SUBMISSIONS
MAGAZINE SUBMISSIONS
Yep, that’s right; the magazine is coming back…sort of.
I’m looking for suspenseful horror of ALL shades (though, as is my way, I don’t find characters being sad amidst spooky goings on to be suspenseful on it's own). Gimme gore, gimme literary, gimme whatever kind of horror you like as long as it’s suspenseful. As always, NO copaganda, NO pro-religious stuff, NO right-wing themes, NO erotic betrayals of sexual assault. Obviously, NO AI. People using AI to cobble together stories are not welcome; just go away, nobody likes you. This call is open only to human writers (sorry animals from Dean Koontz novels).
The goal is to publish three to four stories per month on the Unnerving site. Later this year, an issue of the magazine will debut physically, anthologizing the regularly published stories from the website.
Word count: 500 – 3,500 (firm)
Format: Word or the likes (no PDFs)
Rate: 1.5¢ CAD/word (payments via PayPal only)
Exclusivity: 6 months following publication (the story will be archived and available on the site until the site is no more or the author requests removal with reasonable cause)
Submission window: February 15, 2025 - May 1, 2025
Reprints: No
Multiple submissions: No
Simultaneous submission: Yes, but please withdraw if accepted elsewhere
Response times: 1-6 months
Send Submissions: unnervingsubs@gmail.com
Subject line: Magazine Submission - Word Count
Submissions without a cover letter will be rejected unread.
Stories written using AI tech will not be considered.
Preferred Query Letter Style
Submit to:
Subject line: Call Name/Word Count
Example: Magazine/3,000 Words
Email:
<Salutation>
Brief synopsis of pertinent information of story submitted.
Top five writing credits (or fewer):
Third-person bio, maximum of one hundred fifty words.
Links to your social media accounts and website (if you have one).
Final note: Unnerving books do not include trigger warnings as the only logical route beyond normalizing this activity is weaponizing it against free speech. (If you think this is an exaggeration, consider horror comic history, and the voluntary decision to follow the Comics Code Authority rules.) If this is a deal breaker, do not submit to Unnerving.
