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Submission Requirements

Submissions that do not follow submission requirements will not be considered.

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We are currently seeking NOVELS (45k - 110k words) that have not been published previously. You can familiarize yourself with our preferences by checking out any of our anthologies or our free online literary magazine, The Crow's Quill. We also suggest visiting our What is Gothic Horror? page for more information about the genre. Please do not pitch your genre as "Gothic" unless it is, indeed, Gothic fiction. We are not accepting books that are part of a series or a first book that cannot stand alone. 

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We accept adult fiction in the following genres (and genre blends):

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• Dark fiction

• Horror (elevated/literary) 

• Gothic horror/fiction

• Southern Gothic fiction/horror

• Historical fiction (w/ dark elements)

• Historical horror

• Speculative fiction (w/ dark elements)

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Things we are looking for: character driven stories, dark/macabre elements, Gothic themes, paranormal elements (please no more vampires; we're running out of room to store the coffins), deconstructed tropes, literary themes, romantic subplots, hauntings, interesting characters, alternate history, ghosts, genre blends, horror vibes, and evocative prose. We accept industry-standard word counts for your genre.

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Things we are not looking for: fan-fics, previously self-published books, books that are part of a series (especially an already published series), poetry collections, short story collections, YA/NA, splatterpunk/shock horror, stories without dark elements, high fantasy, slasher horror, erotica (please see our imprint Black Rose), commercial prose, romcoms, or hard sci-fi. While we prefer historical fiction, contemporary and urban fantasy stories will be considered if they maintain a dark, time-ambiguous feel. 

 

IMPORTANT: We DO NOT want stories that center around sexual assault or child abuse. Please do not submit these titles to us. Please include trigger warnings in your submission if SA or CA is mentioned or "off-screen."

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Please use the email address below to submit your query. Please include the following information in the body of your email:

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• Book Title

• Genre/Subgenre

• Word Count

• Any comparison titles

• A short biography + socials

• Publication history (if applicable)

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Please attach the first three chapters of your manuscript and a full (1-2 page) synopsis to the email. If you need help writing a synopsis, please see the link below. Attachments should be in a Microsoft Word Document (.docx file) and follow the standard Shunn format.  In the subject line, please put TITLE / GENRE / WORD COUNT. 

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Send to: editorial@quillandcrowpublishinghouse.com

Subject: TITLE/GENRE/WORD COUNT

Email: Query Letter + Trigger Warnings + Two Attachments: Synopsis & First 3 chapters

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