We’ll be ready to re-open Cemetery Dance magazine to submissions later this year (please don’t send anything now, it’ll still be returned unread), but we’re going to be doing things a little differently this time around.

Because we were receiving up to 500 stories a month before we closed to submissions, and we have such a limited number of fiction slots available per issue, we’re only going to open to submissions for two months at the very most. We’re telling you that now so that you can get your very best unpublished story ready.

In addition, the preferred method of submission will be via a new electronic submission system. This will allow us to respond quicker, it’ll save you the cost of postage, and it’ll save some trees, too.

As a refresher, here are our guidelines again, but please do not submit anything until we announce our new submission system is ready to go:

Guidelines: Horror, dark mystery, and suspense short stories up to 5,000 words. Originals, no reprints. We want tales that are powerful and emotional—creepy, chilling, disturbing, and moody. Suspense/mystery/crime tales with a horror element are always welcome. Both supernatural and psychological stories are fine. Most common reasons for rejection are: lack of power, lack of originality, slow pacing, poor writing, boring themes. Read the magazine, see what type of fiction we are publishing—don’t submit with a blind eye!

Payment: Professional rates, minimum of five cents per word, plus two contributor copies. Payable within 30 days of publication. Up to 5,000 words; maximum payment of $250.

How To Submit: Details to be posted on our website and in our newsletter when our new submission system is ready.

Thanks, as always, for your continuing support!