Androids and Dragons: A Journal of and about Speculative Fiction – SUBSTACK ZINE

Posted on September 15, 2025

Happy September to you all. Autumn is just around the corner, and this is where I start getting a lot of short fiction acceptances and stuff published. Always September through December. And for this website post, I am currently appearing with a reprint in the Substack publication: “Androids and Dragons: A Journal of and about Speculative Fiction.” It has hundreds of followers, hundred of readers. It’s a token-paying market. There’s a lot of these Substack newsletter publications (in the form of modern webzines), popping up these days. In the old days, when I first started getting published, a lot of webzines were hosted by Lycos or Geocities. Or they depended on programs like Dreamweaver and Flash, to look stylish for the time period. It seems Substack is becoming a major platform to build your fiction-reading audience. Stories can be emailed to subscribers, direct to their inbox. You can read a short story anywhere, not just home computer but on your phone on the go. And it pops up really quick on search engines, because the one thing Substack has going for it is many a search engine algorithm. The editor is Jenna Hanan Moore. I’ll leave any links down below, direct or otherwise. And the name of my reprint is: “Past and Present Company Excepted.”

Androids and Dragons: A Journal of and about Speculative Fiction

Substack Publication – Edited by Jenna Hanan Moore

Featuring Dagstine reprint: “Past and Present Company Excepted.”

Photo credit: Androids and Dragons/Jenna Hanan Moore — Photo credit: Caras Jr. on Unsplash, 2025.

The September Edition Opening Page – (click link, be redirected):

https://androidsanddragons.substack.com/p/issue-12-september-2025

My short story – (click link, be redirected):

https://androidsanddragons.substack.com/p/past-and-present-company-excepted

Other New Entries:

And speaking of Substack publications or newsletters, I’ve updated my own personal one recently. But only with a quickie. You can find a link to that right below…

https://lawrencedagstinewrites.substack.com/p/lawrence-dagstine-even-prolific-writers

Dark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction No. 43, August 2025 – Hobb’s End Press!

Posted on August 1, 2025

I’m pleased to say I’m back in Dark Horses Magazine, Wayne Spitzer’s long running Amazon Kindle and print periodical of genre fiction. This would be my second outing in Dark Horses, this time No. #43, the August 2025 Issue. I’m also back with a popular Japanese-inspired horror story, The Bite of the Cherry Blossom. And leading the Table of Contents this time around to boot. It’s a beautiful cover. The author line-up can be found below. Hobb’s End Press puts together a few of these monthly speculative fiction publications, including Black Sheep and Mobius Blvd. So if you missed Bite of the Cherry Blossom before, now’s your last chance to sink your teeth into this eerie tale about Japan’s suicide forest.

Dark Horses Magazine #43, August 2025 Issue

Published by Hobb’s End Press – Edited by Wayne Spitzer

Featuring Dagstine story: “The Bite of the Cherry Blossom”

Get it on Amazon Kindle or in print format.

Go directly to the Dark Horses website below, be redirected.

LINK: https://darkhorsesmagazine.mystrikingly.com/

Dark Horses Magazine August 2025 author lineup:

THE BITE OF THE CHERRY BLOSSOM
Lawrence Dagstine

BLACK MAGICK 101
Gray McClary

GLADIATORS IN THE SEPULCHRE OF ABOMINATIONS
Alexander Zelenyj

LEX TALIONIS (THE RULE OF CORD)
R.C. Bramhall

SADIE
Wayne Kyle Spitzer

NORMAN NODDING
Stephen McQuiggan

THE CROOKED ROAD
Stephen Shewmake

THE GOOD SHIT
Brian J. Smith

BEYOND UNKNOWN
Barry Vitcov

WISP
M.P. Strayer

Other New Entries: “Magazines”

STYGIAN LEPUS Online Magazine – Fall 2023, Edition No. #6 – 2024 UPDATE!

Posted on September 10, 2023

I have a 4,000-word historical story of psychological horror and romance (emphasis on the psychological, and this one is set against the backdrop of the Second World War, called: “Competing for Roses.” And you can read that story in the latest issue of a fairly new online magazine called Stygian Lepus. Fall 2023, Edition No. #6. The author line-up is on the webzine cover below. So those are who I share the Table of Contents with. If you enjoy online reading, why not give it a go. I’ll post this one in Magazines. I’ll also provide a link to the webzine’s site just below the cover. And I’ll be seeing you on the next one. Cheers.

Stygian Lepus – Edition No. #6

Online Magazine/Webzine of Dark Speculative Fiction and Horror

READ HERE: https://stygianlepus.com/

Edited to Add (2024): Stygian Lepus #6, featuring my story Competing for Roses is now available as a very pretty illustrated magazine exclusive to Kindle and Amazon print format. Get it below.

Other New Entries: “Magazines”

CALLIOPE INTERACTIVE – ZOMBIE STORY (Acceptances…)

Posted on February 14, 2023

I’ll have a Professional-Level story coming to Calliope Interactive (I also have another professional level tale floating out there, details to come on that in the coming months, and a horror-themed story collection out from Dark Owl Publishing as well). Calliope Interactive is rather new. It is a reading app specifically for fiction stories, maybe if you are into platforms like Instagram per se, but from what I do know, you can download this app, read stories from a tablet or a phone, maybe if you are in bed, or on the bus or the subway on your commute to work. The stories span many genres (in my case, horror, and it is my FOURTH zombie tale accepted in the last 12 months). I don’t know when the exact premiere date is. I will leave the website link down below and you can subscribe to their email newsletter for updates. They will most likely tell you how to download the app. Who knows, maybe the stories will be delivered to your inbox. The stories might be illustrated as well. All I can say is, I worked with a wonderful team of editors, and it was a very rewarding experience through and through, so I have high expectations for the application.

CALLIOPE INTERACTIVE -Featuring fiction by Lawrence Dagstine

COMING SOON – CLICK LINK BELOW:

http://www.calliopeinteractive.com

***I’ll file this banner under magazines***

New Entries: “Magazines”

Einstein’s Pocket Watch, July to September 2010…

Posted on September 9, 2010

You can now find me for a second time in what has become a very popular and free webzine for writers of poetry, inspirational stories, Christian and Experimental Fiction, Science Fiction and Fantasy, Christian Science Fiction, literary, and more or less stories that are uplifting. NO horror pieces. Friend and editor Rob Crandall presents: Einstein’s Pocket Watch. Rather than genre this time, I have a mainstream piece. It’s a wonderful blog webzine. Do check it out.

Einstein’s Pocket Watch – July to Sept. 2010

2nd Appearances – Mainstream – Edited by Rob Crandall

Fiction & Poetry in link below:

FREE READS – CLICK HERE:

http://peafant.wordpress.com/

Photography: “From Train Site On World Wide Web”

Other New Entries: “Magazines”

Whispers of Wickedness: “Saying Goodbye…”

Posted on April 1, 2009

For over three years, Whispers of Wickedness was that special place for writer and reader alike. A relaxed atmosphere. A place you could call home. At least for me. Filled with bands of movie lovers, Doctor Who and Blake’s 7 fans, readers of fine literature, and most of all good storytellers and poets. Nice people. Whispers was a messageboard, print magazine, and book review venue among giants… No matter how small they may have looked from the outside, their hearts were a whole lot bigger on the inside. All it took was thirty or so people that visited frequently to make it such a wonderful place to be.

Below you will find one of the issues I appeared in some years back. One of its editors went on to receive a very well-deserved British Fantasy Award, the place was a megatropolis for a long time for aspiring writers looking to break into small paying markets, and there were laughs aplenty. The final issue of the magazine is available soon. It might be Issue #16, it might be No. 17. Not sure. But the drawbridge is raised. That I do know. The mugs are almost empty, and it’s time to find a new pub to meet up.

Whispers of Wickedness #14

There will always be memories, I’m sure. To my knowledge, their review section has been archived. The regular authors will move on to some other forums… Perhaps TTA Press, perhaps Witchfinder Press (who knows). Wherever the interaction is, I suppose. And wherever the coffee is nice and hot. Thank you my friends. They were a great three years indeed. At least for this small chap.

Soon to disappear into the… ether.

Whispers of Wickedness

Signing off May 4th 2009.

www.ookami.co.uk

Cheers. And good luck to every one of you.

Lawrence R. Dagstine

Black Ink Horror #5, Sideshow Press… (Reminder Post!)

Posted on March 14, 2009

This is just a reminder to say that, if you didn’t pick up Black Ink Horror #5, well, you should. I received my copies and I must admit, I am very impressed with the quality of the product Sideshow Press puts out and will be going back in the near future. Only 110 exist. You’ll want this ink… Hurry before it sells out. Once again, very impressed with the end product.