confrontation of the dark unconscious. It is no wonder so many seek it out. We may find it enjoyable to explore and experience fear in a safe setting, or derive gratification from pushing ourselves to extremes.

But for us, the artistic intensity of evocative prose with the power to keep us in the thrall of terror remains incomparable, unmatched by any other medium. We relish being huddled over a story that builds tension and apprehension in our minds, with twists and turns that challenge our assumptions. We thrive on the exhilarating intrigue and the nail-biting suspense of unknown dangers the protagonist faces. We crave being on the edge of our seats, guessing and dreading the possible outcomes, yet being unable to put the book down.

So we’re going to keep this contest category flexible. Let’s not get technical about all the different genres and subgenres right now - we just want you to fill us with deep dread, to make our hair stand on end, to set our hearts pounding. Transport us to a world where the bogeyman exists, and could very well come after us. We dare you to scare the living bejeezus out of us.

Important Dates

Accepting submissions: 1 Sep 2017, 00:00 EST

Closing date: 30 Sep 2017, 23:59:59 EST

Results: 16 Nov 2017

Prize: US$1000

Official Rules

1. Only one entry per person is allowed for each contest. Any entrant who enters more than one entry per contest will be disqualified.
2. All entries must be book proposals written in english and 1000 words long. Publishizer will only accept unpublished works for all contests. If an entry has previously been published in any way, the entry will be disqualified.
3. Contest entries must be submitted, approved and launched online on Publishizer within the specified month of each contest to qualify. Publishizer will begin accepting entries at midnight EST on the 1st of each contest month, and close for submissions at 23:59 EST on the last day of that month.
4. Each contest has a cash prize of USD1000 and may be subject to local, state and federal taxes. The prizes are not transferable, and the winner is responsible for all tax payments, international chargers, transfer fees and/or monetary currency conversion charges related to all cash prizes. Publishizer will only be responsible for the original cash prize amounts, not responsible for any additional costs, monetary transfers, charges or fees imposed between a financial or governmental institutions and the winner.
5. Each campaign will have a total of 30 days, and the entry with the most number of pre-orders sold in 30 days wins the cash prize of USD1000.
6. The winner will be notified by email 30 days after the contest closing date, and receive information on when, where and how the prize can be collected. If the winner cannot be contacted or does not claim the prize within 14 days of notification, Publishizer reserves the right to withdraw the prize from the winner and pick a replacement winner, which will the book proposal with the next highest number of pre-orders sold within 30 days.
7. Publishizer takes only a 30% commission of all pre-order sales at the end of the crowd-publishing campaign. The commission on pre-order sales is final and no cash or other alternatives will be offered. Publishizer takes no commission from future deal authors make with publishers, nor cuts from future book sales after the crowd-publishing campaign has ended.
8. In the event of a tie, the winner will be determined by the campaign with the most number of readers registered on their campaign. If the number of readers are tied as well, the tied campaigns will have a further 24 hours to obtain more readers. The campaign with the most readers at the end of the 24 hours wins.
9. Book proposals that do not respect the Publishizer guidelines may be rejected. In the event of a rejected proposal, no correspondence relating to the contest will be entered into.
10. By entering any of the Publishizer book proposal contests, an entrant agrees to abide by and be subject under Publishizer general terms and conditions and the Publishizer book proposal contest official rules.
11. Any “spamming”, harassment, suspicious or offensive behaviour and/or inappropriate use of the Publishizer website or email address is strictly forbidden. Publishizer reserves the right to disqualify any entrant if it has reasonable grounds to believe the entrant has breached any of the official rules and terms and condition. Any entrant deemed to be engaged in any fraudulent and/or suspicious activity will prompt an immediate disqualification of that party’s submission(s) into all past, present and future contests.
12. Publishizer shall have the right, at its sole discretion and at any time, to change or modify these terms and conditions, and such change shall be effective immediately upon posting to this webpage.
13. Publishizer reserves the right to cancel the competition if circumstances arise outside of its control, or if it is deemed that a contest received insufficient entries.
14. Only the number of preorders and readers registered on the campaign within 30 days of the launch date of the campaign will count towards the contest.
15. Anyone may participate. There are no purchase requirement or entry fee to enter any of the Publishizer book proposal contests.