Words Before Coffee
Plus, book reviews, calls for submission, and an excerpt!
For the writers out there who thrive on caffeine, most of us just can’t get any writing done until we’ve had our coffee. “But first, coffee” is the morning mantra of many writers about to sit down to write.
Well, I do drink coffee every morning, but because of my heart condition, mine is decaf. Still, there’s something about the routine of settling in at the desk with a cup of coffee to write. Or read. I usually read with my morning coffee, and my reading includes: A short story, an essay, a poem, an article on writing and a post on the Gods and Monsters Substack.
Sometimes I will also read one or two of the many newsletters in my inbox. And I share what I enjoy reading on my Facebook page, if there is no paywall blocking readers or preventing comments.
Then there are the times when inspiration will strike right after I wake up in the morning and I’ll hurry to the desk to write it all down. It is only after the writing gets done that I can finally have my coffee.
This has happened to me many times, and I call such a writing session “words before coffee.”
Not that it’s entirely pleasant. Most words before coffee writing sessions have resulted in scribblings either with several typos or many notes that don’t make sense.
Then there are the times I try to write before that blessed cup of java, only to get held up in the middle, staring at the screen with confusion. It is such a time that I decide to stop writing and go grab that cup of coffee!
This isn’t to say that coffee will help me bang out my next masterpiece or help me figure out what how to start the next chapter, but it sure does help. Like I said, there’s something about having that cup of coffee at the desk with me that gets my creativity going. Before my heart situation got bad, there was one day when I drank three cups of regular coffee one morning and managed to write five blog posts. Whether or not it’s the caffeine that gave my creativity a boost remains to be seen, but perhaps it is the ritual itself of getting that mug of coffee before I start writing.
I’m just glad the caffeine is not needed in order for me to write anything at all. Sure, sometimes the words before coffee may end up not making much sense or the writing is a little flat, but at least some kind of writing was done all the same. I can revise and edit what I wrote later on!
The best part? There shouldn’t be a limitation on when I CAN or CAN’T write. Seriously. I have tried scheduling the writing time before and it was chaos. My life was too crazy busy for me to schedule anything! Sure, I can do that now, but I’d rather not. I DO try to write first thing in the morning, because I have found that this helps me to get that writing time in before the busy day comes about. But if there is a desire to write at any time, I’ll grab that time and write! This is especially true when inspiration strikes. When I was working outside of the home, then no, I couldn’t write when inspiration struck. But now that I don’t, I definitely start writing anytime inspiration taps me on the shoulder with an idea or two. Plus, it’s nice when those little bursts of inspiration get the writing going too.
Book Updates
My children’s book, Little Turtle Finds Friends, will be published under the name Dawn Wilson (Wilson is my married name). It will be published in November. Expect news of a new site just for all of my children’s books, which will now be republished with the new name!
My first collection of YA horror stories, The Worst Thing You Ever Did, will relaunch in November as well. Stay tuned!
Book Review
I recently reviewed the memoir What Kind of Name is Lolly, Anyway? By Lucy Brighton on Goodreads.
I recently reviewed the LGBTQ horror novella Dark Vengeance by Jerry Blazze on Goodreads.
CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS!
Week of Terrors Anthology series
Twisted Dreams Press is now accepting submissions for a new anthology series! It is seven books with ten stories in each book.
The first anthology will be published in June. The others will follow in the subsequent months. Submissions of stories for all anthologies opens the beginning of April.
Open until each anthology has ten stories. We will announce when an anthology is no longer accepting submissions.
Series Name: A Week of Terrors!
Here are the themes:
Monster Monday: Creature Horror Stories
Terrifying Tuesday: Evil Clowns
Werewolf Wednesday
Thriller Thursday: Zombies
Frightening Friday: Mix of horror subgenres: psychological horror, eco-horror, cyberpunk horror, erotic horror, etc.
Slasher Saturday: Slasher horror
Spooky Sunday: Ghost stories
Payment: One print and digital copy.
Submit your stories today!
Length: 3K-10K words
Reprints welcome! Simultaneous submissions welcome but please let us know if your story is accepted elsewhere.
Email your stories as a Word .doc or .docx file. Google Docs are okay as long as you grant Dawn permission for access.
No PDF submissions, please.
Stories written with AI will NOT be accepted!
When you submit your story, please put the following in the subject line:
Submission: WOT Anthology, (Title), (Day of the week your story is for)
Please include in your email if the story is a reprint as well as your bio.
Please send your stories to Dawn at submissions@twisteddreamspress.com
We look forward to reading your story!
Friday the 13th Summer Camp Horror Anthology
It’s that time of year again! Time for writers everywhere to start writing some summer camp horror!
At Twisted Dreams Press, however, we horror fanatics just can’t get enough of Friday the 13th!
We are announcing a call for summer camp horror stories that take place on a Friday the 13th for our anthology: Friday the 13th Summer Camp Horror! This anthology is scheduled for publication on Friday, March 13, 2026!
Start submitting your summer camp horror stories now!
The deadline is December 5, 2025. Which gives you plenty of time to cook up a story that will knock our socks off!
Check out the graphic above to get the deets! Send us your Friday the 13th summer camp horror stories to get in on this!
NOTE: A tie-in to the movie is not required. No fan fiction, please.
BONUS CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS
Wars in the Stars Short Stories
Flame Tree Publishing
“Sci-fi on an epic scale, battles fought across galaxies, complex political intrigue against the backdrop of interstellar empires and dominions, all the while affecting the lives of characters with familiar loves, lives, worries, drama.
We’re seeking space stories that burst with imagination at the same time as solid world-building, high-stake conflict, inventive advanced technologies, relatable storylines and unique beings, and vibrate with the sense of awe and possibility that the wonder of the universe inspires.”
Simultaneous submissions ok. Multiple submissions ok. Reprints allowed. No AI.
Length: 2000-4000 words
Payment: “8 cents/6 pence per word for original stories, 6 cents/4 pence for reprints.”
Deadline: October 1, 2025
“Tractor Beam is a quarterly speculative and science fiction publication dedicated to soilpunk: radical visions of hopeful futures on Earth. Our editorial mandate is to explore provocative, optimistic ideas around farming, food, soil, and beyond, reimagining how humans can live more harmoniously with nature.
So let’s bring sci-fi down to earth–literally–and sow the seeds of a better tomorrow, today.”
Length: “We prefer stories under 6,000 words or graphic novellas at 12-16 panels.”
Payment: “Tractor Beam pays $1,000.00 for all accepted submissions.”
Deadline: October 6, 2025
Into the Deep Dark Woods Anthology
Wordfire Press
“The deep, dark woods—a place of mystery, where beauty and danger walk hand in hand among fallen leaves, dappled sunlight, and twisted shadows. A place of fairy tales, secrets, and monsters.
Into the Deep, Dark Woods is an anthology exploring the magic and mystery of the primeval wilderness, where tangled branches create a foreboding canopy. Think of the creatures that inhabit the forest and the people who stumble upon them. Behind a towering hickory could be a fairy circle, a dragon’s lair, or a druid’s cairn. The deep, dark woods lurk everywhere—on an alien planet, in the wilderness of a virtual world, or even in your own backyard.
Your story might be about a desperate lost hiker who bargains with a forest creature to find the way home; revolutionaries who combat AI-powered logging machines; a bamboo forest with wish-granting pandas who have a twisted sense of humor; someone hiding from a deadly stalker; or a wood fairy and human whose ill-fated romance might just work out after all.
Make us shiver. Make us wonder. Be mysterious, humorous, dark, romantic, or spine-chilling. But your story must take place in the one setting where anything is possible—the deep, dark woods.
Step off the path and into a world where every tree tells a story and every clearing offers a choice. The deeper you go, the darker it gets. The darker it gets, the more interesting the light becomes.
Welcome to the woods. Try not to get lost.”
What they’re looking for: “Original fiction and poetry in the genres of fantasy, science fiction, horror, suspense, mystery, humor, and romance, appropriate for up to a “PG-13” audience.”
No reprints. No AI-generated content.
Length: 5000words max
Payment: “6¢/word on acceptance.”
Deadline: October 15, 2025
“The Deadlands wants critical, academic, and personal essays from everywhere and from everyone. We have likely reached our current limit of pieces having to deal with cemeteries, and would rather see work exploring other aspects of death, including but not limited to Death cards in tarot decks, mourning clothing from specific cultures, memento mori, death/mourning jewelry, funeral rites, and the like.
We also welcome nonfiction pieces about death in media. These essays would not be book, game, or episode reviews; for example if you were looking at the recent video game Spiritfarer, the piece would not focus on game mechanics and how it stacks up against other cozy management games, but rather would talk about how the game represents guiding spirits to their final resting places, and how it explores world myths throughout its gameplay. Likewise with television media, we would take a broader view, i.e. a piece about death imagery/myth as used in the show Game of Thrones (Arya’s pale horse, anyone?), rather than specific episode reviews, which would not interest us. When in doubt, submit the work; you need not query.”
Length: 1-4K words
Payment: $100
Deadline: October 15, 2025
“Broadly defined, the type of fiction we are looking for is “fun”. Yes, that descriptor is highly subjective, and ultimately it comes down to the personal preferences of the editors. However, here are a few road signs to get you started on the path into our hearts.
A fun story, at its core, is one that works on the premise that things aren’t all bad; that ultimately, good wins out. This doesn’t necessarily mean that your story has to be silly or lighthearted (though it certainly can be). Joy can be made all the more powerful when juxtaposed against tragedy. In the end, though, there should be hope, and we want stories that are truly fun for as many different kinds of people as possible.
Swashbuckling adventure, deadly intrigue, and gleeful romance are some of the most obvious examples of what we’re looking for, but we won’t say no to more subtle or complicated topics, as long as they fit under the wider “fun” umbrella.
We HIGHLY ENCOURAGE submissions from authors of marginalized ethnicities, sexualities, genders, abilities and perspectives. If you are an author whose experience is not often represented, we absolutely want to hear from you. YES, YOU. If you’re comfortable sharing this information with us in your cover letter, please do.”
They are looking for stories that are considered speculative fiction, mainly science fiction or fantasy. No AI-generated stories. No simultaneous submissions.
Length: 5000 words max
Payment: “We pay $0.03 per word with a minimum of $20 in exchange for first world electronic rights in English. We ask for an exclusivity period of 3 months from date of publication.”
Deadline: October 15, 2025
This Week’s Book Promo
It’s a birthday week for one of my books!
A little over a year ago, my second collection of YA horror stories, Triggered, was published by Twisted Dreams Press. (Alas, my first collection is currently unavailable, but hopefully it will be back in print in November!)
The ten stories in Triggered contain female teenagers as the main character. They are stories of vengeance, haunting and rebellion.
Here is an excerpt from one of the stories in the book. Enjoy!
Excerpt from short story “Dead Weight” published in the YA horror short story collection Triggered by Dawn Colclasure
Copyright © 2024 by Dawn Colclasure
She’d promised her mother she would be home by ten. That had been a sure thing. She had planned her whole day at the fair around ensuring she would meet with her friends at the designated spot at 9:30 so that they could all leave together with Clarissa’s mom.
But as Ella Langley scanned the area near the corn dog stand they had agreed to meet at, she didn’t see her friends anywhere. Jacob and Clarissa had wanted to go on a ride that Ella didn’t want to go on, so they had all agreed to split up and go do whatever they wanted to do at the fair, then meet back at 9:30. Ella had noticed Clarissa sticking with Jacob as they had walked off, so she figured they were still together.
But neither of them were here now. And it was getting late.
She looked at her watch. It was now 9:45. She was not going to make it home by 10 now.
That was not going to happen. Clarissa’s mother was one of those super careful drivers who drove the speed limit no matter what, even if she was in a situation where she had to get out of the way of something fast. That was probably why her mother was okay with her being driven to the fair by Clarissa’s mom; it was one of the things that made her “safe.”
She sighed, slouching against the side of the stand. Well, maybe they were just in a long line or still on a ride. They would show up. They promised.
Ella’s legs grew tired so she sat down. She grabbed her phone and texted Clarissa: “At the corn dog stand. Where u guys at?”
The message showed up as “Delivered” but not “Read.” She stared at it for far longer than usual but still it was not showing up as “Read.”
She looked at the time on her phone and it said “9:50.” Sighing again, she finally put her phone away. And waited.
Lights went off at the fair. Carnival music stopped playing. Even the people at the corn dog stand started packing up to leave.
Ella got to her feet and walked around the corn dog stand. Maybe they had just looked at one side of it, didn’t see her, and left.
But as she scanned the area again, there was no sign of her friends.
Finally, she checked the time again. It was now 10:15.
She sighed, throwing her arms up in frustration. “Great!”
They weren’t coming for her, like they promised they would. They had left her there.
Abandoned her.
Ella tried not to cry as she walked through the fair that was filled with employees closing up their shops and packing up their things, fighting the tears struggling to break free from her
eyes. She sobbed, wiping them away. Her friends had abandoned her. Just like her father had abandoned her on the night she was born thirteen years ago.
Ella sobbed again, coming to a stop as the tears ran down her cheeks. She wiped her eyes and sniffled.
“Are you lost, child?”
Ella gasped in alarm, suddenly paying more attention to her surroundings. More importantly, the person who stood in front of her.
Thanks for reading! See you next weekend!
I love my coffee in the morning. It seems like part of a ritual, reading, writing, answering emails, whatever needs to be done. Just seems right to have that cup of coffee at hand while I'm doing it.
Dawn, congratulations on the publication of your latest children’s book - - "Little Turtle Finds Friends." Stories are so important for children, as you know. Best of luck.