I'm trying to learn how to write noir/crime/mystery, and I've always like the short story medium. Can anyone recommend some good short-story (non-flash) markets in the noirish vein? I'd like to start with the paying and/or respected/influential market level. Yes, I use duotrope, but I find that personal recomendations usually trumps online searching. Also, notwithstanding Brandon Tietz's advice to ignore the simultaneous-sub rules, I'd like to try and break into the market before alienating any editors/markets.
tl;dr: Spam me with your favorite markets for noir!
NoirNation
Bette Noir
Lamplight - not so much noir, but they'll accept it.
Those are three off the top of my head at 820 in the morning. I think though, the majority of the markets people will give you, you'll find on Duotrope anyway.
I am also trying the mystery route with short stories (actually, I'm currently writing high fantasy, mystery, supernatural, and a couple of science fiction). I was searching for mystery online mags yesterday and there seems to be a dearth of sites. I was surprised, I thought there'd be a bunch, but maybe I used the wrong Google keywords. I did find Plots with Guns, whose artwork at first seems cool, then suddenly seems cartoonish in a silly way. No pay, but simultaneous is permitted.
Shotgun Honey.
I'm trying to learn how to write noir/crime/mystery, and I've always like the short story medium
Do you (or anyone) have any good recommendations for anthologies/collections of noir short stories? I'd like to learn myself but I haven't read a lot in this genre.
Do you (or anyone) have any good recommendations for anthologies/collections of noir short stories? I'd like to learn myself but I haven't read a lot in this genre.
- Just off my shelf:
1. Las Vegas Noir
2. Pittsburgh Noir - There's actually a ton of these books you can find on Amazon.
3. Crime Factory: The First Shift - This one you could probably send a PM to Keith Rawson about. Look him up on here.
4. These Guns for Hire: 31 Stories About Hitmen
5. The Omnibus of Crime
6. Warmed and Bound - More Neo-Noir
7. Pulp Fiction - A huge collection of old pulp/noir ranging from 1930 - 1996
8. When the Woman Come Out to Dance - Bunch of Elmore Leonard shorts.
If you want some omnibus', there are alot multiple novel books in one. On my shelf:
1. Lawrence Block: Five Great Novels
3. Andrew Vachss: Down Here
4. Ed McBain: McBain Trio
I could give you a whole list of noir/pulp/crime authors if you want them.
I didn't care much for Las Vegas Noir; I found that most of the stories were pretty tame considering what a nutty places Vegas is. I've read about hlaf of Portland Noir--not bad, though I know nothing about Portland, which kind of takes the fun out of it. The Pulp Fiction antho I have read, and loved it--though the tales lean more toward pulp on the whole.
God, the book you HAVE to read - Dan O'Shea's Old School. So fucking brilliant. Not a clunker in the bunch. That book (and some recent Thompson and O'connor reads) inspired me to try my hand at crime/noir.
Plots with Guns I looked at, but the stories have to have a gun in them. I don't know why, but I never have guns in my stories. I like knives and razors, belts and bare knuckles.One day I hope to have something on Shotgun Honey, but for the life of me I can't write a decent piece of flash.
Regarding places to submit:
Outofthegutteronline.com and Criminalelement.com are two that haven't been mention. Criminalelement is working on their first anthology, so if you got something prepared that could fit into the "girl trouble' theme they're working with, you might want to get it in before the 10th. Otherwise, keep checking back.
bloodandtacos. com and beattoapulp.com are good sites as well. Beat to a pulp anthology seems to be invitation only(either that or I've always missed their sub dates) but they take online fiction.
I found that what's helped me immensely in finding new places and authors is twitter. Just search for noir, pulp, etc, and you'll start to find a lot of authors this way. That's how I was introduced to Shotgun Honey, which accepted a couple of my flash stuff, and then accepted a longer work into their anthology. It's also through twitter that I've found a couple of other places as well.
Plus, you'll be able to know when people either mark down their ebooks or offer them for free, giving you a nice taste of publications.
Anthologies to read:
Shotgun Honey Presents: Both Barrels <-- I have a story in there, so it goes on top.
Pretty much all the Beat to a Pulp series. The latest one is supehero based, and I really dug it.
Lost Children Anthology
Pulp Ink 1 and 2
Oh good idea Hector! I will follow some noir writers on twitter. I think I mostly have horror writers on there right now. Also dug your ShotgunHoney story. Damn I wish I could write decent flash fiction, I really like that site.
Pear Noir! is a print journal and usually has pretty good stuff. Dirty Noir is also a cool site but i don't know if they are taking submissions again.
If you go to duotrope and search a noir market, like Pear Noir!, look at the bottom where it shows what other writers are also submitting to. There will be a list of like twenty markets, pretty easy.
Looks like DirtyNoir is defunct now. I am going to submit to Pear Noir, though based on their artsy/whimsical nature, I don't know if my stuff is a good fit.
I've come across a bunch of places, but most offer no payment.
I'd check out "Needle: A Magazine For Noir", Snubnose Press and Crime Factory. CF isn't open to submissions until December, but that's just two months out.
You could always go with the old standbys of Ellery Queen and Alfred Hitchcock--they occasionally take noir, as long as its got a solid crime/mystery angle to it.
I think snubnose only takes full manuscripts and collections.
Popcornfiction takes horror/noir type stories. Very pulpy. The editor is a screenwriter, so if your stuff is more"cinematic," you have a shot there.
