April 10, 2026 | Read online | This Week in Speculative Fiction with The Horror Tree for 04/10/2026 |
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| | Word of the week: Anfractuous - meaning full of twists, turns, or windings, often describing paths, structures, or, figuratively, arguments. | Hi readers and writers! Welcome to this week’s Horror Tree newsletter. Here in the UK, we’ve had our Easter Bank Holiday weekend, and finally, FINALLY, we were greeted with sunshine and a warmer temperature. Though I can’t enjoy it as most do due to hayfever, it does feel like we’ve finally seen the last of winter (cross fingers). It has been an interesting week for me as something has changed for me personally, changed for the better, which I hope you don’t mind if I don’t elaborate on, but it means that I’m quite distracted. Writing has been the last thing on my mind. However, I did catch the reading bug. I read ‘Diavola’ by Jennifer Marie Thorne, a great modern ghost story, and finished reading ‘Wolf Worm’ by T. Kingfisher, which has a great plot twist I didn’t see coming. 100 percent recommend! I finished both in a day, which is very unlike me! Haha | You can find me (Corinne Pollard) lurking on Bluesky @corinnepwriter.bsky.social, Instagram & Threads @Corinnepwriter, and my website, corinnepollard.wordpress.com. Now, onto the latest articles on writing from around the web. | | | | | In this Newsletter, you'll find... | |
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| | | | | | 🌟 Horror Tree / Trembling With Fear Updates | Hi all.
Okay, more site tweaks happened over the last week, and I still have a few more to go, but progress is being made! | The Trembling With Fear anthologies for last year and this are also slowly moving forward a bit. #Progress! | Also, keep your eyes peeled for this coming Monday as we’ll be announcing a new ebook giveaway! | On my own personal writing, not much news to tell you. I’ve had a few acceptances that I’m eagerly awaiting to share TOCs once they are available, and I was able to send in 3 more shorts over the past week! (One I started and finished, while the other two were re-worked from previous rejections. Fingers crossed!)
And now, I will return you to your regularly scheduled newsletter! |
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| | | | | | 🌟 Newsletter sponsor | Read InhuMANities today! | | “Dark, visceral, poetic and devastatingly honest, Robertsons writing lives at the intersection of unabashed hunger, desire, beauty and repulsion. These tales strike at the heart of the queer, gothic soul. They are beautifully painful and darkly necessary. A must read for all those who love unflinching art.”
-Suzan Palumbo Author of Countess and Skin Thief. | |
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| | | | | | 🌟 Articles | This week, I’m sharing articles from General and Craft. Firstly, Mythcreants explores the benefits and downsides for a writer and their reading habit. I’ve always said that the more you read, the more your writing can improve, but of course, this depends on frequency and on what you’re reading. I enjoyed this article, and it reminded me that some people can refuse to read your book even if you read theirs. In craft, Nownovel compiles a list for the best worldbuilding tools for authors. I love worldbuilding, and while I will most likely stick to Google Docs, there are some interesting choices here to bear in mind. Lastly, Writer Unboxed has guest author Kathryn Craft examine four ways to drive your story forward. This is a look at how to use specific details to keep your reader intrigued and move the story/plot along. | General: | Mythcreants: “Do Writers Need to Read?” | Craft: | NowNovel: “The Best Worldbuilding Tools for Authors in 2026” | Writer Unboxed: “4 Ways Specificity Drives Your Story Forward” | From Horror Tree: | David Watkins Author Interview | The Legion Machine and Other Abominations Book Review by James G. Carlson | We reviewed The Tryst: The Red Thread Saga Book One by L Marie Wood | Pleading His Belly on Zakon-4 Book Review by E.J. Leroy | House, Body, Bird Book Review by Bernie Jean |
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| | | | | | 🌟 Free Fiction Roundup | This week’s free fiction features horror from hungry monsters to eerie shadowless people. Firstly, “The Thing is Not Me” is a first-person dark fairytale-like narrative about a trapped person inside a monster. This flash fiction has intriguing imagery and great characterisation. Next, “Windows” is a haunted house short story, but rather than a typical ghost haunting, there are some things lurking in the windows, and over time, people are ensnared, staring out endlessly. This has a creepy atmosphere with such an effortless spine-chilling idea. Lastly, “no body” is a flash story about a woman called Chandra who has no shadow. She rents herself to act as a shadow for multiple people. This is an eerie story about losing a piece of oneself. Enjoy reading! | | “The Thing is Not Me” by Irina Vérène at The Stygian Lepus (Edition 33, pp. 143-147). | “Windows" by Ibrahim Ojedokun at The Dark Magazine. | “no body” by Renuka Raghavan at Blood + Honey. |
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| | | | | | 🌟 Writing Prompt | Writing Exercise: What’s the Message? | Your protagonist is a psychic who wants to be left alone, but can’t. The dead follow them wherever they go with messages and requests to pass along to their loved ones. | The protagonist ignores them as much as they can until they meet a mother. | The deceased wishes their child to know that she is dead and not coming back and that the child needs to run away from home, just like they discussed. | When the protagonist questions the ghost, she refuses to elaborate. “My child needs to be safe! Knowing what the danger is will cause you to be in danger too.” | What happens next is up to you…Let your imagination run wild! | If you post any writing content during the week and think it would be a good fit for us to feature, do reach out and let us know at con...@horrortree.com |
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| | | | | | | | 🌟 Weekly Post Roundup | Missed-Fits Anthology Submission Call | 📚 Publication: Missed-Fits Anthology (Calendar of Fools) | 📅 Submission Window: April 16 to May 16, 2026 | 💰 Payment: $0.08 USD per word | 📏 Word Count: 1,200 to 2,100 words | 🚫 Flash Fiction: Not accepted | 🚫 Poetry: Not accepted | 🧩 Theme: Something missing, out of place, or that does not fit | 👽 Genre: Speculative fiction including science fiction, fantasy, horror, and related genres | 🔗 https://horrortree.com/taking-submissions-missed-fits/ |
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| | Beyond the Red Line Anthology Submission Call | 📚 Publication: Beyond the Red Line Anthology (Inkd Publishing LLC) | 📅 Submission Window: April 1 to June 30, 2026 | 💰 Payment: $10 + Draft2Digital royalty share + contributor copy | 📏 Word Count: 2,000 to 6,000 words | 🚫 Flash Fiction: Not accepted | 🚫 Poetry: Not accepted | 🚇 Theme: Redlining, segregation, and marginalized communities facing supernatural or speculative horrors | 👻 Genre: Horror, science fiction, and dark fantasy | 🔗 https://horrortree.com/taking-submissions-beyond-the-red-line/ |
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