Anthology Markets

If you've just wandered in off the internet, hi and welcome. :) I do these posts every month (except last month, but anyway), so if this post isn't dated in the same month you're in, click here to make sure you're seeing the most recent one.

Markets with specific deadlines are listed first, "Until Filled" markets (if there are any -- none this month) are at the bottom. There are usually more details on the original site; always click through and read the full guidelines before submitting. Note that some publishers list multiple antho guidelines on one page, so after you click through you might have to scroll a bit.

Note that per editor Steve Berman the deadline for Queering Edgar Allan Poe has slipped from 31 October to 31 December, so if you were working on something for that book and missed the cut-off, you still have some time.

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31 December 2012 -- Where Thy Dark Eye Glances: Queering Edgar Allan Poe -- ed. Steve Berman; Lethe Press

The canon of Edgar Allan Poe, one of the foremost writers of dark and atmospheric fiction and poetry, offers readers haunted shores teeming with various erudite men brooding in the waning light over their feelings for unobtainable women. Yet, whether the tales or verses are grotesque or sinister, Poe's narrators are Outsiders, dealing with emotions that so many queer individuals feel: isolation and abandonment as well as loneliness and lost love. Editor Steve Berman wants to breach the chasm and offer an anthology that replaces the heteronormative aspects of Poe's work and life with a different range of identities.

Regardless whether you make Roderick seduce the unnamed narrator visiting Usher, or have a woman fall under Ligeia's sway, the story should be dark as well as fantastical. Stories that involve Poe the author are also acceptable.

Think both Gothic and gay. Obviously, dependent on the time period, the term homosexual might not be apt. Sexual identity is partly labeling, partly sexual experience, and partly attraction. But do not think of this as a romance or erotica anthology; first and foremost, these are stories that should be at home in Weird Tales as much as Strange Horizons.

Fiction or prose, the rate of pay is 5 cents a word for original material. Reprints must query and the pay will be significantly less. Any length for poetry but fiction should be at least 1,500 words and no more than 12,000. Payment is upon release in the spring of 2013 from Lethe Press, a publisher around for over a decade--and who has released the last two winners of the Lambda Literary Award for Best LGBT Fantasy/Horror/Science Fiction.

Please send all submissions to sberman8 at yahoo dot com as RTF files.

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31 December 2012 -- Suffered from the Night: Queering Stoker's Dracula -- ed. Steve Berman; Lethe Press

Who is one of the most filmed, most admired characters in English Literature? Yes, Sherlock Holmes. And Lethe Press did release an anthology of queer-themed Holmesian fiction, A STUDY IN LAVENDER. Well, we’re taking on the next such character in a forthcoming anthology.

I want to see historical fiction that expand both major and minor characters from Stoker’s novel. What really happened to Van Helsing’s wife? Did Renfield like to nibble on waifs as much as flies? And so forth. I don’t want characters from the endless cinematic versions. Use Stoker as your Bible, the events of the novel as if they happened.

Stories can range from 2,000 to 10,000 words. No reprints please. No erotica please. I advise you to email me with the scenario you are writing about so I don’t have to read twenty Seward tales. As of now, no stories about the sailors aboard the Demeter or tales about Dracula’s “brides” — they have already been done for the book. Deadline is December 31st. Payment is 5 cents a word for original fiction.

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31 December 2012 -- Shades of Blue & Gray: Civil War Ghost Stories -- ed. Steve Berman; Prime Books

Never before had some much blood been shed on American soil as the period between 1861 and 1865. I'm seeking ghost stories, tales of those that died during the conflict, though the story itself may take place decades after the war. Seeking stories no less than 3,000 words in length, no more than 15,000. Deadline is December 31st. Payment for original fiction is at least 3 cents a word. Reprints at least 1 cent a word.

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1 January 2013 -- Night Terrors III -- Blood Bound Books

As with all great trilogies, the third one always changes something we thought we knew. And now it’s up to you to help us forge this new direction.

While this third installment will continue to plague readers with restless nights and sweat-soaked sheets, we’re now offering 5 cents a word for your best nightmare-inducing tales.

As always, this anthology is open to the wide gamut of horror and all its subcategories. Remember, evil has no boundaries and neither do we! Science fiction and dark fantasy will also be considered as long as stories contain strong elements of horror. Third person stories are strongly preferred, but we’ll read first person as long as they are extremely well done or the POV is integral to the plot.

Stories may take place in any setting or time period, as long as it’s well written, powerful, and original. Most importantly, scare us. We want to be haunted by your story long after we put it down. Gore and sex are acceptable, as long as it serves a purpose.

If you want to see the type of material we prefer, check out Night Terrors II on Kindle.

== Stories can range from 750-5000 words.
== Previously unpublished stories only.
== No Multiple submissions

Stories must be formatted in the following manner:

== 12 point font
== Times New Roman or Courier New
== Double-Spaced
== Contact information in the upper left(name, address, phone number, email)
== Word Count Upper Right
== 1 Space after a punctuation
== Underline everything you would like to italicize at publication.
== Submissions should be sent as attachment in .Doc or .Docx

Submission Dates: November 1st to January 1st. Selections will not be made until after the submission period closes.

Payment: All stories will receive 5¢/word

Send submissions to submissions@bloodboundbooks.net. Subject should read: Night Terrors III: story title/author last name

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1 January 2013 -- Zombies: Shambling Through History -- ed. Steve Berman; Prime Books

Now this anthology is a memento mori for zombie fans. Starting in the B.C.E., follow zombie attacks through history. What happened to the colonists at Roanoke? Who prowled the burning streets of Rome while Nero fiddled?

All the stories should be historically true in terms of setting and demeanor (but you can change events as needed, as in one story I bought, Oscar Wilde is an action her in 1900). I am currently not seeking any story that takes place after the 1800s. All zombies must be the carnivorous kind. No Voudo zombies please--these are undead slaves and not predators. In fact, I am seeing too many tales with necromancy as the source of the zombies; needless to say, it's tiring. Be inventive. Word length is flexible (I am accepting some short short stories to be the "connective tissue" between main tales). Payment for original is at leats 3 cents a word; payment for reprints at least 1 cent a word. All stories are due Jan 1st.

[Note from a later journal post:]

So I'm still open to reading new stories for the zombie chronology anthology I'm editing for Prime Books. Deadline is January 1st. I'm no longer interested in tales that take place after 1800.

I would really love to read a story where Archimede's heat ray or claw was designed to kill zombies. Or that was the rationale behind Zhuge Liang's primitive land mine.

Or perhaps something with the fallen Colossus of Rhodes - imagine a broken gigantic body that is infested with zombies. Symbolic?

Or in Antigone, Polyneices rises from the dead as a zombie because of necromancy.

I want Antiquity. I want Dark Ages.

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15 January 2013 -- Black Apples -- Belladonna Publishing

Black Apples is an anthology of gothic fairytales starring the classic fairytale princess -– but her ending is maybe not so happy, her quest is perhaps more grim and the darkness of the tale might just come from within…

The Princess might be someone we know, but she can also be a princess we’ve never heard of before. She may come from ancient times, or far into the future. She can be the heroine, or we might not see her on the pages at all –- but the story must somehow evolve around the fairytale princess and/or her role as such – and have a dark twist… We’re looking for the beautiful, sensuous and sinister.

Find fairytale inspiration our blog. Tags: Fairytale Friday and Black Apples.

What we want: Originality is treasured, so is strong storytelling, clever plot and a polished manuscript.

Don’t be afraid to experiment –- we do like the strange.

Read more about what we want here.

What we do not want: Straight forward retelling of fairytales, pointless gore or splatter horror, plotless porn (sex is ok – but all in good taste) or poetry.

Submissions: We will accept submissions until January 15th 2013, e-mail submissions only.

Submission should have a standard manuscript formatting and be attached as .doc, .rtf or .pdf.

A few words about you in the body of the e-mail would be nice.

You will hear back from us within 8 weeks.

Length: 3,000–10,000 words.

Language: We will read submissions in English, Norwegian and Swedish.

Rights: We buy First Worldwide English language rights, First Worldwide Swedish language rights and First Worldwide Norwegian language rights.

Publishing details: Print and e-book

Publishing date: 2013

Payment: $120 upon publication and royalties on e-book sales.

Multiple submissions: Yes.

Simultaneous submissions: Yes.

Reprints: No

Send your submission to: submissions@belladonnapublishing.com

Subject line: Submission, Black Apples: name of your story.

Important: If your story does not have a princess or princess-like character, or does not relate to princesses or/and their role in any kind of way, it is not for Black Apples.

Please name your file author’s last name and story title. Example: meyer twilight.doc/rtf/pdf.

We’re looking forward to your submission!

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10 February 2013 -- Love, Lust and Zombies -- ed. Mitzi Szereto, Cleis Press

A trade paperback to be published by Cleis Press, USA

Publication date: Autumn 2013

Let’s face it: zombies are hot, and baby, they’re getting hotter. Although not the most traditional of sex symbols, zombies are truly coming into their own, even landing on the silver screen in romantic roles, not to mention ambling and shambling across the pages of novels and television screens. Gone are those one-dimensional gut-munching characters from George Romero’s grim and gruesome flick Night of the Living Dead. Zombies now have a lot more to offer, and thank heavens we non-zombies are finally beginning to recognise this.

From the bestselling novel Pride and Prejudice and Zombies to the hit TV series The Walking Dead, zombies are infiltrating and enriching our daily lives. So isn’t it about time they had their more…err… romantic and sexy sides showcased? It’s my goal as editor of Love, Lust and Zombies to help make this happen. And here’s how you can help.

I want you to write some fun and steamy stories featuring sexy zombie characters and send them over for me to chew on (in a literary sense, that is). Can zombies be sexy? Why the hell not? Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, after all. So can you do it without grossing us out too much or being too gory? Sure you can. And you know you want to!

Submission deadline:

Feb 10, 2013

(I’ll be selecting stories on a rolling basis, therefore earlier submissions are strongly encouraged, though I’ll still consider stories that make it in by the deadline).

Word count:

3,000 to 6,500

What I’m looking for:

Well-developed story lines and well-crafted prose told in a unique voice and containing interesting characters and settings. Stories may be set in the past, present, or future. Stories from female and male writers are welcome, as are those written from the POV of characters of any gender and containing characters of any sexual orientation.

Note that sexually explicit content is acceptable as well as a more subtle approach; however, absolutely no stock sex scenes or formulaic writing/terminology. Please refer to my previous anthologies to get an idea of the variety and style of content I look for. No excessive gore or violence. No reprints.

Payment:

One-time payment in the range of USD $50-70 (payable on publication) and 2 copies of the anthology.

Submission requirements:

Stories should be formatted as follows: double-spaced Arial 12-point black font Word or RTF document. Indent the first line of each paragraph by half an inch. Do not add extra lines between paragraphs or any other irregular spacing. American spelling and punctuation only (i.e. quote marks, etc.). Include your legal name (and pseudonym if applicable), postal address, and a fifty-word maximum author bio written in the third person. Contract is for one-time, non-exclusive anthology rights with one year’s exclusivity from date of publication. (This may be waived if your story is selected for a “Best Of” collection). No simultaneous submissions please.

In the subject line of your email, please state: Love, Lust and Zombies

Send to: submissions @ mitziszereto.com

I look forward to reading your work!