Editor Interview: Tales of Blood and Roses

Edgy dark fiction.

Some of our favorites are Black Gat Books, Death's Head Press, Hard Case Crime, and Weird Tales.

Favorites include Cornell Woolrich, Edgar Allan Poe, Erik Larson, H. P. Lovecraft, Joe R. Lansdale, John W. Campbell, Lee Child, Michael Slade, Norvell Page, Robert E. Howard, Rod Serling, and Stephen King.

We're fans of the bleak. There are not many happy endings in our pages!

We're primarily a horror publication, but any dark disturbing tale will be considered. We look for emotional, disturbing fiction. Try to have your work ready to print. Polish your work before submitting it. As they say, there are no great writers, only great re-writers. Your characters should be believable. Their words and actions should make some sort of sense. They may act in an unusual manner, but they should be true to their fictional world.

I love a story where dread builds as the character's world becomes increasingly surreal and everything spins out of control until the character is lost to their bitter fate. A story that will leave readers reeling.

Unpopular Publications and Tales of Blood and Roses are back and we intend to continue with additional publications. Submitters often fail to submit stories in the theme we're open for.

I will let the story speak for itself, though I'm happy to learn more about the writer.

I read every piece though to the end. There was a story included in our second issue I thought I would pass on. The ending convinced me to accept it.

Initially we weed out stories that are either poorly written or don't fit our theme and style. Next, stories are rated individually by our editors. We then compare ratings and choose the highest rated tales.

I'll read through submissions as they're received. I then forward the strongest to either my story or poetry editor for additional review. We rate pieces individually. We then compare our ratings to determine which works to include. I have the final say but trust in my staff.

We only perform basic proofreading. Other changes are a conversation to be had with the creator.

We intend to when presented with exceptional work.

Earlier issues were all self funded. As of this writing, we are hoping to secure initial funding through a crowd funding event. If we were to do well, we may be able to be largely self reliant again.

Previous issues were sold nationwide at various independent book stores as well as online. We essentially had world wide sales with orders coming in from all over. We will utilize social media to promote the issue as well as hold a release party at a hugely popular Annapolis record store that carries zines. We also have various pledge levels and add-ons to our crowd funding event that could mean payments for some authors.