Mega-List of Paying Markets for Horror, Dark Fiction and Poetry

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Updated 8/4/25

Much like other genres of speculative fiction, horror enjoys a loyal, and possibly fixated, fan base. Horror isn't all blood and gore. The subgenres include everything from the mildly unsettling (like Twilight Zone), to splatterpunk (which is exactly what you think it is). Some of the genres accepted by horror magazines include: humorous horror, holiday horror, psychological horror, science fiction horror, slasher horror, supernatural horror, gothic horror, erotic horror, teen horror and, of course, anything with zombies, werewolves, vampires, or other malevolent creatures. Many of the magazines on this list also accept dark fiction, dark fantasy, and other genre crossovers that evoke a sinister mood.

Read the submission guidelines, and make sure to follow them carefully before submitting.

Many more paying markets, organized by topic and genre, can be found here: Paying Markets. You can find markets and submission calls specifically geared to dark fiction on Open Call: Horror Markets.

Note: Many speculative fiction magazines accept horror in addition to science fiction and fantasy. You can find a long list of speculative fiction magazines here: Mega-List of Science Fiction and Fantasy Magazines - Paying markets

Publication	Payment	Submission Guidelines	Notes
Apex	$.08 per word	http://www.apex-magazine.com/submission-guidelines/	No simultaneous submissions See submission periods
Nightmare	$.08 per word	https://johnjosephadams.moksha.io/publication /nightmare/guidelines	Accepts horror and dark fantasy No simultaneous submissions See submission periods
Tales from the Moonlit Path	$10	https://talesmoonlitpath.com/submissions/	See submission periods Themed issues
Spooky	1 cent/word	https://spooky-magazine.com/submission-guidelines/	Cozy horror. Fun horror. Classy horror. Dare we say, wholesome horror? See submission periods
Just Chills Podcast	$25	https://justchillspodcast.com/submissions/	Horror. Length: 4000 – 7000 words
Gothic.net	Payment is negotiated	http://www.gothic.net/submissions/ Online form	Length between 2,000 and 10,000 words
Tales of Horror	6 cents/word for fiction, $40 per poem	https://ashtonspot.com/talesofhorror/	Accepts fiction up to 5,000 words in length.  See submission periods
Aurealis Australia	AU$20 to $60 per 1000 words	https://aurealis.com.au/submissions/ Submissions from Australian and New Zealand writers: 1 March – 30 September Submissions from anyone anywhere: March	Accepts short stories between 2000 and 8000 words
Kaleidotrope	$0.01/word	http://www.kaleidotrope.net/guidelines/	See submission periods Also accepts poetry
Three-lobed Burning Eye	$.08/word	http://www.3lobedmag.com/submissions.html	No simultaneous submissions
Tales of Horror Magazine	$0.06/word fiction, $40 per poem	https://ashtonspot.com/talesofhorror/	Horrific and weird stories Reprints accepted
Last Girls Club	$0.015 USD/word Poetry, $10.	https://www.lastgirlsclub.com/submit	Feminist horror See submission periods
Madness Heart	$10 for stories	https://madnessheart.press/submissions/?v=7516fd43adaa	Madness Heart publishes full-length horror, as well as anthologies See submission periods
Psychopomp	Advance against royalties of $750, as well as 25% of net receipts.	https://psychopomp.com/novella-guidelines/	Speculative fiction or literary novellas between 20,000 to 40,000 words that fall under the umbrella of goth, death, funerary, grief, loss, alternative, otherworldly themes.
Black Petals Horror/Science Fiction Magazine & Yellow Mama	"Bragging rights"	http://www.blackpetals.net/id4.html Website not working	Bizarre tales and chilling poetry
Pseudopod	$.08/word for original fiction, $100 flat rate for short story reprints, and $20 flat rate for flash fiction reprints (stories below 1500 words)	http://pseudopod.org/submissions/	Podcast
Crepuscular	10 cents/word with minimum of $5	https://www.patreon.com/posts/submission-85137677	Microfiction stories exploring places, characters, and questions buried in the gray areas 250 words max
Grinning Skull Press	0.025 cent/word	https://grinningskullpress.wordpress.com /submission-guidelines/	Novels, novellas, and occasionally short stories
Black Hare Press	5,000 to 10,000   – $25 USD; 10,000 to 17,000 – $50 USD	https://www.blackharepress.com/submissions/	5,000 words minimum  Drabbles (100 words)
Hungur	$25 $12 for reprints $5 per poem	https://www.hiraethsffh.com/hungur-chronicles-guidelines	Vampires
Dark Peninsula Press	$25 - $50 for anthologies	https://www.darkpeninsulapress.com/submissions.html	Anthologies See calls for submissions
A Midnight Kind of Place	£15	https://www.amidnightkindofplace.com/submissions/	Horror market based in Scotland in the UK, focused on short stories 500-10,000 words See reading periods
Dreams and Nightmares	$12	http://dreamsandnightmaresmagazine.com /guidelines.htm	Mostly poetry
Nightmare Magazine	8 cents/word $40 per poem	https://adamant.moksha.io/publication/nightmare/guidelines	Dark fantasy and horror short stories, poems, and nonfiction See reading periods
Electric Spec	$20	http://www.electricspec.com/Submissions.html	Macabre See reading periods
Stone’s Throw	$25	https://www.rockandahardplacemag.com/stones-throw-submissions	Dark fiction See reading periods
khōréō	0.10/word for fiction, $100 for nonfiction, and $40-300 for art.	https://www.khoreomag.com/submissions/	See reading periods Open to writers who identify as an immigrant or member of a diaspora in the broadest definitions of the terms Stories, essays, and art: fantasy, sci-fi, horror, and any genre in between or around it, as long as there’s a speculative element.
White Cat Publications	2 cents/word	https://whitecatpublications.com/guidelines/	Accepts mystery, romance, thrillers, suspense, ghost stories and horror stories (no slasher stories, please), westerns, steampunk and fantasy.
Gamut	10 cents/word	https://houseofgamut.moksha.io/publication/house-of-gamut	"We are looking for a wide range of dark speculative fiction" Themed issues
Polar Borealis	$10 for one thousand words or less. One cent a word for stories 1,000 words to 3,000 words in length	https://polarborealis.ca/submission-guidelines/	See submission periods Horror with SF aspects Open only to Canadians, long-term foreign residents living in Canada, landed immigrants, or Canadians currently living outside Canada
Ghost Orchid Press	Royalties	https://ghostorchidpress.com/submission-guidelines/	Novellas (20,000 – 40,000 words – firm limit) "We’re looking primarily for dark fiction including horror, gothic, and dark fantasy. We love genre mixing, works that stray from the well-trodden path, or that offer a fresh perspective on existing tropes. BIPOC and LGBTQ+ authors are especially encouraged to submit."
Unnerving Magazine	1¢/word	CLOSED	Horror, dark science fiction (light), dark fantasy, crime, thriller, suspense, and dark literary See submission periods Closes when monthly cap is reached
(s)crawl	$20	https://scrawlmag.com/submissions/	Horror fiction 100 - 5,000 words Poetry See submission periods
Horror Addicts.net	Some submissions are paid, some not	https://horroraddicts.wordpress.com/current-submission-calls/	HorrorAddicts.net is a podcast, blog, and publisher run by horror addicts, for horror addicts. Accepts nonfiction
Don't Flinch Podcast	$100	https://dontflinchpodcast.com/script-submissions/	Scripts 20 - 30 minutes in length
Underbelly Zine	$10	https://underbellyzine.blogspot.com/p/what-we-want-extreme-horror.html	Extreme Horror See submission periods
Tales From Between	£15 plus a physical copy of the issue. REPRINT: £5 plus a physical copy of the issue.	https://talesfrombetween.wordpress.com/submissions/	Horror up to 1000 words Has submission periods
Heathen	5 cents/word	https://heathen.press/ ON HIATUS	Horror, dark fantasy  Up to 7500 words See submission periods
The Other Stories	15 GBT	https://theotherstories.net/submissions/	Horror podcast See themes
Unfading Daydream	$5 - $10	https://unfadingdaydream.wordpress.com /submissions/	1,000 - 7,000 words See reading periods
Infinite Horrrors	$0.08/word	https://www.infiniteworldsmagazine.com/submissions-faqs	1500–5000 words  Accepts short fiction, illustrations, comics
Crone Girls Press	Payment not specified	https://cronegirlspress.com/submissions/	Dark speculative fiction  anthologies and horror flash fiction. See reading periods
Underland Arcana	$0.01 / word—up to 5,000 words—for publication on the website. Additional publication in other formats (ebook and collected print editions, for example) will be under a shared royalty basis	https://www.underlandarcana.com/submissions/	Short fiction that veers into the numinous, the esoteric, the supernatural, and the weird. "We like these stories to be mildly speculative, fantastic, mysterious, and/or horrific (if you prefer genre tags)." See reading periods
Unleashed	$25	CLOSED	Horror Up to 10,000 words See reading periods
Cosmic Horror Monthly	1 cent per word for original fiction. 1/2 cent per word for reprints; $10 – $20  for interior artwork. Negotiable; $100  for cover art. Negotiable.	https://cosmic-horror.net/submissions/	Up to 7,500 words Horror, dark scifi See reading periods
The Drop	$10	CLOSED	1000 words max Dark fantasy and science fiction See reading periods
ergot	$25	https://www.ergot.press/	ergot seeks experimental fiction and hybrid work under 10k words that pushes the boundaries of what literary horror is and what it might become.
Pulp Modern	$25	http://www.pulpmodern.net/pulp-modern-submissions/ BY INVITATION ONLY	Now by invitation only
Die Laughing	$10 for flash, $25 for short	https://dielaughingmag.com/about-2/	That sweet spot of horror comedy that is genuinely funny but also genuinely scary. Can be as goofy, gory, or smutty as you like!
Ghoulish Tales	10 cents/word	https://ghoulish.rip/reopened-for-short-story-submissions-ghoulish-tales/	See reading periods Short stories that fit our personal definition of the word GHOULISH, which is “fun horror that aims to celebrate all things spooky.”
Anathema	$50 (CAD) for fiction and non-fiction	CLOSED	Any genre with speculative content See reading periods You must be a queer person of colour/Indigenous /Aboriginal to submit to Anathema
Mithila	$50 for short fiction, $10 for original poetry/essays /flash	http://mithilareview.com/submission-guidelines/	4,000 - 8,000 words Flash, under 2,500 Accepts poetry
Sometimes Hilarious Horror	$25 for original stories, $10 for reprints	https://sometimeshilarioushorror.blogspot.com/2024/01/submission-guidelines.html	Horror stories of up to 15,000 words Accepts art
Roads Less Traveled	£40 per story regardless of length	https://www.midnightstreetpress.com/submission-guidelines	Horror and dark fiction mashups Also accepts nonfiction and interviews
The Dark	5 cents/word for original fiction up to 6,000 words on publication for first world rights; up to 6,000 words 1 cent/word for reprint fiction	http://thedarkmagazine.com/submission -guidelines/	Horror and Dark Fantasy 2,000 – 6,000 words Fast response time Accepts reprints
Bag of Bones Press	£0.005 per word	https://www.bagofbonespress.com/submission-calls	"Speculative, surreal, supernatural, dark fiction with creeping, poetic, dread-inducing prose, and endings we can't predict, but we're open to all subgenres of dark fiction."
Gallery of Curiosities	5 cents a word USD for original fiction and a penny a word for reprints, with a minimum of $50 USD for stories less than 1000 words.	https://gallerycurious.com/p/submissions-1599834174/ CLOSED	"Anachropunkish retro-vintage elements" Magazine and podcast length up to 7500 words See reading periods
Dark Yonder	$50	https://www.darkyonder.online/submissions	"Neo-noir"  Dark literary fiction (crime, horror, speculative lit, etc)
Stygian Lepus Magazine	$5	https://stygianlepus.com/submissions/	Dark speculative fiction
Liminal Stories	6 cents/word	http://liminalstoriesmag.com/submissions/	Up to 10,000 words See reading periods
Allegory	$15	https://www.allegoryezine.com/submissions	See reading periods
Diabolical Plots	8 cents/word	http://www.diabolicalplots.com/guidelines/	No simultaneous submissions See reading periods
The Arcanist	$50	CLOSED	Medium-based publication, weekly
Book Worms	8 cents/word	https://rsaintclaire.com/	Horror See reading periods
The Vanishing Point	$25	https://vanishingpointmagazine.com/index.php/submissions/	Horror, Sci-fi, Dark Fantasy, and all things speculative No simultaneous submissions See reading periods
Polymorphic	$30 CAD	https://polymorphicmagazine.com/submissions/	Short horror stories and art
Sanitarium	$5	https://www.thesanitarium.co.uk/submissions	See reading periods
Kangas Kahn	8 cents/word	https://www.kkpublish.com/	See reading periods Has themes
Broken Antler	$20 for print magazine, $10 for online publication	https://www.brokenantlermag.com/submit	Horror and weird fiction, as well as sci-fi and dark fantasy
Tales to Terrify Podcast	$0.01 USD per word	https://talestoterrify.com/submissions/	They periodically have calls for specific themes Length varies Reprints accepted
Red Cape Anthologies	£10	https://redcapepublishing.com/submissions/	Anthology series. See themes and deadlines.
The Dark Door	$25 per illustration featured (or a bundled rate of $25 for multiple marginals), and a rate of $15-50 USD per story depending on word count	https://illadvisedrecords.com/thedarkdoor	Terrifying tales and insidious illustration in the style of 70s and 80s pulp horror fiction zines
Perpetual Motion Publishing Newsletter	$25	https://pmmpublishing.submittable.com/submit/34164/perpetual-flash-fiction	Flash fiction up to 1500 words Has reading periods
Nightmare Fuel	$15	https://cloakedpress.com/sfwgs-nightmare-fuel/	Anthologies
The NoSleep Podcast	$100 for short fiction, and $125 for regular submissions.	https://www.thenosleeppodcast.com/submissions	First-person perspective
MetaStellar	$0.08/word for original fiction	https://www.metastellar.com/write-for-us/	Fantasy, horror, and science fiction of up to 7,500 words. Accepts reprints.
Hellbound Books	$5	https://hellboundbookspublishing.com/subs-anthologies.html	Themed anthologies
Archive of the Odd	$15-$25 for fiction of 500-5,000+ words	https://archiveoftheodd.com/submissions/	“Archive of the Odd is a zine of uncanny occurrences, told in even stranger ways.” Has reading periods
Weird Horror Magazine	2 cents/word	https://www.weirdhorrormagazine.com/submit	Weird horror 500 - 7000 words Open to submissions periodically
The Ghastling	£15	https://theghastling.com/submit/	Psychological horror, folk horror, ghost stories and the macabre. Has submission periods
Horrific Scribes	$25	https://horrificscribblings.com/about/submissions/	Dark fiction, mostly horror (all subgenres) but also the horror-adjacent, e.g. dark fantasy and dark sci-fi and also surreal and experimental work with dark edges.
The Dread Machine	$0.03 per word for original fiction/$0.01 per word for reprints/$10 per poem	https://www.thedreadmachine.com/submit/ CLOSED	Futuristic dark fiction, speculative fiction, cyberpunk, slipstream, and science fiction Has reading periods
Anterior Skies	One cent per word. $15 minimum (if you write a 200-word poem, you’ll get $15, not $2); max payment is $50 (if you write a 6,000-word short story, you’ll get $50, not $60).	CLOSED	Yearly anthology  Cosmic and weird stories, ranging from fantasy (preferably low fantasy, but high fantasy will be considered, but it has to wow me) to sci-fi to noir, as long as there’s a dab of horror somewhere in there.  Has submission period
Horror Story Magazine	2 cents/word	CLOSED	Horror stories and poetry 1000 - 2000 words
Witch House	$10	https://witchhousemag.blogspot.com/	Cosmic horror Has submission periods
Dark Dead Things	$.02 per word for short story and nonfiction; flat rate of $30 per poem	https://www.darkdeadthings.com/submissions	Weird short stories, poetry, and  nonfiction. "We love horror but are open to anything strange, surreal, or subversive." Has submission periods
Just Keep Up	$10 a story, $10 a poem	https://www.justkeepupmagazine.com/submissions	Stories should be science fiction and/or horror (preferably both) and 100-10,000 words long
Monstrous	6 cents/word	https://monstrousbooks.com/submissions	Dark fiction, flash, comics, prose, and articles. Print format
Nightlight Podcast	$200; Flash fiction, 5 cents/word; Reprints, $50.	https://nightlightpod.com/ ON HIATUS	Horror by Black writers Has submission periods
Zombies Need Brains	8 cents/word	https://www.patreon.com/posts/66268714	Science fiction, fantasy, and horror, including all subgenres
Dark Holme Publishing	£50	https://www.darkholmepublishing.uk/submissions-portal	Horror and dark fantasy
PsychoToxin Press	Royalties	CLOSED	Novelettes, novellas, novels, short story collections, short stories
Max Blood’s Mausoleum	$30	CLOSED	Horror short stories up to 8,000 words
House of Long Shadows	Subscription revenues share	https://houseoflongshadows.substack.com/p/submission-guidelines	Gothic Horror Reprints accepted
Horrorsmith	$25	https://www.horrorsmithpublishing.com/pages/submissions	Horror and thriller short stories Word Count - 3,000-10,000 words
Frost Zone	$15 CAD	https://www.frostzonestories.com/p/submissions.html	Dark literary fiction  1800 - 3800 words
Skull and Laurel	3c/word (USD) originals; $25 (USD) reprints	https://tenebrouspress.com/submissions	Weird Horror, Dark Fantasy, Dark Science Fiction. Short Fiction, Narrative Poetry. They also encourage things like comic strips, mixed media, found footage, puzzles, games, experiments, and other weird forms, as long as they tell a story. Translations welcome. Word count: 100 to 4999 words.
Infinite Horrors	8 cents/word	https://www.infiniteworldsmagazine.com/submissions-faqs	Horror and comics
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