Into the Deep, Dark
Woods (anthology, edited by Kevin J. Anderson and Western Colorado University)
https://wordfirewestern.moksha.io/publication/into-the-deep-dark-woods/guidelines
Payment: 6 cents a word
Story Length: up to 5,000 words
Deadline: Open September 1 – October
15, 2025
Reprints?: No
Response: unknown
Description: Any genre, but the
setting of “deep, dark woods” must be central to the story: Stories that
explore the magic and mystery of the primeval wilderness, where tangled
branches create a foreboding canopy… A place of fairy tales, secrets, and
monsters.
https://www.utopiasciencefiction.com/submit
Payment: 8 cents a word
Story Length: up to 1,000 words for
flash fiction issue (normally up to 4,000 words)
Deadline: Regularly Open. See list
of THEMES and associated deadlines.
Reprints?: No
Response: Up to four months
Description: See site for quarterly
themes! Fiction to be “enthralling stories set in a future we want to believe
in”. Mag is also interested in poetry, non-fiction, and art, all
science-fiction related.
Book Worms
Horror Zine, issue: Folk Horror
https://rsaintclaire.com/2025/08/05/call-for-submissions-for-our-halloween-issue/
Payment: 8 cents a word
Story Length: up
to 1,500 words
Deadline: September 10, 2025
Reprints?: No
Response: unknown
Description: Folk
horror—that uncanny space where ancient legends, rural isolation, and old-world
rituals fester just beneath the surface of pastoral charm. Remember: Folk
horror is fluid—so stretch the boundaries. Invent your own cursed villages,
pagan rites, or ghost-haunted fields. Just keep it eerie, keep it folkloric,
and above all, make it scary.
**Note: This publisher accepts submissions ONLY via postal
mail
Tractor Beam
https://www.tractorbeam.earth/about
Payment: $1,000 flat rate
Story Length: up to 6,000 words
Deadline: October 6, 2025
Reprints?: No
Response: unknown
Description: Written and graphic
works that have actionable soil-based technologies as their premise: Stories
exploring a positive future on Earth with an emphasis on soil and agriculture
in the winter, the productive role of ice and snow in the seasons, frost and permafrost,
future fashion and style, entertainment and culture, the ocean and soil under
water, soil as tech, soil as the origin of life and anti-apocalyptic futures,
etc.
Three-Lobed Burning Eye
https://www.3lobedmag.com/submissions.html
Payment: 8 cents a word
Story Length: 1,000–7,500 words
Deadline: Open September 1 – September 1, 2025
Reprints?: No
Response Time: within two months
Description: Non-themed, original
speculative fiction: horror, fantasy, and science fiction.
https://www.annareser.com/night-shades-mag/
Payment: $65 flat rate
Story Length: up to 500 words
Deadline: Currently
open. Closes intermittently.
Reprints?: No
Response: unknown
Description: Non-themed
speculative fiction. Sci-Fi, Fantasy, or Horror.
***Non-PRO-Paying Market, but Eric J. Guignard’s “Pick of
the Month”
https://legacyliteraryservices.com/not-one-of-us/
Payment: 1/4 cent a word
Story Length: soft
cap at 5,000 words (hard cap at 6,000 words)
Deadline: ongoing
Reprints?: No
Response: Usually within two weeks
Description: People
(or things) out of place in their surroundings, outsiders, social misfits,
aliens in the SF sense—anyone excluded from society for whatever the reason.
Open to horror, SF, fantasy, noir, slipstream, Western, mainstream, whatever.
https://polymorphicmagazine.com/submissions/
Payment: $30 CAD flat rate
Story Length: up to 5,000 words
Deadline: Open September 1 –
December 31, 2025
Reprints?: No
Response: unknown
Description: Non-themed short horror
stories and art from creators around the world, illustrated and organized by a
small team of Canadian visual artists; From the grotesque to the absurd, Polymorphic
highlights horrors of all kinds, building a unique experience that’s sure to
leave you terrified!
Monday, September 1, 2025
September, 2025 Dark Fiction Short Story Markets
Wednesday, August 13, 2025
Release Day for: SCARING AND DARING
Can’t believe I missed promoting
this yesterday on its official release day (something I’ve been looking forward
to for years!) but announcing this new book release through HarperCollins!:
SCARING AND DARING
Edited by Eric J. Guignard
In partnership with Horror Writers Association, this MG anthology takes some of
the best-loved stories from classic literary canon and reimagines them with a
frightful (and fun!) twist!
###
Early praise for the SCARING AND DARING:
“With supernatural
creatures including dangerous fae, a werewolf, witches, and a ghost horse,
there’s something here for any young reader inclined to the fantastical…
Uncanny fun!" —Kirkus Reviews
“A win-win for any tween or teen bookshelf.” —Booklist
###
Full Table of Incredible Contents includes:
• “Hook and the Hand of Fate” by Teel James Glenn and Maxwell I. Gold (from Peter Pan)
• “What We Found Beneath Mount Etna” by Lisa Morton (from Journey to the Center of the Earth)
• “Prince Badi az-Zaman and the Ogress Fattan” by Tanvir Ahmed (from One Thousand and One Nights)
• “The Hound of the Basking Villas” by Kelley Armstrong (from The Hound of the Baskervilles)
• “The Lost Musketeer” by Maurice Broaddus (from The Three Musketeers)
• “The Secret (Thing in the) Garden” by Delilah S. Dawson (from The Secret Garden)
• “The Shadows in the Rock” by Joe R. Lansdale (from Adventures of Huckleberry Finn)
• “A Lucky Find” by Kristi Petersen Schoonover (from Moby-Dick)
• “The Boy of La Mancha Rides a Ghost Horse” by Carlos Hernandez (from Don Quixote (or, El Ingenioso Hidalgo Don Quijote de la Mancha))
• “The Glass Slipper” by Sherrilyn Kenyon (from Cinderella)
• “Wolf in the Mirror” by Sarwat Chadda (from The Jungle Book)
• “Vessel Eaters” by Ai Jiang (from “The Ballad of Mulan”)
• “Freckle and Hide” by Jonathan Maberry (from The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde)
• “Out on a Limb” by Nancy Holder (from Pollyanna)
• “The Gruelmaster” by Nathan Carson (from Oliver Twist)
And GORGEOUS cover art by Denis Zilber!!
Available for sale here:
HarperCollins: https://www.harpercollins.com/products/scaring-and-daring?variant=43735904649250
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Scaring-Daring-Terrifying-Association-Anthology/dp/0063372479
#ericjguignard #ericguignard #Booksofericjguignard #horror #bookstagram #fantasy #darkfantasy #darkfiction #anthology #shortstories #childrensbooks #funreading #middlegrade #HarperCollins #ScaringAndDaring #horrorwritersassociation #promotebooks
Friday, August 1, 2025
Contributor Copies for SCARING AND DARING!
Just got a box of these beauties!
Coming Aug. 12: SCARING AND DARING anthology ed. by moi!
https://ericjguignard.com/SacringandDaring.html
***
#ericjguignard #ericguignard #Booksofericjguignard #horror #bookstagram #fantasy #darkfantasy #darkfiction #anthology #shortstories #childrensbooks #funreading #middlegrade #HarperCollins #ScaringAndDaring #horrorwritersassociation #promotebooks
Monday, July 28, 2025
August, 2025 Dark Fiction Short Story Markets
New or Reopening Market Listings/ Notes
At Minimum Pro-Paying (5 cents+ per word)
Tales of Horror
Magazine
https://ashtonspot.com/talesofhorror/
Payment: 6 cents a word
Story Length: up to 5,000 words
Deadline: Intermittent. Currently
open, but may close at any time.
Reprints?: Yes
Response: unknown
Description: Non-themed horror short
fiction and poetry (seemingly with a preference to work that touches on the
classic style).
https://www.analogsf.com/contact-us/writers-guidelines
Payment: 8–10 cents a word (9
cents a word for non-fiction)
Story Length: up to 20,000 words
Deadline: ongoing
Reprints?: No
Response: 2–3 months
Description: Science fiction stories
in which some aspect of future science or technology is so integral to the plot
that, if that aspect were removed, the story would collapse.
TWO SEPARATE ANTHOLOGIES from Flame Tree Publishing
Payment: 8 cents a word (6 cents/ word for reprints)
Story Length: 3,000–4,000 words (soft range)
Deadline: August 24, 2025
Reprints?: Yes
Response: within 4 months of the submission deadline
• The Valkyries: Fiction stories that explore and expand on existing tales
associated with Valkyries (not simply retelling classic tales) or imagine
completely new names and narratives for those who have never seen the limelight.
https://blog.flametreepublishing.com/fantasy-gothic/the-valkyries-call-for-submissions
• Odysseus: Fiction
short stories that present the fully formed, rounded and complex figure that is
Odysseus, from his point of view and as others see him, as he faces the
challenges of living up to the expectations put upon him.
https://blog.flametreepublishing.com/fantasy-gothic/odysseus-call-for-submissions
Cosmic Roots and Eldritch Shores
https://cosmicrootsandeldritchshores.com/submissions/
Payment: 8 cents/ word original; 2 cents/ word reprint (range for non-fiction)
Story Length: 1,000–10,000 words
(focus on shorter form)
Deadline: Opens ONLY the 1st and 2nd day only of every
month.
Reprints?: Yes
Response: abt. 2 months
Description: Well written original stories in science fiction, fantasy,
myth, fairy tales, and eldritch; in written, podcast, video, and/or graphic
story form, and from around the world. We care about character, plot, ideas,
and storytelling ability. We accept both serious and humorous work (no horror).
Also interested in poetry and non-fiction (articles).
Crepuscular Magazine (drabble/flash
fiction)
https://www.patreon.com/posts/submission-85137677
Payment: 10 cents a word
Story Length: up to 250 words
Deadline: Ongoing
Reprints?: No
Response: undeclared (seems to
average less than one month)
Description: Microfiction stories
exploring places, characters, and questions buried in the gray areas between
this and that, here and there, night and day, alive and dead, evil and good,
feminine and masculine, up and down, real and unreal. If you're not quite sure
what that means, lean into that feeling... While we lean toward speculative
pieces, we have a love for those in-betweeny pieces that blur genre. We accept
horror (both spec and non), fantasy, science fiction, general/literary fiction,
and everything in between.
https://www.sanspress.com/submissions
Payment: €200 flat rate
Story Length: up to 5,000 words
Deadline: August 31, 2025
Reprints?: No
Response: unknown
Description: All genres: stories
that are ready to get their hands dirty in the making of a newer, fairer world;
it is for the characters that are driven not for the love of power but for
solidarity, for genuine belief, and for a refusal to surrender to cynicism and
despair.
https://remains.uk/pages/submissions
Payment: Unknown. ESTIMATE
1–3 cents a word (negotiated)
Story Length: Unknown. Previously
open to work up to 10,000 words; however suggested probably no more than 5,000
words
Deadline: Ongoing
Reprints?: No
Response: unknown
Description: Non-themed, general
audience, thoughtful horror. From the former editor of Black Static Magazine.
https://talestoterrify.com/submissions/
Payment: 2 cents a word (1
cent/ word for reprints)
Story Length: 2,000–10,000 words
Deadline: Currently open. Unknown
when will close
Reprints?: Yes
Response: up to 3 months
Description: Non-themed short
horror, dark fantasy, and other disturbing fiction. We want to read works that
threaten to bleed into our reality and corrupt something as ordinary as a
toaster. Anything is allowed as long as it’s well-conceived and well-written.
Deadly Duos: Funfair (Dreadstone
Books anthology)
https://www.dreadstonebooks.com/submissions
Payment: £0.01 per word
(capped at 3,000 words)
Story Length: up to 5,000 words
(prefer only up to 3,000 words)
Deadline: September 30, 2025
Reprints?: No
Response: within 1 month of the submission deadline
Description: Dark tales from the
fairground—twisted rides, carnivals of terror, sideshows, and the sinister
shadows behind the bright lights.
Monday, July 21, 2025
Book Chain 16: White Trash and Recycled Nightmares by Rebecca Rowland
Book Chain Campaign: BookChain16: Tracking Log for:
###
NOTES:
Book back copy: "A workaholic splits his time between home and hotel rooms until an anonymous cryptic message arrives, setting off a wrinkle in the time continuum and slowly shredding his sanity. Elsewhere, a woman's jealousy over her spouse's connection with their only child boils over, leading her to see monsters everywhere except the mirror. University fraternity brothers discover that a cruel prank has dire consequences but the full extent of their punishment is yet to come, while an intrepid hiker explores an abandoned Cold War facility hidden within a Massachusetts mountain only to realize that military secrets aren't the only things buried within. From witches, wendigos, and werecats to sirens, sadists, and serial killers, Rebecca Rowland serves readers a twenty-tale meal of cosmic, creature, and quiet horror in platters heaping with unsettling trepidation. In Rowland's long-awaited follow-up to The Horrors Hiding in Plain Sight, a lighted room provides no safe haven, and in the darkest corner of the basement waits a ravenous dread. The most sinister objects of fear are never truly discarded… just repurposed. Includes a foreword by Mary SanGiovanni."
(pub. Dead Sky Publishing, October 10, 2023)
Available here: https://deadskypublishing.com/portfolio-item/white-trash-recycled-nightmares/
And reviewed on:
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/White-Recycled-Nightmares-Rebecca-Rowland/dp/1639511202/
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/white-trash-and-recycled-nightmares-rebecca-rowland/1143024617?ean=9781639511204
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/98657775-white-trash-and-recycled-nightmares
###
AND READ WHAT #BOOKCHAIN IS ABOUT HERE!
https://ericjguignard.blogspot.com/2024/06/book-chain.html
Monday, June 30, 2025
July, 2025 Dark Fiction Short Story Markets
New or Reopening Market Listings/ Notes
Mmeory (anthology, Air and Nothingness Press)
http://aanpress.com/submissions.html
Payment: 8 cents a word
Story Length: up to 1,500 words
Deadline: Open between July 7–August
15, 2025
Reprints?: No
Response: September 15, 2025
Description: Stories of memory manipulation.
Examples include magic spells, cyborg memory edits, very unreliable narrators,
time travel gone horribly wrong; open to all genres: Fantasy, Science Fiction,
Urban Fantasy, Alternate History, Steampunk, Hopepunk, Solarpunk, and beyond...
https://www.diabolicalplots.com/guidelines/
Payment: 10 cents a word
Story Length: 3,500 words or less
Deadline: Open
between July 7– July 21, 2025
Reprints?: No
Response Time: One month after end of submission window
Description: Speculative fiction–science
fiction, fantasy, and horror. Everything should have a speculative element–that
includes horror. Feel free to mix in other genres at will–a fantasy mystery or
a science fiction romance.
Mysterion
(ezine)
https://www.mysteriononline.com/p/submission-guidelines.html
Payment: 8 cents a word (4 cents for reprints)
Story Length: up to 9,000 words
Deadline: Open
between July 1–July 31, 2025
Reprints?: Yes
Response: Four months
Description: Christian-themed
speculative stories and artwork—science fiction, fantasy, horror—with Christian
themes, characters, or cosmology; science fiction and fantasy, good ghost
stories, etc.; there's great fiction material hidden in the mysteries of
Christian theology—cherubim, leviathan, nephilim, visions, prophecy, and more.
The Orange & Bee
https://theorangebee.substack.com/p/submission-guidelines
Payment: 8 cents a word
Story Length: up to 4,000 words
Deadline: Open between July 1– July 14,
2025
Reprints?: No
Response: Within three weeks
Description: Fairy tale narratives:
Original works of fiction, poetry, and non-fiction that engage in a significant
way with the long history of fairy tales. We are interested in works that
stretch, expand, test, subvert, and challenge the fairy-tale tradition. We are
interested in works that are entertaining, but also in works that matter: that
is, in works that are both pleasurable to read and thought-provoking.
TWO SEPARATE ANTHOLOGIES: Romantic Fantasy from Flame Tree Publishing
https://blog.flametreepublishing.com/fantasy-gothic/romantic-fantasy-first-submissions-0
Payment: 8 cents a word (6
cents/ word for reprints)
Story Length: 2,000–4,000 words (soft range)
Deadline: July 20, 2025
Reprints?: Yes
Response: within 4 months of the submission deadline
1. A Breath of Time: Lost loves, love discovered, love unreachable unless Time itself is
conquered, these and many other time-bending, time traveling, time feasting
themes can spark your imagination for stories of alternate history, of ancient
forests returning to haunt the present and great adventures through dreams and
timeless mountain tops, all with hearts beating to the rhythm of romance.
2. Of Love & Dragons: Dragons may be fierce but they are symbols
of great power, and the bond between human and dragon, once forged can never be
broken. Or can it? Can romance deal a deathly trail of vows abandoned, or
forgotten, can realms beyond our time conjure tales of Dragon Lords and warrior
princesses, of great rivalries and oceans yearning with desire and
determination, can you tempt the ancient ways into new meanings, and new
stories.
Mergnaser Magazine
https://mergansermagazine.com/about.html
Payment: 8 cents a word
($1/line for poetry)
Story Length: up to 2,000 words
(soft limit)
Deadline: No closing date listed
Reprints?: No
Response: Within two months
Description: Strong, well-written
pieces across a wide range of material, including fiction, creative
non-fiction, and poetry.
https://inner-worlds.ghost.io/submission-guidelines/
Payment: £0.02 (about US 3 cents a word)
Story Length: 500–2,500 words
Deadline: Open between July 15–August
31, 2025
Reprints?: Yes (if not available
online)
Response: Three weeks
Description: Science fiction,
fantasy, or supernatural horror prose with a strong emotional or psychological
focus.
https://sluggerfiction.com/submit/
Payment: $25 flat
Story Length: 1,000–4,000
words
Deadline: July 15, 2025
Reprints?: No
Response: 45 days after close of
submissions
Description: Non-themed
horror; all subgenres of horror (dark fantasy, sci-fi, noir all accepted as
long as horror plays a central role).