Open Submission Call – Judicial Homicide

Judicial Homicide: Tales from the Execution Chamber

An anthology about execution methods around the world, both past and present. This anthology will benefit Witness to Innocence, an organization that works to identify wrongly condemned men and women on America’s death row and give them resources for when their convictions are overturned.

“Judicial Homicide,” a horror anthology featuring execution methods from around the world, past and present. Undertaker Press is looking for stories that will haunt and horrify the reader long after they close the book.

What IS the editor looking for?
-Plausible stories that highlight the chosen method. 
-Horror, suspense, thriller, and gore are all acceptable. Extreme horror is acceptable.
-Out-of-the-box ideas, as long as the spirit of the method is present. 
-First or third person perspective is preferred.
-I’m open to stories where the execution fails or the condemned is pardoned, but if you decide to use these twists, make them unique.
-The executions do not have to be government-sanctioned. This is horror, there’s lots of reasons to kill a person. 

What ISN’T the editor looking for?
-Lengthy discourse on the morality of the death penalty ( I recognize that some mention of it may drive your plot, but I want you to focus on the horror of the method, not the morality of the sentence). 
-Inexplicable gore (Some are gory methods, but any gore should be explainable by the method or your plot, i.e. a belly should not explode without cause if you choose nitrogen hypoxia as your method).
-Real names of killers or victims All characters should be fictional and created by the author (no fan fiction involving another artist’s characters)
-Reprints. We want original stories, stuff no one has read.

SUBMISSION
Please use Modern Shunn format in 14 pt. Font (address included). Please submit your files in .doc or .docx format, named “JUDICIAL-[Story Title]-[Author Last Name].” Send submissions to submissions@undertakerbooks.com

PAYMENT
$10 per story and a digital copy of the anthology. 

SIMULTANEOUS SUBMISSIONS
Simultaneous submissions are accepted. Please notify us as soon as possible if your story is accepted elsewhere.

MULTIPLE SUBMISSIONS
Authors may submit up to two stories.

LENGTH
2,000-5,000 Words

DEADLINE
July 15, 2024