13 Paying Markets for Mystery and Crime Stories

Hercule Poirot, Flickr, Jose Camoes Silva

Updated 8/18/23

Mysteries and thrillers are perennial favorites among readers. According to Simba Information, the only genre that beats mystery is romance. Even in second place, crime novels pull in more than $730 million a year. The subgenres span from cozy, to hardboiled, to police procedural, to cross-genre blends with science fiction, fantasy and romance.

If you write short form mysteries or thrillers, there are a number of markets you can submit your work to. All of these are paying markets, and none charge submission fees. Happy submitting!

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The Dark City

The Dark City is dedicated to the "rough and tumble of the world of crime and violence." They prefer stories that have roots in reality but we do consider humorous situations and characters. "We hope to acquire stories that leave readers thinking about the characters and their dilemma." Length:1000 to 7500 words. Payment: $25.

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Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine

They are interested in nearly every kind of mystery: stories of detection of the classic kind, police procedurals, private eye tales, suspense, courtroom dramas, stories of espionage, and so on. "We ask only that the story be about a crime (or the threat or fear of one). We sometimes accept ghost stories or supernatural tales, but those also should involve a crime." Payment: From 5 to 8¢ a word, sometimes higher for established authors.

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Noir Nation

Noir Nation: International Fiction publishes crime fiction, nonfiction, and noir poetry in print and Kindle editions. Its content is often dark, sometimes creepy, and sometimes humorous but always at the service of the literary imagination as it explores the darker regions of human experience. Payment: "Not much. But always."

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Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine

Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine welcomes submissions from both new and established writers. "We publish every kind of mystery short story: the psychological suspense tale, the deductive puzzle, the private eye case—the gamut of crime and detection from the realistic (including the policeman's lot and stories of police procedure) to the more imaginative (including "locked rooms" and "impossible crimes"). We need hard-boiled stories as well as "cozies," but we are not interested in explicit sex or violence." Payment: From 5 to 8¢ a word, sometimes higher for established authors.

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Mystery Tribune

Mystery Tribune publishes Fiction, Non-Fiction, Art and Photography, as well as Flash Fiction. "In our view, mystery is not limited to reading but can be a multi-sensory experience. It encompasses many artistic products such as photography, film, music and comics. Our aim is to excite and inspire our readers by showcasing the finest examples of such artistic work via publishing daily articles as well as print and digital issues." Payment: Honorarium for fiction and non-fiction for its print edition. "The amount of honorarium will be discussed with contributors upon acceptance of a piece and it depends on a number of criteria including profile of the author and previous collaborations with Mystery Tribune."

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Shotgun Honey

"Established 2011, Shotgun Honey has been a steady outlet for crime, noir, and hard-boiled flash fiction. After a decade of submissions, we’ve seen nearly every permutation of the genre that can fit within this tiny 700 word world. So surprise us and send your best original crime flash stories." Payment: $15.

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Tough

Tough is a crime fiction journal publishing short stories and self-contained novel excerpts of between 1500 words and 7500 words, and occasional book reviews and essays of 1500 words or fewer. "We are particularly interested in stories with rural settings. We are a crime journal." Payment: $50 for original stories, $25 for reprints.

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Guilty

Guilty publishes crime fiction. The term covers a wide range of potential topics and styles. However, there are some things they will not consider: Cozies, Police procedurals, Anything with a speculative element. Payment: $10. Has submission periods,

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Gumshoe Review

Gumshoe Review accepts short fiction mysteries and nonfiction articles about the mystery field. The short stories should be no longer than 1,000 words. Payment: 5 cents per word to a maximum of $50 (so if the story is longer you still only get $50). 

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Mystery Magazine (CANADA)

Mystery Magazine presents original short stories by the world’s best-known and emerging mystery writers. "The stories we feature in our monthly issues span every imaginable subgenre, including cozy, police procedural, noir, whodunit, supernatural, hardboiled, humor, and historical mysteries. Evocative writing and a compelling story are the only certainty." Payment: 2¢/word USD for accepted stories. Their average response time is 1-5 weeks.

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Dark Yonder

"There are no setting requirements, but all stories submitted must be loosely categorized as “neo-noir.” We’re not looking for your grandfather’s noir fiction. We’re looking for new, unique voices and interpretations of dark literary fiction (crime, horror, speculative lit, etc) that fit into our rapidly evolving world." Payment: $50.

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Black Cat Weekly

Black Cat Weekly is a weekly publication showcasing the best in original, modern, and classic mysteries, adventure stories, fantasy, and science fiction. Issues are (mostly) unthemed except around the holidays. (We run extra dark fantasy stories around Halloween, for example.) Payment: $15 - $50. Accepts reprints.

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Stone’s Throw 

We're looking for dark fiction, crime and noir, length between 1,000 and 2,000 words. Payment: $25. Open to submissions the first week of every month.