Call for Submissions
SUBMISSIONS ARE NOW CLOSED
A Murder of Crows—cozy to cozy-noir crime stories, set in any time, from dinosaurs to the present, using the collective names of groups of animals which includes mammals, reptiles, fish, birds, and insects. If your imagination goes beyond the scope of known collective names, you may create your own. Earth animals/birds only, none from outer space or invented animals. You can put your animals in jeopardy but animal cruelty or killing an animal is an automatic rejection. Choosing an animal/bird that is a little different may give you an edge on being chosen. We don’t want multiple stories using the same species! Your animals should be an integral part of the crime, not just a mention as part of the story.
Examples of collective names to use:
http://www.namibian.org/travel/misc/collective-nouns.html
https://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/animals/blogs/99-strange-collective-animal-names
https://grammar.yourdictionary.com/word-lists/list-of-names-for-groups-of-animals.html
Submission Period: December 17th – April 30, 2019
AMurderofCrows@darkhousebooks.com and the name of your story in the subject line. Standard manuscript form, sent as an attachment. Your contact information on Page One.
Length: 2500 to 6000 words.
Four to five thousand words is a good goal. We expect the anthology to have approximately seventy-five thousand words, a mix of longer and shorter stories.
Payment: Royalty
Fifty percent of the gross royalties per calendar quarter will be distributed equally among the contributors. Contributor copies will not be offered. A limited number of review copies will be available.
We ask for the exclusive right to publish your story for one calendar year following contract signing, excluding publications of those previously published.
Title subject to change.
For additional information, please contact AMurderofCrows@darkhousebooks.com or visit the website at http://www.darkhousebooks.com.
Sandra Murphy is the author of From Hay to Eternity: Ten Tales of Crime and Deception. Her short stories have appeared in Flash and Bang, The Killer Wore Cranberry Four, Dogs and Dragons, Second Chance Dogs with other stories accepted awaiting publication in 2019.