One of the great things about the internet age is that horror is expanding to include more diversity than ever. With the variety offered by small presses and independent publishers, there are tons of fabulous anthologies out there to help you find your new favorite writer. Crowdfunding campaigns have played an impressive role in this, helping projects get off the ground and into the hands of readers. Here are just five anthologies from recent years that used crowdfunding to publish exceptional work.
No Trouble at All edited by Alexis DuBon and Eric Raglin (Cursed Morsels Press, 2023)
Campaign: Kickstarter
From the publisher:
"Politeness is the glue that holds society together. We are all expected to do our part—a pressure ripe with horror. Rotten, even. Whether we adhere to this contract or defy it, there are consequences. These fifteen stories respond to promises made for us, promises of compliance that cost too much to keep."
Death in the Mouth: Original Horror By People of Color edited by Sloane Leong and Cassie Hart (Independently published, 2022)
Campaign: Kickstarter
From the publisher:
"What is horror to those living in the margins? Where terror is systematized and in the very air everyone happily breathes? A misheard word. The thud of boots. An impossible color. A foreign growth. Death in the Mouth is a horror anthology showcasing BIPOC and other ethnically marginalized writers and artists from around the world. It features 26 short stories accompanied by 26 original illustrations spanning across genre and time, from real and fictive worlds, all while exploring new and unique manifestations of horror."
The campaign for Death in the Mouth Volume II is live on BackerKit until September 1, 2023.
The Book of Queer Saints edited by Mae Murray (independently published, 2022)
Campaign: Kickstarter
From the publisher:
"In this debut horror anthology by editor Mae Murray, queer villains reign supreme. 13 short stories by renowned authors Eric LaRocca, Hailey Piper, and Joe Koch and up-and-comers Briar Ripley Page, Nikki R. Leigh, Joshua R. Pangborn, Eric Raglin, Belle Tolls, Perry Ruhland, James Bennett, LC von Hessen, K.S. Walker, and George Daniel Lea. Revel in transformative body horror, surreal serial killings, and gay nautical mayhem. Foreword by Sam Richard of Weird Punk Books."
The campaign for Book of Queer Saints Volume II went live on Indiegogo earlier this year.
Mixtape: 1986 edited by Alin Walker and Monica Louzon (The Dread Machine, 2022)
Campaign: Kickstarter
From the publisher:
"Do you remember a time before the Internet? Before we all carried lifelines in our pockets? Do you remember how it felt to step into a neon-lit arcade on a Friday night, pockets heavy with quarters?
This anthology contains sixteen totally radical, dread-filled stories that will introduce you to a very different 1986: one where monsters roam the woods, arcade games aren't as benign as they seem, toys contain deadly surprises, and VHS tapes provide refuge for latchkey kids. You'll meet housewives, truckers, burglars, and creatures in tales that address themes of loneliness, fear, love, forgiveness, self-discovery, friendship, family, and sacrifice."
In Somnio: A Collection of Modern Gothic Horror edited by Alex Woodroe (Tenebrous Press, 2021)
Campaign: Kickstarter
From the publisher:
"Twenty-five women and non-binary writers from the worlds of Horror Fiction and Illustration drag the blackened heart of Classic Gothic Horror out into the open, sculpting a sleeker, fiercer beast and recasting the legacy of our original Gothmothers in a chilling contemporary light.
Within the walls of an arcane modern art gallery...into the blackest burrows of the animal kingdom...tableside at the world’s last restaurant on the eve of the apocalypse...from the deep American South to the depths of a hostile sea, a cornucopia of nightmares awaits.
In Somnio features eighteen vibrant, unique stories; each brings a new perspective to our inherent love of Gothic Horror and what those vital elements of terror still have to tell us today."
Are you crowdfunding a new anthology that needs attention? Drop a link in the comments!
[Image Credit: photo by Rikka Ameboshi via Pexels]