The Horror Tree

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

Category: Pro

Pro Rates

Anthology / Events / Pro / Reprints Allowed

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Taking Submissions: Chilling Crime Short Stories

Deadline: March 14th, 2021
Payment: 8 cents/6 pence per word for original stories, 6 cents/4 pence for reprints
Theme: The darker side of crime: the cold cases, the grim murders, the desperate villains, and the race against time to solve the crime
Note: Reprints Welcome

About the theme:

We’ve looked at cosy crime and detective thrillers, now it’s time to turn to the darker side: the cold cases, the grim murders, the desperate villains, and the race against time to solve the crime. We’re seeking up to 20 new stories to join our powerful collection of Chilling Crime Short Stories, new and classic tales reaching back into ancient, medieval, Elizabethan and Victorian fiction. From Oedipus Rex and Medea to Thomas More’s story of the Princes in the Tower, Scheherazade’s ‘The Three Apples’ and the chilling crime fiction of Dickens, Poe, Henry James, Baroness Orczy and Wilkie Collins.

Terms:

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Events / Magazine / Pro

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Taking Submissions: Fantasy Magazine (Early Listing)

Deadline: March 1st-7th 2021
Payment: 8 cents per word
Theme: Original fantasy and dark fantasy stories. All types of fantasy and dark fantasy are welcome.

Instructions for submitting to Fantasy Magazine follow. Please read everything on this page and read the magazine before submitting.

SUBMISSION PROCEDURES

Submission Periods: Fantasy is open to submissions the first week of every month (1st-7th). Please do not query about submitting outside our open submission periods.

Anonymous Submissions: Fantasy only accepts anonymous submissions. Do not include your name, address, phone number, or other similar identifiers on the manuscript. All original short fiction, flash fiction, and poetry submissions will be read anonymously on first read: moving out of slush depends on the merits of the story alone. Please make sure the title is on the manuscript.

Simultaneous and Multiple Submissions: We do not accept simultaneous submissions or multiple submissions. Please do not submit more than one set of poems at a time, more than one piece of flash fiction at a time, or more than one story at a time. You may, however, submit a single entry in each category at the same time: you can submit one batch of poems, one flash fiction piece, and one short story all at the same (or overlapping) time, and each category will be considered a separate submission. If we are already considering work in any given category, please wait until you have received an acceptance or rejection before submitting again in that same category.

Instructions: All fiction must be submitted through our Moksha online submission system. Please do not email your submissions. If one of the Submission Type options is grayed out, that means we are currently closed to that Submission Type.

Questions/Problems: Email [email protected] for all submission-related inquiries, or if you have any trouble using our online submission system. Please do not email your submissions to this address. All submissions must be submitted via our Moksha online submission system.

Rejections/Response Times: We receive hundreds of submissions during our open submissions periods. As such, we cannot offer personalized feedback on each story. If we say “send more” it means we really do hope to see something else from you. Currently, most rejections will be sent out within a few months, while stories being seriously considered may be held longer. Please do not respond to rejection letters, even just to say “Thanks for considering my work” etc. We appreciate the thought, but it is unnecessary and will just clutter up our editorial inbox.

Cover Letters: Your cover letter may include your name and other identifying elements. It should contain the length of your story, your publishing history, and any other relevant information (e.g, if you send us a fantasy story about the Byzantine empire and your doctoral dissertation was on Byzantine empire politics, mention that). If you don’t have credentials to cite, don’t worry! We care about your story, not your resume. If you’re not sure what should go in your cover letter, this article on cover letters might help.

Diversity Statement: We encourage people of color, Black people, Indigenous people, Native people, women, people with disabilities, older people, LGBTQIA+, and anyone from typically marginalized or underrepresented communities to submit their work.

 

FICTION

Fantasy is seeking original fantasy and dark fantasy stories. All types of fantasy and dark fantasy are welcome. No subject should be considered off-limits, and we encourage writers to take chances with their fiction and push the envelope. If you’re not sure whether your story is fantasy (vs. horror or science fiction) go ahead and submit and let the editors decide. We do not accept simultaneous submissions or multiple submissions. Do not submit more than one short story at a time.

Format: Please submit your manuscript in double-spaced Times New Roman or Courier font. Please remember to NOT include any identifying information on your manuscript apart from the story title. Your manuscript must be in either .RTF, .DOC, or .DOCX format.

Word Counts: We are open to short fiction up to 7500 words. When you make your fiction submission, you can submit in one of the two categories described below.

  • Short Story: 1500-7500 words. (Stories of 5000 words or less are preferred.)
  • Flash Fiction: Up to 1500 words.

Work previously rejected by Lightspeed or Nightmare: We welcome submissions that were previously rejected by our sister-publications.

Pay Rate: Fantasy pays 8 cents per word for original short stories and flash fiction.

Rights: To see which rights we’re seeking, please review our contract template for original fiction/poetry.

 

POETRY

Fantasy is seeking original fantasy and dark fantasy poems. All types of fantasy and dark fantasy are welcome. If you’re not sure whether your poem is fantasy (vs. horror or science fiction) go ahead and submit and let the editors decide.

We prefer shorter form poems with literary sensibilities which are evocative, emotionally resonant, and/or visually vibrant—in other words, poems which are viscerally impactful, and/or meaningful in some way. At the same time, we will not limit submissions to these parameters.

Please ensure that the title of the poems are in the manuscript.

Submission Quantity: You may submit up to six poems in the same document. (Our submission system will not allow multiple attachments.) We do not accept simultaneous submissions or multiple submissions. Do not submit more than one batch of six poems at a time.

Pay Rate: Fantasy pays $40 per poem.

Rights: To see which rights we’re seeking, please review our contract template for original fiction/poetry.

 

NONFICTION

Essays in Fantasy are primarily by invite only, and all feature interviews are assigned in-house. If you wish to pitch an essay idea, email [email protected] with the subject line Essay Pitch. Essay pitches should be no more than a few lines, and should connect in some way to the theme of Fantasy, even if tenuously. Thought pieces which bring an interesting or unique perspective will be considered.

Pay Rate: Fantasy pays $75 per essay.

Rights: To see which rights we’re seeking, please view our contract template for nonfiction.

 

ADDITIONAL NOTES

Fantasy is edited by Christie Yant & Arley Sorg and published by John Joseph Adams via Adamant Press. You can learn more about our team on our Staff page.

We welcome the submission of translations of stories from other languages. Stories that have never before been published in the English language would be considered “original.”

Sexual themes and stories with strong sexual content are acceptable, but Fantasy is not a market for erotica. If in doubt, feel free to submit your story and let our editors decide.

Fantasy is not a market for media-based fiction (e.g., stories set in the A Game of Thrones or Buffy the Vampire Slayer universes, etc.), or any kind of fan fiction. (Note: We don’t have a problem with people reading or writing fan fiction or media-based fiction, we’re just not legally allowed to consider publishing it.)

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

Fantasy pays professional rates as defined by HWA and SFWA.

Via: Fantasy Magazine’s Moksha

Events / Magazine / Pro / Reprints Allowed

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Taking Submissions: Cosmic Roots And Eldritch Shores – EARLY

Deadline: March 2nd, 2021
Payment: 6 cents per word for original, 2 cents for reprints
Theme: Well written original work in science fiction, fantasy, myth, legend, fairy tales, and eldritch, in written, podcast, video, and/or graphic story form, and from around the world.
Note: Reprints welcome

 

 

Submissions Schedule

We have a new submissions schedule as of June 1, 2020:
The first and second day of every month, 12 am of the 1st to 12 am of the 3rd, E.S.T.
Only one submission per person.

For reading impaired individuals, our submissions manager and ‘forget password’ have a captcha compatible with screen readers.

We pay 6¢ per word for new fiction, 2¢ per word for fiction reprints, 2 – 6¢ per word for new fact-based work, 1- 4¢ per word for reprinted fact articles.
For new poetry, we pay $1 a line, reprints would be 50¢ a line, up to 40 lines. We’ll look at longer poems but that would be a hard sell, and words over 40 lines would be paid at 6¢ per word.

We began The Kepler Award to recognize and encourage writers of excellent science fiction and fantasy stories that creatively extrapolate on known science in constructive and exciting ways. You can learn about The Kepler Award here.

You can read a copy of our standard contract here.   It can be varied as needed to include the rights of translators, voice actors, etc.

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Anthology / Contributor's Copy / Events / Pro

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Taking Submissions: It Gets Even Better: Stories of Queer Possibility

Deadline: February 28th, 2021
Payment: 8 cents per word (USD), plus a pro-rata share of 50% of royalties.
Theme: Completed speculative stories about positive queer possibility

The basics

Editors: Isabela Oliveira (she/her) and Jed Sabin (they/them)
Deadline: Saturday, February 27th, at 9pm Pacific
Length: We’ve set the upper limit at 15,000 words to allow for flexibility, but most acceptances are likely to be under 7,000 words. There is no minimum.
Rate: We pay 8 cents per word (USD), plus a pro-rata share of 50% of royalties.
Simultaneous submissions: No, please do not submit an original (non-reprint) story anywhere else while we are considering it.
Multiple submissions: Yes, you may submit up to 3 stories to us at once. There is no limit on total number of submissions as long as there are not more than 3 under consideration at one time.
Reprints: We will consider previously published stories, including those that have been self-published online. Reprints are paid at the same rate as originals. Audio rights must be available.
Identity statements: We do not require or expect authors to disclose their identities to us, and if authors do choose to share their identities, we will not disclose that information to others without permission.

We encourage submissions from authors who have never submitted their fiction to a paid market before, and we’ve tried to develop these guidelines to be clear to those who aren’t familiar with industry norms. Please don’t hesitate to submit for fear of doing it wrong, and feel free to contact us here with questions or accessibility requests.

Content guidelines

We are looking for completed speculative stories about positive queer possibility, written in English, which do not use intellectual property currently under copyright by someone other than the author. Stories may feature near-future social and political change, far-future imaginings of new societies, alternate universes with completely different systems of gender and relationships, alternate histories proposing better outcomes for true events of the past, creative explorations of queer identity—any kind of speculative fiction that posits queer affirmation and joy.

We define “speculative” broadly as any fiction with elements of reality that notably differ from our own. We welcome all kinds of speculative fiction including science fiction, fantasy, slipstream, alternate history, stories featuring superheroes or supernatural entities… horror may not be a great fit for this anthology, but if you have something you think could work, go for it.

We welcome representation of all kinds of queer identities including trans, nonbinary, genderqueer, agender, intersex, two-spirit, questioning, asexual, aromantic, gay, lesbian, bisexual, pansexual, etc. Your characters may choose not to embrace the term “queer” or other identity labels for themselves, but please submit to us only if you are comfortable with “queer” being used to describe your story.

We also welcome and value other axes of representation including race, ethnicity, nationality, disability, neurodiversity, body size, religion, and age. We do not require or expect authors to disclose their own identities; our budget covers sensitivity reads for stories that focus on identities the editors don’t share. Authors must be at least 18 years old.

We are unlikely to accept stories featuring major character death, graphic abuse or violence, hate speech, or sexual assault. Profanity and explicit consensual sex are fine.

We do not accept submissions of translations, poetry, nonfiction, or art. (more…)

Anthology / Events / Pro

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Taking Submissions: Upon a Twice Time

Deadline: February 28th, 2021
Payment: 8 cents per word
Theme: Mashing up two fairy tales and a genre of the author’s choice

December 4, 2020: We are announcing an open call submission for Upon a Twice Time.

This book is the follow-up anthology to Upon a Once Time (2020), and will follow the same theme of seeking 1000-3000 word stories mashing up two fairy tales and a genre of the author’s choice.

Stories previously submitted to Upon a Once Time and declined will not be accepted a second time.

We have revised some of our policies to taken into consideration comments from previous authors who submitted.

Dates are as follows:
December 4, 2020 – January 1, 2021 – Announcement of the open call
January 1 – February 28, 2021 – The submission period
March 1 – 31, 2021 – Review period

Download the complete OC submission PDF here.

General Submission Information

We like to seek out new authors and book ideas ourselves rather than be contacted directly because we are a small, self-funded press, and only publish 4 books a year. We usually offer open call submissions on anthologies we decide to do, or we contact authors directly if we have particular needs.

Ideal story lengths are between 1000-3000 words. We pay upon $0.08/word for the stories we publish. All of our books are limited editions of between 100 and 125 copies and we prefer to print physical books over creating ebooks.

If, however, you are familiar with the sort of books we publish and you have a smashingly provocative collection of stories, a unique novella or a spectacular novel you think we might be intersted in (mostly Science Fiction, Space Opera, Dying Earth, Fantasy, Mythology, Hard SF, New Weird, Air/Steam/Atom punk), please contact us with your idea, writing samples and a brief bio, and we will be in touch.

Via: Air and Nothingness Press.

Anthology / Events / Pro

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Taking Submissions: Diabolical Plots (Early Listing)

Deadline: January 31st, 2020
Payment: 10 cents per word
Theme: Science fiction, fantasy, horror (everything must have speculative element, even horror).
Note: This does NOT open until January 1st, do not submit before this time.

Diabolical Plots will be open for submissions for the entire month of January 2021.

David Steffen is the editor, who you may also know from using the Submission Grinder writing tool or reading the Long List Anthology series.  Diabolical Plots is a SFWA-qualifying market, so if you have a personal goal to join SFWA, making a sale here would help you toward that goal.

This year Ziv Wities will be in the role of assistant editor.  He will be handling much of the first round of the submission process, as well as helping to write personal rejections when we provide personal rejections.

For the most part we expect the process will generally be the same–but the biggest difference is that in past years David read at least part of every submitted story, which is not expected to be true this year because of time constraints–thankfully Ziv is willing to step in and lend a hand!

FICTION

OVERVIEW

Genres: science fiction, fantasy, horror (everything must have speculative element, even horror).

Word count: 3500 words or less. This is a firm limit.  If you submit a longer story, it will be rejected unread and that will count as a submission. Do not query to ask permission to submit something longer–the answer will be no.

Pay rate: 10 cents per word (more than the minimum professional rate as deemed by SFWA)
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Anthology / Events / Pro

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Taking Submissions: Midnight From Beyond The Stars (EARLY LISTING)

Deadline: April 30th, 2021
Payment: $ 0.06/word
Theme: Original alien horror stories with a The Thing/Alien/The Blob/Critters/Night of the Creeps kind of vibe.
Note: This anthology will ONLY be open from April 1st-30th. I’m listing it here as early as possible as there will be INTENSE competition for it. Do NOT submit outside of their open window or they’ll likely blast you into the cold darkness of space to never be heard from again.

There’s life out there… and it’s coming for you!

With the success of our first two MIDNIGHT anthologies, MIDNIGHT IN THE GRAVEYARD and MIDNIGHT IN THE PENTAGRAM, it’s time to roll out the 3rd in our ever growing series – MIDNIGHT FROM BEYOND THE STARS!

Silver Shamrock Publishing is announcing its upcoming Open Call for the MIDNIGHT FROM BEYOND THE STARS anthology.

We are looking for original alien horror stories with a The Thing/Alien/The Blob/Critters/Night of the Creeps kind of vibe.

Specific submission guidelines:

Open window for receiving submissions is April 1st – April 30th, 2021 ONLY ! (anything received outside of this window will not be considered).

Submit by email to: [email protected]

Length: 2,500 – 6,000 words.

Format: preferred format is Doc or Docx, double-spaced with author email at the top of the first page.

– please use the anthology title, MIDNIGHT FROM BEYOND THE STARS, in the subject heading of your email.

– A writer’s CV with a summary of previous publications, awards, recognition, influences, hometown and social media links.

– The word count.

– Acknowledgement of receipt of your manuscript will be emailed within 3 business days.

– Successful authors will receive a contract upon acceptance. Once we have a signed contract by the author and Silver Shamrock Publishing, payment will be made within 30 days via PayPal.

Payment: Professional rate of $ 0.06/word.

Note: This is an invitation AND open-submission anthology (approx. 75% invitation/25% open-submission). With the All-Star cast of horror writers we assemble, this will prove to be a very competitive open-submission, with us only taking the very best entries.

Via: Silver Shamrock Publishing.

Events / Magazine / Pro

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Taking Submissions: Fantasy Magazine (Early Listing)

Deadline: December 1st-7th
Payment: 8 cents per word
Theme: Original fantasy and dark fantasy stories. All types of fantasy and dark fantasy are welcome.

Instructions for submitting to Fantasy Magazine follow. Please read everything on this page and read the magazine before submitting.

SUBMISSION PROCEDURES

Submission Periods: Fantasy is open to submissions the first week of every month (1st-7th). Please do not query about submitting outside our open submission periods.

Anonymous Submissions: Fantasy only accepts anonymous submissions. Do not include your name, address, phone number, or other similar identifiers on the manuscript. All original short fiction, flash fiction, and poetry submissions will be read anonymously on first read: moving out of slush depends on the merits of the story alone. Please make sure the title is on the manuscript.

Simultaneous and Multiple Submissions: We do not accept simultaneous submissions or multiple submissions. Please do not submit more than one set of poems at a time, more than one piece of flash fiction at a time, or more than one story at a time. You may, however, submit a single entry in each category at the same time: you can submit one batch of poems, one flash fiction piece, and one short story all at the same (or overlapping) time, and each category will be considered a separate submission. If we are already considering work in any given category, please wait until you have received an acceptance or rejection before submitting again in that same category.

Instructions: All fiction must be submitted through our Moksha online submission system. Please do not email your submissions. If one of the Submission Type options is grayed out, that means we are currently closed to that Submission Type.

Questions/Problems: Email [email protected] for all submission-related inquiries, or if you have any trouble using our online submission system. Please do not email your submissions to this address. All submissions must be submitted via our Moksha online submission system.

Rejections/Response Times: Be aware that we expect to receive several hundred submissions during our submissions periods. As such, we cannot offer personalized feedback on each story. If we say “send more” it means we really do hope to see something else from you. Most rejections will be sent out within a few weeks to a month, while stories being seriously considered may be held for up a month or more. Please do not respond to rejection letters, even just to say “Thanks for the quick turnaround” etc. We appreciate the thought, but it is unnecessary and will just clutter up our editorial inbox.

Cover Letters: Your cover letter may include your name and other identifying elements. It should contain the length of your story, your publishing history, and any other relevant information (e.g, if you send us a fantasy story about the Byzantine empire and your doctoral dissertation was on Byzantine empire politics, mention that). If you don’t have credentials to cite, don’t worry! We care about your story, not your resume. If you’re not sure what should go in your cover letter, this article on cover letters might help.

Diversity Statement: We encourage people of color, Black people, Indigenous people, Native people, women, people with disabilities, older people, LGBTQIA+, and anyone from typically marginalized or underrepresented communities to submit their work.

 

FICTION

Fantasy is seeking original fantasy and dark fantasy stories. All types of fantasy and dark fantasy are welcome. No subject should be considered off-limits, and we encourage writers to take chances with their fiction and push the envelope. If you’re not sure whether your story is fantasy (vs. horror or science fiction) go ahead and submit and let the editors decide. We do not accept simultaneous submissions or multiple submissions. Do not submit more than one short story at a time.

Format: Please submit your manuscript in double-spaced Times New Roman or Courier font. Please remember to NOT include any identifying information on your manuscript apart from the story title. Your manuscript must be in either .RTF, .DOC, or .DOCX format.

Word Counts: We are open to short fiction up to 7500 words. When you make your fiction submission, you can submit in one of the two categories described below.

  • Short Story: 1500-7500 words. (Stories of 5000 words or less are preferred.)
  • Flash Fiction: Up to 1500 words.

Work previously rejected by Lightspeed or Nightmare: We welcome submissions that were previously rejected by our sister-publications.

Pay Rate: Fantasy pays 8 cents per word for original short stories and flash fiction.

Rights: To see which rights we’re seeking, please review our contract template for original fiction/poetry.

 

POETRY

Fantasy is seeking original fantasy and dark fantasy poems. All types of fantasy and dark fantasy are welcome. If you’re not sure whether your poem is fantasy (vs. horror or science fiction) go ahead and submit and let the editors decide.

We prefer shorter form poems with literary sensibilities which are evocative, emotionally resonant, and/or visually vibrant—in other words, poems which are viscerally impactful, and/or meaningful in some way. At the same time, we will not limit submissions to these parameters.

Please ensure that the title of the poems are in the manuscript.

Submission Quantity: You may submit up to six poems in the same document. (Our submission system will not allow multiple attachments.) We do not accept simultaneous submissions or multiple submissions. Do not submit more than one batch of six poems at a time.

Pay Rate: Fantasy pays $40 per poem.

Rights: To see which rights we’re seeking, please review our contract template for original fiction/poetry.

  (more…)