Exquisite Undead: An Anthology of Vampires
Welcome. On this page you will find all there is to know about T. L. Morgan's upcoming anthology.What would you like to explore first?
Submission Guidelines
Submissions will be open June 1, 2026 - September 1, 2026.
What am I Looking For?
The simple answer: Vampire stories. Lush, gorgeous, chilling, beautiful vampire stories.Tell me a story that will linger at the back of my mind forever. That will make me go feral while I’m reading it, that will have me underlining phrases and marking it up with exclamation points and big, excited YESes. Write me a story that shows me you understood the vampire assignment. Introduce me to your favorite aspects of vampires, make me love and/or loathe your characters, use the concept of vampires to carry a metaphor or message that means something to you. Make it brilliant, queer, swoony, romantic, tragic; make it dark, gruesome, bloody, gritty, even kind of gross—make it whatever you want, and make it exquisite.I especially encourage BIPOC and queer/trans writers to submit.
Please read the following guidelines carefully before sending your submission.
Your submission should be a clean draft that has been self-edited at least once. Please do not submit a first draft.Stories written by or with the use of artificial intelligence will not be accepted. Don’t even bother.I will not accept any stories that glorify hate or bigotry in any form, including but not limited to: racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, ableism, etc.Dark/heavy thematic elements are welcome, but please do not submit stories with on-page sexual assault.One submission per author. Even if you have multiple pen names, you still count as 1 author. Please do not submit more than 1 work.Submissions will be accepted until SEPTEMBER 1, 2026. Any submissions received after this date will not be considered.A submission does not guarantee an acceptance. You will receive either an acceptance or a pass within 1 month of the submission deadline. (Please note that this timeline is subject to change depending on the volume of submissions. I will keep this site updated with any delays that might occur.)I retain the right to reject submissions for any reason. Rejections will not include any critique or in-depth explanation. Please do not request this should you receive a pass.
PLEASE DO SUBMIT:
Any genre. Horror, romance, fantasy, sci-fi, historical, a weird blend of everything—all are welcome.Stories about vampires and/or the concept of vampirism in a recognizable way. Feel free to take that in whatever direction you’d like: traditional blood-drinking vampires, undead horrors, psychic vampires—the details are up to you! Surprise me!Short stories, flash fiction, or poetry up to 7000 words. (Stories under 1500 words are considered flash fiction and will be paid the flash fiction rate of $30/story.)
PLEASE DO NOT SUBMIT:
Nonfiction, novellas, fanfictions, or any work that does not meet the definition of short story, flash fiction, or poetry.Stories that function as inseparable sequels to other work you have written. This means that if you write something that features characters from your previous published works, it must be self-contained enough that it can be read without having read the other related works.Stories over 7000 words. Due to space and time constraints, that is a hard limit.Works that do not match the theme.Stories that are primarily erotica. This anthology is for an adult audience, so mature content is allowed, but this is not specifically an erotica anthology.Stories that you have published elsewhere, either digitally via Patreon, Ko-Fi, itch.io, or a personal website, or in other anthology publications.
Terms of Publication
If your work is accepted, you agree to the following:
Your story or poem is not published elsewhere, physically or digitally, including in another anthology or magazine, or on yours or another publication’s website. This includes Patreon, Ko-Fi, itch.io, newsletters, etc.Your story will be exclusive to this anthology for 6 months, after which you are free to distribute it wherever you wish, following other publications’ exclusivity terms.You will not distribute, publish, or sell your story individually during the 6-month period in which your story will be exclusive to this anthology.You will receive compensation of $65 USD (for short stories) or $30 USD (for poetry or flash). This will be sent via Paypal after all acceptances have been finalized.
How to Submit
Please read these submission instructions carefully and make sure you have included ALL of the required information in your submission.
Email your story as a Word document (.doc or .docx) to [email protected]. Please do NOT attach or share Google Drive links.Please apply the following formatting to your document:
12pt font, preferably a plain serif or sans-serif
1.5 spacing
Left-justified body text
"Story Title" by Author Name centered at the top of the first page
Please include the following in your email:
Subject line: Anthology Submission: “Story Title” by Author Name
A brief (1-2 sentence) summary of your story, including its genre and word count.
Any applicable content warnings. Some things to include as content warnings might be: violence, gore, death/murder (including violence toward animals), abuse, assault, terminal or otherwise severe illness, and anything else that may be a triggering topic.
A short author bio (1-3 sentences, including 1-2 of your previously published works (if any)).
Your social media and/or website.
Copy and paste the following statement: "I have read and agree to the guidelines and terms of publication on the anthology’s website, and I confirm that this work is my own creation and was not created with the use of AI in any capacity."
Your submission will not be accepted if the above statement is not included in your email.
I will respond to all submissions after the submission period has ended. Thank you so much for your interest in Exquisite Undead. I can't wait to meet your vampires!
About the Anthology
A Genre-Blending Anthology of Vampires, curated by indie author Talli L. Morgan.
Cover art by R.E. Murray.
Exquisite Undead successfully funded on Kickstarter in April 2026, and therefore will begin accepting submissions in June. Publication is planned for Q3 2027.This anthology will feature short fiction and poetry centering vampires in all their myriad forms. Submissions from all genres will be accepted, from classic Gothic horror to science fiction that stretches the definition of 'vampire,' and everything in between.Visit the Submission Guidelines page for more details.Check back on this page in the future for an overview of the included stories.
Why Vampires?
Oh, why indeed? Why curate a collection centered upon this overused, overrated, oversaturated entity that has haunted our cultural lexicon for centuries? Aren't there enough vampire stories already? Hasn't it all been done before? Haven't we moved on from sparkly blood-sucking creatures of the night?Hah. Not a chance.Why vampires, you ask? I could give you the simple answer: Because vampires are rad. But that's not satisfying, is it? So let me ask you this: Why not vampires? Why not give a bunch of writers a chance to play in the sandbox with these endlessly fascinating, endlessly versatile, and eternally enduring vessels of metaphor?Yes, there's a million vampire stories. But there's always something new to be done with vampires, so no previous collection of vampire stories will have these vampire stories. Everyone who has ever written a vampire story has something unique to say, their own individual take on these creatures and what they mean.I can't wait to see what your vampires have to say.
Why "Exquisite Undead"?
The anthology's title comes from the artistic medium "exquisite corpse," which is a method by which multiple artists combine unique styles to create a singular image, often without being able to see the whole thing until it's finished. This leads to a surreal yet visually interesting final product.In a similar way, anthologies bring together the unique works of multiple authors to create one whole, harmonious work. There's a beauty to the chaos of these collections, and in my experience the stories have a serendipitous way of blending well even when they are very different.Furthermore...what better term to describe the vampire than exquisite?
About the Curator
Meet Indie Author Talli L. Morgan
Talli L. Morgan writes fantasy novels for adults and young adults. When they're not writing, Talli enjoys drawing, playing D&D, and thinking about writing.Since 2021, Talli has published 6 novels, 3 novellas, and 1 previous anthology. Their short fiction has been featured in Indie Bites as well as other fiction anthologies.You can learn more about Talli's books on their website: tallimorgan.com.In 2025, Talli launched a successful Kickstarter campaign to fund an audiobook edition of their vampire romance novel, Silver Blood. They are excited to jump into crowdfunding madness once again to bring this new project to life.Talli's editorial experience includes 4 years working on 2 different literary magazines (Quadrangle at Canisius University and Overkill at Allegheny College, for which they were Managing Editor for 2 years) as well as multiple creative writing workshops. They also edited their 2024 anthology Transcendence: An Anthology of Change with assistance from fellow author Tabitha O'Connell.
About the Contributors
Meet the starting contributors to Exquisite Undead!
Talli L. Morgan is the anthology's curator and an indie author of novels across the fantasy genre. They sure like to insist that they like vampires a normal amount, despite the fact that they've sunk years of time and energy into researching vampires. Visit Talli on their website, and learn more about them on the About the Curator page.
D.N. Bryn is a queer, disabled author of fantasy and paranormal romance, who has tricked themself into believing that having two attention-seeking cats as copy editors will counteract their dyslexia. It has yet to work, but the cats have no complaints.You can find them at dnbryn.com.
Josie Jaffrey is a dark fantasy and paranormal romance author who writes about lost worlds, dystopian societies and morally-ambiguous monsters (vampires are her favourite). She is the founding editor of fantasy magazine Indie Bites and writer of audio drama podcast Jack Valentine, Vampire Detective.You can find her at josiejaffrey.com.
Juniper Lake Fitzgerald is an author of queer dark fantasy and Gothic tales. She has authored the epic dark fantasy series The Fifth Yanai, and the gothic urban fantasy with romance The Modern Mythos Anomaly. Her work is featured in multiple anthologies and she is the narrative designer of the dark fantasy video game Shadow Rite.You can find her at ardentgrove.carrd.co.
Jessie Thomas is an author of paranormal and fantasy romance from Buffalo, New York. An avid reader, she enjoys writing books with gothic horror, atmospheric settings, and dark themes. When she isn’t chasing her muses around, Jessie can be found playing with her snaggle-toothed cat named Graham.You can find her at jessiethomasauthor.com.
Frequently Asked Questions
I missed the Kickstarter! Where can I buy the anthology?
Fear not! The anthology will be published “wide,” meaning it will be available through most book retailers. Wide publication date is TBD, but I’m aiming for Q3 2027. The book will be available in hardcover, paperback, and ebook when it's published.
How many stories will you accept?
I intend to accept 10 works (short stories, flash fiction, or poetry) in addition to the starting contributors’ stories, for a total of 15 works in this anthology.
What kind of stories are you looking for when submissions open?
Short answer: pretty much anything, as long as it’s got vampires! For more specific details, take a look at the Submission Guidelines page.
Are there any content guidelines for submissions?
Yes. Please find this information on the Submission Guidelines page.
Can I submit more than one story, or a story plus a poem?
No. Please only submit 1 work per author. You still count as 1 author even if you write under multiple pen names.
Do you allow simultaneous submissions?
No. Your story cannot be published elsewhere before you submit it, and if it is accepted, it must be exclusive to this anthology for 6 months after its publication. Please do not submit a story that is currently being considered by another publication.
Can I submit a different story or work if my submission is rejected?
No. Please only submit 1 work per author.
When will I hear back as to whether my story has been accepted?
Responses will be sent after the submission window closes. I hope to respond to all submissions by October 1. The website will be updated if this changes.
Will you explain why my submission was rejected?
Due to time constraints and the volume of submissions, I will not be able to provide detailed explanations for each individual rejection, nor am I able to give feedback on your story.
Still have questions?
Feel free to reach out to me at [email protected] with any questions about the anthology that are not answered here.