The Dolls in the Attic cover is here! It was designed and illustrated by Creepy Carves Design. This surpasses our expectations and brings forward vintage horror vibes like those done in the 80s by Zebra/Ballantine/Bantam/Avon and others, featured in Paperbacks from Hell by Grady Hendricks.
When we started this process, I discussed how dolls are iconic on horror covers. Ruby Jean Jensen's The Reckoning and The Living Evil, Josh Webster's The Doll, and many others all had their own doll. While I love our "Skelly" on the Doors of Darkness covers, I cannot help but love this one for different reasons.
If you're interested in submitting and helping to create a doll-rific anthology, please see the details below which can also be found on the Submission Call page. They will be due on July 31st at midnight CST!
Length: 5,000-10,000 words
Format: Must be submitted as a Google Doc file which must have terrorcorepublishing@gmail.com as an owner with editing turned on. You will provide the shareable link in the form upon submission. Use only one tab and do not use spaces to start a new paragraph. Do not write "The End" at the end of the story. In the header, please include the following: 1) your name, 2) the title of the story, and 3) the word count of the story. Submissions that do not follow these guidelines will not be read.
Style: Set in the 1980s / 1990s.
Genre: Horror. Any kind. It can be paranormal, slasher, psychological, gore, etc. There is no such thing as TOO FAR for this anthology.
Prompt: With profound sadness, we announce the passing of Lady Adelaide Rosemary Hawthorne, a beacon of grace and elegance, who departed this world on February 21, 1987, at the age of 87. Lady Hawthorne, beloved matriarch and pillar of the community, left an indelible mark on all who had the privilege of crossing her path.
A woman of profound depth and curiosity, Lady Hawthorne possessed an insatiable thirst for knowledge and beauty. Intriguingly, it was during the meticulous process of sorting through Lady Hawthorne’s belongings that her family stumbled upon a hidden treasure trove within the attic of her cherished home: a collection of FIFTEEN exquisite porcelain dolls. Each doll, delicately preserved, seemed to whisper tales of bygone eras, invoking a sense of nostalgia and wonder within those who had the privilege of discovering them.
The dolls are planned to be auctioned off individually on Tuesday night, 7pm.
Write a story about a porcelain doll from Lady Hawthorne’s attic. This can be the story of how it ended up there or what happens with the doll after the auction.
Do’s: Dolls must be porcelain. should take place in the 80s / 90s.
Dont’s: Not all stories need to be about the doll being possessed, per se. there can be other reasons why bad things happen around the dolls. it is not clear why Lady Hawthorne collected them. I do not want any stories that reference other works. The doll should not be named Chucky or Annabelle or anything in pop culture.
Setting: Your story can take place EITHER before Lady Hawthorne got the doll and end with Hawthorne getting her or AFTER the auction and where the doll goes from there. Keep in mind that you should not give a physical description of Hawthorne unless imperative to the story.