The Horror Tree

Horror Tree is a resource for authors that lists open markets, articles, interviews, original fiction, and more!

Category: Contributor’s Copy

Anthology / Contributor's Copy / Events / Flat Amount / Reprints Allowed

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Taking Submissions: The Book Of Carnacki

Deadline: Pitch Deadline: April 16th, 2021. Final Submission Deadline: September 30th, 2021.
Payment: $100 or $50 plus 1% of the Kickstarter net profits, whichever amount is GREATER, and a paperback copy of the anthology.
Theme: Stories featuring William Hope Hodgson’s character Carnacki the Ghost Finder in a major role. Carnacki’s general behaviour and mannerisms should be canonical, much as in the original tales, though inventive and reasonable extrapolations from those are welcome. We may take a handful of stories with non-supernatural resolutions.
Note: Reprints are potentially welcome

THE SHORT VERSION

THE BOOK OF CARNACKI

A Belanger Books Project, edited by John Linwood Grant

Core concept: 5,000–10,000 word stories featuring William Hope Hodgson’s character Carnacki the Ghost Finder in a major role. Carnacki’s general behaviour and mannerisms should be canonical, much as in the original tales, though inventive and reasonable extrapolations from those are welcome. We may take a handful of stories with non-supernatural resolutions.

Also: For this particular book, we are interested in 3000–5000 word non-fiction articles relating to Carnacki and his world (see LONG VERSION below).

Your pitch must be accepted for your completed story or article to be read. See PITCH section below.

Pitch Deadline: 16 April, 2021.

Final Submission Deadline: 30 September, 2021.

Payment: Authors shall receive a payment of $100 or $50 plus 1% of the Kickstarter net profits, whichever amount is GREATER, and a paperback copy of the anthology. The Kickstarter will run March 2022, and publication of book is expected early Spring 2022.

PITCHES AND QUERIES ONLY TO [email protected] BY 16th APRIL 2021, PLEASE
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Anthology / Contributor's Copy / Events / Flat Amount / Reprints Allowed

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Taking Submissions: Blood on Your Hands

Deadline: April 15th, 2021
Payment: 3 contributors copies and payments range up to $75, based on length
Theme: Previously published erotic stories about male vampires. These bloody assignations and trysts and relationships should be homoerotic.
Note: Reprints only

We are seeking previously published erotic stories about male vampires. These bloody assignations and trysts and relationships should be homoerotic.
So far we have accepted:
​
“Invite the Night” A story from L.A. Fields about a boarding school student who finds at his window a boy reported missing…

“Black Samba” Jeff Mann’s story features an ancient Scottish vampire encountering another while in Rome.

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Anthology / Contributor's Copy / Events / Flat Amount

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Taking Submissions: Road Kill: Texas Horror By: Texas Writers, Vol. 6

Deadline: June 1st, 2021
Payment: A contributors Copy and: 10,000 words – $200; 7,500 words – $150; 5,000 words – $100; 2,500 words – $50; 1,500 words – $30.00.
Theme: Texas Horror By: Texas Writers

HellBound Books Publishing is excited to announce that it’s now accepting submissions for Road Kill: Texas Horror by Texas Writers, Vol. 6.

Author Madison Estes will be editing the latest incarnation of the series, and she’s looking for original horror stories 1,500-10,000 words in length. The stories must be written and submitted by Texas authors and they must take place (or be based) here–hence the title. Two cents per word and contributing writers will receive one free copy and a 50% discounted wholesale price on any copies of the book that he or she purchases to carry and sell on their own. The scale for writer stipends will look something like this: 10,000 words – $200; 7,500 words – $150; 5,000 words – $100; 2,500 words – $50; 1,500 words – $30.00. All payments will be made upon official acceptance, and when acceptance is communicated each author will need to send a short bio.

HellBound will be requesting two-year non-exclusive rights. This means we will use your story in this anthology and we can print excerpts of it online and otherwise (for promotional purposes, etc.), but two years down the road you can do with it what you like. The DEADLINE to turn in stories is June 1, 2021 and our intent is to have the book printed and available by October 1, 2021, in plenty of time for Halloween.

PLEASE SEND SUBMISSIONS to [email protected]

– Make sure that you check your mss for grammar and punctuation, use our guidelines to help you:
DOWNLOAD YOUR HBB GUIDE TO GRAMMAR HERE (PDF)

Deadline: June 1st, 2021

Via: Hellbound Books Publishing.

Contributor's Copy / Flat Amount / Novel / Novella / Ongoing Submissions / Royalties

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Timber Ghost Press Is Open For Novella And Novel Submissions

Payment: 50% net royalties on all eBooks and 30% net royalties on paperback books with a $35 advance on novellas and a $50 advance on novels
Theme: Cosmic horror, weird horror, dark fantasy, sci-fi/horror, gothic, and contemporary. We especially love Old West mixed with horror.

Timber Ghost Press is looking to publish high-quality ​horror fiction to include cosmic horror, weird horror, dark fantasy, sci-fi/horror, gothic, and contemporary. We especially love Old West mixed with horror.

We are looking for both new and seasoned authors. If you have never published before, we want to hear from you. If you’re a seasoned spinner of dark tales, we want to hear from you. Basically, we want to hear from you.

We are currently looking for novels and novellas that fall into the following horror categories:

  • Hauntings
  • Possession
  • Cosmic Horror
  • Weird Horror
  • Dark Fantasy
  • Sci-Fi/Horror
  • Old West/Horror
  • Gothic Horror
  • Psychological Horror

Timber Ghost Press is NOT looking for or interested in stories that contain:

    • Child abuse/pedophilia
    • Gore/extreme violence just for the shock factor

Novels must be between 60-90k words. Novellas must be between 20-40k words. If your manuscript falls a little outside of these limits, that is okay; just let us know in your submission email.

We do not accept simultaneous or multiple submissions. Please allow us up to 30 days to respond to your submission. If you haven’t heard back after 30 days, feel free to reach out and ask about the status of the submission. Depending on the number of submissions we receive, we may or may not give personalized feedback.

Submit your stories using Shunn formatting guidelines. It is in your best interest to submit a clean manuscript that you’ve taken the time to revise and edit. I can almost guarantee you that we will reject it if we receive a manuscript full of errors and typos.  Please include the following information in your cover letter:

  • Name
  • Pen Name (if applicable)
  • Email
  • First three chapters or the first 5000 words of your manuscript
  • Synopsis
  • Let us know if it is part of a series (we’re open to series)
  • Previous publishing history (if applicable)

Timber Ghost Press does not discriminate in any manner and is open to submissions from authors of any race, religion, or sexual preference.

Timber Ghost Press pays 50% net royalties on all eBooks and 30% net royalties on paperback books. If accepted, we will pay a $35 advance on novellas and a $50 advance on novels.

Please use the form below to submit your novel/novella to Timber Ghost Press!

[Click the link below to access the form.]

Via: Timber Ghost Press.

Anthology / Contributor's Copy / Events / Flat Amount / Reprints Allowed

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Taking Submissions: Re-Enlist, Reprint Anthology

Deadline: May 31st, 2021
Payment: $10 and a contributor’s copy
Theme: Dark science fiction stories related to the military and war.
Note: Must be a reprint

Pole to Pole Publishing is seeking short, re-print fiction for the Re-Enlist anthology to be published in late 2021. Re-Enlist will join our previous submission calls (now closed) for Re-Launch, Re-Enchant, Re-Quest and Re-Terrify and others in the Re-Imagined Series of anthologies.

Re-Enlist requires dark science fiction stories related to the military and war. Send us military science fiction stories, ones you’ve had published before, for which full rights have already reverted back to you. We have open minds about what constitutes “military” and “science fiction” but we’re insisting on good stories told well.

For this anthology, we want stories with engaging characters, thrilling action, rational plot lines, a compelling writing style, and meaningful themes. Our preference is for hard science fiction. We’re okay if you bend the laws of physics for the sake of the story, but don’t break them completely. It’s unlikely we’ll accept fantasy stories with magic elements.

In keeping with the common element of Pole to Pole Publishing’s other reprint anthologies, Re-Enlist seeks stories that are dark in tone, but not strictly horror tales. Give us fear, death, and the disturbing side of your characters’ natures, but be mindful of the restrictions listed below under “Hard Sells” and, especially, “What We Don’t Want.”

Payment: Payment is $10 per story, paid on acceptance (contract must be signed), via PayPal only; plus, one electronic and one print copy of the antho. (If you do not have a PayPal account, please do not submit your work.)

Right Purchased: – The non-exclusive right to collect the stories into an anthology, published in 2021 and sold thereafter. Re-Enlist may be included in book bundles with the other books in the series.

– The non-exclusive right to publish the story to the Pole to Pole Publishing Patreon blog (for patron’s eyes only), should we ever start a patreon.

General: Stories should be 3,000-5,000 words and meet the central theme of the anthology. Reprints currently available on line are not eligible. Preference is for stories that haven’t been published in at least a year. Older reprints will carry more weight than new ones. Author must possess the right to offer the story for submission.

Hard Sells:

Profane and vulgar language — because we market to both adult and YA readers. If we are interested in your story, we may ask you to edit profane and vulgar language as a condition of publication.

First Person and Present Tense. We’ve published both: when the stories were very, very good. We want to let you know up front that we’re going to reject this most of the time. It’s just not our preference.

Excessive Gore and/or violence. Blood and guts are fine—as long as they’re part of the story and not the story itself.

Sex. See above about marketing to a wider audience.

What We Don’t Want:

No rape, torture, etc. of children. No animal abuse. No stories with characters from a copyrighted world that belongs to someone else. No Poetry. Only one story from each author will be considered.

Formatting:

No tabs. Please format the document with a first line indent.

Curly quotes, please—no straight quotes.

If you’re not sure if your story is suitable, don’t query; just go ahead and submit and let our editors decide.

Deadline: May 31, 2021 or until filled. Be aware that all of our anthologies have filled before the deadline, so please don’t wait until the last minute to submit.

Submissions via Submittable: https://poletopolepublishing.submittable.com/submit/182153/re-enlist

Via: Pole to Pole Publishing.

Anthology / Contributor's Copy / Events / Flat Amount

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Taking Submissions: The Best New True Crime Stories: Unsolved Crimes & Mysteries

Deadline: September 1st, 2021
Payment: $130, and 2 print copies of the book.
Theme: Non-fiction, true crime accounts of unsolved criminal cases and mysteries that can take place anywhere in the world and be from any time period

Writers Call for Submissions: True Crime/Non-Fiction

 

Author and anthology editor Mitzi Szereto is currently seeking original true crime stories for the sixth volume in her true crime franchise, THE BEST NEW TRUE CRIME STORIES: UNSOLVED CRIMES & MYSTERIES.

 

(https://mitziszereto.com/call-for-submissions/)

Seeking non-fiction, true crime accounts of unsolved criminal cases and mysteries that can take place anywhere in the world and be from any time period. Material can cover a wide range of criminal activity. First-person accounts are especially welcome from writers with a connection to their cases. Add something new to the story, a different viewpoint or angle.

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Anthology / Contributor's Copy / Events / Semipro

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Taking Submissions: Bodies Full of Burning: An Anthology of Menopause-Themed Horror

Deadline: June 1st, 2021
Payment: $0.01 per word and a contributor’s copy
Theme: Stories must include menopause as the main plot point

Sliced Up Press is looking for short stories involving menopause for its latest horror fiction anthology, Bodies Full of Burning: An Anthology of Menopause-Themed Horror, edited by Nicole M. Wolverton.

Menopause can be hell – so show us your demons, your darkest dreams, bloodiest crimes or scariest transformations. It’s called the change of life, but transitions can be deadly.

What we’re looking for:
  • Stories must include menopause as the main plot point
  • We welcome and encourage stories from women, BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ authors, as we’re looking for a range of experiences to be represented
  • All submissions must be in the horror genre, though we don’t want anything involving rape, bestiality etc.
  • All submissions must be original. We will not accept reprints, or stories published elsewhere including on blogs, social media etc.
  • Submit your best work in standard manuscript format, as an MS Word .doc or .docx attachment. Anything sent in a different format will be deleted without reply.
  • Authors may submit one story maximum for consideration. Do not re-send rejected stories (including those rejected for previous calls to Sliced Up Press anthologies)
  • No simultaneous submissions please.
  • We are not looking for artwork submissions at this time.

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES & TERMS:

Please email submissions to [email protected] using the following format in the email subject line:

Submission for Bodies Full of Burning: [author’s name] – [story title] – [word count]. (so your email should look like this: Submission for Bodies Full of Burning: My Name – My Story – 1,500 words)

In the body of your email, please include a brief author bio of 3-4 sentences maximum along with any social media links.

Payment: $0.01 per word, plus 1 x paperback and ebook contributor copy.

Length: Minimum 1,000 words, up to 4,000 words maximum. Longer pieces will not be considered.

Deadline for submissions: 1st June 2021 or until filled

Authors will be notified of acceptance or rejection by 30th June 2021 at the latest. Publication is currently planned for September 2021

If you have not heard back by 30th June 2021, your story has been rejected.

Please do not email to enquire after your submission, unless you want to withdraw your story.

No exclusivity will be sought. Authors retain all rights to their works after publication.

Please do not enquire about publication unless it relates to the project announcements shown above.

Sliced Up Press is not open to unsolicited submissions.

Any unsolicited submissions will be rejected without reply.

Via: Sliced Up Press.

Anthology / Contributor's Copy / Events / Flat Amount / Semipro

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Taking Submissions: The Jewish Book of Horror

Deadline: April 30th, 2021
Payment: $30 for the first 3,000 words, then a 1/2 cent per word up to 7,500 words + print contributor’s copy
Theme: Horror fiction focusing on the culture, history, and folklore of the Jewish people

Horror is part of the human condition, but few peoples across the ages know horror quite like the Jews.

From slavery in Egypt, to the Holocaust, to the crippling neuroses brought on by overbearing mothers, the Chosen People have not only endured hell on Earth, they’ve transcended it to become some of the most influential—and feared—people on the planet.

THE JEWISH BOOK OF HORROR is an anthology of horror fiction focusing on the culture, history, and folklore of the Jewish people, to be published on the first night of Hannukah, 2021.

Submissions must tie into the Jewish people or Judaism in some way, shape, or form. While we intend to publish a handful of stories about the Golem and dybbukim, Biblical times (10 Plagues!), and persecution across Europe, we also encourage authors to expand their horizons of what Jewish horror can be, and certainly not shy away from irreverence and/or humor.

THE JEWISH BOOK OF HORROR will be published by Denver Horror Collective (publishers of Terror at 5280’, Denver Post bestseller and 2020 Best Book Award winner for anthology and finalist for horror & the newly-released Consumed: Tales Inspired by the Wendigo), and edited by Josh Schlossberg, biological horror author and lead editor of Terror at 5280’.

Please take a moment to read the submission information below to ensure your story content and format fall within guidelines.

While we of course encourage Jewish authors to submit, this open call is open to all authors, everywhere. 

DEADLINE: Lag B’Omer, April 30, 2021, midnight.
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