Specul8 Publishing

Specul8 Publishing

@specul8.bsky.social

Specul8 Publishing: where TC Phillips turned his oddball ideas into a haven for Aussie and Kiwi writers who love all things weird, wild, and wonderfully speculative. Strange minds welcome. Sanity optional. Visit us at www.specul8.com.au

21 followers15 following51 posts

Specul8 Publishing
@specul8.bsky.social

Check out our first winning entry for 2026's Flash Fiction Challenge by Chris Browley. Will you be next? Only way to find out is to submit a story using our current challenge prompt! www.specul8.com.au/s/stories/ab...

specul8.com.au'Absolute Cold' by Chris Browley | Specul8 PublishingAbout a year into his residency, Adam was invited for a private screening by Dr Miller. The local eccentric, Miller simply had a way with ice, like the sculptors of marble and stone in ancient …
Specul8 Publishing
@specul8.bsky.social

Hey kids! It's your good ol' Uncle Henley Hackenslash, and we're DYING to share our new cover for Knives, Nightmares & Neon: An 80s Slasher Anthology this Halloween. But the fun and games don't stop there, we're also cooking something else up for y'all!

Specul8 Publishing
@specul8.bsky.social

Check out our final Flash Fiction Challenge winner for 2025! The Compiler by Natascha Rijsdijk. Don't forget, all winning entries will also be available in our inaugural Christmas Annual coming in November! #flashfiction #shortandsweet #specul8challenge #writersoftheworld #shortstory

specul8.com.au'The Compiler' by Natascha Rijsdijk | Specul8 PublishingElena stared at the lines of code cascading down her screen. At first, it was normal—syntax checks, error logs, memory leaks. Then the colours shifted. Orange lines bled into blue, rearranging …
Specul8 Publishing
@specul8.bsky.social

Every story has a beginning... Ours started back in 2015, with the release of the inaugural issue of Specul8: Central Queensland Journal of Speculative Fiction. On October 3rd, 2025, we're going right back to the start.

Specul8 Publishing
@specul8.bsky.social

Check out our latest flash fiction challenge winning entry, The Final Step by S L Jones! This is our 2nd last story for 2025's challenge, check out our final prompt for your last chance to get in on the action #flashfiction #specul8challenge #shortandsweet www.specul8.com.au/s/stories/th...

specul8.com.au'The Final Step' by S L Jones | Specul8 PublishingThe floor hums beneath my boots, a low vibration as the airlock cycles. Ahead, the bay doors peel apart, revealing Earth in all its fragile, impossible beauty. White storms coil over vast blue …
Specul8 Publishing
@specul8.bsky.social

Massive congratulations to Beverley Young for her tale “For Those Who Will Follow”, the winner of Specul8’s latest #FlashFiction challenge! Check it out below. Who knows? You might be next. There are only 2 more challenge prompts left for this year!✍️ www.specul8.com.au/s/stories/fo...

specul8.com.au'For Those Who Will Follow' by Beverley Young | Specul8 PublishingThey were close now, their fetid smell carried on the biting wind; stale tobacco, rum-soaked sweaty bodies, unused to contact with soap and water. The wolf could smell something else, their lust for …
Specul8 Publishing
@specul8.bsky.social

Our editor has a soft spot for a little Sherlock, and this latest flash fiction challenge-winning entry was right up his alley. Check it out, Watson, the game is afoot! www.specul8.com.au/s/stories/a-... #flashfiction #shortandsweet #specul8challenge #sherlockholmes

specul8.com.au'A Study In Betrayal' by M.P. Norman | Specul8 PublishingIt was Christmas Eve, and the storm rattled the windows of 221B Baker Street. Holmes stood by the fireplace, his tall figure flickering in the firelight. Across the room, our case sprawled across a …
Specul8 Publishing
@specul8.bsky.social

Who's HUNGRY for some tasty flash fiction goodness with a little itty bit of cannibalism? 😋🍴🙍‍♂️ I know you are you beautifully twisted miscreants. Read our latest flash fiction winner, 'Stay Inside' by Shakeel Roa #flashfiction #shortandsweet #specul8challenge #cannibal

specul8.com.au'Stay Inside' by Shakeel Roa | Specul8 PublishingShe calls to him from further down the bunker. Hidden by shadows. “You know w-w-we can’t leave! It’s not safe yet!” They had lost track of how long they had been here many years ago. Or at least …
Specul8 Publishing
@specul8.bsky.social

It's time for a little less conversation and a little more action! This book promises to be as big as the King himself. Don't go stepping on our blue suede shoes, cause we're introducing Hail to the King, Baby: An anthology of Elvis impersonator-themed fiction. Submissions open December 2025

Specul8 Publishing
@specul8.bsky.social

Need a quick hit of good ol' flash fiction? Check out our latest Flash Fiction Challenge winner, 'A Hole in the Ground' by Samuel Landy! 🧟 www.specul8.com.au/s/stories/a-... #flashfiction #quickreads #zombie #specul8challenge

specul8.com.au'A Hole In The Ground' by Samuel Landy | Specul8 Publishing“It’s just a hole,” Mum said again. She’d been saying it since we started digging. It’s just a hole in the ground.”It didn’t bother me. We were both in shock. I couldn’t hold it against Mum for …
Specul8 Publishing
@specul8.bsky.social

Okay Specul8ors, let's play a game... Say you’re trapped in an '80s horror flick — think big hair, fog machines, and a killer with a boombox full of bad vibes. 👻🔪 What are your RULES to SURVIVE? Drop your answers below

Specul8 Publishing
@specul8.bsky.social

Sick of doomscrolling your way through your phone? Why not do yourself a favour and swap out all the ragebait and the bleak state of current affairs for a few moments of blissful reprieve by delving headfirst into some micro-doses of creative fiction?

specul8.com.au"The Last Strike" by Etienne Lombard | Specul8 PublishingThe hammer trembled in Marcus's weathered hands as he raised it above the glowing steel. Forty years of striking iron, and still his heart raced at the sight of metal kissed by fire—orange-white and …
Specul8 Publishing
@specul8.bsky.social

Think Fast. Write Faster. It’s Flash Fiction Time! 🖋️💣 Can you tell a knockout story in just 300-500 words? Specul8 is back with a brand-new image prompt designed to spark brilliance—or chaos. Either way, we want to see what you've got! #FlashFiction #WritersOfTheWorld #MicroFiction #CreativeWriting

Specul8 Publishing
@specul8.bsky.social

Check out our latest flash fiction challenge winner below! Think you’ve got what it takes? Your story could be next, shining on our site and wrapped up in our very first Christmas Annual! #FlashFiction #Specul8Challenge #WritersOfTheWorld #MicroFiction #CreativeWriting #ShortAndSweet

specul8.com.au'The Heart Left Behind' by TJ Wickham | Specul8 PublishingThe heart-shaped planchette hypnotised Clara. Her fingertips traced the cold, burnished gold etchings carved into dark ebony—intricate lines curling like wind around distant celestial bodies.Matt …
Specul8 Publishing
@specul8.bsky.social

Attack of the Colossal Creatures from Planet X is coming this World UFO Day to stomp, smash, and squelch its way through your imagination with 21 titanic tales of skyscraper-sized beasts, interstellar behemoths, and rampaging radioactive reptiles!

Specul8 Publishing
@specul8.bsky.social

Get ready for another dose of flash fiction goodness! Our latest Flash Fiction Challenge winning entry is now live on our site, ready to be devoured. #FlashFiction #Specul8Challenge #WritersOfTheWorld #MicroFiction #CreativeWriting #ShortAndSweet

specul8.com.au'You Give Love A Bad Name' by David Mann | Specul8 PublishingThe phone on the desk chirped into life. At this hour, that meant only one thing. “Shit,” he muttered, picking up his cell and unlocking the screen. Two missed calls. He reached over with his other …
Specul8 Publishing
@specul8.bsky.social

🔥 Flash Fiction Throwdown! 🔥 Got 300-500 words and a wild imagination? Let’s see what you’ve got! Specul8’s latest flash fiction challenge is on. Check out the latest prompt and get scribbling! ✍️ #WritersOfBlueSky

Specul8 Publishing
@specul8.bsky.social

Arise, arise, Riders of Théoden! Fell deeds awake: fire and slaughter! Spear shall be shaken, shield be splintered, a sword-day, a red day, ere the sun rises! Ride now, ride now! Ride to Gondor and the caffeinated dawn!

Specul8 Publishing
@specul8.bsky.social

With much reluctance, we inform you that we have decided to give up on the book business. Instead, we're launching Meta-Insta-Planet-X-Tok and helping to contribute to the inevitable collapse of modern society. Meta-Insta-Planet-X-Tok, 'coz books are for losers and thinking is super hard fam.