Updated July 26, 2004

Wicked Hollow is always open to submissions of dark fiction, poetry, and potential cover illustrations.

When Wicked Hollow first opened to submissions, my basic mission statement here in the guidelines was: bring everything. If it's conceivably horror I want to see it, regardless of whatever other genres it might tickle, whether it be science fiction, fantasy, mystery, romance, etc. But times change.

Wicked Hollow has no interest in trends. Nor in labels. I'm not looking for the subgenre that's hottest now. I'm not looking for what everyone else is buying. I'm looking for intelligent, dark literature and poetry. And Wicked Hollow, being the live, breathing creature that it is, has taken the time over its first six issues to mold for itself something of a niche. The spectrum of what I'm looking to buy has narrowed considerably. I am, after all, merely a sycophant to Wicked Hollow's desires.

Wicked Hollow has turned itself into something of a Gothic magazine. I'm buying character-driven, atmospheric, emotive stories. The most important attribute I'm looking for in each story and poem I read is whether or not it involves me somehow emotionally. And the best way to do this to a reader is to give them a character onto which they can truly latch and ride. If your story doesn't take pride in developing its character, it's likely not a fit here.

To be more specific, I'm not buying many stories that are especially urbanized or futuristic. I want rural, I want atmospheric, I want despairing, I want strong characters, lush descriptions, good pace, pronounced settings, clear writing (no matter how descriptive it may be). As odd as this may read upon first glance, I don't want stories driven by the storyline. The best storyline falls short without good characters living it. You must present to me a believable character who can carry me and Wicked Hollow's readers through the story.

Wicked Hollow isn't exclusively a horror magazine. Not by what the horror industry is embracing these days. This is a magazine of dark literature, poetry, and art. If that makes it a literary magazine, or a Gothic magazine, or slipstream, it's of no consequence. Send me your fence-riders, your stories the literary markets won't touch as horror and horror markets won't touch as too literary. I thrive upon historical and/or foreign settings. Don't, on the other hand, think you stand a good chance with post-apocalyptic pieces, stories dealing with the internet or corporate life, Mythos, sci-fi terror, any of your typical beasts/creatures (vampires, werewolves, etc.), or for that matter any creature or beast that seems to exist merely to destroy without mentality or purpose.

And for those of you who still want to tag the magazine as strictly horror (hell, it's in the subtitle, I expect you to), not all horror has to frighten. It can disturb, enlighten, mystify, and spur many other emotions. I'm not looking just for scary stories. I'm looking for stories that catalyze any form of emotion in the reader, especially longing or despair.

The only true limit in Wicked Hollow's scope is word count. I can't use stories over 4,500 words. I'd love to, I've always been a large fan of novelettes and longer short fiction, but the pocket-sized format won't allow me to publish anything much longer than 4k without consuming simply too much space. Along those same lines, I don't like short-shorts or flash fiction, not for Wicked Hollow. You're welcome to send your stories less than 2,000 words, but I'm buying mostly between 2,000 and 4,500. Reprints will be considered but be sure to inform Wicked Hollow in your cover letter and let me know where it first appeared. Anything that appeared on the internet at a popular or archiving website, or anything that appeared in a highly visible print magazine, is less likely to be bought since there's a better chance for reader crossover. Simultaneous submissions are discouraged. Multiple submissions are not accepted. I receive far too many manuscripts to read two or three by one author at one time. Short story authors: please only send one story at a time. If you haven't heard back from me on your first submission within one month and would really like me to read a second, you can submit it then, but only after a month has passed since your first submission. Wicked Hollow buys less than 3% of the manuscripts it receives. I'm looking for a very specific brand of fiction, and I will decline manuscripts until I see enough to fill an issue, even if it means pushing back the alleged release date. Also, manuscripts are never accepted upon first read. Any manuscripts that seem a good match for Wicked Hollow are set aside for a week, maybe two, maybe a month, until a final decision has been made. As such, if you're used to getting a response time within a certain span and find suddenly you haven't heard back from me, it may be because I'm considering publishing your story or poem, so please don't query until three months have passed unless you have reason to suspect your submission never made it to my desk in the first place.

As for poetry and art, I'm relatively stocked on staff illustrators, but I'd like to see more artists submit concepts or finished pieces for future covers. I enjoy subtle, suggestive work as opposed to depictions of blood & guts & other unsightly things. No nudity or over-exaggerated bosoms (this isn't a comic book), and only works that will convert well into grayscale. As for poetry, same goes for it that goes for fiction. It should touch me on an emotional level, and anything with a gothic flair is a plus. Atmospheric. Lush descriptions. Submit up to five or six poems per batch. Reprints of poetry are not accepted unless the poem has not appeared in at least five years. And it should be said Wicked Hollow does not look at poetry as filler. I take poetry as seriously as I take fiction, and I want your best. Wicked Hollow has published one Rhysling Award nominated poem and had many others given honorable mentions in Year's Best Fantasy & Horror.

Wicked Hollow is a pocket-sized (4.25" x 5.5") gothic pulp approximately the size of a man's wallet. Each issue is eighty-four pages and features fiction, poetry, and art. Sample copies are $4 in the U.S., $5 to Canada, and $6 worldwide. You can order one quickly right here on the website. The 'zine is also available at ProjectPulp.com, Shocklines.com, Borderlands Books in San Francisco, Clarkesworld Books online, and Kayleighbug Books online.

You should also know Wicked Hollow has met with great success. Out of its first five issues, three stories were recommended for a Stoker Award, one long poem was nominated for a Rhysling Award, and one illustration was selected for inclusion in the highly-regarded Spectrum fantastic art anthology, in Vol. 9. And in its first year (four issues), eleven pieces were given honorable mentions in The Year's Best Fantasy & Horror, more than most any other magazine, even the pro mags. This is not your 'zine equivilant to a garage band that gigs around on weekends. This is a professionally run, serious, highly regarded magazine, and the competition for inclusion is high. I accept well less than 5% of the manuscripts I read.

Wicked Hollow pays 1/4 cent per word upon acceptance for fiction (with a minimum of $5) and $2 upon acceptance for poetry. You may also receive two extra contributor copies in lieu of payment for fiction, or one extra contributor copy in lieu of payment for poems.

Submissions are accepted via e-mail or postal, whichever is most convenient for you.

All electronic submissions must be accompanied by a short cover letter (including your address, phone number [in case I need to contact you regarding your submission on a short timeline], and a bio) and be embedded in the body of an e-mail. No attachments, period. All attached submissions will be sent back unread. When you embed your story, please double-space between paragraphs. And if you're submitting fiction, be sure to include a word count. For italics, make sure to denote them in some way, whether it's surrounding them by underscores or asterisks, but don't capitalize them.

Send electronic submissions to: wickedhollow@blindside.net. In the subject line, be sure to include "Fiction Submission" for short stories and "Poetry Submission" for poems. Otherwise, your submission may wind up in the incorrect folder, meaning a longer wait for your response, or even accidentally deleted altogether (I receive hundreds upon hundreds of SPAM messages each day).

All postal submissions should be accompanied by a simple cover letter with your address, phone number, e-mail address (if you have one), and a bio. All manuscripts should be typed and on one side of the page. No wacky fonts or miniscule type faces. Please don't send short story manuscripts folded (this is acceptable for poetry). Submissions should also either be unaffixed or with a paper clip. No staples or presentation folders. I will send back entire manuscripts if you include a SASE with ample postage, or by business-sized envelope if you prefer to send disposable copies (which I do recycle). On the other hand, if you live outside the United States, you may include an e-mail address for your reply. I don't go often enough to a post office that accepts IRCs to want to bother with them, so international submitters: please include an e-mail address, $1 U.S. currency, or the proper postage in American stamps. As a last resort, IRCs are accepted, but understand your submission response will be greatly delayed until I venture to a post office that accepts IRCs (it seems most American post offices dislike them and won't touch them). The response may not mail for a month or two after I read it in the case of IRC usage.

Send all postal manuscripts to:

I make no promises on response time. I have no assistant editors and also run ProjectPulp.com entirely by myself. However, after much work in December 2003 and January 2004, I've caught up on all e-mail submissions and most my postal submissions. From this date on, expect an e-mail response time of less than two weeks and postal submissions to take 4-8 weeks.

As for what type of response, Wicked Hollow does not deal with forms and you won't receive one. Expect a personal response with comments on what didn't work either on a whole or for this market in particular. Postal mail responses are handwritten.