Submit your work

Guidelines

• Original short fiction, 2,000–5,000 words.
• Send your story as a .doc, .docx, .pages, .rtf or .txt file, no PDFs, no Google Docs links.
• We prefer Times New Roman, double spacing and 12 pt font.
• Crime as a genre or a lens, noir, mystery, dark satire, crime/horror crossover. No fan fiction.
• Previously unpublished work only. We do not consider reprints.
• Simultaneous submissions are fine, just withdraw promptly if your story is taken elsewhere.
• One story per submission window. Please wait for a response before sending another.

Fees

There’s a £1.99 reading fee to submit via Duosuma, our preferred route.

Rights

We acquire exclusive first publication rights for six months from your story’s publish date, after which they revert to you in full. We also ask for a non-exclusive right to include your story in a future anthology, should we ever publish one, that’s not exclusive, so it never stops you publishing or licensing the story elsewhere. Full legal language is in our Submission Terms.

Response time

We aim to respond within 12 weeks of your submission. Please be patient as we are a small team.

FAQ

Can I submit more than one story?

Please send one story at a time and wait to hear back before submitting again.

Do you accept reprints?

No, original, previously unpublished work only.

What are you not looking for?

Fantasy, and horror or gore without a real crime element. Crime/horror crossover is fair game, we want character-led crime fiction with a distinct voice and something fresh to offer.

Do you publish sci-fi?

Yes, if it’s got a strong crime element, especially cyberpunk involving private investigators, heists or detectives. Neuromancer, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, and Altered Carbon are all good examples.

Is there a fee to submit?

£1.99, via Duosuma, our preferred submission route.

How will I hear back?

You will hear back via the Duosuma platform.