Horror Short Story Collection?

jasonbwell · Oct 20, 2014

Hey all. I have been working on a collection of horror shorts that all take place in the same town. So far I have 6 stories (mostly between 8000-10000 words each). Now, I've heard before that getting collections of horror shorts, or any short stories for that matter, published in one volume is tough. Just wondering if anyone has any insight/comments?

I am wondering if I should just go the route that has worked before and just have individual stories published in indie horror mags or if I should try to submit them as one full manuscript under one title (i.e. - "tales from" this place of that?) Also, if I do go that route, are publishers more or less apt to accept if a few of the stories in the ms have appeared elsewhere?

There would be an inclusion of at least 2 more stories to round things out, so I'm not really anywhere NEAR attempting publication, but I thought I'd ask.

thanks

J

Fruitbat · Oct 20, 2014

Publishers generally prefer, if not insist, that at least some of the stories have been previously published in periodicals or anthologies. It's also good to leave at least a couple unpublished so there's something new in the collection.

The titles I most often see for collections of shorts are the title of one of the stories in the collection. Not necessarily the best or longest story, but just the one with the most catchy name. But of course you don't have to do it that way (I didn't). And if they're set in the same place, that also makes sense to use the name of the place in the title if you prefer it.

Also, yes, collections of short stories by relative unknowns are a hard sell. But it's probably more likely if it's a popular genre like horror.

I published my collection of 100 flash stories myself, but nearly all of them had been previously published separately, whether in e-zines, magazines, journals, or anthologies. The good part is all of those stories serve as little ads for my book. Good luck!

williemeikle · Oct 20, 2014

Publishers generally prefer, if not insist, that at least some of the stories have been previously published in periodicals or anthologies. It's also good to leave at least a couple unpublished so there's something new in the collection.

Not strictly true. My last two horror collection sales have been to publishers that insisted that all material be original to that collection

Fruitbat · Oct 20, 2014

williemeikle said:
Not strictly true. My last two horror collection sales have been to publishers that insisted that all material be original to that collection

What publisher/s? One or two different ones? Also, were they both publishers of strictly horror or more general? I researched many publishers of story collections and as I said, I found that "generally" they did prefer that some of the stories be previously published.

However, most of them published "literary" fiction. So now I'm wondering if you just hit on an exception to the rule or if the horror genre goes by different rules than "literary" fiction on it. Or it could be "literary" that goes by different rules, come to think of it...

Alma Matters · Oct 22, 2014

I think the horror genre is one of the few areas where the short form is still very much alive. However, as someone who is unpublished and still working on finding my feet, I don’t really have a lot of practical advice...

As a suggestion though, why not send out a couple of your favourites to magazines etc and see how they go down? If they’re published, great. If not, you still have your collection to send about.

As an avid reader of horror, I really do enjoy a collection of stories set in a particular location. Of the top of my head, Charles L. Grant’s Oxrun Station had several books featuring different stories (albeit novellas) from the same town.

I say go with what you would prefer, if you would prefer the original collection pursue that first, if you don’t mind so much, send some of your stories about. You can always try the alternative method if things don’t play out like you had hoped...

Jamesaritchie · Oct 22, 2014

If you're an unpublished writer, it's almost impossible to sell a short story collection of any kind. They just don't sell very well, and unless there's a recognizable name on the cover, chances are the book will lose money.

Fruitbat · Oct 23, 2014

Jamesaritchie said:
If you're an unpublished writer, it's almost impossible to sell a short story collection of any kind. They just don't sell very well, and unless there's a recognizable name on the cover, chances are the book will lose money.

And of course there are so many micro-presses out there, probably mostly self-publishers who decide to take on a few other authors' books as well. So if it's accepted by a very small publisher, it still may not go very far.

I self-published my collection, but most of the stories were first published in magazines or anthologies. After I made the rounds of larger publishers with the collection, I decided I'd rather call the shots myself than try for the tiny presses with no more distribution channels or advertising budget than I had myself. I'm happy with it, but I mostly just enjoy the writing anyway. The good news is all those little stories out all over the place serve as little ads for my book and it's actually doing okay (although of course what I consider okay sales and what a large press considers okay sales are two different things).

Personally, I wouldn't do it if you would consider self-publishing the collection or acceptance by a micro press a failure. It's more likely a "for the love" kind of book.

(I don't know about horror collections specifically though).

JLCwrites · Oct 24, 2014

I don't know if this is the case with all anthology and magazine publications, but my experience has been that they keep the rights for only a year. So submitting to magazines and anthologies shouldn't ruin any future chance at publishing an entire series in the future. If anything, they could give you more credibility to future readers.

BrianJamesFreeman · Nov 20, 2014

JLCwrites said:
I don't know if this is the case with all anthology and magazine publications, but my experience has been that they keep the rights for only a year. So submitting to magazines and anthologies shouldn't ruin any future chance at publishing an entire series in the future. If anything, they could give you more credibility to future readers.

Yep, one year is pretty normal, although obviously any exclusivity clause will really vary from place to place. In the 12 years I've been buying short stories for a magazine and for several anthologies, I've actually only asked officially (meaning: in the contract!) for an exclusive window on a couple of the projects.

The latest one was because the book was for Random House, which had their own criteria for the contracts, and it was by far the longest period -- 18 months. But getting a story in front of 50,000 to 100,00 readers and being paid very well for it is a nice trade off for not being able to resell that story for 18 months!

A one year window is perfectly acceptable if you're getting PAID a decent rate. At least 5 cents per word. Anyone who is offering you a flat fee of a few bucks or no payment really should not be asking to tie up your rights for any period of time.

But, of course, it's totally up to you if you're okay with the agreement!

And I definitely agree with your point, re: credibility. In fact, if the collection is to be shopped to publishers, the first thing they'll look for -- if they don't know you already -- is whether they recognize where some of the stories have been previously published. I may not know YOU, but I certainly know Postscripts or The Paris Review or Black Static or Weird Tales, etc.

Brian

BrianJamesFreeman · Nov 20, 2014

Alma Matters said:
I think the horror genre is one of the few areas where the short form is still very much alive.

Yep, agreed. There are some genres where the short form is essentially dead these days, but it's still alive and well in the horror genre.

Brian

BrianJamesFreeman · Nov 20, 2014

jasonbwell said:
Hey all. I have been working on a collection of horror shorts that all take place in the same town. So far I have 6 stories (mostly between 8000-10000 words each). Now, I've heard before that getting collections of horror shorts, or any short stories for that matter, published in one volume is tough. Just wondering if anyone has any insight/comments?

I am wondering if I should just go the route that has worked before and just have individual stories published in indie horror mags or if I should try to submit them as one full manuscript under one title (i.e. - "tales from" this place of that?) Also, if I do go that route, are publishers more or less apt to accept if a few of the stories in the ms have appeared elsewhere?

There would be an inclusion of at least 2 more stories to round things out, so I'm not really anywhere NEAR attempting publication, but I thought I'd ask.

thanks

J

Your word count range is going to make these a tough sale for most magazine and anthologies these days, but publishing the stories in magazines/anthologies a publisher would recognize is a big plus for you when you go to sell the collection. Having a few originals to round things out is smart, too.

By the way, a collection of stories all set in the same place is smart as well. It allows the publisher to write up sales copy that makes the book "feel" a little more like a novel than a collection, and novels outsell collections in a huge way, so anything that gives the publisher hope that the book well sell is a good thing.

"Welcome to TOWN NAME, a town just like yours, only a little stranger. Within these pages, you'll meet our citizens, some of whom are no longer here by choice..." blah blah blah...

Brian

Horror Short Story Collection?

jasonbwell

mercy street

Fruitbat

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williemeikle

The force is strong in this one.

Fruitbat

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Alma Matters

Jamesaritchie

Fruitbat

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JLCwrites

BrianJamesFreeman

BrianJamesFreeman

BrianJamesFreeman