Category: Non-Anthology Announcements

JournalStone Is Currently Open To Novels, Novellas, And Fiction Collections

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We are currently OPEN to fiction collection, novella and novel submissions. (9-14-2016)

Guidelines for all submissions:

  • JournalStone is currently accepting manuscripts with the following genres: Horror, Sci-Fi, Fantasy, Paranormal in the Young Adult and Adult markets. We reserve the right to consider the subject matter and how best to utilize it. JournalStone does not practice censorship of any author’s work.
  • In your cover letter, tell us the word count, genre, and a brief synopsis of the plot. Submissions without this information cannot be reviewed.
  • Please attach your manuscript in your email as a .doc,. docx or .rtf file. Do not paste your text in the body of the email.
  • The title of your email subject line and file name should read: “Submission [type] – [title] – [genre] – [last name]”. For example: Submission Novel – Carrie – Horror – King.
  • For proper formatting of your manuscript, please follow the Shunn way.
  • We consider the quality of the editing in our review process. Please fully proof read and edit manuscripts prior to submission.
  • Do not submit a work-in-progress. We only accept completed works.
  • Allow two to three months for a response to your submission. We may respond more quickly, but we cannot guarantee timing.
  • Please do not send follow up e-mails. We will notify you when we place your work in the queue, and will contact you when we have completed our review.
  • Inform us if this is a previously published work. If you have self-published the same work, we would like to know the details about your effort. You may include website links in your email, to direct us.
  • Email your cover letter and completed manuscript to jess [at] journalstone.com

 

What happens when you submit to JournalStone?

JournalStone will review your submission and decide whether we can publish it. Often, authors receive comments about their text, prior to any approval, with suggestions for improvements, or clarifications in the story. While this does not guarantee a firm acceptance, it can certainly help, and can ease the next few steps.

If your work is approved for publication, our president, Christopher C. Payne, will contact you with a contract for your review. Upon acceptance of that agreement, we will begin to move your manuscript through the editing and development channels. This part of the process can take a few, to several months. You will be involved the entire way.

Once editing and development is complete, your new book will be printed in proof form, and it will be reviewed again for any additional work. You will get a chance to see it, too! When approved in that first printed form – your book is ready for the release! JournalStone will begin to distribute and promote your book, to make the world aware of it.

*These are general guidelines to the publishing benefits provided; the contract serves as the final agreement, between JournalStone (publisher) and all authors, for work undertaken.

Killer Reads Is Open For Novel Submissions

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Note: This is a crime fiction market but if you’ve got a mix of crime fiction and horror it ‘might’ be worth checking out. No payment details are included though as a HarperFiction imprint chances are it will be pro-rates.

Specifications for submissions for Open Submission at KillerReads

KillerReads is an e-first imprint of HarperFiction at HarperCollins.

Mission statement for KillerReads:

We are on the lookout for commercial crime and thrillers ranging from police procedurals, to psychological thrillers, to high-concept thrillers and beyond.

We are looking for fantastic writing that hooks us, making us want to turn the page and find out what happens next; and characters that stay with us long after we finish reading. We want to feel moved, compelled, shocked, and intrigued.

We want to give a voice to exciting emerging talent in the genre that may otherwise go unheard.

If this sounds like you, we’d love to read your novel!

Email address for submissions: [email protected]

Entry rules:

  1. KillerReads is a subsidiary of HarperCollins Publishers (“HarperCollins”), The News Building, 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF
  2. All submissions must be sent by email to the designated Open Submission email address: [email protected]
  3. Submissions that have been sent by post or means other than email to the correct email address will not be accepted.
  4. Each submission must contain:
    • Full length novel with sequential page numbering included, with the first page being the title page;
    • Synopsis of whole book, including the complete plot and the story’s end (maximum 500 words); a one paragraph summary of the book; a short list of the main characters; and
    • Author biography, to include any blogs and/or social media information, any creative writing courses attended, short stories published, prizes won, literary or media mentors and contacts, etc (maximum 1 page).
  5. The submission must be in Word format throughout all documents; all documents must be submitted at the same time, attached to a single email (the attachments each to be clearly individually marked as ‘manuscript’, ‘synopsis’, and ‘author biography’); the chapters of the manuscript are to be in one document, NOT sent as separate documents. In addition, each of the three documents should be marked IN THE FILE NAME with the author’s name and the title of the novel and this information should also be marked on every page of each document [using the Header tool].
  6. In the ‘Subject’ area at the top of an entrant’s submission email, entrants should put the title and their (pen) name.
  7. In the body of the email, authors must provide their full name, address, and phone number.
  8. Submissions that do not meet requirements of points 4-7 inclusive shall not be read.
  9. Any submission containing incorrect, false or unreadable information will be rejected.
  10. Any submission made on behalf of or for another person, or multiple submissions, will not be read.
  11. Novels submitted must be within the crime thriller genre
  12. All novels must be in prose.
  13. All novels must be written in English.
  14. Submissions must never have been self-published.
  15. Submissions must never have been posted on publishing websites, forums or access platforms such as (but not limited to) Wattpad, Smashwords, Lulu, FanFiction, CompletelyNovel.
  16. All novels must never have had an ISBN.
  17. Authors must be prepared to undertake editorial work on their novel.
  18. Authors must be prepared to undertake publicity and promotional responsibilities.
  19. No correspondence between KillerReads, HarperCollins or the hopeful authors can be entered into, unless at KillerReads’s request, and we will not respond to unsolicited communications.
  20. KillerReads shall endeavour to read the submissions as quickly as possible.
  21. There is no obligation on KillerReads to publish any of the entrants to the Open Submission, in print or in ebook, or to offer any sort of editorial advice.
  22. KillerReads’s decision is final; we cannot guarantee that unsuccessful authors will be notified.
  23. You will retain all copyright in your submission and by submitting your novel you grant HarperCollins a licence to copy your submission and share it with its affiliates solely for the purpose of reviewing it.
  24. Neither HarperCollins nor KillerReads will be able to return any submissions, so make sure you have a copy stored safely before you submit.
  25. Any personal information you give us will be used solely for reviewing your submission and will not be passed on to any other parties without your agreement. HarperCollins’ privacy policy can be found at: http://www.harpercollins.co.uk/legal/Pages/privacy-policy.aspx
  26. HarperCollins will not be responsible unless required by law, for any loss, changes, costs or expenses, which may arise in connection with this open submission and HarperCollins can cancel or alter the open submission at any stage.

– See more at: http://www.killerreads.com/open-submissions/#sthash.207MVZ94.dpuf

Novel And Novella Submissions Are Open At Dark Park Publishing

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$150 advance, plus royalties to be paid every 6 months, plus 10 free copies of the print edition

Dark Park Publishing is currently accepting well-written novels and novellas in all areas of Dark Fiction.

Works can be Horror, Dark Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Western, or Dark Comedy in any genre. What we are looking for, besides an entertaining read, is unique storytelling. Whether it’s a strikingly original premise, a mash-up of genres never done before, or a tale told in an unconventional (but effective) style, if your work presents fresh ideas and a distinctive voice, we’re interested!

Submission Guidelines (please read fully before submitting):
• Complete works should be 25,000+ words for Novellas and 50,000+ words for Novels.
• Work must be written in English.
• Work should be submitted as a Microsoft Word doc/docx. (See details below.*)
• Work must be received in proper manuscript format. See example HERE. (Except, please put only one space after a period, not two.)
• Work must be original to author. Persons submitting must hold copyright to the material, or have legal authority to submit work on behalf of author.
• Work cannot have been previously published in any form or market.
• No simultaneous or multiple submissions.

*Authors wanting to submit their work for consideration should initially send only the FIRST 50 PAGES OF THE WORK (double spaced) as an attachment. In the body of the email, author should provide a brief (1-3 sentences) description of the storyline, and word count of complete work.

Submissions should be emailed to [email protected]
Use “Submission – Title of Your Work – Your Last Name” as your subject line (and don’t forget to attach your work).

Authors of works accepted for publication by Dark Park will receive a $150 advance, plus royalties to be paid every 6 months, plus 10 free copies of the print edition of the book when available.

**Follow @DarkParkPub on Twitter for the latest book updates.

Via: Dark Park Publishing.

Sitting On A COMPLETED Novel? May 12th Be Prepared For #PitDark

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#PitDark is the first and only Twitter pitch event to highlight literature of a “darker” nature. Importantly, this is not limited to horror works; however, any pitched manuscript must contain an element of horror or darker writing. Examples of such categories include pure horror novels, dark fantasy, murder mysteries, psychological horror stories, non-fiction works about darker subjects, etc. YA, NA, and adult age categories are welcome.

The first #PitDark will take place on May 12, 2016.

The Basics

The contest will happen on Twitter under a common hashtag (#PitDark). During a 12-hour window on the chosen day, authors with completed manuscripts who are seeking representation or publication can tweet a pitch for their books (at most, once per hour).

Agents and publishers will make requests by marking pitches as a favorite on Twitter. If your tweet is favorited, please follow the agent or publisher’s submission guidelines.

General Pitch Party Rules

  • Pitch limit. Please do not pitch more than once an hour, per manuscript.
  • Time-frame:  8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern.  Please do not pitch before or after this twelve-hour period.

Please follow these guidelines to keep this event fair to everyone involved!

When to Pitch

This event happens annually.  The first #PitDark is scheduled for May 12, 2016.  On pitch day, we will go from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern.

What to Pitch

Participants get one pitch per hour, per manuscript.  

This contest is for completed, unpublished manuscripts. Complete means that it’s proofed, polished, and ready for submission. Unpublished means you haven’t self-published it online, on Amazon, or in print. For more information on genres, please see below.

Genre mashups, such as dark fantasy, are welcome, as long as you’re not just trying to pass off your book as something that doesn’t contain “darker” themes.

How To Pitch

Your pitch should contain four elements:

  1. First and foremost, the hashtag for the contest, #PitDark.
  2. An indication of the book’s age category. 
  3. An indication of the books’s genre in existing terms. See below for hashtags.  A genre hashtag is mandatory.
  4. pitch for your book. Ideally, it should tell us character, desire, obstacle(s), and stakes

You should tweet your pitch no more than 10 times throughout the day. Make sure each tweet is slightly different, as tweeting identical text is a violation of Twitter’s guidelines.

Hashtags for Age Category

Please use these hashtags to indicate the target age group for your book:

  • #YA – Young adult
  • #NA – New adult
  • #A – Adult

Hashtags for Genre

Please use a hashtag to indicate the genre of your book. The following are example hashtags that may be relevant to your manuscript:

  • #H – horror
  • #PH – psychological horror
  • #GH – gothic horror
  • #CH – cosmic horror
  • #BH – body horror
  • #CH – comedy horror
  • #SFH – science fiction horror
  • #PH – paranormal horror
  • #ZH – zombie horror
  • #MH – monster horror
  • #MM – murder mystery
  • #FA – fantasty
  • #DF – dark fantasy
  • #EF – epic or high fantasy
  • #HF – historical fantasy
  • #LF – literary fantasy
  • #AH – alternate history
  • #PN – paranormal
  • #UF – urban fantasy
  • #MR – magical realism
  • #SF – science fiction
  • #AF – apocalypse fiction
  • #ML – military science fiction
  • #PA – post-apocalyptic SF
  • #SFT – sci-fi thriller
  • #SH – superhero / superhuman
  • #SO – space opera
  • #DS – dystopian
  • #SP – steampunk
  • #TT – time travel
  • #WW – weird west
  • #NF – non-fiction

Feel free to use two genre tags, as long as they’re compatible (e.g. #FA #DF), but there’s no pressing need to have more than one. For a description and some examples of these subgenres, see the Genre Subcategories post by Connor Goldsmith of Fuse Literary. Please let me know — by e-mail or Twitter — if I haven’t specified your subgenre!

Pitching Guidelines

Here are some general guidelines to ensure fairness and respect during the contest.

Please DO:

  • Pitch completed, unpublished manuscripts that represent your best work.
  • Include the contest hashtag, #PitDark.
  • Use appropriate hashtags for age category and genre/subgenre.
  • Pitch your book once an hour to give everyone a chance to see it.
  • Make sure that your tweets are not identical. Twitter will block multiple instances of the same tweet, so be sure to move the hashtags around or change a character each time.
  • Follow submission guidelines. Scroll up in an agent or publisher’s tweets to see what they are, and be sure to follow them.

Please DON’T:

  • Pitch more than once an hour, per manuscript. This ensures that no one spams the hashtag, and gives everyone a fair shake.
  • Pitch directly to agents or publishers (unless invited to do so). In other words, don’t use @ at the beginning of your pitch.
  • Use weird formatting or images to get attention. No ALL CAPS or multiple lines. These are annoying.
  • Use the hashtag to self-promote. This is not the place to hock your e-book, editorial services, etc.
  • Favorite other pitches unless you’re an agent or publisher. There’s nothing more disappointing than getting notification that your tweet was favorited, only to find out it was just another author.

Who Is Participating? 

See below for a list of a few of the participating agents and publishers. This is not an exhaustive list, and since #PitDark is a public event, many more agents and publishers are likely to join in on the day! Please be sure to research any agent or publisher that likes your pitch. There is no obligation to submit your work to anyone you don’t want to.

Agents:

The Bent Agency

Chalberg & Sussman

Inklings Literary Agency, LLC

McIntosh & Otis

Rees Literary Agency

Talcott Notch Literary Services

Writers House

Publishers:

ChiDunnit (ChiZine Publications)

ChiGraphic (ChiZine Publications)

Jolly Fish Press

Pandamoon Publishing

If you are an agent, editor, or publisher who would like to be listed as a #PitDark participant, please contact me.

Pitching Tips & Advice

The following are a few great articles for Twitter pitching advice:

Via: Jason Huebinger.

Shock Totem Is Open To Novel And Novella Submissions!

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Shock Totem Publications is…

OPEN for novel/novella submissions.
CLOSED for short story submissions, as Shock Totem, the magazine, is currently on HIATUS.

Please choose the proper category from the list below when submitting. No simultaneous/multiple submissions.

Please follow our guidelines, which can be found at http://www.shocktotem.com/guidelines. Submissions that do not follow these guidelines will be deleted.

All submissions are responded to via e-mail. Sometimes, as happens with e-mail, something goes wrong and the e-mail does not arrive. If you have not heard from us within 90 days, you can query us, but you can also check the status of your submission by signing into your Submittable account.

Sincerely,
The Shock Totem Team

For novel submissions (40,000 words or more) and novella submissions (17,500 to 40,000 words).

Please make sure your submission falls withing the confines of dark fantasy and horror—mystery, suspense, supernatural, morbid humor, fantasy, etc. Submissions must have a clear horror element.

All of the details can be found on Shock Totem’s Submittable.

Kraken Press Is Taking Novel And Novella Submissions

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Kraken Press is open to submissions. Submissions that don’t follow the guidelines will not be read.

1. We accept unsolicited novels, novellas and short story collections, up to 120.000 words. Collections are generally a really hard sell for us, so query first.

2. We are interested in seeing manuscripts in the genres of horror, dark fantasy and weird fiction. More importantly, we’re interested in fresh writing. We’re not likely to publish anything with vampires, werewolves or zombies. We do not publish sci-fi that doesn’t have a horror bend.

3. Submissions should include a short cover letter (contact info, brief bio), a synopsis of your book and the first 4 or 5 chapters of your book. Attach one document with a synopsis and one with the novel.

4. Submissions without attachments or no synopsis attached will not be read.

5. Multiple submissions are okay.

6. Simultaneous submissions are okay.

7. Email us your manuscript as an attachment (DOC or RTF).

8. Current response time: 30 days.

Writers we like:

Caitlin R. Kiernan, Graham Joyce, Richard Laymon, Joe Lansdale, Thomas Tessier, Gemma Files, Jack Ketchum, Clive Barker, Jonathan Carroll, John Connolly, Neil Gaiman, John Ajvide Lindquist, Holly Black, Chuck Palahniuk, Jeffrey Thomas, Catherynne M. Valente, Jonathan Maberry, David Moody, Tom Piccirilli, Norman Partridge, Jeff Strand, David Wong, Warren Ellis, Joe Hill, Sarah Langan, Lucius Shepard.
Slush pile editor is George Cotronis.

Via: Kraken’s Submittable.

Unsung Signals Seeks Digital Novellas And Short Story Collections

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Note: These are for digital only releases.

What better way to start the new year off than with a big announcement? None you say? You might be right . . . Because we are very excited to announce the launch of Unsung Signals, our new digital-only line.

Unsung Signals will feature mid-length fiction, stories too long for magazines or journals but too short for traditional book-length publication. This means everything from long short stories to novellas.

We believe stories should be as long as they need to be. Unsung Signals gives writers the freedom to write the way they want without the need to pad or trim unnecessarily, to give a home to work that would otherwise be left unpublished, or altered to fit a format.

And like everything else we do, we are accepting un-agented submissions. So if you have work between 5-30,000 words long – a novella, a collection of stories, something great that’s just that bit too long for everywhere else – let us know. You can submit via our form.

The first title to be published under Unsung Signals will be Winter, a novelette by Dan Grace, a near-future tale from a broken Britain, a story of rebellion, revolution and green men.

Via: Unsung Signals.

Introducing GRAVE MARKERS

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We all know that every story has its own length, a set number of words needed to tell the story it needs to tell. Some are very clearly short stories — under 10,000 words — while others that require more (20,000 words or more) are novellas or novels. But what about those in-between stories, the stories that fall awkwardly between the 10,000 and 20,000 words.

Recently we’ve been receiving stories that fall into that category and we were at a loss as to what to do with them. Too long for an anthology, but not quite long enough to stand on its own as a short novel (novella), these novelettes often fall through the cracks and it’s a shame because often they are quite good but publishers just don’t know what to do with them. That’s why we decided to launch a new line: GRAVE MARKERS.

What’s a GRAVE MARKER and how will they differ? Those stories accepted to the GRAVE MARKER line will be published as stand-alone offerings in digital format only. Early the following year all of the GRAVE MARKERS published the previous year will be compiled into a print collection of novelettes. We expect the competition for this line to be fierce, as we will only be accepting 4 to 6 novelettes during the course of the year, so send us your very best.

Interested? Send your submission to [email protected]

Via: Grinning Skull Press.