A look at our single-author collections

Here is a video of the great single-author collections that Parallel Universe Publications has published since it first began and which are still available.

 

Jim Pitts Prints - an introductory video

 

Swords & Sorceries: Tales of Heroic Fantasy

For a glimpse into some of the interior pages of Swords & Sorceries: Tales of Heroic Fantasy Volume 2 click on this link. 

The contents of Volume 2 are:

The Essence of Dust by Mike Chinn

Highjacking the Lord of Light by Tais Teng

Out in the Wildlands by Martin Owton

Zale and Zedril by Susan Murrie Macdonald

The Amulet and the Shadow by Steve Dilks

Antediluvia: Seasons of the World by Andrew Darlington

A Thousand Words for Death by Pedro Iniguez

Stone Snake by Dev Agarwal

Seven Thrones by Phil Emery

The Eater of Gods by Adrian Cole 

Illustrations by Jim Pitts.

amazon.co.uk

amazon.com

Volume 1 is still available:

 

 

The contents of Volume One are:

THE MIRROR OF TORJAN SUL - Steve Lines

THE HORROR FROM THE STARS - Steve Dilks

TROLLS ARE DIFFERENT - Susan Murrie Macdonald

CHAIN OF COMMAND - Geoff Hart

DISRUPTION OF DESTINY - Gerri Leen

THE CITY OF SILENCE - Eric Ian Steele

RED - Chadwick Ginther

THE RECONSTRUCTED GOD - Adrian Cole

The cover and all the interior artwork is by Jim Pitts. 

 

amazon.co.uk

amazon.com

 

And, in a few months, Volume 3 will be published: 

 

Our Classic Weird Fiction Anthologies

Here's a short video about our classic weird fiction anthologies.

 

Open submission period for Swords & Sorceries: Tales of Heroic Fantasy Volume 3 till October 31st

 

 

Submissions for Swords & Sorceries Volume 3 opened on the 1st August and will close on the 31st October 2021

Payment is £25 per story regardless of length, plus a contributor's copy. The book will be published as a paperback and ebook. If a hardcover version is published we will pay an additional £25. Contributors can also buy extra copies of the book through us at cost price. 

Please send your submissions as attachments (doc or docx) to:

paralleluniversepublications@gmx.co.uk

You can send in more than one submission, but we will not accept more than one story per writer.

Although we prefer original stories we are prepared to consider reprints. Just inform us where and when it was previously published. 

You can send in simultaneous submissions, but please let us know at once if your story is accepted elsewhere.

There is no limit on the size of submissions.  

All rejections and acceptances will be sent out by email at the end of the first week in November. Please don't enquire about your submission before then.

Your story should be sent as an attachment, headed:

 "Submission - Swords & Sorceries 3"

And good luck!

To get a better idea of the kind of stories we are likely to publish in this anthology check out volumes 1 & 2:

  

The contents of Volume One are:

THE MIRROR OF TORJAN SUL - Steve Lines

THE HORROR FROM THE STARS - Steve Dilks

TROLLS ARE DIFFERENT - Susan Murrie Macdonald

CHAIN OF COMMAND - Geoff Hart

DISRUPTION OF DESTINY - Gerri Leen

THE CITY OF SILENCE - Eric Ian Steele

RED - Chadwick Ginther

THE RECONSTRUCTED GOD - Adrian Cole

The cover and all the interior artwork is by Jim Pitts. 

 

amazon.co.uk

amazon.com

 The contents of Volume 2 are:

The Essence of Dust by Mike Chinn

Highjacking the Lord of Light by Tais Teng

Out in the Wildlands by Martin Owton

Zale and Zedril by Susan Murrie Macdonald

The Amulet and the Shadow by Steve Dilks

Antediluvia: Seasons of the World by Andrew Darlington

A Thousand Words for Death by Pedro Iniguez

Stone Snake by Dev Agarwal

Seven Thrones by Phil Emery

The Eater of Gods by Adrian Cole 

Illustrations by Jim Pitts.

amazon.co.uk

amazon.com

Other than for Swords & Sorceries: Tales of Heroic Fantasy we are officially closed for submissions at the moment.

Great review of Swords & Sorceries: Tales of Heroic Fantasy Volume 2 in the latest issue of Phantasmagoria

The latest issue of Phantasmagoria magazine contains a detailed review of Swords & Sorceries: Tales of Heroic Fantasy Volume 2 by Trevor Kennedy, which ends:

"The book is brought to life all the more by some of the usual high standard of memorable cover and interior artworks by the popular dark fantasy artist Jim Pitts. All in all, Swords & Sorceries: Tales of Heroic Fantasy Volume 2 is recommended to both the hardcore high fantasy S&S fans and relative newcomers to this particular field like myself. I look forward to volume 3, which is apparently on its way very soon."

 

Phantasmagoria on amazon.co.uk

Andrew Jennings: video advert for Into the Dark - and Congratulations on a new story in Weirdbook!

Andrew Jennings has a brand new story in the next issue of Weirdbook magazine edited by Douglas Draa: Right For You Now.

Coinciding with that is a short video ad for his vampire/serial killer novel Into the Dark.  

 

 

A Montage of PUP covers

I created a montage of current PUP covers, plus two to be published later this year. Please feel free to share. 

 

Another glimpse into The Ever More Fantastical Art of Jim Pitts

 

A glimpse inside The Ever More Fantastical Art of Jim Pitts

 

After Nightfall & Other Weird Tales by David A. Riley, Illustrated by Jim Pitts

 

After Nightfall & Other Weird Tales by David A. Riley, illustrated by Jim Pitts contains the following stories:
Three Eyed Jack
The Fragile Mask on his Face
Terror on the Moors
The Shade of Apollyon
Writer's Cramp
Fish Eye
Boat Trip
Prickly
After Nightfall

Here are just a couple of the over 20 illustrations, most of which are full page.

The paperback version and kindle are available through amazon, the paperback can be ordered direct from us:

amazon.co.uk

amazon.com

DIRECT FROM PUP

 

The hardcover version of this book is available direct from Parallel Universe Publications. The price of £20 includes postage and packing to anywhere in the world. 

To order the hardcover version direct from us use this link.

A short video advert for Swords & Sorceries: Tales of Heroic Fantasy Volume 1

 

  

The contents of Volume One are:

THE MIRROR OF TORJAN SUL - Steve Lines

THE HORROR FROM THE STARS - Steve Dilks

TROLLS ARE DIFFERENT - Susan Murrie Macdonald

CHAIN OF COMMAND - Geoff Hart

DISRUPTION OF DESTINY - Gerri Leen

THE CITY OF SILENCE - Eric Ian Steele

RED - Chadwick Ginther

THE RECONSTRUCTED GOD - Adrian Cole

The cover and all the interior artwork is by Jim Pitts. 

 

amazon.co.uk

amazon.com

Two remarkable books by Jessica Palmer

Jessica Palmer has had two very remarkable books published by Parallel Universe Publications: Fractious Fairy Tales and Other Visions of Heaven and Hell.

Of Fractious Fairy Tales, one 5-star reviewer wrote: 

"Terry Pratchett was renowned for taking familiar tales and converting them into comforting metaphors in the Discworld. That is not the way of Jessica Palmer.
Rather, she takes the crumbling skeletons of childhood fairy stories and fleshes them with satirical icons from the modern world to create a universe that is not Grimm but GRIM.
An author with many genres to her credit, from teen fantasy, through textbooks and cultural analysis. But this collection has more in common with her early horror work, twisted with a warped sense of humour that befits the daughter of a clown.
As with her other recent collection, "Other Visions of Heaven and Hell", you should leave your preconceptions on the coffee table. You will not, and could not, have anticipated this. But you will enjoy it, mostly"

Of Other Visions Of Heaven and Hell,  Sandra Scholes, reviewing this book for the British Fantasy Society, wrote:

"With Parallel Universe Publications, readers always get their money's worth as Jessica has over 20 short stories to interest the discerning horror reader. Some have been published in anthologies such as Last Laugh for Weirdbook #28, Cinderella Revisited, Weirdbook #29 and What the Dickens in Substance.
Jessica, the daughter of a professional clown has had 28 books published in several genres, horror, fantasy, science fiction and is no stranger to being published by some of the more interesting imprints of popular publishers; McFarland, Scholastic and HarperCollins's Element Books as well as UK's Thompson. She keeps herself busy writing science and technology manuals, writing textbooks about Native American history and satirical columns; A Slice of Life and How to Make Love to your Personal Computer.
Of all these stories, I have a few favourites as, for me her writing style reminds me of the late Damon Knight, full of humour and comical situations you can't help laughing about. Both heaven and hell get a look in here with stories that have characters we have definitely heard of before. Devil Woman has Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson entangled in another mystery to find Tonga, assisted by Mary Morstan, Watson thinks it's bad form of Holmes to put a lady in danger, but knows there is something strange about the whole situation, Bill Gates shows up in The Gates of Hell where he is sent to Hell as a punishment for "one of the most diabolical inventions of the 20th Century," and the demons have some fun getting their own back, Cinderella makes an appearance in a revised version of the popular fairy tale in Cinderella Revisited where the fairy Godmother would never envisage how she would turn out after what she does for Cinders.
The stories are short enough and punchy enough to give readers an idea of what to expect from Jessica as a seasoned writer of fiction. I found there was a lot to enjoy and glean from her short works. Her style is fun rather than being too dark to read and once I had read one, I couldn't wait to get on to the other. In this anthology there is an excellent mix of fantasy, comedy horror and some well-placed science fiction ones tossed in for the fun of it." 

Other Vision of Heaven and Hell

You can order this book direct from us on this link, post free.

Amazon.co.uk

Amazon.com 

Fractious Fairy Tales 

You can order this book direct from us click on this link, post free

amazon.co.uk
amazon.com

 

Writer Eric Ian Steele (Nightscape) on the trials and tribulations of filming his movie Day of the Clones

 How (not to) Make an Epic Sci-Fi Feature Film

A great article written by film-maker and script-writer Eric Ian Steele on the trials and tribulations of filming of Day of the Clones during lockdown.

Eric is the author of Nightscape, a collection of stories published by Parallel Universe Publications in hardcover, paperback and kindle.  One of the stories included in the collection - After the Fall - was the inspiration for Day of the Clones, "although it has changed quite a lot due to certain things...." (Eric Ian Steele)

New Yorker Joseph Rubas knows how to pack a punch

 
One reviewer had this to say about Joseph Rubas' collection: 
 

"Joseph Rubas has crafted many short stories in a collection that left me spellbound until the end. The author holds no punches with the subject material..."

Another said:

"Wow really enjoyed it, couldn't put it down."

These are strong, well-written, unforgettable tales that can stand alongside those of any other writer in the horror genre. Available in paperback and kindle. 

Joseph Rubas began writing in 2002 after reading Stephen King’s The Stand. His earliest efforts reflected his deep love of that novel; he tried again and again to write a rip-off, but finally gave up around 2006 and resigned himself to writing original fiction. His first short story was published in May 2010 on the now defunct Horror Bound Online website. His second story was published in September 2010 in a Pushcart Prize nominated literary magazine for new and beginning writers called The Storyteller. Since then, his work has appeared in a number of magazines and anthologies. 

His first collection, the now out of print Pocketful of Fear, was released by a small publisher in 2012. His second collection, After Midnight, appeared in 2014. His short fiction has appeared in: Nameless Digest; The Horror Zine; Eschatology Journal; Thuglit; Manor House; All Due Respect, and others. He has self-published three longer works: The Rocking Dead: Seasons 1-3 (a parody of the AMC series The Walking Dead); The Rocking Dead: Season 4; The Shapeshifter; and Dracula 1912, the latter a novel.

 

In addition to writing, he has also edited two anthologies: A Thorn of Death (2012) and The 3rd Spectral Book of Horror Stories (2016).
 

He currently resides in Albany, New York.

This Collection includes:

Passing the Buck
Midnight
Aokigahara
Snowbound
Deja Vu
The Ghostly Hitchhiker
Just a Mask
Meeting Ray Bradbury
5051 Bartley Square
The Witching Hour
Potter's Field
The Warlock
Confessional
The Thing in the Woods
The Lake House
Chomo
The Traveling Show of 2016
Evildoer
A Perfect Life
Fury
Paint
Night of the Dog


Paperback and kindle:

 

You can order this book direct from us on this link, post free. 

 
amazon.co.uk
amazon.com

 

2 Books for later this year

We have two projects due for publication later this year: