Hello, children of the dark. How are these days treating you? How’s your creative impulse? 

I ask for a reason: did you know there’s more than these weekly editions under the TWF banner? They did take a small sabbatical in the second half of last year (for reasons of me not understanding my remit properly; sorry!), but they are back in a big way and we’re looking for more.

I am, of course, talking about the Unholy Trinity and the Serial sections of our humble publication. Permit me to give you a brief lowdown (and you can also find details here on our submissions page).

The Unholy Trinity is three drabbles that work as stand-alone stories, but can also be tied together to tell something larger. This tie could be theme, it could be plot, it could be character – but the three stories must work both alone and together. 

Then we have the Serials, which are longer stories that can be broken up and published over the course of several weeks. For the Serials, your tales can go up to 15,000 words – but they must be able to logically break into 4-10 instalments of 1000-1500 words in length. And if serialising was good enough for Dickens’ work… 

Anyways, those two sections are led by the wonderful Shalini Bethala, who would love to see the Horror Tree inbox flooded with new works to keep her Brooklyn nights busy. What have you got? How’s that creative impulse now?

In the meantime, we’re still working our way through those previously-trapped drabbles, so bear with us and enjoy this week’s offerings as you wait.

In this week’s menu, Greta T Bates is here to break your heart. This is followed by three delicious quick bites:

• Christopher Blinn goes to battle,
• Stéphane G Perahim is keeping an eye on her fitness, and
• Ron Capshaw has a hunting warning for us all.

Over to you, Stuart.

This is the last full week of my current MBA class so hopefully, next week I’ll be able to get a few things done if my brain doesn’t take a break on me.

And while we had progress last week on the new layout, there is nothing to report this week. *twitches*

Moving on. We’re catching up on TWF and the anthology and getting ever closer to this year’s release. No ETA quite yet.

Just as a reminder, we’re taking submissions to a new Horror Tree anthology titled Shadowed Realms: The 2022 Indie Dark Fiction Anthology. In it, we’re looking for the best 1,000-9,000 word dark fiction published in semipro and token-paying markets in 2022! This reprint anthology will be paying 1 cent per word, and we’re very excited to start taking a look at your work!

For those looking to support the site, we’re always open Ko-Fi donations and always have our Patreon going.

As always, I hope you had a great weekend.

Hello children of the dark. We’ve had a real-world horror story unfolding in our home this week… yes, we’ve got mice. Somewhere. In the walls, maybe. Though there is evidence of them elsewhere. Tiny bite marks. Tiny specks of poo.

So we spent our long weekend (we get a four-day weekend for Easter on this side of the pond) clearing *stuff*. The other half thankfully did all the mucky jobs; it brought him face-to-face with some of our tiny furry friends, who have been ethically caught and released in the local woodland. Maybe we’ve got them all; we’re not sure. I might’ve just heard a squeak behind me. 

But it also meant I had to – god forbid – clear out my piles of books. I don’t like getting rid of stuff at the best of times, but my books are precious. I’ve tried to do e-readers but I just need the paper in my hands for the full experience, y’know? At least our local charity store has been gifted a stack of mid-2000s Lonely Planet guides and all of those books I got when I was trying to be literary but realised I would always be a spooky girl at heart.

It’ll probably do me good. If nothing else, there’s more space for new stories now! (Sorry, mum.)

In the meantime, we’ve still got all those trapped drabbles to review, so bear with us and enjoy this week’s offerings as you wait.

In this week’s menu, Austin Mooney waxes lyrical with a very gross bit of body horror. This is followed by three delicious quick bites:

• C.D. Kester has some family troubles,
• Lauren Carter shows great devotion, and
• Mike Rader takes faith to new heights.

Finally, if you had a dark speculative story published in a semi-pro or token paying market in 2022 then submit it to Horror Tree‘s new indie dark fiction anthology! Because why should the “best of” anthology fun be confined to the pros? Get the details here.

Over to you, Stuart.

Some exciting news on the new website front. We’re making progress once more! As of the time of writing this post, I was able to give the new layout a quick demo that works fantastic speed-wise on my desktop, laptop, and mobile. Now, we’re going through our first round of actual edits and after that I’m going to be getting some feedback from some of our team. Fingers crossed this means that we’ll have a real update for you soon! 

Just as a reminder, we’re taking submissions to a new Horror Tree anthology titled Shadowed Realms: The 2022 Indie Dark Fiction Anthology. In it, we’re looking for the best 1,000-9,000 word dark fiction published in semipro and token-paying markets in 2022! This reprint anthology will be paying 1 cent per word, and we’re very excited to start taking a look at your work!

For those looking to support the site, we’re always open Ko-Fi donations and always have our Patreon going.

As always, I hope you had a great weekend.

So, dear children of the dark, I have a confession to make. Regular readers will know of my tendency towards begging for drabbles. Yes, begging. I tried to cloak it in all manner of things, but let’s call a spade a spade. Truth is, we were running super short on drabbles; we had a few emails trickling in but it had been months since we had a regular run.

Turns out there was a reason. It’s our bad.

Thank you to the drabbler who poked me to ask if I’d received the submission, because that resulted in an investigation that revealed the darkest of worst nightmares for a digital publication: the well-oiled machine had come unstuck, and anything submitted via the website was not getting through to us in the system. Since, like, the end of January. (I *knew* it must’ve been quiet for a reason!)

All hail hero Stuart, who spent his Saturday poking around in the backrooms of Horror Tree HQ and managed to find the issue: a plug-in that had turned itself off. Rather than cry “sabotage!”, he got to work removing the clogs and all the emails came flooding in. And, embarrassingly, while I had been sitting here begging you all to submit drabbles, there were actually more than 70 waiting for us in the digital ether. 

So, our most humble apologies. Occasionally we get a tech gremlin in the process that sends submissions from the website, through the various turns, until it reaches my email. But never have we had a wholesale clog that stopped the machine entirely. On behalf of the TWF team, I thank submitters for their patience, as ever. You’re all the best. 

Let’s never speak of this again, yes?

Over to this week’s menu, Sam Lesek has something short for you this week but it truly packs a punch. This is followed by three delicious quick bites:

• Joshua Gage takes to the haunted high seas,
• M.S. Martinez makes a discovery on a desolate beach, and
• Robert Allen Lupton brings a fairy tale.

As a final word: did you see the amazing new anthology that Stuart and Holley Cornetto are putting together? If you had an awesome dark story published in a semi-pro or token paying market in 2022 then submit it to Horror Tree‘s new indie dark fiction anthology! Because why should the “best of” anthology fun be confined to the pros? Get the details here.

Over to you, boss.

So. Yes. As we’ve been getting a TON of e-mails sent in directly, it hadn’t been clear that our contact form e-mails hadn’t come through. We’re going to be busy combing through these (though are still open to drabbles in the meantime! I just can’t promise a fast turn around.) 

Just as a reminder, we’re taking submissions to a new Horror Tree anthology titled Shadowed Realms: The 2022 Indie Dark Fiction Anthology. In it, we’re looking for the best 1,000-9,000 word dark fiction published in semipro and token-paying markets in 2022! This reprint anthology will be paying 1 cent per word, and we’re very excited to start taking a look at your work!

We hit over 100 followers on Medium! THANK YOU SO MUCH TO EVERYONE who gave us a follow! I won’t be begging you on this for awhile. 🙂 

For those looking to support the site, we’re always open Ko-Fi donations and always have our Patreon going.

As always, I hope you had a great weekend.

Hello, children of the dark. Insert obligatory “how is it April already” and/or “daylight savings sucks/is the best” reference in here. I hope those who have recently moved clocks forward are starting to settle into the lighter nights, and those who have or are moving them back (I think Aussies and Kiwis did it last night?) haven’t had too much chaos. Take this as a reminder to check the time before you need to head to work lest you turn up an hour early (or late!).

You might be able to tell from that weird opening paragraph that my brain is mush. Is it because I’m still recovering from taking part in the London Writers Salon’s 24-hour writing marathon last weekend? (And thanks to those readers who joined in! I saw you! And to our own Stuart for helping me host an hour of it – he dealt with our manic energy rather well.) Or is it just my ongoing sleep and health troubles? I won’t bore you with the details, but if you’re exhausted, burned out, not sure how you’ll keep functioning, you have my empathy this week and all weeks. 

I’ve been doing some essential admin behind the scenes on TWF, and we still have a lot of short stories awaiting publication so I’m sorry we can’t yet re-open to those subs yet unless Stuart finds a magic pot somewhere. We are always open to drabbles though, and have an insatiable appetite for them. I know I’m a bit of a broken record on this, but if you’re nervous about submitting to publications then our drabble call-outs are a good way to test the waters. I promise we’re kind and will give you honest and constructive feedback on your work.

Speaking of submissions, did you see the amazing new anthology that Stuart and Holley Cornetto are putting together? If you had an awesome dark story published in a semi-pro or token paying market in 2022 then submit it to Horror Tree‘s new indie dark fiction anthology! Because why should the “best of” anthology fun be confined to the pros? Get the details here.

As for this week’s menu, we’re embracing the creature feature. Alli Drust’s gorgeous short story tracks a developing relationship with a creepy crawler. This is followed by three delicious quick bites:

• Christina Nordlander contemplates the march of time,
• Nic Dracas blows it all up, and
• Cassandra Vaillancourt discovers black gold.

Before you go, I wouldn’t be doing my friend duty if I didn’t point you in the direction of Matthew Ducharme’s new regular series for the ‘Tree about writing fantasy. His second episode, which you can read here, delves into the concept of magic.

Over to you, Stuart.

We’re currently actively seeking new drabbles for Trembling With Fear as we’re getting a bit low. I’m still trying to figure out if we can open up our short stories again but it, like everything else budget related, is being held up by our website redesign. Hopefully, news there soon. 

Just as a reminder, we’re taking submissions to a new Horror Tree anthology titled Shadowed Realms: The 2022 Indie Dark Fiction Anthology. In it, we’re looking for the best 1,000-9,000 word dark fiction published in semipro and token-paying markets in 2022! This reprint anthology will be paying 1 cent per word, and we’re very excited to start taking a look at your work!

At the time of writing this post, we’re under 5 followers on Medium from 100 and would really love to hit the triple digits; please give us a follow! Once we hit that number, I’ll stop harassing you all for a bit 🙂

For those looking to support the site, we’re always open Ko-Fi donations and always have our Patreon going.

As always, I hope you had a great weekend.

Hello, children of the dark – well, it’s not so dark now, is it? Here in the northern hemisphere we celebrated the Spring (or Vernal) Equinox this week, marking the beginning of longer days as we head into summer. Nature is coming alive, the sun is gaining in strength. It’s a promise of much light to come. 

We don’t often associate the darkly speculative with daylight, do we? Midsommar, obviously, was an exception, but I’m curious – what are your favourite horror or dark fantasy stories set mainly in the light? Let me know in the comments below, or tag HorrorTree on your favourite social media platform (there are honestly too many now and you’re all on different ones to tell you to head to the bin fire that is Twitter).

This week’s menu is traditional fare, with plenty of dark corners and dark thoughts. We do start with a breath of fresh air from Kevin M. Folliard as he tracks the life of a romance. This is followed by three delicious quick bites:

• Kellee Kranendonk is hiding under the stairs,
• Catherine Berry tries to forget, and
• Alejandro Gonzales has an unfortunate medical problem.

And finally: please send us more drabbles. Our machine is hungry. They don’t even have to be equinox themed! Delve into those dark minds and unearth 100 words exactly of your deepest fears.

Over to you, Stuart. 

I’m still loving our new Trembling With Fear layout, and I hope that you are too!

By the time you’re reading this, the announcement has happened! Thanks to an idea from Holley Cornetto, she and I are taking submissions to a new Horror Tree anthology titled Shadowed Realms: The 2022 Indie Dark Fiction Anthology. In it, we’re looking for the best 1,000-9,000 word dark fiction published in semipro and token-paying markets in 2022! This reprint anthology will be paying 1 cent per word, and we’re very excited to start taking a look at your work! 

At the time of writing this post, we’re 14 followers on Medium from 100 and would really love to hit the triple digits; please give us a follow! Once we hit that number, I’ll stop harassing you all for a bit 🙂

For those looking to support the site, we’re always open Ko-Fi donations and always have our Patreon going.

As always, I hope you had a great weekend.

Hello, children of the dark. Why, yes, thank you for noticing. We do have a bit of a new look this week. With Stuart teasing so much about the site’s upgrade – I am assured it is close! – we thought it was about time we took some fresh eyes to the old tree-and-wood-based imagery used for Trembling With Fear.

Now, I don’t proclaim to be any sort of designer. In fact – designers, please close your ears to this – I’m a devout user of Canva. But given Horror Tree’s DIY aesthetic, I quite like what we came up with. Something which could cover any aspect of dark speculative fiction: the lone figure in the misty woods, and a rather X-Files typeface. Plus, below, a way to draw much more attention to the writer of our lead short story every week; something putting the writer’s bio front and centre. 

It’s a bit of a facelift, at least. But you don’t come here for our good looks, do you?

Let’s look at this week’s menu, where you’ll find Adam Hunter facing something lurking in the deep, dark ocean for our Trembling main course. This is followed by three delicious quick bites:

• Ryan Benson gets puritanical in belief,
• Ria Hill gets sadistic with the program, and
• Lauren Carter gets to see it all.

And if I had a final quick word, that word would be: drabbles. I know every week I tell you we have an insatiable need, and that’s because we really, really do. We have quite a few awaiting publication, but they’re from a small number of writers and we try to rotate the regulars. If you’ve never submitted to us before – heck, if you’ve never submitted anywhere before – why not try us? I might be partial to vampires, but I promise not to bite.

Over to you, Stuart.

Oh – and before I forget, I’ll be taking part in a 24 hour writing challenge this Friday-Saturday with the London Writers Salon. We’ll be chasing 8am around the world, from Friday 24 March to Saturday 25 March, and writing together on Zoom in 45-minute bursts (with a bit of fun and games in between). Each hour has a different host and a different theme, and I’ll be at the helm for three hours. I’ll be waking up Brisbane, Australia, with tarot queen Chelsey Pippin Mizzi; saying good morning to Tokyo with Canadian fantasy author Crystal Bourque; and then heading to Singapore with (I hope!) some of the Horror Tree team. You can get the details, and register FREE to join us for all 24 – or just a few! – hours. Head over here for the guff.

First off, a HUGE shout-out to Lauren for the new artwork and our small changes to the TWF layout. I really dig the new artwork, and I hope everyone is giving her a standing ovation for the new look!

Last week, I teased that Holley Cornetto and I had something in the works. NEXT Friday, we will be making the announcement. Be prepared to check out something pretty awesome! I think that a lot of you are going to be excited about this one! 

At the time of posting, we’re 21 followers on Medium from 100 and would really love to hit the triple digits; please give us a follow! Once we hit that number, I’ll stop harassing you all for a bit 🙂

For those looking to support the site, we’re always open Ko-Fi donations and always have our Patreon going.

As always, I hope you had a great weekend.