What they want:

A challenge to all women horror writers, published or unpublished. Not only do you get to show off your prose, but we challenge you to perform your story in a podcast recording for all our listening pleasures. Both your written story and audio podcast are publicly judged and voted upon by the fans to determine who becomes 2013 Most Wicked. Each podcast story must be crafted by the entrant and will be limited to ten (10) minutes.

2013 Theme: How Will You Survive?

Upon acceptance in to the 2013 Wicked Women Writers Challenge, your destiny will fall under the Norns Hand of Fate. The Norns will randomly assign the following required elements to help you craft your apocalyptic survival story.

Deadline: June 20, 2013
Award: Unknown.  Possibly recognition only.
Submission Guidelines: http://wickedwomenwriters.wordpress.com/2013/
02/15/2013-wicked-women-writer-challenge-how-will-you-survive/

What they want:

69FoP’s tastebuds tend toward horror and dark fantasy. While horror is our favorite dish, we most love to serve it in a slipstream/cross genre stew. We love monsters and unknown beings of all types (just remember, though, there’s a billion of ‘em out there, so yours had better be tasty) and the contemporary/urban fantasy found in The Twilight Zone. LotR/Harry Potter-style fantasy, hard sci-fi and poetry are not particularly palatable to us, and we’ve been known to spit those pieces out before we finish chewing. Nothing particularly wrong with them, mind you, just not the textures we savor.

Length: Prefers fiction under 2,500 words but will consider up to 3,500.
Submission Guidelines: http://69fop.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1&Itemid=318

What they want:

We publish exceptional horror fiction, from the macabre to the supernatural to the thoroughly terrifying. Topics may include but are not limited to vampirism, lycanthropy, demonic possession, witchcraft, hauntings and apparitions of all sorts. While we prefer novels, we will consider collections of high-quality horror short stories. We are currently especially interested in well-written, truly frightening horror fiction with unusual settings, such as monasteries, museums and the like.

Length: Up to 78,000 words
Submission Guidelines: http://www.8thcrowbooks.com/content/submit.php

What they want:

Only submissions which are within the 99-word limit will be accepted. This means any story up to and including 99 words. Hyphenated words will be treated as one word. No limit to the number of entries per person.

Deadline: Ongoing (check website)
Length: Up to 99 words
Award: The winner will receive a free bottle of wine from http://www.alcoholfree.co.uk/ and posted anywhere in the world at the expense of 99fiction. Alternatively, the winner may elect to receive a voucher from Amazon to the value of $25.00 (US) and sent by e-mail to the winner.
Submission Guidelines: http://99fiction.tumblr.com/post/
41717581457/new-flash-fiction-competition-general-rules

What they want:

Bring out the Fey! Stories about the Sidhe? Sprites? Pixies? Boggans and Goblins? How about those Gnomes?

Looking for fictional stories involving the Fey Folk, both Seelie and Unseelie. From the campy to the deep and esoterical, from traditional faeries to the not-so-traditional (changeling kangaroos, anyone?), Western to Eastern, heck even Martian!

Fantasy is obviously expected but all spec-fic genres welcome. Got a SF story about a Space Leprechaun invasion of Earth? Send it! Slipstream? Go for it! A slasher involving psychopathic trolls with chainsaws and a fetish for wearing human skin? Ehhh….aw heck, why not?

Deadline: June 15, 2013
Length: 2,000-10,000 words
Payment: Royalties + contributor copy.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.seventhstarpress.com/submissions/

What they want:

Do you know superheroes?

Think you can write a superhero short story?

This needs to be a different kind of superhero story. Your superhero needs to be a different kind of hero, a hero who has some kind of disability. It could be a physical disability, a learning disability or sensory disability. That choice is left up to you, the writer.

Your target audience is any age group of reader, but they are probably into The Walking Dead, Game of Thrones, and Battlestar Galactica. They probably listen to The Clash, Nirvana and Turin Brakes. And they probably read David Eddings’s Belgariad omnibus, Terry Brooks’s Shannara trilogy, Guy Gavriel Kay’s Fionavar trilogy and Raymond Carver’s short stories.

Your superhero’s name must include at least one of the following letters X, y or z.

Deadline: May 31, 2013
Length: 1,000-7,000 words
Award: First Place: $100; Second Place: $25; Third Place: $10.  Wackiest story that brought a smile to everyone’s face: $25.  First place winner’s story will be featured in Issue One of the print version of Revolt Daily. Second and Third place (and any other chosen winners) will be featured on the online magazine.
Submission Guidelines: http://revoltdaily.org/a-different-kind-of-superhero-contest/

What they want:

The idea here is creation of a tribute to Ray Bradbury. We hope to publish the book on or before June 5, the one-year anniversary of his death. Just this once, we will consider poetry. Otherwise, we’re looking for stories that in some way honor Mr. Bradbury. A suggestion: PLEASE do not try to imitate his prose style. Use your own style.

Be sure to include, in your author bio attached to the story, what aspect of Ray Bradbury’s work you are saluting — which story, which book, etc.

Deadline: May 1, 2013
Length: Up to 4,000 words.
Payment: $10
Submission Guidelines: http://whortleberrypress.com/writersguideline.html

What they want:

We want you to scare us.  If your story doesn’t incite dread, give us nightmares, or make us feel extremely unsettled, it’s probably not for us.  Gore is acceptable, but not at the cost of story.

Length: 1,000-7,500 words.
Payment: 1 cent per word for short stories, $6 for accepted poetry.
Submission Guidelines: http://abominationmagazine.com/submissions/

What they want:

Albedo One proudly announces the launch of the Eighth International Aeon Award Short Fiction Contest, 2013. The Aeon Award is a writing competition, and its goals are to promote writers and writing in the speculative fiction genres, including science fiction, fantasy, horror or anything unclassifiable or in-between.

Deadline: November 30, 2013
Entry Fee: €7.50
Length: Up to 10,000 words.
Awards: The Grand Prize is €1000 and publication in Albedo One. Second and third place prizes are €200 and €100 and publication in Albedo One.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.albedo1.com/?page_id=723

What they want:

Horror stories, tales that frighten, yarns that unsettle us in our comfortable homes. All themes in this genre will be accepted, from the well-used (zombies, vampires, ghosts etc) to the highly original, so long as the story is professional and well written. No previously published entries will be accepted – all tales must be an original work by the author. Stories can be as violent or as bloody as the storyline dictates, but those containing gratuitous sex or violence will not be considered.

Entry Fee: AHWA Members have free entry. Non-AHWA Members: $5 for flash fiction, $10 for short story entries.
Deadline:  May 31, 2013
Length: Flash fiction up to 1,000 words.  Short stories between 1,001-8,000 words.
Award: The authors of the winning Flash Fiction and Short Story entries will each receive paid publication in Midnight Echo; The Magazine of the AHWA and an engraved plaque.
Submission Guidelines: http://australianhorror.com/index.php?view=57

What they want:

We are always looking for thoughtful, well written fiction. Our definition of what constitutes SF, horror and fantasy is extremely broad and we love to see material which pushes at the boundaries.

Length: 2,500-8,000 words
Submission Guidelines: http://www.albedo1.com/html/writers_guidelines.html

What they want:

We accept science fiction, fantasy and supernatural horror works…

Andromeda Spaceways is intended for a wide audience, so we don’t want anything more than M rated: No gratuitous sex or graphic violence. We want the overall tone of ASIM to be light as opposed to the dark-and-gritty style that characterises so many other SF mags this day and age. This does not mean we only publish light humour pieces, though. Our readers are just as keen on traditional fantasy and hard science fiction. We’re just not the best market for doom-laden go-nowhere stories which push the boundaries of the English language into new and unfortunate places.

Given an otherwise even choice between angst and adventure, we’ll grab the adventure.

Length: Up to 10,000 words. “Submissions of up to 20,000 words are permitted from subscribers and from authors resident in Australia and New Zealand.”
Payment: 1.25 cents AUD ($20 minimum per piece).  Flash fiction $10 AUD per piece.
Submission Guidelines:  http://www.andromedaspaceways.com/submissions/the-details/

What they want:

All our books are “genre” fiction in one way or another — specifically fantasy, science fiction, horror, and that new catch-all urban or modern fantasy. Those are quite wide-ranging in themselves; we’re looking for all types of sub-genre, so for example, hard SF, space opera, cyberpunk, military SF, alternate future history, future crime, time travel, and more. We have no problem if your book mashes together two or more of these genres; in fact, we practically insist upon it.

Notes:  Will only accept unsolicited submissions during “open door” period.  Otherwise, you must have an agent.
Submission Guidelines: http://angryrobotbooks.com/submissions/

What they want:

The stories may be science fiction, fantasy or horror only.

Length: Up to 5,000 words.
Payment: $25
Submission Guidelines: http://anotherealm.org/FAQ/faq.php?q_id=3

What they want:

What we want is sheer, unvarnished awesomeness. We want the stories it scared you to write. We want stories full of marrow and passion, stories that are twisted, strange, and beautiful. We want science fiction, fantasy, horror, and mash-ups of all three—the dark, weird stuff down at the bottom of your little literary heart. This magazine is not a publication credit, it is a place to put your secret places and dreams on display. Just so long as they have a dark speculative fiction element—we aren’t here for the quotidian.

Length: 5,000 words max
Payment: .05 cents per word
Submission Guidelines: http://apex-magazine.com/submission-guidelines/

What they want:

We’re open minded so long as the book examines the darker side of life! We can publish art books, comics (collected, stand-alone, or series), novels and short stories – all we ask is that your submission is complete and at a level of professionalism that equals the work currently published.

…The goal of Asylum Ink Magazine is to build greater awareness and traffic between the various contributors as well as create an easily digestible anthology for fans.  If you are interested in participating, all contributions will be credited to their respective creators, a free ad and links will be provided to your home pages.

The compendium features the finest in horror, sci-fi, and dark art around.

Deadline: by the 10th of the month
Length: negotiable
Payment: exposure
Submission Guidelines: http://asylumink.net/submissions.html

What they want:

Aurealis is looking for science fiction, fantasy or horror short stories. All types of science fiction, fantasy and horror that are of a “speculative” nature will be considered, but we do not want stories that are derivative in nature, particularly those based on TV series. Crime horror submissions should be directed to another market.

Stories do not have to be explicitly Australian, although we always like to see some with Australian characterisation and background, provided the local element is not merely a self-conscious insertion into a standard plot.

Restrictions:  Prefers Austrailian authors but does publish overseas writers from time to time.
Length: 2,000-8,000 words
Payment: Aurealis pays between $20 and $60 per 1000 words, depending on the level of government grants received, and payment will be made soon after the publication of the issue containing your story. Minimum payment is $20. You will also receive a free electronic copy of the issue containing your story.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.aurealis.com.au/submissions.php

What they want:

What if pigs really could fly . . . with bloody snouts and a taste for human flesh? Or chickens developed a murderous hive-mind? And then there is Old McDonald and his brood of demented children. This anthology approaches horror from the scenic landscape of farms. What is really in that barn? What else gets plowed? Or planted? Barnyard Horror will deliver a harvest of poetry, flash fiction, horror art and short stories not soon forgotten, even if the reader wants to do so. So let us get to planting!

Deadline: Until filled
Length: Unknown
Payment: All contributors will receive a free copy of the Smashwords edition. In addition, two authors or artists will receive $25 each for “Best Of,” to be decided by the editor.
Submission Guidelines: http://jwkfiction.com/index.php/opsub

What they want:

Our primary focus is hardboiled but we also accept action/adventure, westerns, sci-fi/fantasy, horror/thriller, etc. No yarns with bigotry or overt political agendas.

Length: Up to 4,000 words
Payment: No payment
Submission Guidelines: http://www.beattoapulp.com/guidelines.htm 

What they want:

Belladonna Publishing is a new independent press. We publish speculative novels, anthologies, graphic novels and comics. Our preferred genres are: dark fantasy, urban fantasy, gothic, steampunk and fairytales.

Length: 50,000-80,000 words
Submission Guidelines:  http://belladonnapublishing.com/submissions/novels/

What they want:

We here at Bete Noire are looking for stories that are well written, character driven and have a dark bent to them.  We are open to most genres as long as they have a dark side.  This includes horror, dark sci-fi, dark fantasy, crime, mystery or dark humor.  However, vampires plus sparkle equals rejection.

Length: 50-4,000 words
Payment: $10 payment + PDF contributor copy
Submission Guidelines:  http://www.betenoiremagazine.com/magazineguidelines.htm

What they want:

Big Pulp is an online journal featuring genre fiction and artwork of all kinds. We are actively seeking submissions of prose, poetry, photography, artwork, and comics for our pages.

Length: Up to 2,500 words
Payment: 1 cent per word (minimum $5, max $25), $5 for poetry
Submission Guidelines: http://www.bigpulp.com/submissions.html

What they want:

We’re looking for narrative and quasi-narrative work that creates its own logic. We’d like to see narrative taken apart and then reassembled into something almost, but not quite, what it was before. If the story gets sort of broken in the process, that’s okay with us. Werewolves and the like are also okay with us, but not required. We prefer stories that make us feel alive over stories that make us feel dead. Kafka says fiction should be an ice-axe to break the frozen sea within us. He is likely correct with regard to fiction published on the European continent; here in the Americas, we prefer to think of fiction as an ice-twibill for carving frozen-sea igloos under the surface of the frozen sea. There are pelicans down there, making delicious Erdbeer Käsekuchen Eis. They speak, but only in verse.

Please do not send us verse.

Submission Guidelines: http://www.birkensnake.com/submit.php

What they want:

Bizarrocast is looking for strange stories, and the stranger the better. We want to read things that we’ve never even considered, things that warp expectations and give a shock to the system, leaving the reader disturbed. We want stories that are funny, disgusting, terrifying, and most of all well written. Weirdness is mandatory, vulgarity is praised, and madness is our highest honor. If your story is about someone being cursed to be a werewolf and tearing apart his sleeping wife, it may be good, but we don’t want it. If your story is about someone cursed to be a weretapeworm and tearing apart his sleeping wife’s innards, you might have what we’re looking for.

Length: 2,000-6,000 words
Payment: $5 USD
Submission Guidelines: http://bizarrocast.blogspot.com/

What they want:

Black Death Books was founded in 2002 and specializes in dark, gothic and extreme horror and urban fantasy.

Acceptable sub-genres include:

• Gothic/dark horror
• Classic monster tropes
• Urban fantasy

Length: 30,000-50,000 words
Payment: 50% net royalties.
Submission Guidelines: http://khpbooks.com/submissions/

What they want:

We accept previously unpublished short fiction works (2,500 words or less) of fantasy, magic realism, mystery, supernatural tales, and some horror (though please don’t send us gore; it upsets our stomachs as we tend to snack while reading), though BLP is a macabre magazine, and generally seeks literature that follows that theme. Please do not send us romance, speculative fiction, narratives, or fiction that does not make any sense–we’re big on plot here, and believe that even short fiction can have well-developed characters and story lines. We do accept short poetry pieces (and when we say short, we mean short–very short, preferably 20 lines or less, unless you are the next T.S. Eliot and your poem is just a tad longer). Please do not send us love poetry–we don’t want to hear about your many loves lost, or what a great lay you had last night. We are well-aware that there are some outstanding love poems out there; but we are a macabre journal, and unless your love gets eaten by a hungry zombie somewhere along your prose, then we’re not interested.

Length: Up to 2,500 words
Payment: Free PDF contributor’s copy
Submission Guidelines: http://www.blacklanternpublishing.com/submit.htm

What they want:

We are always open to submissions of new horror and dark fantasy short stories of up to about 10,000 words in length.

Payment: semi-pro market
Submission Guidelines: http://ttapress.com/blackstatic/guidelines/

What they want:

Original short fiction in the genres of Dark Fantasy, Horror, and Spec. We want something that will kick the reader in the ass and push boundaries.

Length: 1,500-5,000 words
Payment: $15.00 CAD
Submission Guidelines: http://blacktreacle.ca/submission-guidelines/

What they want:

No one should ever have to deal with cancer, especially a child. BLEED is a charity anthology where the profits will go to the Children’s Cancer Fund. We are looking for allegorical horror stories where the monster represents cancer.

Don’t forget, this is for all the little girls and boys who fight the good fight everyday.

Deadline: June 30, 2013
Length: Up to 10,000 words
Payment: Profits will go to the Children’s Cancer Fund.
Submission Guidelines: http://perpetualpublishing.com/2012/12/31/announcing-two-new-anthologies-bleed-and-long-distance-drunks/

What they want:

We are publishers of dark fiction. This includes science fiction, horror, thrillers, erotic horror, suspense, and other uncategorized works. We are not fond of limitations so explore your darkest side. For more info on what we want, please visit this section of our forum.

Length: 10,000-80,000 words
Payment: 40% net royalties
Submission Guidelines: http://bloodboundbooks.net/bloodboundbooks/?page_id=26

What they want:

We’re looking for horror in all its forms, whether it’s subtle creepiness or over-the-top gore.  Rainbows, unicorns, and happy endings need not apply.

Length:  Prefers stories under 5,000 words.  Flash fiction welcome.
Payment: Contributor copies.  No payment.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.bloodmagazine.com/pages/submission-guidelines

What they want:

Bold Strokes Books offers a diverse collection of LesbianGayBiTransQueer general and genre fiction. BSB genre fiction includes all romance sub-genres as well as action, adventure, crime, mystery/intrigue, and speculative fic (sci-fi/fantasy/horror).

Length: 55,000-130,000 words
Submission Guidelines: http://www.boldstrokesbooks.com/pages.php?pageid=15 

What they want:

…send your best stories to Bradbury Quarterly. Stories you think Ray Bradbury himself would love to read. Stories you think he may have wanted to write. Stories he may have collected as a boy growing up in Waukegan, in Tucson, in Los Angeles. Stories he would cherish, talk about, be inspired by.

Length: Up to 7,500 words
Payment: No payment
Submission Guidelines:  http://raybradbury.wordpress.com/submissions/

What they want:

An anthology dedicated to psychological horror by established and new indie authors, poets and artists.  Submitted work should be challenging, disturbing or downright terrifying.

Deadline: May 31, 2013
Length: 2,000-5,000 words
Payment: Unknown
Submission Guidelines: http://www.vamptasy.com/open-anthology-calls.html

What they want:

Buzzy Mag is looking for original science fiction, fantasy and horror short stories. Thriller, suspense and paranormal tales that cross into traditional speculative fiction are welcome.

Length: Up to 10,000 words
Payment: 5 cents per word
Submission Guidelines:  http://buzzymag.com/submissions/

What they want:

Cancer scares us. It scares us and it intrigues us. There is so much we don’t know about it, but it’s out there, waiting to strike when we least expect it.  Cancer is not all-powerful and many people beat it, but to those who don’t cancer is cruel. It doesn’t show them the kindness of a quick death but draws things out, taking their life away in slices.

Due to the nature of cancer this collection will tend toward the darker side of the speculative fiction spectrum but we don’t want the entire anthology to be gloomy and depressing so the absolute best submissions will find a way to end on a high note, find something to be optimistic about, or evoke an emotion other than (or in addition to) sadness or dread.

Deadline: June 30, 2013
Length: Stories up to 7,500 words long and poems up to 40 lines long.
Payment:  $10.00 advance with an equal share of 25% of royalties.  A portion of the proceeds from this anthology will be donated to the American Cancer Society.
Submission Guidelines:  http://www.rhondaparrish.com/call-for-submissions-cancer-anthology

What they want:

Cast Macabre is open to submissions for short length and flash fiction, and poetry. Stories longer than 4,000 words or so take over twenty minutes to read, which is about our limit, but if the story is good we may make an exception. Flash fiction (1000 words or less) will be read in our special flash episodes, you’ll be credited but won’t get the usual author bio and intro. We’ll still mention you in our newsletter though. Short, dark, poetry will be occasionally read as an appetizer before our main features in regular episodes.

Cast Macabre is a horror fiction podcast, but we don’t see horror as a genre, more as an effect. Your story should induce fear in the reader, or hold a light up to the darker sides of human nature. But if the story’s just a gratuitous description of violence with no point, or features a despicable character that doesn’t get his or her comeuppance, that’s not what we’re after. Horror stories should still be morally satisfying. Stories do not require a speculative or supernatural element, but we do like weird.

Payment: £10
Submission Guidelines: http://castmacabre.wolfsbanepublishing.com/submission-guidelines

What they want:

We’re looking for the same thing in our eBook line that we look for in our hardcover publications: well-written, compelling works that keep us turning the page.

For the eBook line, we’re open to just about any genre: horror, mystery, suspense, thrillers, science fiction, fantasy, westerns, and anything that crosses these genres.  We read A LOT of different genres and the eBook line is an opportunity for us to bring all kinds of different works to our readers.

We’re looking for novelettes, novellas, novels, and short story collections (single author).  No short stories at this time.

Length: Manuscripts should be at least 10,000 words, although we’d recommend a collection be at least 20,000 words.  There is no maximum word count.
Submission Guidelines:  https://cemeterydance.submittable.com/submit/15732?details=true

What they want:

Horror, dark mystery, and suspense short stories. We want tales that are powerful and emotional — creepy, chilling, disturbing, and moody. Suspense/mystery/crime tales with a horror element are always welcome. Both supernatural and psychological stories are fine. Most common reasons for rejection are: lack of power, lack of originality, slow pacing, poor writing, boring themes. Read the magazine, see what type of fiction we are publishing — don’t submit with a blind eye!

Length: 1,000-5,000 words
Payment: semi-pro/pro market
Submission Guidelines: http://www.cemeterydance.com/extras/category/guidelines/ 

What they want:

Science fiction need not be “hard” SF, but rigor is appreciated. Fantasy can be folkloric, medieval, contemporary, surreal, etc.  Horror can be supernatural or psychological, so long as it is frightening. There are no barriers as to levels of profanity, gore, or sexuality allowed, but high amounts of profanity, gore, and sexuality are generally used poorly. Be sure to use them well if you do use them.

Length: 1,000-8,000 words
Payment: 10¢ per word up to 4000 words, 5¢ per word after
Submission Guidelines:  http://clarkesworldmagazine.com/submissions/

What they want:

This anthology weaves threads about those dedicated, even fanatical, about their faith or belief system.  They are called to take us someplace we’ve never visited, not wax on about their chosen tenets.  Stories about the classic “gaming Cleric” will fit here as will stories about those whose ways are perhaps misguided according to societal norms.  Remember our tag line, “What’s your Darkness?”

Deadline: Unknown
Length: 500-8,000 words
Payment: $10 for stories over 500 words, $20 for stories over 2000.  Royalties.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.gothiccitypress.com/2013/02/
calling-all-clerics-charlatans-and.html

What they want:

Comet Press is now accepting novella length stories for our Ebook line in the following:

• Horror
• Dark Crime
• Fantasy
• Dark Erotica in all genres and sub-genres.

We don’t have content restrictions. For dark erotica titles we are seeking only one heat level: off the charts hot!

Length: 15,000-40,000 words
Payment: Royalties
Submission Guidelines: http://www.cometpress.us/guidelines/ebooks.html

What they want:

Cover of Darkness publishes dark fantasy and horror.  Before we go any further, we want to emphasize this to potential contributing writers:  our idea of a good horror story is one that you read with all the lights on, and you look over your shoulders while you turn the pages.  Put another way, meeting a zombie is not scary; meeting a zombie unexpectedly is scary.  Capisce?  Okay, let’s try this:  when we see intestines, we want to make twisty-squeakies–giraffes, cocker spaniels, etc.  Blood and gore is not scary; it’s just icky and oogie.  We don’t want our readers to puke.  We want them to shiver.

Length: 2,000-8,000 words
Payment: $15 + contributor’s copy
Submission Guidelines: http://www.samsdotpublishing.com/coverofdarknessgl.htm

Notes: Published quarterly. Individual issues & subscriptions available at sdpbookstore.com.

What they want:

What is “Creepypasta”? In short, a Creepypasta is a short story that is posted on the internet that is designed to unnerve and shock the reader.

CREEPYPASTA.COM is a collection of various paranormal/scary short stories.

Payment: No payment
Submission Guidelines: http://www.creepypasta.com/submit-your-pasta/

What they want:

We want speculative fiction. Science fiction, fantasy, horror, whatever. If you aren’t sure what speculative fiction is, google it. Then submit your story elsewhere. This is Crowded Magazine, not Clueless Magazine.

Length: 500-20,000 words
Payment: “…5 cents per word Australian (note this is currently slightly more than 5c p/w US but that could change at any time).”
Submission Guidelines: http://www.crowdedmagazine.com/guidelines.php

What they want:

As our name implies, we like dark stories across all the genres we offer. If someone’s ever told you a story is too dark, we’d love to see it.

Length: 20,000-140,000 words
Payment: 40% eBook royalties, 25% net revenue print
Submission Guidelines: http://www.damnationbooks.com/submissions.php

What they want:

Dark Bits will be a collection of 52 horror flash fiction stories. We have no restrictions or subject or taste, only on the length. The anthology will be book and ebook formats. Reprints are welcome.

Deadline: May 15, 2013
Length: Up to 500 words.
Payment: $20
Submission Guidelines: http://apokrupha.com/2013/03/12/dark-bits-call-for-submissions/

What they want:

Must be in the Horror/Dark Fantasy/Dark Sci-Fi and Dark Mystery veins (no straight Science Fiction, Mystery, Fan Fiction, or Sword & Sorcery).  Open to Mythos stories, but they have to be very good.

Looking for well-written, powerful, original ideas and new twists on old horror conventions.  Vampire, zombie and werewolf stories are a tough sell, but we are open to those with an original twist.  Especially looking for stories that examine the darker side of the human condition, but we are also interested in supernatural tales.  New writers are welcome to submit.  Please consider purchasing a sample copy to see what type of stories we are publishing.

Length: 500-6,500 words
Payment: .05 cents per word
Submission Guidelines: http://darkdiscoveries.com/blog/submission-guidelines/

What they want:

What they want:

DarkFuse is now accepting submissions for original dark fiction novels. We’re looking for a wide array of original modern dark fiction novels in the fields of horror, thrillers and the bizarre. We only publish original novels, NO reprints or self-published.

Length: 50,000-80,000 words
Payment: Flat payment for limited edition hardcover rights, plus 50% profit sharing revenue for paperback & e-book sales.
Submission Guidelines: http://darkfuse.submittable.com/submit

What they want:

Dark Futures Fiction wants to publish both poetry and prose. Primarily, we are looking for works that fit the theme of Dark Futures. Ideally, this works should put a lot into developing and conveying the setting. Post-apocalyptic and cyberpunk are great. Sci-fi horror stories will also often work well. Others will be considered, especially those within the realm of sci-fi, fantasy, or horror.

Length: No specific word count.
Payment: $1 for works of 250 words or less. $2 for works more than 250 words but less than 1000 words. $4 for works over 1000 words.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.darkfuturesfiction.net/home/
submissions/

What they want:

Dark Moon Digest Is looking for quality short stories for future issues of our publication. Any genre will be accepted as long as it is in the horror genre. There are no deadlines to this call for submissions as stories will be selected for future issues of Dark Moon Digest, so submit at your leisure.

This contest is open to all writers, published or unpublished.

The story style does not matter. It can be anything from a slasher type story (although we have to admit right up front, those are not our favorites) to a humorous tale or anything in between. But most importantly, it must be an entertaining horror short story. We must want to turn that page to see what happens next in the story and how things end. Oh, and don’t forget scary. That is, perhaps, the most important consideration.

Length: 1,000-4,000 words
Payment: Authors will receive $10.00 and a copy of the issue of DARK MOON DIGEST in which their story appears. (Authors entering contests should read specific contest rules, guidelines and prizes. This applies to all short stories and articles, but does not apply to flash fiction and micro-fiction submissions. See those specific pages for details regarding those categories.)
Submission Guidelines: http://horrorwritingcontest.com/
Dark%20Moon%20short%20story%20contest.htm

What they want:

Daylight Dims will be an anthology of terrifying short stories. We are looking for  unique and interesting settings and situations.

Deadline: June 30, 2013
Length: 2,500-25,000 words
Payment: No payment
Submission Guidelines: http://stealthfiction.com/daylight-dims/

What they want:

As the title suggests, we are looking for stories which are in some way related to pirates, and which are told from the perspective of a dead character who is either in the story or referenced by it. The character must be dead when telling the story, although his or her demise can be before, during or after the events of the tale itself (we will give priority to stories where the circumstances of that death are integral to the story).

We are looking for new and original stories on this theme with surprising elements. We expect this anthology will appeal to writers of historical, ghost stories and horror fiction, and to fans of swashbuckling pirate adventures.

Deadline: May 29, 2013
Length: 2,000-6,000 words
Payment: Royalties
Submission Guidelines: http://www.fringeworks.co.uk/blog/?p=323

What they want:

We are looking for dark horror stories, no aliens! Stories that will not be accepted are stories with child rape, molestation, or pedophilia.

Deadline: July 1, 2013
Length: 1,000-5,000 words
Payment: US$.03/word, payable upon publication. Plus, one copy of the edition in which the work appears when edition is published as a paper copy. US$.01/word for reprints, payable upon publication.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.diabolicpublications.com/current

What they want:

Diabolique welcomes unsolicited submissions for publication in both the magazine and on the website. We want articles that are interesting, unique, challenging and/or edgy, that will expand our understanding of any aspect of the genre, or that deal with well-established subjects in a fresh way. We are not limited by nationality, gender, politics, popularity or media.

Whilst the magazine has a tendency towards film and literature we will publish on any aspect of horror including (and not limited to) music, soundtracks, television, theatre, gaming, marketing, theory, production, art, history etc. Articles which deal with tangential subjects that throw new light on horror tropes and culture are particularly welcome.

Length: Feature articles should be between 3,000 – 5,000 words, though we will consider longer articles by prior arrangement. Shorter articles should be 1000 – 2000 words. Reviews should be between 500 and 1000 words. Fiction submissions can be of any length, but submissions over 4000 words may need to be edited or serialized.
Payment: Free contributor copy.  Free digital subscription (coming soon).
Submission Guidelines: http://diaboliquemagazine.com/contact/submissions/

What they want:

We are looking for dark Vampires, of the old fashioned kind! Erotica is acceptable as long as the vampires drink human blood, bite, kill and so forth. We are not looking for love story type vampires. Stories that will not be accepted are stories with child rape, molestation, or pedophilia.

Deadline: Until filled?
Length: 2,000-8,000 words
Payment: US$.03/word, payable upon publication. Plus, one copy of the edition in which the work appears when edition is published as a paper copy. US$.01/word for reprints, payable upon publication.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.diabolicpublications.com/current

What they want:

We want to read your tales of horror (poems are fine too). Please, terrify us. Make us run home to mommy. Make us sleep with a night light on. Make us wet our beds and fear the monster in the closet. Give us your best, well written fiction with the goal to scare, terrify and thrill the reader. We love realistic horror (serial killers, mad scientists, rabid dogs, things like that), but we also love vampire, zombie, monster and good old fashioned ghost stories. Horror is a pretty diverse cateGORY. Scare us. We dare you.

Length: Up to 10,000 words.
Payment: $20
Website: http://www.efictionmag.com/horror/
Submission Guidelines: http://efictionmag.submittable.com/submit

What they want:

All types of speculative fiction (fantasy, science fiction and horror) are welcome and reprints will be considered; however, you should query first with story and publication information before submitting a reprint. Short story collections, full length novels (40,000 words or more), poetry collections or non-speculative fiction novellas will not be considered for open submissions.

Length: 20,000-40,000 words
Payment: Pay Rate: $250 (USD) advance + 25% royalty of list price
Submission Guidelines: http://eggplantproductions.com/general-guidelines/guidelines-for-e-book-submissions/

What they want:

We want the tone, atmosphere, and feel of the Gothic masters. Less gore/ blood and more fear/ suspense.

The latest Enter At Your Own Risk collection is a radical look at differing points of view. Every story has a protagonist. However, every story also has a cast of secondary characters to round out the narrative and themes. Below you will see a list of the stories we are offering and the fascinating look into the perspectives of some of those secondary characters. Interested in a challenge? We are adding one more Gothic master to our list!

Edgar Allan Poe is one of the most famous Gothic dark fiction writers of all time. In his infamous story “The Black Cat,” we descend into a madman’s fears and paranoia. But what of the other two characters in the tale? The cat and the narrator’s wife play very significant roles in this story, but we never hear directly from them. We want the stories from the cat and the wife. How did they see these horrific events? How did they feel as they watched the protagonist slip into madness? Choose one of Poe’s other characters and re-tell his terrible tale!

Deadline: April 30, 2013
Length: 2,000-7,000 words
Payment: $35
Submission Guidelines: http://www.firbolgpublishing.com/dark-muses-spoken-silences/

What they want:

We want Lovecraftian or apocalyptic-themed stories of any genre, as long as they feature strong writing. Apocalyptic works do not necessarily have to be about the end of the world. Stories may be about personal apocalypses or revelations; think James Salter’s “Last Night”or Sherman Alexie’s “The Sin Eaters”, for instance. Lovecraftian pieces should feature strong atmosphere, characters and plot, not just tentacled monsters or simple name-dropping of unpronounceable words.  We prefer your own take on Lovecraft and the Mythos; pastiche will be hard sells.  Caitlin R. Kiernan’s “Houses Under the Sea” and China Mieville’s “Details” are stellar examples of the former. Best read works will have an original voice and take on old themes.

Length: ~1000 words
Payment: .01 cents per word
Submission Guidelines: http://eschatologyjournal.org/submissions/

What they want:

We are publishers of dark fiction with a weird edge. This includes science fiction, horror, thrillers, erotic horror, splatterpunk, bizarro and other uncategorized works that have a distinct weird and experimental edge. We don’t like to limit what we read, but anything that is both dark and weird will work just fine.

Length: 10,000-40,000 words
Payment: Payment includes a $40 advance.
Submission Guidelines:  http://evildeadbooks.wordpress.com/2012/11/08/submission-guidelines/

What they want:

Manuscripts set in dystopian, sci-fi, horror, paranormal, apocalyptic, post-apocalyptic, steampunk, or fantasy worlds. Novels can have a wide range of romance in them or none at all. We will consider anything from aliens to zombies. We are fascinated to see Young Adult with male co-leads. We accept LGBT and would like to see manuscripts in which the characters live in a diverse world (unless it’s part of the story line that everyone be the same).

Length: 65,000-150,000 words
Submission Guidelines: http://www.evilgirlfriendmedia.com/

What they want:

The editor has a fondness for new formalism and prose poetry but will accept any style.

Speculative poetry is poetry which falls within the genres of science fiction, fantasy, and horror, plus some related genres such as magic realism, metafiction, and fabulation. It is not easy to give precise definitions, partly because many of these genres are framed in term of fiction rather than poetry.

Length: 1-5 poems
Payment: US 3¢/word rounded to nearest dollar; minimum US $3, maximum $25.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.eyetothetelescope.com/submit.html

What they want:

Fear, it seems such a simple word, a common word; one syllable that can be applied to almost anything. Well, we’re applying it to our new series.

There is always something to be afraid of in the dark; just the dark itself can paralyze some. Is it really quite as simple as it seems?

We don’t think so, and we’re pretty sure you’ll agree.

There is plenty to fear in the dark. Perhaps something lurking unseen in the shadows, a place so foreign no human mind has return from it unharmed, paranoia so pervasive it can drive the most sane individual over the edge.

Or maybe you are the dark; maybe you are what we need to be afraid of…

Elementary in concept? Maybe, but so much more complex when told with the finesse of a wordsmith. Tell us your tale of why we should be afraid of the dark. We love horror, we love bite, we love fear most of all. Think you can scare one of us? Give it your best shot!

Deadline: April 29, 2013
Length: 4,000-10,000 words
Payment: 50% of the royalties will be distributed between all contributors + Ebook contributor copy.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.sirenscallpublications.com/open_subs.htm

What they want:

Not afraid of the water, are you? Maybe you haven’t thought about what might be down there… Write us something original; tell us what is so terrifying about two Hydrogen atoms bonded to one Oxygen atom forming a single molecule. Should we be afraid of the water itself, or what it might be hiding below its surface? Shallow murky depths, clear hot springs that are deceptively deep, or underground caverns holding secrets yet to be discovered.

Think about it. Don’t just spin an average yarn – we want the reader to wonder if the next time they dip their toes into the water, it be their last.

The series is called FEAR, that should fairly well define the parameters, and remember – we publish fictional tales, not scientific journals.

Deadline: May 20, 2013
Length: 4,000-10,000 words
Payment: 50% of the royalties will be distributed between all contributors + Ebook contributor copy.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.sirenscallpublications.com/open_subs.htm

What they want:

We accept stories that fall into the speculative fiction arena of fantasy, science fiction and horror, or any combination of these three. We are looking for high quality plot or character driven fiction.

Length: Up to 5,000 words
Payment: No payment
Submission Guidelines:  http://FDEzine.fever-dreams.co.uk/Submissions.html

What they want:

We accept fiction submissions. We currently have 8 separate lines of books to choose from.
Dreamers- Fantasy Submissions. Witches, Wizards, Kings, Queens, Kingdoms… Think Lord of the Rings type stuff, and Harry Potter.
Bitten- Paranormal Submissions: Werewolves, Sirens, Vampires… Grimms Fairy Tale…
Fire- Our Erotica Submissions go here. Any and all heat levels.
Below- Our Horror Line of books.
Zone- Science Fiction: Aliens, planets… Think Avatar, or Star Trek…
Romance: Blush- Romantic Comedy Loveswept-Sweet Romance

Submission Guidelines: http://fireflyandwispbooks.com/submissions.html

What they want:

Fireside’s goal is to publish great storytelling, regardless of genre. What do we mean by great storytelling? We want stories that go somewhere, with plot and a beginning, middle, and end. We’re not looking for character studies or metafiction or hallucinatory visions. (We LIKE those things; it’s just not what we publish in Fireside.)

And yes, we seriously mean any genre. So far in Issues One and Two we have had sci-fi, horror, crime, near-future, and one piece of straight modern non-speculative fiction. They were all terrific, and we are looking for more of those and from all the many genres we haven’t explored. Just tell us a good story.

Length: 2,000-4,000 words
Payment: 12.5 cents per word
Submission Guidelines: http://firesidemag.com/submissions/

What they want:

Fourth Horseman Press typically considers novels, novellas, short story collections, graphic novels, and other innovative book-length works for publication. We do not publish poetry, children’s books, or memoirs. Interested authors should familiarize themselves with our catalogue and be aware that we are a small, independent press with limited resources. Though compensation for our authors is often basic, each of our books boasts superior design and promotion. Truly, every one of our publications is a labor of love.

Submission Guidelines: http://www.fourthhorsemanpress.com/Contact.htm

What they want:

I am putting together an anthology of quality Horror fiction due for publication Nov/Dec 2013 (print + Ebook). ‘Fresh Fear’ will profile international authors of Horror. There will be some established players and also representatives from the thriving indie scene.

Prerequisite: the stories must be original, previously unpublished and scary as hell!

Deadline: August 14, 2013
Length: 3,000-8,000 words
Payment: US $10 per story + contributors copy (Ebook + Print)
Submission Guidelines: http://jwkfiction.com/index.php/opsub

What they want:

original, hard-hitting, fast, hyperviolent, sexual, x-rated fiction with strong characters and plot.

Think sex with aliens/robots/AIs, dogfights, street fights, fight bites, bite fights, virtual wars, tentacle sex, black holes, wormholes, shaved holes, intergalactic criminals, mad scientists, futanari/hermaphrodites, body mods, transhumans, vore, post-apocalyptic worlds, destruction, dystopia, gleaming towers, utopia, death, mayhem, insanity, computer viruses, hedonistic cults, retro-futures, flying cars, extrasolar planets, Mars, and perversion… for starters. Then mix it all together with whatever the hell the opposite of ‘political correctness’ is and the glitz and glam of the 80s (okay, that part is optional).

In other words… KNOCK ME ON MY ASS. NOTHING IS TOO ORIGINAL FOR THIS ANTHOLOGY. NOTHING IS TABOO (with the exception of Hate). I do not freak out over words or ideas. I cannot stress this enough. I don’t care what you submit as long as you don’t bore me.

Length: Up to 10,000 words
Payment: 1 US cent ($0.01) per word, and a DRM-Free PDF version of the ebook.  Authors and cover artists are paid via profit-sharing. Royalties made on sales will be split between all persons (except myself) on a quarterly basis until they are paid in full.
Submission Guidelines: http://sexpunk.tumblr.com/post/9232358678/full-metal-orgasm-emagazine-submissions-open

What they want:

Gollancz is the oldest specialist SF & Fantasy publisher in the UK. Founded in 1927 and with a continuous SF publishing programme dating back to 1961, we are home to a galaxy of award-winning and bestselling authors. Through our long-running SF and Fantasy Masterworks programme, and major digital initiative the SF Gateway, we have one of the largest ranges of SF and Fantasy of any publisher in the world.

Gollancz publish Science Fiction, Fantasy, Horror, Urban Fantasy, Steampunk, Dystopia and a little YA cross-over fiction. If you’re writing in these areas, we’re happy to take a look at your work.

Length: 80,000+ words
Submission Guidelines: http://www.gollancz.co.uk/2012/09/friday-reads-our-submission-guidelines/

What they want:

Please note that for GOTHIC BLUE BOOK V.3, in addition to the previous macabre locations, we have added some additional settings where your story can take place.

2013 New Editions:
a)Setting in an active or abandoned hospital, mental institution
b)Setting in an active or abandoned juvenile or adult correctional facility/prison

Deadline: July 19, 2013
Length: 3,500 words
Payment: $25 + 2 contributor copies
Submission Guidelines: http://www.burialday.com/submit/horror-anthology-submission/

What they want:

Graveside Tales seeks chilling, character-driven stories of the Supernatural, particularly those set in the Lycanthrope universe. Psychological suspense, “killers on the loose,” and cross-genre blends (Paranormal Romance or dark fiction containing SciFi, Historical and/or Fantasy elements) are welcome provided the subject matter is original and the focus remains on horror. Gore, sex, or controversial content is okay as long as its inclusion is essential to the story and not incorporated solely for shock value.

Length: 20,000-100,000 words (see website for specifics)
Submission Guidelines: http://gravesidetales.com/index.php/guidelines

What they want:

We specialize in the publication and distribution of writings pertaining to the Pagan and Occult Communities. Submissions of fiction and non-fiction are also welcome.

We do not currently state horror as a genre on the website but we do accept horror submissions as several of our publications are of the “Horror” genre.

Payment: 20% Royalties (click here for details)
Submission Guidelines: http://www.graveyardpublishing.com/id2.html

What they want:

We consider original, unpublished stories generally classified as speculative, dark fantasy, horror, weird tale, slipstream, magic realism, or fantastic fiction. We look for quality storytelling, confidence in using the English language, and character-oriented stories. We also consider tightly woven flash fiction not exceeding 1,000 words.

Length: Up to 5,000 words
Payment:  For original, unpublished fiction, we pay $30, payable upon publication via Paypal. For reprints and flash fiction, payment is $15.  One free contributor copy.
Submission Guidelines: http://grimcorps.com/magazine/submissions.htm

Slay bells ring, are you screaming,

In the lane, there’s a body

A horrible sight,T

hey’ll slaughter tonight,

Killing in a winter wonderland.

We are pleased to announce a Christmas-themed anthology for charity benefiting the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation. What are we looking for? It’s simple. Horror stories with a Christmas theme. That’s the only requirement. Zombies, werewolves, ghosts, ghouls, possessed elves, demonic Santas…whatever your twisted minds can conjure up–so long at it takes place on or around Christmas. So let’s see what you got, folks. Tis the season and all that.

What they want:

What do we want? Time travel stories! When do we want them? That’s irrelevant! No, wait, I meant to say April 26th! I think I messed that up. Let’s travel back to the past and fix that, shall we?

This month’s flash fiction prompt is “hacking the time machine” inspired by this post from the inimitable Start Your Novel blog.

We’ve seen all manner of time travel stories, but this month we’re looking for a new spin on the idea.

Deadline: April 26, 2013
Length: Up to 1,000 words
Payment: $10.  Will produce the story in audio form (Protip: we’ll be reading the story aloud, so you should think about doing the same before you send in your submission; smooth out anything that might trip up the delivery.)
Submission Guidelines: http://humanechoespodcast.blogspot.com/2013/
04/short-echoes-prompt-3-hacking-time.html

What they want:

What frightens you? What awakens you in the wee hours of the morning to taunt you, tempt you, terrify you? What horrifies you and sends you racing in revulsion? Reveal and share your scariest, weirdest, oddest, most ghostly, ghastly, and macabre tales. No subject is taboo… except bad writing, which will not be countenanced. It is recommended that you be thoroughly familiar with macabre literature before you submit your work to HM. Well-known authors of haunted literature? Arthur Machen, Edgar Allan Poe, Henry James, Charles Dickens, M. R. James, among many others. HM is not a retro-zine only wanting work flavored with Edwardian or Victorian or Georgian sensibilities. Your work can be set in any time period as long as it is well-crafted.

Length: Everything from flash fiction to novellas up to 40,000 words.
Payment: No payment
Submission Guidelines: http://hauntedmag.wordpress.com/guide-lines/

Hellicious Horrors™ Epublishing, the epublishing company devoted solely to horror e-books starring straight, bi, gay, lesbian, transgender, transsexual and transvestite preteens through young adults is looking for fresh, imaginative authors. Anyone submitting must have a finished novel (40,000 words or more).

Though we prioritize the young writer/new authors, we encourage ALL to send in submissions and welcome inquiries. Please see our submissions guidelines for more information.

http://www.hellicioushorrors.com

What they want:

We are currently in search of literary pieces, photography and visual art including film from writers and artists that have a special knack for inducing goosebumps and raised hairs. This genre has become, especially in film, noticeably saturated in gore and high shock- value aspects as a crutch to avoid the true challenge of bringing about real, psychological fear to an audience that’s persistently more and more numb to its tactics.

Length: Short stories, flash fiction & poetry
Payment: No payment
Submission Guidelines: http://hellohorror.com

What they want:

HeroesandHeartbreakers.com welcomes submissions of original short romance stories in all subgenres (erotica, contemporary, paranormal/urban fantasy, women’s fiction/chick lit, historical, romantic suspense, etc).

We are not interested in “true confessions” or other non-fiction material.

Length: 10,000-15,000 words
Payment: We pay $1,000 against a 25% royalty. (The royalty enters the picture with respect to downloadable versions of the work.) Although we will consider edge cases, “original” means original—not previously published.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.heroesandheartbreakers.com/
page/submissions

About:

HORROR GARAGE combines the best in original dark fiction with the finest in horrific rock n’ roll. Think HORROR OF PARTY BEACH, PSYCHOMANIA, and DEATH RACE 2000: B-movie babes, screamin’ skulls, bug-eyed creeps, and gallons of blood.

Length: Up to 1,200 words
Payment: Up to $30
Submission Guidelines: http://www.horrorgarage.com/horror/submission.php

What they want:

Horror Stories, Weird Literature, Ghost Stories, Literary Fiction. Each story must either subtly or directly reflect the title of the anthology.

Deadline: May 30, 2013
Length: 2,000-10,000 words
Payment: 1p (£0.01) per word
Submission Guidelines: http://howivi.wordpress.com/2012/10/05/hello-world/#comments

What they want: 

Hyperpulp is a quarterly online magazine aimed at a broad spectrum of genres from fantastic literature. Edited by Alexandre Mandarino, the publication mixes fantasy, science fiction, horror, mystery, war and western, including its various sub-genres and schools, from magical realism to slipstream, from cyberpunk to new weird, but always with a twist: the text must be literary and demonstrate a concern with writing, not only with plot or characters. Anyway: literature as the goal, fantastic literature as the result.

Length: 10,000 words max
Payment: No payment
Submission Guidelines: http://www.hyperpulp.com/submission-guidelines/

What they want:

Ideomancer publishes speculative fiction and poetry that explores the edges of ideas; stories that subvert, refute and push the limits. We want unique pieces from authors willing to explore non-traditional narratives and take chances with tone, structure and execution, balance ideas and character, emotion and ruthlessness. We also have an eye for more traditional tales told with excellence.

We are especially interested in non-traditional formats, hyperfiction, and work that explores the boundaries not just of its situation but of the internet-as-page.

Length: Up to 7,000 words
Payment: 3 cents per word, max payment of $40
Submission Guidelines: http://www.ideomancer.com/?page_id=20

What they want:

Imaginarium is a start-up speculative fiction publication, published by students at the University of California, Berkeley. We embrace any and all kinds of imaginative fiction that stretch the boundaries of reality and perception, as well as pushing the limits of standard form. We are looking for stories ranging from classic Science Fiction and Fantasy to alternative history, surrealism, mythology, horror, absurdism, and everything in between, in as inventive a way you can imagine.

Length: We publish fiction up to 7,000 words. We prefer 1,000-3,000. Poetry max length : 100
Payment: None
Guidelines: http://imaginariumzine.blogspot.com/p/
submission-guidelines.html

What they want:

Our aim is to showcase Indiana authors. We want crime fiction that takes place in Indiana and prefer stories written by Hoosiers or those who have a connection to the Hoosier state.  Crime stories with horror and/or science fiction elements are especially welcome.

So what are we looking for? We want  pulp. We want grit. We want heroes and villains, the famous and the infamous,  the notorious and glorious. We want raw characters with all their quirks,  habits, flaws and vices in full bloom. Give us stories filled with outlaws,  gangsters, crooks, thieves, private eyes, marshals, detectives, sheriffs,  detectives and amateur sleuths. Throw those characters headlong into bootlegging, hi-jacks, drug running, train robberies, bank heists, corporate  crime, extortion, murder, fakes and forgeries. The tale can be about crooks or  the cops who catch them. The era can be present day, the 1800’s or any time in  between. You decide. The tale can have elements of other genres, like horror,  sci-fi, western, urban fantasy or steampunk. If your story is a good one, and  involves a crime in Indiana, we want to see it. Think Seth Harwood, Ken Bruen,  The Late Robert B. Parker, Elmore and Peter Leonard, J. Lee Butts, Victor  Gischler, Sean Doolittle, Jeff Somers, Marcus Sakey, Duane Swierczynski, Jim  Thompson, Don Winslow, Richard Stark, Vachss or Hammett and Chandler or John Connolly. Above all, give us a story that makes us want to keep reading.

Deadline: Submissions open March 1, 2013 – Open until filled.
Length: 1,500-5,000 words
Payment: The top two stories, one favorite selected by each editor, will receive payment of $25.  Additionally, all authors selected will have their bio and photograph published in the anthology with their story.
Submission Guidelines: http://jwkfiction.com/index.php/opsub

What they want:

We accept all genres of fiction and poetry that fit with our basic theme; extremely dark fiction, pieces with humorous, sexual, or erotic elements. Basically, we are looking for stories that make the reader cringe and turns them on at the same time, makes them laugh while a voice in the back of their head tells them they are going to Hell for finding such things funny, or just plain freaks them out and disquiets their minds. Evil, is what we seek, in all its gory, humorous, and carnal glory.

Stories and poetry which contain adult content, harsh language, and graphic violence will all be considered for publication, so long as they contain nothing that will get us, the publishers, arrested or sued.

Length: 500-5,000 words
Payment: No payment
Submission Guidelines:  http://hydramstar.com/Infernal_Ink.html

What they want:

We publish both literary fiction and genre fiction (horror, science fiction, fantasy… you name it). BUT we want to see something creative, something different. This can be in either content or execution – both if you are especially creative. Ultimately we want quality writing that entertains.

Length: 750-3,000 words
Payment: “For each issue, one contributor will receive the ‘Editor’s Choice’ award, for which we pay £10. We also now pay £10 per article accepted for publication.”
Submission Guidelines:  http://www.inkspillmagazine.com/submissions/

What they want:

Innsmouth Free Press purchases original short fiction inspired by the works of H.P. Lovecraft and/or the Weird. We showcase 5 to 7 stories during February, June and October.

Length: 300-5,000 words
Payment: 1 cent a word (CAD) for all fiction. Reprints $25.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.innsmouthfreepress.com/?page_id=8299

What they want:

We are accepting all manner of supernatural, paranormal, weirdness, oddities, and whatnot so long as there is a romantic plot element. Time period is not a sticking point.  Modern, period, complete fantasy/alternate reality all will be looked at.  We want imaginative, well-written stories that are crafted with care. Not to knock it because there is a place for every good word out there, but porn without plot will not be accepted. Sex is good and natural and fun but it must move the plot forward.  We at Insatiable are more interested with emotional content and that “oomph” that good writing evokes in the reader.

Also, we are not afraid of humor.  Just because there’s love involved doesn’t mean it can’t be funny.

Length: Up to 5,000 words.
Payment: 3 cents per word.  1 cent per word for reprints.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.whitecatpublications.com/?page_id=1995

What they want:

We’re all about quality dark fiction.

Not just horror, but mystery, noir, thrillers, bizarro, weird tales, tragedies, black comedies, transgressive, fantasy and everything in between. We only ask that the story you give us is pulled from the most shadowed parts of your consciousness. We want to see the dark side of human nature. We want prose to sucker punch us right in the kidney on a darkened path while we’re out for a night time stroll. We want the story to leave taunting messages on our answering machines. We want to feel the creeping dread of being watched. And most importantly, we don’t want to sleep.

Length: Up to 5,000 words
Payment: No payment
Submission Guidelines: http://www.insomnia-press.com/submission/

What they want:

Established in 2007, Iron Cauldron Books is a small press striving to bring you the best alternative and specialty reads from fresh voices. Like a gourmet restaurant for books, our focus is on quality, not quantity. With selections ranging from cookbooks to zines, we have earned a reputation for our discriminating taste in horror, paranormal, new age, witchcraft, and spiritual non-fiction.

Length: 25,000-75,000 words
Payment: Royalties
Submission Guidelines: http://www.ironcauldronbooks.com/ 

About:

JournalStone is now a small press publishing company, focusing on Science Fiction/Fantasy/Horror in both the adult and young adult markets.  We publish in multiple book formats and market our authors on a global level. In addition to showcasing new authors, JournalStone publishes a yearly anthology of collected short stories, and we host an annual contest for Horror Novels. We are also active with major writer’s groups (including the HWA) and produce a monthly newsletter with exposure to several thousand people. Our online presence and marketing effort is constantly expanding and recently we began our own forum. The company’s main goal is to publish quality novels that will showcase an author’s work and promote that work utilizing our evolving presence.

They want:

JournalStone currently accepts manuscripts with these themes: Horror, Sci-Fi, Fantasy, Paranormal in the Young Adult and Adult markets. We reserve the right to consider the subject matter and how best to utilize it. JournalStone does not practice censorship of any author’s work.

Length: 70,000 + words
Payment: Possible advance, 10 free copies, percentage of net proceeds
Submission Guidelines: http://journalstone.com/journalstone-publishing/

What they want:

Kaleidotrope tends heavily towards the speculative — towards science fiction, fantasy and horror — but we like an eclectic mix and are therefore always eager to read interesting work that falls outside those categories. Man does not live on space ships, elves and ghostly axe murderers alone, after all.

Length: 250-10,000 words
Payment: For fiction and nonfiction alike, we will pay $0.01/word (1 cent a word) USD. For poetry, we offer a flat rate of $5 USD per accepted piece; for artwork, $10.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.kaleidotrope.net/guidelines/

What they want:

We at KnightWatch Press are interested in speculative fiction novels to publish. This includes fantasy, science fiction and horror. We have a particular interest in Apocalyptic and Post-Apocalyptic fiction.

Submission Guidelines: http://www.knightwatchpress.info/subs.html

What they want:

We are interested in seeing manuscripts in the genres of horror, dark fantasy and weird fiction. More importantly, we’re interested in fresh writing. We’re not likely to publish anything with vampires, werewolves or zombies.

Length: We accept unsolicited novels, novellas and short story collections, up to 120.000 words. The minimum for short story collections is 50.000 words. We do not accept short stories. Generally, collections are a harder sell for us than novels.
Submission Guidelines: http://krakenpress.com/

What they want:

We will consider short stories that can be classified broadly as belonging to the Horror, Science Fiction or Fantasy genres. Expand our horizons, challenge or fine-tune convention. We love well-done genre blending and bending, too, like John W. Campbell, Jr.’s “Who Goes There?,” H.P. Lovecraft’s “At The Mountains of Madness,” Philip K. Dick’s “The King of the Elves,” and C.S. Lewis’s “Space” trilogy. Other authors whose work we enjoy include Jorge Luis Borges, Harlan Ellison, R.E. Howard, Shirley Jackson, M.R. James, Brian McNaughton, Clifford D. Simak, Clark Ashton Smith, and J.R.R. Tolkien.

Length: 2,000-6,000 words
Payment: .05 cents per word
Submission Guidelines: http://www.lore-online.com/index.php/submission-guidelines

They want:

The Lovecraft eZine wants well-written, original Lovecraftian and Cthulhu Mythos fiction.  While we enjoy and appreciate pastiche, best read works will feature an original voice and new takes on old themes, not simply mimicking Lovecraft’s style.  Simple mentions of Cthulhu or the Necronomicon do not make a story Lovecraftian.  For us, the best Lovecraftian fiction share the tone and themes of Lovecraft: Cosmic horror, the discovered knowledge of the unnameable terrible things behind the curtain of reality, etc.

Payment: $50 for accepted stories over 3,000 words. $25 for stories under 3,000 words, poetry, or flash fiction.
Editor(s): Mike Davis
Guidelines: http://lovecraftzine.com/submissions/

What they want:

We accept short story collections, novels, novellas, and just about everything in between. Series will be considered, but please note if your manuscript is part of one and include details on your thoughts for the rest of the series (length, basic plot ideas, etc.). Speculative fiction is preferred, but we will leave what defines ‘speculative’ up to you. Space Opera, Cyberpunk, Slip Stream, Sword and Sorcery, Steampunk, Magical Realism, etc. all are welcome.

Payment: 50% net profits
Submission Guidelines: http://www.lunastationpress.com/submissions/

What they want:

We are interested in werewolf stories from a variety of genres: urban fantasy, dystopian, futuristic science fiction, steampunk, mind-bending time travel, space operas, mythological as well as historical retellings and the paranormal. Stories with a strong voice, well developed characters and a unique premise go to the front of the line.

Deadline: June 15, 2013
Length: 3,000-9,000 words
Payment: $20 + contributor copy
Submission Guidelines: http://www.kerlakpublishing.com/storycall2.html

What they want:

The goal for this e-zine is to publish “scientific papers” by mad scientists. Or, at least, fiction that could be loosely considered such. We are willing to consider any fiction that is told from within a fictional world. This can be first person from the point of view of the scientist, someone who has witnessed these events, fictional newspaper articles, or even scientific papers about pseudoscience. We are willing to take almost any genre for this: humor, SF, fantasy, horror, paranormal romance, urban fantasy, pulp adventure. All we ask is that it be well written and fit within the needs of this e-zine. Gratuitous anything that doesn’t add to the story is discouraged.

Length: Flash Fiction: 500-2,000 words; Short Fiction: 2,000-8,000 words; Serial Fiction: 2,000-8,000 words.
Payment: $10 for flash fiction, $20 for short fiction, $20 per installment for serial fiction ($100 max).
Submission Guidelines: http://madscientistjournal.org/submissions/

What they want:

We’re looking for creatively aggressive work. We want writers to be fearless. No topic is off limits, nothing is sacred. If you’re not willing to go there, then stay the fuck home.

Length: 1,000-3,000 words (Fiction and Non-Fiction).  Also looking for poetry.
Payment: No payment is currently provided for any material published on the website. You retain the copyright, giving Martian Lit only the right to keep the material in print online.
Submission Guidelines: http://martianlit.com/submissions/

What they want:

We are published writers of horror and dark fiction ourselves. Between us we have a total of over 30 years of experience in running businesses, writing, teaching creative writing, and editing. We are also avid readers of the genre. As writers, we know how hard it is for horrorists to get an agent and get their books published in the mainstream. As readers we find it difficult to get our hands on much at all that really satisfies our needs. Too often ‘horror’ turns out to be nothing more than a crime thriller or women’s fiction with a ghost thrown in among the soft furnishings and home-baked scones.

Massacre is different.

We want to find the very best new horror writers and try to help them. Let’s not mess about here; to make it big a writer still needs a decent agent and a decent mainstream publisher. But it is probably harder to achieve that now than it ever has been, especially from a standing start. Yes, there are exceptions, but they are very few. If you want to make it, you need a way to get yourself seen and show that you mean business. Massacre aims to provide that first step.

Length: 70,000-100,000 words
Submission Guidelines: http://massacrepublishing.com/submissions/

What they want:

Horror, Young Adult, Science Fiction, Thriller, Suspense, Romance, Nonfiction, Mystery, Mainstream Fiction, Literary Fiction, Historical Fiction, Fantasy, Christian.

Length: 60,000-150,000.
Submission Guidelines: http://medallionmediagroup.com/submissions/

What they want:

Research and modernise a myth, legend, folk-tale etc. The tale must be written in such a way that the myth is recognizable, yet without ‘info dumps’. What we are looking for are re-workings of myths and legends, brought into the modern world and ready to scare the pants off us.

Remember, though: the tale must have horror as a central theme.

The Brothers Grimm defined legend as a historically-grounded folktale. For this purpose, that is not quite the definition we are looking for. We all know legends, yet not all of them are grounded in history. Loch Ness, Bigfoot, Johnny Appleseed… the list goes on. Use this concept to shock and amaze us.

Length: Short stories up to 5,000 words.  May accept one novelette up to 10,000 words per issue (send brief synopsis first).
Payment: 3 cents per word.  $150 max for stories, $300 max for novellas.
Submission Guidelines: http://midnightechomagazine.com/submission-guidelines/

What they want:

mixer horror likes stories that play with the typical conventions and motifs of horror, while still using the power of the genre to scare the reader in ways that interrogate our knowledge of ourselves and the social constructions that supposedly keep us safe.

mixer style and tone — realist, surreal, psychological, ontological, epistemological, and avoid supernatural horror unless psychologically ambiguous!

Length: Up to 15,000 words
Payment: $25-$100 depending on length and quality
Submission Guidelines: http://mixerpublishing.submittable.com/submit/4810/account
Website: http://mixerpublishing.com

What they want:

We’re currently looking for titles in the following genres: horror, science fiction, fantasy, and romance. We’re most excited about seeing stories in the subgenres of cyberpunk, steampunk, near-future sf, and space opera.

Length: 8,000-25,000 words
Payment: Royalties – contact publisher for details
Submission Guidelines: http://mochamemoirspress.com/about/

What they want:

We like any genre, as long as it has monsters. If you want to write about real-world religion or politics, we suggest you try elsewhere, even though there are plenty of monsters in those fields. If you want to write about a cult leader, fine – but it’s going to be tough to make the story unique and interesting. It’s pretty hard to top the real-world stuff that’s already been done. We are particularly fond of science fiction, gothic, contemporary or classic fantasy, and hard-boiled mystery. Humor is always a plus, but if it gets cheesy, it’ll probably turn us off.

Length: 1,000 words or less
Payment: We pay 1 cent/word for fiction and .5 cent/word for other (articles, reviews, etc.)
Submission Guidelines: http://monstercorral.com/submissions-to-monster-corral/

What they want:

MONTAG PRESS currently seeks subversive, speculative, science, historical, young adult (YA), new adult (NA) and horror fiction, in either a narrative or dramatic structure, with a strong plot, well-developed characters and engaging voices.

Length: “Montag Press has no minimum or maximum word or page counts. Use the number of words necessary to tell the story correctly. As a general rule of thumb, novels should be at least 70,000 words in total length, and novella submissions should be at least 40,000 words in total length. Plays should be between 90 and 140 pages in length.”
Submission Guidelines: http://montagpress.com/submit/

What they want:

Must be horror, science fiction or fantasy, or a mixture of those genres. We are looking for high quality work with plot or character driven stories.

Length: Up to 3,000 words
Payment: No payment, 1 PDF contributor copy
Submission Guidelines: http://www.morpheustales.com/guidelines.htm

What they want:

Presently, we are actively looking for unpublished quality manuscripts in the genres of urban fantasy, paranormal romance, horror, science fiction and fantasy.

Length: 30,000-120,000
Submission Guidelines: http://www.mundania.com/submissions.php

What they want:

We are looking for stories (and poems) of dark speculative fiction. This includes elements of science fiction (not so much pure science or space opera), fantasy (fantastic as opposed to sword and sorcery) and horror (less gore, more fear), or any combination, that stand out from the norm; something a little different or something familiar with a different slant that someone who doesn’t necessarily like any of the above genres might enjoy. Within those genres we don’t mind alternative histories, crime and humour, so long as the latter works well. We like to see the darker side of humanity exposed with candor and honesty, but this needs to be balanced with an underlying faith in human nature – naivety if you like.

Length: 500-5,000 words
Payment: £1 per 500 words or part thereoff up to £10 for a maximum of 5,000 words + 2 contributor copies
Submission Guidelines: http://www.murkydepths.com/submissions.php

What they want:

Founded by Jason Williams in 1997, Night Shade Books has been publishing science fiction, fantasy and horror for over a decade.

Books published by Night Shade are routinely well-reviewed by trade and online venues and are frequently nominated for—and occasionally winning—major industry awards, including the Shirley Jackson, Stoker, World Fantasy, Nebula, and Hugo awards. We are proud to have published some of the most renowned and critically acclaimed names in genre fiction and just as proud to be the place where many new authors have found their start.

Length: 70,000-120,000 words
Submissions:  http://www.nightshadebooks.com/submgr

What they want:

We are interested primarily in good quality writing in the dark fiction genre. We will consider stories of most variants of this genre except stories involving excessive gore or erotica.

Length: Up to 5,000 words
Payment: 3 cents per word
Submission Guidelines: http://www.whitecatpublications.com/?p=3204 

What they want:

All types of horror or dark fantasy are welcome; if in doubt, go ahead and submit it and let our editors decide. No subject should be considered off-limits, and we encourage writers to take chances with their fiction and push the envelope.

Length: 1,500-7,500 words. Preferred: 5,000 words or less.
Payment: 5 cents per word original fiction, 1 cent per word reprints
Submission Guidelines: http://nightmare-magazine.com/about/guidelines/

What they want:

For our upcoming anthology ‘Ominous Realities,’ we’re looking for the darkest voices working in the areas of Science Fiction, Science Fantasy and Speculative Horror Fiction. Whether your vision of the future includes alien intervention, biblical apocalypse, dystopian existences or simply fantastical and frightening concepts of life current or past, we want to see what you’ve got up your sleeve.

We do not intend to limit the creativity or our authors by establishing a specific theme for this collection. Preferring instead to let each writer’s words speak for themselves in an effort to uncover the best and brightest new voices writing in Speculative Fiction today. ‘Ominous Realities’ is intended to celebrate this creativity, without limitations.

Deadline: May 5, 2013
Length: 3,000-10,000 words
Payment: .01 cents per word (per Microsoft Word calculation)
Submission Guidelines: http://greymatterpress.com/submissions-for-ominous-realities/

What they want:

The ON SPEC editors are looking for original, unpublished speculative fiction (SF) and poetry — fantasy, horror, ghost stories, fairy stories, magic realism, etc. Our mandate is to give our readers the best SF we can find, regardless of the author’s nationality, and we have published authors from Canada, the U.S., Britain, New Zealand, South America, and more. In order to qualify for grants, we do have to maintain 80% Canadian content, which means it may take longer (an issue or two) for a non-Canadian work to appear in the magazine than a Canadian work bought at the same time.

Length: Up to 6,000 words
Payment: We pay upon acceptance. Minimum payment for fiction is $50 and maximum payment is $200.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.onspec.ca/submissions

What they want:

On The Premises aims to promote newer and/or relatively unknown writers who can write what we feel are creative, compelling stories told in effective, uncluttered, and evocative prose. Entrants pay no fees, and winners receive cash prizes in addition to exposure through publication.

Your story MUST be based on the current contest premise. Please make the connection between your story and the contest premise obvious! The more obvious, the better. Your entry will lose points (seriously!) if we have to work hard to figure out how it uses the premise.

Length: 1,000-5,000 words
Prizes:  1st prize: $180; 2nd prize: $140; 3rd prize: $100; Honorable mention: $40
Submission Guidelines:  http://www.onthepremises.com/contests/rules.html

What they want:

One Buck Horror is looking for the best in horror fiction from established and up-and-coming writers.

Length: Up to 3,000 words.
Payment: 5 cents per word
Submission Guidelines: http://www.onebuckhorror.com/submissions

What they want:

We accept most genres and styles. Looking for mainstream, horror, science fiction, experimental, historical,dark themed, world-issues, woman as protagonits, off-beat, etc. We do not accept literature for children or erotica (sorry). We want stories that are captivating and interesting. Whether your story is brimming with emotion, plot driven, or humorous, we want to read it. OneTitle accepts literary fiction, but is apprehensive about labelling it as so. We just want know if it inspires, we don’t care what you call it.

Length: 100-10,000 words
Payment: No payment
Submission Guidelines: http://onetitle.ca/?page_id=8

What they want:

We are looking for stories of any length in the genres of science fiction and fantasy.

“Science fiction” includes hard sf, sf adventure, alternate history, near-future, far-future, psi, alien, and any other kind of sf you can think of.

“Fantasy” includes heroic fantasy (based on any culture’s mythology), fairy tales, contemporary fantasy, and “horror” in the sense of supernatural suspense (not gory bloodfests, thanks).

Length: No specific word limits
Payment: 6 cents a word up to 7500 words and 5 cents a word thereafter
Submission Guidelines: http://www.intergalacticmedicineshow.com/
cgi-bin/mag.cgi?do=content&article=submissions

What they want:

The subject matter of parABnormal is, yes, the paranormal.  For us, this includes ghosts, spectres, haunts, various whisperers, and so forth.  It also includes shapeshifters, mythological creatures, and creatures from various folklores.  If your story also has science fiction or fantasy elements, we regard that as a plus. 

Length: 2,500-7,000 words
Payment: $15 for stories, $3 for poetry
Submission Guidelines: http://www.samsdotpublishing.com/parabnormalGL.htm

What they want:

Stories must be Science Fiction, Fantasy, or Horror genre.  The contest is open to non-professional writers (those who have not met eligibility requirements for SFWA or equivalent: sale of a novel or sale of 3 stories to a large-circulation publication).

Deadline: March 31, 2013
Length: Up to 3,500 words
Award: First prize $200. Second and third prize win $100 and $50 respectively. Stories may be considered for possible publication in a PARSEC INK publication.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.parsec-sff.org/contest.html

What they want:

For our “Story of the Week” feature we’re looking for horror stories and tales that fall under the “weird fiction” umbrella as long as they are “dark/eerie/chilling/creepy/etc” in some fashion. In general, no HPL, no zombies, and we’re not looking for vamps. We do love ghouls!!! If it would have worked in “Weird Tales” as edited by Ann VanderMeer, or in one the many essential and wonderful tomes edited by Ellen Datlow, that’s what we’d like to see.

Length: 800-3,000+ words
Payment: No payment
Submission Guidelines: http://phantasmagorium.org/wordpress13/?page_id=14

What they want:

WE DO publish all aspects of Speculative Fiction including Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror. We are very specific about the horror we will publish. We strongly urge horror authors to read past issues to see the types of horror we publish.

Length: Prefers stories under 5,000 words.
Payment: 1 cent per word
Submission Guidelines: http://www.plasmafrequencymagazine.com/WWW.html

What they want:

We are open to a variety of approaches and styles, but are interested in original work that pushes and plays with(in) the boundaries of the fantastic, the marvelous, the uncanny, and the horrific. We are not interested in formulaic re-treads of genre conventions, but in work that revises and interrogates the relationship between genre writing and literary experimentation.

Length: Up to 3,500 words
Payment: $25
Submission Guidelines: http://pstdarkness.wordpress.com/submissions/

What they want:

Less Than Three Press is seeking stories of vampires who take pride in their nature and thrive on the hunt. This is no collection for stories of whiny vampires who pretend they are still human and fight the call of their inhuman nature. We want stories of vampires who love what they are.

Deadline: April 30, 2013
Length: 15,000-50,000 words
Payment: Royalties + contributor copies
Submission Guidelines: http://www.lessthanthreepress.com/anthology-submissions/#vamps

What they want:

Pseudopod is a genre magazine in audio form. We’re looking for horror: dark, weird fiction. We run the spectrum from grim realism or crime drama, to magic-realism, to blatantly supernatural dark fantasy. We publish highly literary stories reminiscent of Poe or Lovecraft as well as vulgar shock-value pulp fiction. We don’t split hairs about genre definitions, and we do not observe any taboos about what kind of content can appear in our stories. Originality demands that you’re better off avoiding vampires, zombies, and other recognizable horror tropes unless you have put a very unique spin on them. What matters most is that the stories are dark and compelling.

Length: Short stories should be between 2,000-6,000 words.  Flash fiction under 1,500 words.
Submission Guidelines: http://pseudopod.org/guidelines/

What they want:

Although there are many genres under the banner of ‘pulp’ we are specifically looking for three kinds of genres with the pulp sensibility: Crime Noir, Horror and Occult (or weird), and Fantasy/Adventure. We’d be interested in cross-overs, or stories that blur these distinctions, but as a guideline they are the three we are mostly looking for.

Length: 15,000-30,000 words
Payment: We will split royalties 50/50 (after the cut from Amazon/Kobo/B&N et al) paid on a quarterly basis via PayPal.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.anachronpress.com/open-submissions-for-pulp-line/

What they want:

We publish in the QUEER speculative fiction genres – Fantasy, Science Fiction, Horror – and we are actively seeking NOVELS and NOVELLAS with strong gay and/or lesbian primary characters.

Submission Guidelines: http://www.queeredfiction.com/submissions

What they want:

As the title suggests, we are looking for stories which involve some combination of Nazis and the undead. Raus! Untoten! is specifically geared to attracting Science Fiction (SF) stories.

Stories can be Steampunk, Diesel Punk or straight alternative-history science fiction. They should involve Nazis and Undead, this is not specifically limited to Nazis or the classic undead ‘race’ of Zombies.

We are looking for new and original twists on this theme with surprising elements. Be fun but most of all be unique.We expect this anthology will appeal to writers of Science Fiction, Steampunk, Dieselpunk, alternative history and horror.

Deadline: June 10, 2013
Length: 2,500-6,000 words
Payment: Royalties
Submission Guidelines: http://www.fringeworks.co.uk/blog/?p=335

What they want:

Red Queen Press accepts manuscripts of varying lengths in the following genres:

• Romance (contemporary, historical, and paranormal)
• Fantasy (including urban fantasy)
• Science fiction
• Mature YA
• Mystery
• Horror
• LGBT
• Erotica

Length: 65,000-120,000 words
Payment: 60% net revenue
Submission Guidelines: http://redqueenpress.com/submissions/

What they want:

We are currently looking for work in the Sci-Fi, Fantasy, and Horror genres.

Length: 60,000 words minimum.  80,000+ encouraged
Payment: Offers two royalty options. 50% net or 15% cover price.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.reliquarypress.com/Reliquary_Press/
Submissions.html

What they want:

Roar and Thunder is looking for short stories that have elements of magic, horror, fantasy and  science fiction.

Length: Up to 6,000 words
Payment: Flat payment of $5 AU
Submission Guidelines: http://roarandthunder.com.au/submission-guidelines/

What they want:

Samhain is now accepting submissions for our line of horror novels. We are actively seeking talented writers who can tell an exciting, dramatic and frightening story, and who are eager to promote their work and build their community of readers. We are looking for novels—either supernatural or non-supernatural, contemporary or historical—that are original and compelling. Authors can be previously unpublished or established, agented or un-agented. Content can range from subtle and unsettling to gory and shocking. The writing is what counts.

Submission Guidelines: http://www.samhainpublishing.com/submissions/

What they want:

Eye Trauma Press are looking for the best new horror writers out there, who are looking for exposure. Sure we all want to be the next Stephen King or James Herbert. Hey and guess what, short stories is where everyone starts, now its your turn.

The imagination is the key – remember that, if it sticks in your head or gets under your skin as you try to sleep at night – we want to read it.

Length: Up to 5,000 words
Payment: No payment, 1 digital contributor copy
Submission Guidelines: http://sanitarium.eyetraumapress.com/submissions/

What they want:

Simply put, Scape is a fantasy, science fiction and horror e-zine with a young adult (YA) focus.  We seek the best new short YA speculative stories, poetry and art.  We also publish news and reviews on books, movies and trends in the speculative YA world.

All Scape fiction and poetry must contain a speculative component. We’re into sword and sorcery, urban fantasy, magical realism, hard sci-fi, cyberpunk, alternate history, supernatural, myth and legend, post-apocalyptic, dark, light and all shades in between. If you can imagine it, we’ll consider it. That being said, to catch our attention you’re going to need to bring something fresh and edgy if your story features well-worn ideas such as vampires or time travel.

Length: Up to 8,000 words
Payment: 1 cent per word for original short stories.  Minimum payment of $10.
Submission Guidelines: http://scapezine.com/guidelines/

What they want:

Severed Press is accepting horror novels and novellas for adults and young adults.  Unsolicited submissions from published and new authors alike will be considered for publication given the manuscript conforms to the relevant genre and meets with our standards for publication.  All fiction submissions need to have a strong plot, be well written with stimulating and logically ordered content and developed characters.

Submission Guidelines: http://www.severedpress.com/index.php/submissions

What they want:

Sex, Drugs & Horror is an all-out assault on the senses. Everything—from Splatterpunk to Horror Erotica will find a home here.  Don’t hold back.  This anthology will not be for the squeamish or prudish.

Deadline: When filled
Length: 3,000-7,500 words
Payment: All contributors will receive a copy of the anthology via Kindle.  There will be two Editor’s choice awards of $25.
Submission Guidelines: http://jwkfiction.com/index.php/opsub

What they want:

We are open to submissions for Shifters, a themed charity anthology, for POD paperback and eBook publication. It will benefit the American Humane Association’s Red Star Rescue Team, which provides disaster response services for pets and domestic animals. The release will coincide with the World Horror Convention in June.

We are looking for shapeshifter and were-creature stories of any type, for an adult audience. Horror stories with werewolves, shapeshifter erotica, weird western, science fiction, reimagined fairy tales… as long as it features a shapeshifter or were-beast.

Deadline: May 5, 2013
Length: 2,000 to 10,000 words preferred, but flexible. We also need a small number of very short flash pieces, 250 words or less. In addition to being in the book, these may be printed on postcards as promotional pieces.
Payment: 1 print contributor’s copy of the anthology. All proceeds from sales of the anthology will be going to the charity.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.hazardouspress.com/call-for-submissions-for-shifters-a-themed-charity-anthology/

What they want:

Unusual and beautifully-written speculative fiction stories with full plots and strong characters. The best way to understand what we are looking for is to read an issue of the magazine. We’re most drawn to contemporary fantasy, and seek out stories with a strong emotional core. We like unusual stories with a fluid and distinctive voice, with specific and original images. Send us your odd unclassifiable stories–though we prefer traditional storytelling mechanics to experimental approaches.

We’re less likely to be interested in sword and sorcery, hard SF, space opera, paranormal romance, and slasher horror, but really, we’ll read anything.

Length: Under 5,000 words
Payment: 5 cents per word, $10 minimum
Guidelines: http://www.shimmerzine.com/guidelines/fiction-guidelines/ 

What they want:

We consider original, unpublished stories within the confines of dark fantasy and horror—mystery, suspense, supernatural, morbid humor, fantasy, etc. Stories must have a clear horror element.

Length: Up to 5,000 words
Payment: 5 cents per word for original fiction, 2 cents per word for reprints.  $250 cap for all accepted stories.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.shocktotem.com/guidelines/

What they want:

Dark fiction with unique, flawed and interesting characters; Stories that rely on atmosphere and suspense to create a feeling of dread for the reader; Mythic horror in a real world setting; Classically-themed horror and suspense; Supernatural stories; Dark Fantasy in a contemporary/RW setting; Noir.

Length: Up to 5,000 words
Payment: $10 for Flash Fiction up to 1000 words, $25 for stories up to 5000 words, $25 for non-fiction up to 3000 words.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.shroudmagazine.com/info.html

What they want:

The shift from Specter Spectacular I’s “ghostly tales” to Specter Spectacular II’s “deathly tales” is a slight one, but rather than repeat of the first anthology, we hope to expand on the content and story tropes while still holding onto the eerie and enthralling feeling associated with the classic ghost story. While the final anthology will likely include some stories of ghosts and hauntings, we hope to feature psychopomps (characters who conduct spirits or souls to the other world, such as Charon, the Valkyries, the Grim Reaper, etc.), psychic mediums, and tales of crossing over … and back … and perhaps over and back again. We’re quite intrigued by the possibilities (gothic, mythological, modern, etc.) and are looking forward to seeing what authors bring to the table.

Submission Period: May 1 – June 15, 2013
Length: Up to 10,000 words
Payment: Payment: $5 advance against % of future royalties split between contributors and paid annually (stories under 1,000 words will receive only the $5 advance), as well as a paperback copy of the anthology.
Submission Guidelines: http://worldweaverpress.com/submissions/calls-for-anthologies/

What they want:

For us there are no specific formulae that a spine tingling story must conform to. It doesn’t have to be macabre and morose; it can be light-hearted or even uplifting. Whether it is filled with ghosts or ghouls, possessions or poltergeists, or merely the suggestion of something supernatural, anything is acceptable. We want you to let your imagination run wild and come up with the story or stories that make our spine tingle.

Length: 5,000 words
Payment: “Each month we publish on the website the best five stories submitted. The overall monthly winner, as well as receiving publication will also receive a £100 (stg) prize! Second place receives £50, with 3rd, 4th and 5th all receiving £25 each. The prizes quoted are in Sterling (British Pounds) but if you live outside of the UK you will be paid the equivalent amount in your local currency.”
Submission Guidelines: http://spinetinglers.co.uk/SubmitStory.aspx

What they want:

Have you always wanted to know what tattoos were used for in Roman times? What if a vampire was the one giving them out? How would a vampire prostitute handle her own with Jack the Ripper in foggy London while the local tattoo artist watched? We are looking for stories that include the history of tattoos (any time period), vampires (your preferred mythos), and tramps (whatever your definition of a tramp is). Human main characters are fine but vampires have to be in the story. There are 15 openings for this anthology.

Deadline: June 1, 2013
Length: 5-15,000 words
Payment: $20 + contributor copy
Submission Guidelines: http://www.evilgirlfriendmedia.com/

What they want:

I am looking for horror stories featuring legendary, mythical, or imaginary creatures of Appalachia.Stories based on established local lore are preferred, but exceptions may be made for exceptionally crafted creatures. I am NOT looking for stories with zombies, vampires or other popular monsters. Submitted stories can be set in any time period, but must take place in the Appalachian region.

Deadline: June 30, 2013
Length: Up to 2,500 words
Payment: 5 cents per word + contributor copy
Submission Guidelines: http://strangecritters.blogspot.ca/2012/11/
anthology-guidelines.html

What they want:

It’s Christmas and it’s lucky — or unlucky? — and sf/f/h.

Deadline: October 1, 2013 (or until filled).
Length: Up to 4,000 words.
Payment: $10
Submission Guidelines: http://whortleberrypress.com/writersguideline.html

What they want:

It’s Halloween and it’s lucky — bad or good? — and it’s sf/f/h. Have fun!

Deadline: July 31, 2013 (or until filled.
Length: Up to 4,000 words.
Payment: $10
Submission Guidelines: http://whortleberrypress.com/writersguideline.html

What they want:

We are seeking quality submissions of horror, sci-fi and dark fantasy of a surreal or bizarre nature. Show us something strange and unique, take us into the mind of a killer or to a world where anything is possible.

Length: Submissions can be anywhere from 500 words to 2500, we like flash fiction and longer pieces.
Payment: While we cannot afford to pay yet, we do provide maximum exposure and will put whatever links you want so others can see your art and blog. We have a growing readership that should reach about 2k in another month. We are a pdf digital mag that can be viewed on kindle fire and Ipad with a free download.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.surrealgrotesque.com/submissions.html
Notes: We are also seeking surreal artists. Painters, sketch artists, comic strips, graphic novel, photo manipulation, anything mind bending.  Future issue themes are: serial killers, sex & death and mutations/mutilations.

What they want:

The most important thing we are looking for with fiction is well-written horror and erotic horror stories. They must grab us and hold our attention. Horror covers a wide range of subjects: vampires, werewolves, zombies, monsters, ghosts, serial killers, crazed animals, possessed appliances, post-apocalyptic themes etc. but stories can contain any subject matter as long it’s dark. You don’t need to write about those usual subjects,
anything that’s dark and creepy also comes under the horror genre. We love stories that are atmospheric and also a little unusual. Be creative and surprise us! Now with erotic horror, our interpretation is that the story must be dark with the main theme being of a sexual nature. The sexual theme should be the main focus of the story and be constant throughout. The sex doesn’t have be overly graphic or strong (although we do like that), but the sexual theme must be constant in your mind as you’re reading the story. The major reason we reject a lot of erotic horror stories is because they don’t follow those guidelines, they are just dark/horror stories with one or two sex scenes thrown in.

Length: Around 6,000 words
Payment: £10 with print & electronic contributor copy OR £15 with electronic contributor copy.
Submission Guidelines: http://talesofobscenity.sstpublications.co.uk/

What they want:

Tell us a Science Fiction, Fantasy, or Horror story in under 140 characters. Other than that, we’re just looking for good stories.

Length: 140 characters.
Payment: $1.20 per submission entry.
Submission Guidelines: http://thaumatrope.greententacles.com/submissions/

What they want:

We want funny, we want dark, we want darkly funny, we want surreal, we want experimental, we want surreally experimental, we want maniacal, we want the absurd.We like writing: poems, prose, stories, snippets, plays, letters.

Length: Up to 3,000 words
Payment: No payment
Submission Guidelines: http://www.alarmistmagazine.co.uk/submissions.html 

What they want:

Any kind of fantastical story is welcome. For example: fantasy, science fiction, horror, supernatural, fabulation, magic realism, slipstream, etc, or indeed any combination of those genres.

Deadline: June 30, 2013
Fees: All current members of the British Fantasy Society are entitled to one free entry to the competition. Non-members must pay a £5 entry fee.
Length: Up to 5,000 words
Award: 1st prize: £100, a year’s membership of the BFS, and publication in the BFS Journal.  2nd prize: £50, a year’s membership of the BFS, and publication in the BFS Journal.  3rd prize: £20, and publication in the BFS Journal.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.britishfantasysociety.co.uk/the-bfs-short-story-competition-2013/

What they want:

 All entries in both fiction and poetry MUST be “speculative literature” in content; in other words: science fiction, fantasy, horror, magic realism, alternate history, steampunk, etc. Non-genre entries will be automatically disqualified, and will not receive a refund.

Deadline: May 31, 2013
Entry Fee: $10.00 CDN or U.S. per entry, or $15.00 CDN or U.S. to enter both fiction and poetry categories.
Length: 5 poems not to exceed 10 pages.  Short stories/novel excerpts not to exceed 7,000 words.
Award: $500 Poetry Award.  $500 Fiction Award. Two Honourable Mentions in each category will receive $50.
Submission Guidelines: http://rannu.webs.com/entryrules.htm

What they want:

With this, we’re looking for stories told from the point of view of either sentient undead, or necromancers. There’s no need to make the main character a pleasant fellow, so feel free to create truly unpleasant protagonists. Fantasy stories only for this anthology. Anthology will be considered R-rated, but gore that does not contribute to the telling of the story will be considered a detriment.

Deadline: Unknown
Length: 5,000-20,000 words
Payment: $0.01 per word
Submission Guidelines: http://deepwoodpublishing.com/submission-guidelines/

What they want:

DC likes speculative fiction stories that are humorous, bizarre, gross, disturbing, badass, interesting and original.  Stories thick with vulgar language and/or sexual situations stand less of a chance of being accepted.  But ya never know.

Length: 500-2,500 words for short fiction.  “Drabbles” should be exactly 100 words. Poetry 1,000 words or less.
Payment: 1.5 cent per word for stories over 500 words.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.drabblecast.org/submissions/

What they want:

The Horror Zine is open to submissions of fiction, poetry, and art from morbidly creative people.

Length: 1,800-5,000 words
Payment: No payment
Submission Guidelines: http://www.thehorrorzine.com/Submission%20Guidelines.html

What they want:

We want the best in horror, thrills and chills. We understand some may rely on sex, gore, and violence to get their terrifying imagination across. We are interested as long as it relates to Richmond and the Church Hill Mythos currently established (see ABOUT for links to current publications). Existing characters are up for use, if you have a good idea we’d like to hear it.

Length: 500-20,000 words
Payment: We offer all selected stories $25 for rights to digitally publish your story in a volume of other collected short stories.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.brideofchaos.com/the-horrors-of-church-hill/submissions/

What they want:

The Red Penny Papers publishes webfiction that celebrates the spirit of the penny dreadful, the sensationalist and gothic novel, and their more modern successor, the pulp magazine– the catch is that it must have a dark speculative bent.

Length: 1,000-5,000 words
Payment: 1 cent per word up to $25
Submission Guidelines: http://redpennypapers.com/submissions/

What they want:

The oceans of this world can swallow us, and sink us into the watery depths where monsters lurk and mermaids frolic. Or we can voyage far and discover new worlds.

Selkies sing beneath the moonlight. The Flying Dutchman sails forever damned. Many-tentacled monstrosities drown unwary swimmers. Sunken treasures rest in wrecks shrouded in kelp and guarded by sea serpents.

Be your tales wonder- or terror-filled, Dark Continents Publishing invites you to submit your previously unpublished short fiction that falls within the fantasy, horror, weird and science fiction genres.

Deadline: June 21, 2013
Length: 3,000-9,000 words
Payment: $20
Submission Guidelines: http://darkcontinents.com/submissions/

What they want:

Sirens Call Publications is currently accepting submissions for our bi-monthly e-zine, focusing on edgy and dark speculative fiction including Horror, Fantasy, Science Fiction, and Suspense genres.

Length: short stories (1000 – 2500 words), flash fiction (300 – 500 words).
Payment: no payment, free PDF copy
Submission Guidelines: http://www.sirenscallpublications.com/open_subs.htm

What they want:

We are interested in mysteries, detective stories, tales of terror and the supernatural as well as short stories. Stories can be set in any time or place, provided they are well written, the plots interesting and well thought.

Length: We are interested in stories of almost any length, but preferably the 2000-6000 word range. However, we may occasionally publish short shorts of 1000 words, and sometimes we may consider even a short novella.
Payment: $25-$150
Submission Guidelines: http://www.strandmag.com/htm/strandmag_guidelines.htm 

What they want:

Would like to see dark humor, anything edgy, unique, suspense & definitely anything on the paranormal & after life are welcome.

Length: Short stories up to 2 1/2 pages, also accepts poetry.
Payment: No payment, PDF contributor copy.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.thestraybranch.org/index.php/guidelines

What they want:

We publish literary and genre fiction in the following categories: Adventure, Fantasy, Horror, Science Fiction, Mystery, Romance, Thriller, Western and other categories of general fiction. We will accept Poetry but it can be a hard sell. We do not publish erotica. We do not put restrictions on what can be submitted as far as theme, but strong sexual themes can also be a hard sell. We never get enough historical fiction, westerns, or humor. If you have any of these story genres, please send them to us. NOTE: We accept stories previously published in semi-professional and/or professional markets.

Length: 500-3,000 words
Payment: Pay ranges from Token payment to Professional payment (5 US cents per word) for fiction.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.washingtonpastime.com/drupal/submissions

What they want:

CY Canis Majoris is the largest known star in the Universe. If this massive body were in the exact location as our own Sun, its outer edge would stretch to the area where Jupiter orbits. A star with this mass would have an inhabitable zone as large as our entire solar system, if not much larger. With this premise, imagine the worlds which could orbit such a body. Then imagine the beings who could inhabit those same bodies.

The Worlds of CY Canis Majoris is not a science fiction anthology, but an anthology covering all speculative fiction and its sub genres. If there are beings on other worlds, they surely have all the issues we experience on Earth…

Deadline: October 2013
Length: 5,000-10,000 words
Payment: $100 + two contributor copies
Submission Guidelines: http://strangeweirdandwonderful.bravehost.com/3Site/Submissions.htm
#The_Worlds_of_CY_Canis_Majoris__ 

What they want:

TZPP publishes science fiction,  fantasy, young adult and exceptional children’s science fiction & fantasy, horror, mystery, action & adventure, thriller/suspense, historical fiction, romance, and erotica. Additionally, we acquire exceptional autobiographies and memoirs.

Length: 75,000+ words
Payment: “We do pay advances; however, an advance above $2,500 is rare and reserved only for Authors with previous sales records and/or a backlist of several titles.”
Submission Guidelines: http://www.zharmae.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=43&Itemid=66

What they want:

We are looking for quality speculative fiction, in the vein of horror and dark fantasy, and what you might call magical realism or “slipstream” or “cross-genre.” We will consider an occasional science fiction, suspense or even a western, though the story must contain some speculative element. Sword & sorcery and space opera genre might be a hard sell. We want stories that expand genre that value originality in character, narrative and plot. Send only your best fiction, distinct and remarkable tales that the reader cannot forget. We encourage multi-cultural points of view. Please read a few issues before submitting.

Length: Short stories up to 7,000 words.  Flash fiction between 500–1,000 words.
Payment: 3 cents per word ($35 maximum).
Submission Guidelines: http://www.3lobedmag.com/submissions.html

What they want:

Send us your best speculative fiction stories. We are looking for submissions of science fiction, fantasy, horror, paranormal, urban fantasy, comic SF, alternate history, steampunk, etc.

Length: 1,500-5,000 words
Payment: AU$49
Submission Guidelines: http://ticon4.com/submission-guidelines-for-ticon4-com/

What they want:

“TM Publishing is currently accepting short story submissions in all genres, including creative non-fiction…”

Length: <1000-60,000 words (looking for flash fiction, short stories, novellas)
Payment: $0.05/word.
Submission Guidelines: http://tmpublishing.com/content/short-stories

What they want:

For direct submissions we only consider complete and unpublished science fiction, fantasy and horror novels.  We don’t publish non-fiction, poetry, short stories or novellas. If your work falls into any of these categories we regret we are unable to help.

Length: 95,000-150,000 words
Submission Guidelines: http://torbooks.co.uk/2013/01/29/submitting-a-novel-to-tor-uk/

What they want:

Tor.com welcomes original speculative fiction short stories and poetry. We define “speculative fiction” broadly, including SF, fantasy, horror, alternate history, and related genres.

Length: Up to 12,000 words
Payment: 25 cents a word for the first 5,000 words, 15 cents a word for the next 5,000, and 10 cents a word after that.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.tor.com/page/submissions-guidelines

What they want:

Horror. Simple as that. To give you an idea of what to send, some authors we like are Brian Keene, Peter Straub, Stephen King, Richard Laymon, Clive Barker, Shirley Jackson, Edgar Allan Poe, H.P. Lovecraft and the darker stories of Nathaniel Hawthorne. We want stories that instill a deep feeling of dread and emotional terror. We want fiction that makes us look out the window after we are reading and wonder if something’s there. We will accept stories with vampires, werewolves and all those classic tools of horror, but they better add something new to the genre.

Length: Flash Fiction (1,000 words or less). Short Story (1,001 to 6,000 words). Poetry (up to 50 lines).
Payment: $3 for short stories, $1 for flash fiction & poetry.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.tremblesmag.com/guidelines.html

What they want:

TwinStar Media is currently accepting queries for a variety of products focused on horror, science fiction, suspense, and speculative fiction.

Length: 60,000-125,000 words
Payment: Unknown
Submission Guidelines: http://twinstaronline.com/submissions/

What they want:

Twit Publishing Presents: PULP! is a semi-annual anthology that is a collection of the genre fiction derived from the original pulp magazines. When people think back on pulp nowadays, they think of hard boiled detective fiction. But, it was much, much more than that. Authors like Ray Bradbury, Robert E. Howard and H. P. Lovecraft all got their start in the pulp mags. There were magazines covering westerns, horror, action/adventure, superheros, science fiction, fantasy. Not just detective. Twit Publishing welcomes short stories from ANY genre. The best part about our anthologies is that the reader gets more than just one genre, they get a smorgasbord of literary delights.

Deadline: Ongoing, check website
Length: 4,000-9,000 words
Payment: 3% revenue from both print and ebook sales
Submission Guidelines: http://www.twitpublishing.com/Submissions.htm 

What they want:

Genres we accept are Adult Paranormal Romance, Horror, Speculative Fiction, and Urban Fantasy.

Submission Guidelines: http://www.vamptasy.com/submission-guidelines.html

What they want:

Vestal Review is a magazine for flash (short-shorts) fiction.   We realize that there are different definitions of what a flash story is and all of them have merit. In our definition, a flash story is no longer than 500 words and it has a plot. If it’s longer than 500 words and/or has no plot, we are not interested. We are also not interested in porn, racial slurs, excessive gore, or obscenity. On the other end of the spectrum, no children’s or preachy stories either, please. Our target audience is people over 18, so R-rated content is OK, but not X-rated. Most genres, other than children’s, syrupy romance or hard science fiction, are accepted, and we love humor.

Length: Up to 500 words.
Payment: Every contributor will get a free copy.  Stories up to 100 words (excluding the title)–10 cents a word. Stories between 101 and 200 words–5 cents a word. Stories between 201 and 500 words–3 cents a word. Stories of great merit receive up to $25 flat fee; 3 cents a word is a minimum pay in any case.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.vestalreview.net/Guidelines41.html

What they want:

Voluted Tales Magazines is looking for stories, comics/graphic short stories and artwork which cover the spectrum of science fiction and fantasy genres.  I’m also after some original steampunk works.  Horror and paranormal romance I’ll look at, but I admit to not being as well-read with them and they’re not my personal strong-points.

Length: No greater than 10,000 words, although a usual max. of 6,000-7,000 is preferred.
Payment: $10
Submission Guidelines: http://volutedtales.com/page/submission-guidelines

What they want:

Waylines is a bi-monthly speculative fiction magazine of science-fiction, fantasy, horror and anything between. Our goal is to capture the “bang” in speculative fiction – that old-fashioned, mindbending, wow factor. As such, we aren’t limiting ourselves to a specific style of story or even media format. So we are taking advantage of our web format and in addition to publishing four stories an issue, we will also stream a short speculative film. And that’s just the beginning. We’ve got a lot of ideas in the works to find that “bang,” so prepare to be blown away.

Length: 1000-7500 words (preferred length is around 5000)
Payment: $40 flat-rate per story. This may change based on the success of our KICKSTARTER campaign.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.waylinesmagazine.com/submissions.html

What they want:

While horror fiction is certainly welcome, gratuitous gore is not. If there is material of a gruesome nature in your submission, it must absolutely necessary to the plot. Goriness for its own sake is not acceptable.

Length: Up to 5,000 words
Payment: semi-pro market
Submission Guidelines: http://weirdtalesmagazine.com/submission-guidelines/ 

What they want:

Write a story telling how some fictional object, character, or what-have-you ended up in the hands of the global conspiracy responsible for keeping the magic of the world secret. Think of the ending of Raiders of the Lost Ark, but all extensive—every bit of magic and the exceptional in the world is collected, filed away, and either locked up or used for the expansion of the conspiracy’s activities.

Deadline: July 1, 2013
Length: 4,000-25,000 words
Payment: Royalties
Submission Guidelines: http://18thwall.wordpress.com/submissions/

What they want:

We want authors hungry to play in the twisted universe envisioned by H.P. Lovecraft, or write tales that are in the spirit of his mythos. Like Lovecraft’s own work, the horror in this anthology aims to be subtle and subjective. The mind and its inner working are a far more terrifying place than the actual corridors of R’lyeh or the Mountains of Madness.

Deadline: May 30, 2013
Length: Up to 2,500 words
Payment: 1 cent per word
Submission Guidelines: http://01publishing.com/submissions/whispers-from-the-abyss/ 

What they want:

The Wily Writers site publishes two short stories per month in both audio and text formats. We host a celebrity editor for each of them, and they choose the stories along with the producer.

We publish only short fiction that falls under the genre umbrella of speculative fiction: horror, fantasy, science fiction, and paranormal romance / mystery / adventure. We have specific themes that we’re asking you to follow.

Length: 1,000-4,000 words
Payment: 5 cents per word
Submission Guidelines: http://www.wilywriters.com/blog/submission-guidelines/

What they want:

What if you had the power to sew up the mouth of the evil bitch who called you fat in 10th grade? How would you deal with a curse that caused you to be infertile because you stole the heart of someone else’s love? Would you choose love or the ability to have children? We are looking for 13 stories involving a witch, a stitch, and a bitch. The stories will revolve around the witches’ calendar which begins with October. We would like five stories in the book to involve holidays (Samhain-we will take two- one to open the book and the other to close it, Yule, Beltane, and Mabon). If you plan to write a holiday story please identify this in your submission letter.

Deadline: May 1, 2013
Length: 5-15,000 words
Payment: $20 + contributor copy
Submission Guidelines: http://www.evilgirlfriendmedia.com/

What they want:

Dark Moon Books is now accepting submissions for a special issue of Dark Moon Digest. This younger sibling of Dark Moon Digest will still stress the quality of stories you have come to expect from our quarterly publication, but will be geared toward the young adult population.

Ghosts? Zombies? Vampires? Witches? Werewolves? Chupacabra? It’s all up to you. Just remember: Keep it exciting and moving along. Let’s give the younger generation a taste of horror and keep them reading.

Deadline: April 15, 2013
Length: 500-4,000 words
Payment: $10 + contributor copy
Submission Guidelines: http://www.darkmoonbooks.com/
Young%20Adult%20Horror.htm