WE ARE GRIMOIRE, an online literary publication of the dark arts. We publish one themed issue annually that includes fiction, nonfiction, poetry, art, and work that moves beyond genre.

B E F O R E   Y O U   S U B M I T
The best way to know what we want is to look in our mirror (see below) and to read past issues of the magazine. You can find our archive here.

We’re currently seeking:

C A L L F O R S U B M I S S I O N S : T H E G O T H N A R C I S S U S
Turning the camera on one’s self (the selfie, the reimagined self) as in Anna Tendler and Petra Collins; the way the camera can lie; technicolor interiors; melodrama; a goth Eve Babitz; the curation of self-presentation; visual pleasure and self fantasy ie Mulvey; digitization and pixelation of self; the mise en scene of a Room of One’s Own; absence and the opportunity for reinvention; Leila Taylor’s Darkly; narcissism and dysmorphia; vanity via vanitas; If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power; paper dolls assembled into narrative tableaux; queer bodies and narratives; thirst traps; subcultural drag and the externalized markers of what we love; Men, Women, and Chainsaws; transgression. We’re looking for things that have this vibe, or that play with form like this, but we’re also open to interviews as well as literary and film criticism.

If you see yourself in the mirror, submit your work to the newest reincarnation of Grimoire by AUGUST 1, 2022:

A D D I T I O N A L L Y
As part of our Goth Narcissus issue, Grimoire also invites you to submit your favorite selfies for an art feature. We’re interested in your most striking performance of self: the quarantine thirst trap you dared to post, the one where you don a costume that makes you feel more like you, the one where you take a risk, the one where you peel back a layer, the one where you confront the camera, the one where you’re most glam, most monstrous, where you don’t recognize yourself at all, the one where you confess a secret, the one you think is art. Alongside your self-portrait we ask that you submit a brief (no more than 200 word) written account – whatever that means to you – contextualizing your image. We are hoping to publish multiple artists for this feature. Please keep the photo submissions PG-13 (or a cheekily edited R – follow Instagram rules), and include the phrase “Selfie Feature” in the subject line.

D R E A M S
Regardless of issue theme, we’re also always looking for dreams for our resident dream expert, Billy, to interpret. Billy may or may not be a Grimoire coven member with a copy of Billy Bing’s Dream Book. Please peruse a few examples from the archives before emailing us yours, and include Dear Billy in the subject line.

We DO accept simultaneous submissions.

All submissions, queries, and questions can be sent to the witches at [email protected]

We accept .doc, .docx, or .pdf. In case of a .pdf, we will need a writeable file upon acceptance.  No shared Google docs, please.

T H E   D E T A I L S

W H A T   W E   D O N ‘ T   W A N T
Grimoire does not want your work if it includes racism, sexism, misogyny, ableism, ageism, homophobia, body-shaming, xenophobia, anti-immigrant sentiment, Islamophobia, TERF nonsense…basically, don’t send us bigoted or abusive nonsense of any kind, full stop. Irony is no excuse.

P A Y M E N T
Each writer will receive one shiny $20 bill upon publication; artist payment will be negotiated on a case by case basis. Should you not value the coin of the realm, let us know, and we will send you some weird shit in the mail as a token of our gratitude. This could include anything from vintage book pages, small cursed items, or a tiny haunted piece of art. We earn no revenue from this endeavor but if you would like to support us, please donate to our kofi. 

R E S P O N S E   T I M E
Our staff is all volunteer, and there are only three of us. We attempt to clear our inbox prior to the release of a new issue, so expect a wait of up to eight months, and possibly longer if we are holding your submission for a future issue. We will respond as soon as humanly possible. Please don’t contact our editors on their personal social media accounts.

R I G H T S
We request first serial rights. If your work is reprinted, we kindly request that you let us know (so we can celebrate) and credit us with first publication. On occasion we will solicit a reprint, in which case we request one-time nonexclusive Internet use. Please do not submit previously published work to us.