We are now accepting submissions for The Valancourt Book of World Horror Stories, volume 2.
Volume 1 has been receiving excellent reviews from readers and from publications like the Washington Post, Publishers Weekly, Rue Morgue, Library Journal, and more. These books are a great opportunity for horror writers who write in languages other than English (or who write in English in countries with small publishing markets) to gain wide notice and readership for their work.
The story must be a "horror" story; however, we define this term as broadly as possible to include stories of the occult and/or supernatural, weird fiction, tales of the unsettling, uncanny or macabre, ghost stories, etc. Stories in adjacent genres, such as dark crime, dark fantasy, or black humor, may also be considered.
Submission Guidelines:
(1) The story must have previously been published (print, ebook, or online) in a language other than English.* We are not looking for self-published material at this time.
(2) In addition, the story must not have previously been published in English.*
* Stories written in English by writers from countries other than US/CA/UK/IRL/AU/NZ will be considered, as long as the story has not previously been published in the United States. (e.g., an English-language writer from Nigeria, India, or Singapore would be eligible).
(3) The story should be 8000 words or fewer.
(4) If the story is written in one of the following languages, please submit it in its original language (these are all languages we read): French, Spanish, Italian, Catalan, Romanian, Portuguese, Dutch, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Afrikaans, or any language substantially similar to these.
(5) If the story is written in some language not listed above, it must be accompanied by a summary/description or translation into English. It is OK if the translation is not of professional/publishable quality: it is only for us to get an idea of what the story is about so that we can decide whether we would like to have a professional translation done.
(6) The deadline for submissions is April 30, 2021, but the earlier a submission is received, the more likely it will be to be chosen.
(7) Preference will be given to stories from countries not already featured in Volume 1, but writers from those countries are still invited to submit and will be considered.
(8) We are committed to diversity in all its forms. Women writers, writers of color, LGBT writers, writers whose work is in a minority indigenous language, writers from countries traditionally under-represented in American publishing, and all other diverse writers are all encouraged to submit.
(9) A fee will be paid for all stories selected. The writer will also receive a copy of the finished book.
(10) The estimated publication date of the book is December 2021.
Submissions should be sent to the editors, James D. Jenkins and Ryan Cagle, at info@valancourtbooks.com. Hard copy materials can be mailed to Valancourt Books, P.O. Box 17642, Richmond, VA 23226, USA. Please note that materials sent to us by post will not be returned.
