Events

Deadline: May 31st, 2022 Payment: £10 Theme: A non-zombie outbreak O is for Outbreak – Submissions open April 1st. Deadline May 31st. Think outside the box for this one, and no zombies please! We’re sure Book 26 will cover that! We are currently calling for submissions for a series of horror anthologies – The A-Z of Horror. The series will be based on a variety of themes and will consist of twenty-six books in total. We are looking for short horror stories, between 4000 and 8000 words, on each of the themes listed below. You may submit to more than one book, but we will only include a maximum of one story from each author, in each book. Being accepted into one book does not guarantee acceptance into one of the others. The story must be your own work, to which you hold the rights. The story must not be available elsewhere and, if accepted, we will hold the rights to it for three months from the date of publication. After that time, you may use the story however you wish. Any sub-genre of horror is suitable, even extreme, so long as the story fits the theme of that book and does not include anything which may unnecessarily cause offence (glorification of child abuse, rape, etc.). Payment for the story will be £10, to be paid by PayPal, as well as a contributor’s e-book of the finished book. Please send submissions in a Word document (ideally Times New Roman 12pt, single spaced) to [email protected] with the title of the book you are submitting to in the subject line. Please ensure you have included your name on the Word document. If you have any queries, feel free to get in touch using the Contact page. We aim to respond to submissions within 2 weeks...

Deadline: June 1st, 2022 Payment: $20 Theme: We ask our fiction writers to imagine their readers navigating a story with one finger poised over a mouse button. Can your story stay that finger to the end? “Turning words into art is unnatural. It begins with a contrary attitude. It says, I am unhappy with the way things are and desire to make things different. Rather than represent the world, I will make something wildly and savagely new. I will defy logic. I will invest in new perceptions. I will combine and recombine and fabricate and juggle until something that I have never experienced is experienced. The process is alchemical. The process is violent. It goes to the heart of creativity. It disrupts and shatters. It is splendid with provocation. It is an aggression against banality. It is sharp and loud like a janitor scraping frost from a window. The hectic bounce of steam on a street after a truck roars by. The anarchy of waters, the comedy of the face, dangerous feelings vented from a cage of skin.” ~ John Olson Poetry — We believe poetry is contrary by nature, always defying, always tonguing the tang of novelty. We look especially for plurality of meaning, for dual reverberation of beauty and concern. Contrary’s poetry in particular often mimics the effects of fiction or commentary. We find ourselves enamored of prose poems because they are naturally contrary toward form – they tug on the forces of exposition or narrative – but prose poems remain the minority of all the poetic forms we publish. Please consider that Contrary receives vast amounts of poetry and that we can publish only a small percentage of that work. Please submit no more than three poems per issue. Our poetry editor is Shaindel Beers. Fiction — We ask our fiction writers to imagine...

Deadline: June 1st, 2022 Payment: 2 cents per word and a contributor's copy Theme: Texas Horror By Texas Writers Death's Head Press is pleased to announce plans for the 2022 edition of Road Kill: Texas Horror by Texas Writers, Vol. 7. Author Wiliam Jensen will serve as editor, and he's looking for original horror stores 1,500-10,000 words in length. The stories must be written and submitted by Texas authors and must be set (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. 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. All payments will be made upon official acceptance, and when acceptance is communicated each author will need to send a short bio. Death's Head 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 Submission Period begins on March 1. The deadline to turn in stories is June 1, 2022, and our intent is to have the book printed and available by October 15, 2022, in plenty of time for Halloween. Please send submissions to [email protected] Via: Death's Head Press.

Submission Window: April 15th – May 15th 2022 UPDATE: New deadline is June 1st, 2022 Payment: 5 cents per word Theme: Mothers Weird Little Worlds Press is looking for contributors to its second Kickstarter science fiction, fantasy, and horror anthology. Bring your weird and help us tell the scariest and most interesting mother stories you’ve ever imagined. LENGTH 1,000-3,000 REPRINTS No PAYMENT .05 per word .50 per line   MULTIPLE SUBMISSIONS No DEADLINE Apr. 15 – May 15, 2022 SIMULTANEOUS SUBMISSIONS Yes There is no one with more power and control over the fate of the world than a mother. Whether it’s an evil stepmother or a virtuous mother-to-be, there are stories inherent in the acts of mothering and being mothered. In these stories and poems, mothers become heroes and villains. The concept of motherhood is examined and stretched to its ultimate limits across time, space, gender, location, and concept. Deliciously dark, each tale forces us to examine the depth and breadth of what motherhood is and what a mother will do for her offspring. With brand new stories from: Gemma Files • Donyae Coles • Brian Evenson Ai Jiang • Sarah Read • Nadia Bulkin John Langan • S.P. Miskowski • Shane Hawk Steve Toase • Christina Sng • Steve Rasnic Tem Hailey Piper • Gabino Iglesias • Mercedes M. Yardley and many more The Details: Deadline: April 15 – May 15th Length: 1000 – 3000 words (5000 if stretch goals are met) Pay: .05 (.06 if we can unlock our $10k stretch goal) Poetry: $.50 per line up to 50 lines (Up to $2 if stretch goals unlocked) Rights: We retain full rights of the story for 12 months after publication at which they revert back to you. This includes audio and reprint permissions. Format: Shunn Manuscript, BLIND SUBMISSION....

Deadline: June 1st, 2022 Payment: US: $40 and a contributor's copy, non-US: $45 Theme: Cosmic/eldritch horror, based on the prompt below. Basically, stories that take place in or about Brackish Harbor Welcome to Brackish Harbor. Settled in the 1920s on an island in the Atlantic Ocean, it was once a booming fishing town that attracted tourists who longed for a quiet retreat. Even when the island was plunged into isolation during the winter months, the townspeople persevered. It was a community. A promise. A home. Until... ​ The fishing industry that sustained the small town dried up, and over time, the tourists lost interest. Many loyal villagers relocated. But most were forced to remain, scraping by amidst the dilapidated buildings, docked fishing boats, and vestiges of better days. ​ There are many unanswered questions in Brackish Harbor,  as well as many untold stories. It's up to you to tell them.   Quill & Crow Publishing House is pleased to open submissions for our surprise anthology for 2022, Tales from Brackish Harbor: An Anthology of Eldritch Horror. For this collection, we are looking for short stories (5,000 - 8,000 words) of cosmic/eldritch horror, based on the prompt above. Stories can be from whatever time period, but must tell the tale of the doomed village and it's mysterious secrets. We are really interested to see if anyone is up to the task of blending the genres of Gothic horror (our first love) and the weirdly wonderful cosmic horror. ​ Notes regarding the theme: Don't worry about the continuity details. Follow the information and theme and, upon submission approval, we will adjust as necessary. Above all, tell us a good story. Things we are looking for: cosmic/eldritch horror historical horror dark themes Gothic elements literary horror historical sci-fi/horror blends Things we ARE NOT...

Deadline: June 1st, 2022 Payment: $10 and a contributor's copy - proceeds will be donated to the literacy charity First Book Theme: "Monsters" from authors with active BookTube or AuthorTube channels Note: Reprints Welcome Note: Apologies for the short window, stumbled across this one recently as we didn't get an e-mail for this volume Seeking submissions from authors with active BookTube or AuthorTube channels for the next HorrorTube Anthology. Again, we are looking for a diverse group of authors with active BookTube and/or AuthorTube channels (no channel too small) so please do not hesitate to submit. Genre: Classic Horror! *Please, no horror erotica, paranormal romance, or romantic suspense. Theme: MONSTERS! Monsters can be human or inhuman, but for this anthology, we’re seeking horror stories of a gorier nature, so don’t hold back! But please, no graphic depictions of sexual assault, child or animal abuse. Supernatural stories depicting unique monsters are encouraged. Contact Regina at [email protected] with any questions. *See FAQs below. Length: 1,000 – 5,000 words Deadline: June 1, 2022 Details: Please submit your story as a separate attachment (word doc) along with a short cover letter including a clean link to your YouTube channel to [email protected]. Please use the standard submission format. For guidance see https://www.shunn.net/format/story.html. Please submit only your best, most polished work. Reprints are okay. The terms include the nonexclusive right to display, copy, publish, distribute, transmit and sell digital and print reproductions of your story worldwide. English language only. Payment for accepted submissions: $10 honorarium, print and digital copy. All proceeds will be donated to the literacy charity First Book. Deadline: June 1, 2022 Release Date: October 2022 Cover Design: Cameron Roubique Edited by Regina Saint Claire with a  foreword by Steve Donoghue. Frequently Asked Questions What is considered an “active” booktube/authortube channel?  Your channel should have recent uploads (at least once a month) and include bookish and/or writerly content. Why is my story rejected? The biggest reason...