Is it real or myth that goddesses or deities that we pray had existed on earth? Well, it’s all about our belief and our belief becomes our prayer. We pray so many avatars of goddesses in our homes, in our hearts and it always fills us with a greater sense of contentment and joy that Devi has surely heard our prayers and would bless us. And this belief doesn’t come in one day or by watching a soap series overnight, it's built in us from our childhood days. I too have grown up on many such mythological told tales on goddess and goddesses and my fascination increased many folds whenever I heard stories of real goddess walking on earth and staying within the realm of mortals and among us disguised as ordinary women around us. Listening to those stories would always fill my heart with a sudden kind of pride of how even the goddesses chose to live like ordinary human beings!
One such tale I heard of when I was a young girl in my teens and that story has stayed with me for long and it still haunts my mind, in fact, that tale itself has given me the reason to create this prompt for you all; as I am sure you all have heard such stories of goddesses in your growing up years too. I am surely going to reflect on that story by writing for this Anthology and I would be travelling along with you through this book.
Now, let me now give you a little briefing about how you have to carve your stories, though by now I’m sure you all must have got the drift of how and what this book is going to be about! Yes! You have to conjure those told tales of real goddesses/s and shape them into your stories of fiction. The main catch is to create all the stories by showing goddesses’ presence on earth like any human being and how you want to mix mythology with a hint of fiction into it, is going to be your take. I hope this prompt will bring out all those intriguing tales of how goddesses have stayed with us, blessed us, and then disappeared or you can choose to give your story a more proper ending, but keeping a mystery factor would enhance your story, don’t you think?
Some guidelines for you to have a better understanding and for your smooth sailing through the process of writing down and submitting your story:
1. Kindly submit only one short story within (3500-4000) words limit. It should not be below 3000 words though.
2. You can write on any Goddess and create your kind of mythology with loads of fiction in it.
3. Kindly write with gentleness and divine fervour and do not create any kind of harsh remarks, or comments on any religion or faith. The stories should be purely fictional with your take on stories heard from your forefathers and you have the full liberty to tweak them the way you want.
4. The tales should be on real goddess only and not any symbolic or figurative response towards the theme. We are taking submissions on pure mythology this time so carve your stories accordingly.
5. No name-calling, religion bashing, or sentiment-hurting stories should be sent. Such stories would be straight away rejected.
6. You can choose any era but keeping your stories as it is in the time zone of how and when you have heard would be a great idea. Start your stories, like stories flow and not like as if someone told you a story and you’re narrating it, rather make it flow like a fiction tale that is taking place naturally with the characters and ambience happening in it. It should not be autobiographical or biographical but a pure fiction account.
7. The last date of submission is 15th September 2022, till midnight IST.
8. The selected name of writers will be revealed on 10th October 2022.
9. The three best stories will also win away our latest Anthology ‘Songs of a Mermaid’ as an honourary prize.
10. Once selected, the writers will have to make a payment of INR. 1500, this would be an advance payment against which each writer would be getting five author copies of the Anthology ‘When Goddesses Walked the Earth’ along with a Publication Certificate, whenever the book will be out in Paperback.
11. Send in your submission with 'Third Anthology' in the Subject line with your latest Bio in the third person, your one HD quality image, and send it to editorialmagazinecc@gmail.com
Looking forward to some brilliant mythological stories of goddesses and Devi.
Happy Submission!
Founder & Director
Monalisa Joshi
P.S. This book would be our divine offering to the various goddesses we worship and by no mean any ambiguous take on the existent tales of mythology or sacred books. We do not intend to defy any religious belief or custom.