DCP's books entertain readers with meaningful and decent dark fiction—spellbinding stories without adult language and erotica. DCP books give readers an entertaining, thrilling, scary, imaginative read, leaving them with something of moral value to ponder.

We pay rates starting at five cents per word for short fiction.

We are CLOSED to novel submissions.

Our first short fiction anthology, Thou Shalt Not..., is now published! Click here to purchase. Or click here to see submission guidelines (now closed).

To be notified about future projects, register.

We publish horror, dark crime, and psychological thrillers. Nothing else.

Click for more on genres...

Conflict & Characters.  We're looking for page-turning stories in which characters overcome the horrific. Conflict is the basis of drama, but readers won't care about the conflict, no matter how intense, unless they care about the characters experiencing that conflict. Give us living, breathing, hurting, hoping characters.

Plot.  Stories should be well plotted. They must make sense, even if you're dealing with the psychotic or supernatural. We're looking for popular fiction, not literary musings. Get into the story quickly, and keep the pace brisk.

Mood & Setting.  We like atmosphere and mood, description and setting. We're disappointed with fiction that gives no sense of place, fiction that's nothing more than characters floating through cardboard sets. Anchor us in the sensory, the concrete. Just don't overdo it.

Topics?  Your imagination is the limit. Whether it's human evil or monstrous badness, make it fresh and unique. DCP is not looking for the commonplace: Don't send us anything with vampires, werewolves, or mummies. Even serial killers are becoming ho-hum. Instead of writing what others have done to death (pardon the pun), write something that horrifies you, something only you could write.

While we're looking for fiction with meaning and decency, please don't send anything moralizing or preachy. No thinly veiled evangelism—save that for the Christian market.

We're not looking for fiction about religious topics. But can you have characters with faith? Absolutely. Characters struggling with faith? Sure thing. But faith or religion need not be the central issue in your story. (And we prefer that they not be!)

We want contemporary stories, exciting stories told with decency, and written skillfully so that it leaves the reader something to ponder.

What 's a book that DCP wished it had published? Stephen King's Green Mile—without the adult language. Excellent story. Biblical values. But too much profanity. That brings us to our next point...

The readers of DCP books are people from the ages of 14 and up who enjoy dark fiction but who aren't comfortable with the adult elements of similar fiction from other presses. We believe in the freedom of speech, but if you can't write within the following guidelines, feel free to submit your work elsewhere.

The process we went through in considering content standards for DCP books reflects our desire to publish fiction with biblical values. If the Bible, or portions of it, were made into a movie, what would it be rated according to the MPAA designations?

Sex... to

Although it condemns a few practices, the Bible doesn't shy away from sex. Prostitution, rape, adultery, and homosexuality are all mentioned. The sex in your story should not be explicit or tawdry, but must be essential to the story. DCP does not publish erotica!

The standard for Dark Cloud Press submissions should be no more than PG-13.

Violence, Bloodshed, & Gore...

The Bible definitely earns an R rating here. You can't get much more graphic than hand-to-hand combat, slaughter, the dashing of children, eating human flesh, blood up to the horses' bridles, and birds feasting on corpses.

The standard for Dark Cloud Press is R, but the nastiness needs to be integral to the story.

Language... to

Foul language is something secular fiction could do with less of. Dark Cloud Press standard: on the PG side of PG-13, the less the better.

For anthology submissions, follow the guidelines for the particular anthology.

We are closed to novel submissions indefinitely.

If you have questions about submissions, email to:

querydarkcloudpresscom

NOTE: These guidelines are amended from time to time. To be notified of changes, please register).

Story manuscripts you submit must be in the following format:

• Courier or Courier New, 12 pt (no exceptions!)
• Paragraphs double-spaced and first lines indented 1/2 inch
• No extra space between paragraphs
• One-inch margins all around
• Printed on white copy paper, one side only
• Not bound in any way (no staples, clips, etc.)

For more on proper manuscript format, see William Shunn's example.

To download the Microsoft Word Novel Template, right-click on the link and select Save Target As.) Click the following link for instructions on how to use the template.

To download the Microsoft Word Short Story Template, right-click on the link and select Save Target As.) Click the following link for instructions on how to use the template.