The Cellar Door - Issue #4: After Tomorrow
Compiled & Edited by Aric Sundquist
Short Story Submissions: (open until filled)
Short Story Submissions: (open until filled)
The Cellar Door is a biannual anthology of dark fiction. Each issue will contain 8 to 12 stories based around a specific theme and will include a brand new story from a featured author. The majority of the anthology will be filled from the open submissions.
- Title: The Cellar Door - Issue #4: After Tomorrow
- Theme: Looking for post-apocalyptic suspense/horror stories about how mankind has come to survive after our near annihilation. Humorous stories are welcome. No AI-generated stories.
- Type: Post-apocalyptic stories, but can include elements of: thriller/suspense, survival horror, creature feature, supernatural/paranormal.
- Word Count: 2,000 - 10,000 words.
- Payment: $25.00 + digital & paperback copies.
- Featured Author: TBA
- Accepted Authors: Danielle Davis, Nik Patrick, Scott McCloskey, Tre Luna, Richard Beauchamp, Scott Paul Hallam.
- Cover Art: Mikio Murakami
- Rights: We are seeking first time rights for 1 year after publication. After that time all rights revert back to the author. The publication will appear in both print and digital formats.
- Reprints: None. Previously unpublished only.
- Multiple Submissions: None.
- Simultaneous Submissions: Yes, but state in your email that it is a simultaneous submission, and please email us immediately if the story is sold elsewhere. Also, be sure to follow the Manuscript Format guidelines below when submitting.
- File Format: Include your story as an attachment in MS Word, LibreOffice, or Rich Text Format.
- Manuscript Format: Use the Modern or Classic Shunn Format. Include a short bio in the body of your email. Your subject line should read, AT Submission: ("Title") by (Author's Name). For Example, AT Submission: "There Will Come Soft Rains" by Ray Bradbury. Attach the story as a separate document.
- Response Time: 10 - 14 days
- Submission Period: open until filled
- Send Submissions to: darkpenpress (at) gmail (dot) com
Influential Movies/TV: A Quiet Place, Monsters, 28 Days/Weeks Later, Fury Road, It Comes at Night, Stake Land, Pandorum, 10 Cloverfield Lane, Snowpiercer, Zombieland, The Road, Sweet Home (TV), The Rain (TV), The Last of Us (TV).
Influential writings/series: Silo Trilogy by Hugh Howey, Wayward Pines Trilogy by Blake Crouch, Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel, Metro 2033 by Dmitry Glukhovsky, Swan Song by Robert R. McCammon, I Am Legend by Richard Matheson, The Girl With All the Gifts by Mike Carey, Bird Box by Josh Malerman.
Influential writings/series: Silo Trilogy by Hugh Howey, Wayward Pines Trilogy by Blake Crouch, Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel, Metro 2033 by Dmitry Glukhovsky, Swan Song by Robert R. McCammon, I Am Legend by Richard Matheson, The Girl With All the Gifts by Mike Carey, Bird Box by Josh Malerman.
Note on 6-18-23: Submissions opening soon! And please be aware... I'm looking for post-apocalyptic horror stories only, not stories taking place during the beginning of the apocalypse. And please consider purchasing a copy of The Cellar Door to see what kind of stories I like to publish. You can purchase them HERE. Thanks, and good luck! A.S.
Note on 7-5-23: I'm not too interested in space opera, hard sci-fi, high fantasy, or any stories that take place during the first few minutes of the apocalypse. If you want an example, check out "The Bird is the Werd" by Xariffa Suarez, or a large amount of the stories in Negative Space 2.
Note on 9-29-23: I have six accepted stories so far. Looking to add another three to five stories to fill out the TOC. Submissions open until the anthology is full. Good luck! AS.
Note on 7-5-23: I'm not too interested in space opera, hard sci-fi, high fantasy, or any stories that take place during the first few minutes of the apocalypse. If you want an example, check out "The Bird is the Werd" by Xariffa Suarez, or a large amount of the stories in Negative Space 2.
Note on 9-29-23: I have six accepted stories so far. Looking to add another three to five stories to fill out the TOC. Submissions open until the anthology is full. Good luck! AS.
