Darkness is Closing In. These Crime & Horror Submission Deadlines Are Imminent:
CRIME, MYSTERY, TRUE CRIME, & DARK FICTION CRIME MARKETS:
Jun – Aug 2021
Crimeucopia
Deadline: August 31, 2021
(checked Apr 23/21)
Crime Fiction. Payment: Reprints – To a Maximum of – £7.00 at present – but negotiable. New Material – 1,000 – 5,000 – up to £10 .00 at present. New Material – 6.000 – 10,000 – up to £20.00 at present.
https://www.murderousinkpress.co.uk/submissions.html
Hawkshaw Press
Deadline: June 30th, 2021
(checked Apr 23/21)
Full-length mysteries, thrillers. Payment: Royalties. You wrote a book… a book full of intrigue, crime, maybe a few people die, but that’s just the cost of doing business. You could call the cops, but why not call us instead? We’ll take your case, and we never close.
https://hawkshawpress.com/submissions/
The Best New True Crime Stories
Deadline: June 1, 2021
(checked Jan 24/21)
Nonfiction, true crime accounts featuring lawbreaking couples who have joined forces to commit crime. These couples can be married, domestic partners, or lovers. 4,000-7,000 words. Payment: $130, and 2 print copies of the book.
Important: Query first with a brief pitch.
https://mitziszereto.com/call-for-submissions/
May 2021
Crimeucopia
Deadline: May 31, 2021
(checked Apr 16/21)
Crime Fiction. Payment: Reprints – To a Maximum of – £7.00 at present – but negotiable. New Material – 1,000 – 5,000 – up to £10 .00 at present. New Material – 6.000 – 10,000 – up to £20.00 at present.
https://www.murderousinkpress.co.uk/submissions.html
Die Laughing: An Anthology of Humorous Mysteries
Deadline: May 31, 2021
(checked Apr 16/21)
Mystery/crime stories with off-beat characters, bungling detectives, or funny premises. Length: 1k-8k words. Payment: 2 cents USD per word, B&W comics $25 USD.
https://www.mysteryweekly.com/submit.asp?p=HUMOUR
Apr 2021
Dragon Soul Press: Murder and Mayhem
Deadline: April 30, 2021
(checked Mar 30/21)
Mystery. “A murder needs to be solved by these main characters as the stakes rise higher. Any branch of investigators can be included, even vigilantes.” Word Count – 5,000-15,000. Payment: Royalties.
https://dragonsoulpress.com/anthologies/
HORROR MARKETS:
Aug 2021
Bloody Good Horror (HellBound Books)
Deadline: August 31st, 2021
(checked Apr 23/21)
No particular theme, no particular sub-genres, no specific word length – as the title suggests, all we want is some bloody good horror for this anthology!
So, send us along your very best horror stories, and see if you can scare our jaded team of readers! 2.5K-4K word count (although we are incredibly flexible for awesome stories!) Payment: $5.
http://www.hellboundbookspublishing.com/subs-anthologies.html
Creature Publishing
Deadline: August 31, 2021; Opens April 1, 2021
(checked Jan 24/21)
Length: 20,000-60,000 words. Payment: Royalties
We accept both agented and un-agented submissions of fiction, nonfiction, or genre-defying prose.
Creature publishes up to four book-length works of feminist horror a year. We are looking for books that celebrate fluidity—the ability to cross boundaries and inhabit more than one category at once. While we acknowledge that categories have a certain utility, we refuse to separate horror, thriller, sci-fi, and fantasy from each other or the literary from the mainstream. Our definition of feminist horror is broad and inclusive, and we welcome writing that pushes boundaries.
We are interested in: unreliable narrators, unlikeable female characters, the monstrous, sharp critical essays and social commentary, swamp witches, your nightmares, dystopias, psychological suspense, unraveling minds, unraveling social constructs, possession, intersectionality, hybrid genres, metafiction, dark nights, and writing on sexuality/the body, gender, race, class, disability, technology, religion, and anything and everything that makes our spines tingle.
https://www.darkmarkets.com/2020/06/creature-publishing.html
Nightlight
Deadline: August 31, 2021
(checked Apt 23/20)
Restrictions: Open to Black writers. Genre: Horror. 10,000 words max. Audio format. Payment: $75 – $200 depending on length. $50 for reprints.
https://nightlightpod.com/submissions/
Dose of Dread
Deadline: August 15, 2021; opens August 1, 2021
(checked Apt 23/20)
Submissions open monthly: 1st – 15th. Un-themed, general horror flash fiction. Preference to dread-inducing stories.. Length: 500 – 1,000 words. Payment: $10.
https://dreadstonepress.com/submissions/
The Dead Inside
Deadline: August 2, 2021
(checked Apt 23/20)
Poetry, fiction, nonfiction. Identity horror. “Explorations of what happens when our core identities are stripped, altered, suppressed, or denied to us, whether by choice or not.” Payment: Poetry: $25 per poem. Flash Fiction: $25 per story. Short Stories: $50 per story. NonFiction: $50 per piece for print and ebook rights.
https://darkdispatch.com/submissions/identity-horror-submission-guidelines/
34 Orchard
Deadline: July 31, 2021, Opens July 1, 2021
(checked Apt 17/20)
We like dark, intense pieces that speak to a deeper truth. We’re not genre-specific; we just like scary, disturbing, unsettling, and sad. We like things we can’t put down and things that make us go “wow” when we’ve finished. But our main goal here at 34 Orchard is to publish the stuff we like to read, and you’re not in our heads. So don’t over think it. Just submit.
Short fiction from 1000 to 7500 words. Poetry any style or length. No reprints. Payment $50.
Reading periods:
- Spring Issue is January 1-January 31.
- Fall Issue is July 1-July 31.
Aurealis
Deadline July 31, 2021, Opens July 1/21
Due to a large number of submissions from outside Australia and New Zealand, the next window for non-Australian/NZ submissions to Aurealis will now be from 1 July 2021 to 31 July 2021.
(checked Jun 27/20)
Aurealis is an Australian Magazine that publishes compelling reads from both established and emerging writers. The magazine publishes horror, fantasy and science fiction. The magazine is partial to horror stories that are speculative rather than derivative. They are particularly strict about stories based on TV series and will not publish any superficial horror stories.
The online publication accepts submissions from Australian and New Zealand writers from 1 February – 30 September. Short horror stories should be between 2000 – 8000 words. Pay is between A$20 – A$60 for 1000 words and is only made after the publication of your story. Contributors also receive a free copy of the issue containing their story.
Ceci n’est pas une histoire d’horreur (This is Not a Horror Story)
Deadline: July 31, 2021. (Open until filled)
(checked Apr 23/20)
First and foremost, we are looking for the unusual and the provocative. We are seeking horror-focussed stories inspired and influenced by the transgressive fiction genre.. Payment: £15.
Dragon Soul Press: All Dark Places
Deadline: July 31, 2021
(checked Apr 23/21)
Genre: Horror. “In a world where so many dark things go bump in the night, terror awaits around every corner as these authors take horror stories to the next level.” Word Count – 5,000-15,000. Payment: Royalties.
https://dragonsoulpress.com/anthologies/
Monsters, Monsters, Monsters (HellBound Books)
Deadline: July 31st, 2021
(checked Apr 23/21)
We are looking for monsters, of course, be it werewolves, vampires, unspeakable creatures from the darkest depths of space or the innermost circles of hell, and any manner of earthly animals running amok. And, don’t forget the most heinous monster of them all, who just may be the sweet, unassuming neighbor who lives in the house next to yours… Payment: $5
http://www.hellboundbookspublishing.com/subs-anthologies.html
Red Cape Anthologies: K is for Kidnap
Deadline: July 31, 2021; Opens June 1, 2021
(checked Jan 24/21)
Genre: Horror. 4,000-8,000 words. “Being kidnapped must be a pretty terrifying ordeal – we’re looking for stories that convey that feeling of terror but we’re also looking for diversity. Think about who is being taken and by whom, are the kidnappers even human?” Payment: £10.
https://redcapepublishing.com/submissions/
Dose of Dread
Deadline: July 15, 2021; opens July 1, 2021
(checked Apr 16/21)
Submissions open monthly: 1st – 15th. Un-themed, general horror flash fiction. Preference to dread-inducing stories.. Length: 500 – 1,000 words. Payment: $10.
https://dreadstonepress.com/submissions/
The Zodiac Killers Series (Black Ink Fiction)
Deadline: July 1, 2021
(checked Apr 23/21)
Thriller. Restrictions: Author Eligibility: Authors accepted into any unpaid BIF collection. Length: 5000-10,000 words, excluding title. Payment: Royalties.
https://www.blackinkfiction.com/submissions
Jun 2021
Dates from Hell (Hellbound Books Publishing)
Deadline: June 30, 2021
(checked Apr 16/21)
Horror. Payment: $5. We want your stories of dates gone horrifically wrong, seemingly innocent meetings that deliver death and terror instead of romance, of psychopathic stalkers who will stop at nothing to possess their love’s still-beating heart…
http://www.hellboundbookspublishing.com/subs-anthologies.html
Field Notes from a Nightmare
Deadline: June 30, 2021
(checked Apr 16/21)
Ecological horror. Length: 1,000 – 4,000 words. Payment: 3 cents/word. Field Notes from a Nightmare will be a print and e-book anthology about environmental and ecological horrors.
https://dreadstonepress.com/submissions/#antho-jump
Gravelight Press
Deadline: June 30th, 2021
(checked Apr 16/21)
Seeking novel-length works: horror fiction for 2022-2023 publication. A small press that primarily publishes horror anthologies. Payment: Royalties.
https://gravelightpress.com/submissions/
Nightlight
Deadline: June 30, 2021
(checked Apr 16/21)
Restrictions: Open to Black writers. Genre: Horror. 10,000 words max. Audio format. Payment: $75 – $200 depending on length. $50 for reprints.
https://nightlightpod.com/submissions/
Dose of Dread
Deadline: June 15, 2021; opens June 1, 2021
(checked Apr 16/21)
Submissions open monthly: 1st – 15th. Un-themed, general horror flash fiction. Preference to dread-inducing stories.. Length: 500 – 1,000 words. Payment: $10.
https://dreadstonepress.com/submissions/
The Other Stories (Audio)
Deadline: June 14, 2021
(checked Apr 16/21)
Horror on theme of Doppelgängers. Payment: 15 GBT.
https://theotherstories.net/submissions
Bodies Full of Burning: An Anthology of Menopause-Themed Horror
Deadline: June 1, 2021 or until filled
(checked Apr 16/21)
Menopause-Themed Horror. Payment: 1 cent/word. 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.
https://sliceduppress.com/submissions-2/
Cemetery Gates: Generation Dread
Deadline: June 1, 2021
(checked Apr 23/21)
Restrictions: Open to writers 15-19 years of age. Genre: Horror. 1500 to 3000 words. Payment: $100 scholarship.
https://cemeterygatesmedia.com/2021/03/09/generation-dread-submissions/
The Zodiac Killers Series (Black Ink Fiction)
Deadline: June 1, 2021
(checked Apr 23/21)
Thriller. Restrictions: Author Eligibility: Authors accepted into any unpaid BIF collection. Length: 5000-10,000 words, excluding title. Payment: Royalties.
https://www.blackinkfiction.com/submissions
May 2021
Darkness Blooms
Deadline: May 31, 2021
(checked Apr 16/21)
Dark fiction on themes of Identity, Security, and Community. Payment: 8 cents/word.
https://www.thedreadmachine.com/submit/submit-darkness/
Madness Heart Press
Deadline: May 31, 2021
(checked Apr 23/21)
Horror. “Give us your stories of grave robbing, necrophilia, necrocannibalism, necromancy, necrophobia, desecration, deification. Bring out your dead and paint the streets in the blood of the living and the rot of the disrespected dead.” Payment: $10.
https://madnessheart.press/submissions/trigger-warning/?v=7516fd43adaa
Red Cape Anthologies: J is for Jack-o’-Lantern
Deadline: May 31, 2021; Opens April 1, 2021
(checked Jan 24/21)
Genre: Horror. 4,000-8,000 words. “Halloween in theme for these stories but the Jack-o’-Lantern must play a key role.” Payment: £10.
https://redcapepublishing.com/submissions/
The Other Stories (Audio)
Deadline: May 31, 2021
(checked Mar 30/21)
Horror on theme of Mythology. Payment: 15 GBT.
https://theotherstories.net/submissions
Classic Monsters Unleashed
Deadline: May 30, 2021
(checked Apr 16/21)
Dark, scary stories featuring a classic monster or monsters (think famous creatures from pre-1960 horror movies). Length: 1500 to 5000 words. Payment: 6 cents/word.
https://www.crystallakepub.com/authorcentral/
Madness Heart Press: Trigger Warning
Deadline: May 30, 2021
(checked Mar 30/21)
Horror. “Give us your stories of grave robbing, necrophilia, necrocannibalism, necromancy, necrophobia, desecration, deification. Bring out your dead and paint the streets in the blood of the living and the rot of the disrespected dead.” Payment: $10.
https://madnessheart.press/submissions/trigger-warning/?v=7516fd43adaa
Sanitarium Magazine.
Deadline: May 30, 2021
(checked Apr 17/21)
Dark verse, flash fiction and short horror stories. An honorarium will be paid for any accepted piece at $5 for flash fiction or dark verse and $10 for short stories. Short stories must be 1,500 words and above, any piece below that word count will be considered flash fiction. No stories above 10,000 words will be considered unless agreed beforehand. A PDF copy of the issue will also be provided to all accepted contributors as well as credit as contributor on the back cover of the issue and on social media and a bio (optional) following the piece. Sanitarium editions are published in Kindle and paperback formats.
The intangible world of the literary mind 
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