Call for submissions: Humorous dark fiction

US independent publisher Bad Dream Entertainment is accepting submissions of humourous dark fiction for a new, as-yet-untitled anthology

 BDE has been on haitus for two years. As part of the new phase, editor Brett Reistroffer is looking for original horror fiction with a strong sense of comedy, and most themes, subjects, and settings are welcome, but standard genre tropes are definitely discouraged, ie, try to avoid vampires, zombies, werewolves, anything Cthulhu, etc. The comedic aspect can be goofy and slapstick or black and morbid, but the ideal story will include equal amounts of darkness and humour. Straight horror stories will be rejected. An element of comedy is essential.

Submissions should preferably be 1,500-8,000 words, though a few hundred on either side is fine. For significantly longer stories enquire first. Blood, sex and strong language are acceptable, but any graphic material must have a point and serve the story. Brett isn’t interested in exploitation for its own sake.

Original fiction only. No reprints. You may submit two stories at a time. Simultaneous submissions are okay, but notify if accepted somewhere else. Payment is 6 cents US per word for First English Print and Electronic rights, plus an even split of 40% of the book’s gross sales profit.

Submissions should be in standard manuscript format, with contact info and word counts on the first page. File types should be in doc, txt, odt or rtf only. Send to [email protected]. Response time is around six weeks.  

Deadline: 31 December

For full details see the website

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