Submission Guidelines

Submissions for our Spring 2024 Issue have not yet opened but I just put Issue 3 up and I'm really proud of it <3!

 

General Guidelines:

At Thanatos our goal is to encourage and broaden conversations about death and dying through literature and art. Many people are hesitant to talk about death. Conversations about death still cause fear, anxiety and discomfort. But death can be part of our daily lives in a positive way. We want to encourage both creators and consumers to read and think more broadly about death. We hope to publish the best, most thought-provoking writing and art about death, dying and the mortal experience. 

 

Death Positive doesn’t mean you have to be happy about death all the time. We seek to represent the complex, raw emotions that accompany death, while acknowledging that death is something that happens to everyone. We’re especially looking for pieces that prompt conversation and inspite new ideas.

 

While we love Gothic writing, we strive for a variety of representations of death ranging from the heartfelt to the humorous. If a friend has ever read your work and said “that’s a little morbid” it’s probably for us!

 

Examples of What We’re Looking For

• Retellings of death myths from different cultures

• Cemetery photography

• Personal essays from folks in the deathcare field

• Short fiction about the funeral industry

• Anything—poem, prose or art—that offers a unique perspective on death

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We’re committed to highlighting queer, BIPOC and disabled creators. We’re especially interested in work that addresses issues of inequality in the death care and funeral industry. At this time we’re unable to pay contributors, but we’re committed to not charging for submissions. We’re also active on social media and will promote your work across platforms.

 

What We’re NOT Looking For

• WE DO NOT EXCEPT AI GENERATED ART OR WRITING.

• True crime

• Graphic violence and violent deaths

• Body horror

• Suicidal ideation

• Any work that sensationalizes death

• Any work that promotes racism, homophobia, transphobia or ableism

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Genre Guidelines

Prose

We’re looking for fiction and non-fiction that explores topics of death, dying and being mortal. We’re open to any genre including flash fiction, personal essay and cross-genre work. Please don’t send excerpts from longer works unless they can stand on their own as self-contained pieces. Prose submissions should be double-spaced, in a clear 12 pt. font. You can submit up to 2 prose pieces. Each should not exceed 3,000 words. Please attach each piece in its own document.

 

Poetry

We consider poems in any form: free-verse, sonnets, haikus, villanelles. We welcome unexpected, hybrid and experimental work. You can submit up to 3 poems. Please attach each piece in its own document. 

 

Art

We accept unsolicited submissions of art of all forms: photography, illustration, sculpture, fiber arts. All art submissions will be considered for either cover art or to be included within the issue. You can submit up to 5 works of art. We prefer JPEGs and high-resolution images. 

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How To Submit

Email all submissions to thanatosreview@gmail.com. Use the subject line “GENRE-LAST NAME”. If submitting to multiple genres, please send separate emails for each genre. The exception is if you have artwork that goes with a written piece in which case you can list both the written genre and “ART”. If your work is hard to define, pick the genre you think best fits.

 

Attach written work as PDFs. If sending multiple pieces, attach each work in its own document. Do not include your name or any identifying information in the text of your document. 

 

Please include a brief cover letter with title, word count, and third person bio in the body of your email. If you have any social media handles, please include those as well. We love promoting our contributors across platforms.

 

As a consideration to our readers, please include a content warning in the body of your email. This will not prevent our reading and considering the work but it will help us make an informed decision about which readers to give it to. When in doubt, add a content warning.

 

We don’t accept previously published work. We make an exception for works published on a personal blog or social media platform. However, we do ask that you tell us in your cover letter if the work has been published on a personal platform. Rights revert to you on publication.

 

We do accept simultaneous submissions. We only ask that if one of your pieces is accepted elsewhere, you email us as soon as possible to withdraw your submission.