While it’s true that the month of February falls during a particularly cold and dark period of year, it does have some positive attributes. It is during February that we celebrate Black History Month, Women in Horror Month (historically), the anniversary of Grim, and, of course, Valentine’s Day—everyone’s favourite Hallmark holiday devoted to love, affection, and prix fixe menus.

As we gear up for the high-pressure expectations of Valentine’s Day 2022, let’s take a moment to consider how romance may intersect with the macabre. The horror genre is rife with texts that interrogate the nature of “love”—both as a positive, transcending force that heals and as a destructive force that can lead to peril. For example, films such as Hellraiser (1987), Midsommar (2019), The Honeymoon (2014), The Shape of Water (2017), Ready or Not (2019), Thelma (2017), The Mummy (1932), Possession (1981), Get Out (2017), Cat People (1942), Spring (2014), The Fly (1986), and Audition (1999); novels including Wuthering Heights (1847), Flowers in the Attic (1979), Interview With the Vampire (1976), and Bag of Bones (1998); and television shows such as The Stand (2020), American Horror Story (2011-), The Walking Dead (2010-2022), and The Haunting of Bly Manor (2020).

Our February 2022 issue will explore romance, sex, and obsession, examining horror films, television programs, novels, comics, and video games featuring characters or plots that tie into these themes. We are looking for pitches touching on a range of topics, including codependent relationships, unhealthy attachments, obsession, sexuality, betrayal, relationships and gender, love that heals or harms, queer romance, among others.

We also accept pitches for interviews, particularly with women involved with the creation of horror cinema and television (directors, editors, composers, costume designers, actors, sound designers, etc) and other horror content (authors, publishers, artists, YouTubers, journalists, academics, etc), as well as short fiction and poetry.

Personal essays are also highly encouraged. 

Desired topics include but are not limited to:

  • Couples who kill (possible texts inc. Bride of Chucky, Hounds of Love, Natural Born Killers)
  • Obsession & surveillance (possible texts inc. Creep, P2, One Hour Photo)
  • Rejection & revenge (possible texts inc. Valentine, The Gift)
  • Erotic thrillers (possible texts inc. Single White Female, Fatal Attraction, Final Analysis)
  • Love & betrayal (possible texts inc. Scream, Get Out, Malignant) 
  • Love & loss (possible texts inc. The Night House, Into the Dark)
  • The weaponization of affection (possible texts inc. The Love Witch, Jennifer’s Body)
  • Romance & sensuality in vampire films (possible texts inc. The Hunger, Only Lovers Left Alive, A Girl Walks Home Alone Late at Night)
  • Horror & queer romance (possible texts inc. Thelma, Blue My Mind, Carmilla)
  • Sex, gore & the New French Extremity (possible texts inc. High Tension, Trouble Every Day)
  • Glamorization of unhealthy relationships (possible texts inc. Twilight)
  • Listicle: 5 Worst Date Nights in Horror 

The texts listed are only suggestions—feel free to choose different texts for your pitch. Once a topic from the list above has been claimed, it will be removed. Consider listed topics still available at the time that you read them!

If you have an analysis, interview, essay, or listicle you’d like to pitch, please email bonjourgrim@gmail.com!

ALL PITCHES MUST INCLUDE: 

  • brief overview
  • texts being covered
  • estimated word count
  • link to relevant writing samples if you’ve not written for Grim in the past

Pitches may be submitted until October 15th. We regret that we are unable to respond to all pitches. The final draft deadline is November 10th. 

As always, we want to hear from writers who identify as female, LGBT2QI+, BIPOC, and/or people with disabilities.

Stay spooky, loves!

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