The Portland Drab is looking for ominous tabloid fiction that highlights the strange underbelly of Portland, Oregon. 

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Here at the Drab, we love online magazines with a horror/sci-fi bent. We wanted to create a space for one of our favorite sub-genres of speculative fiction: tabloid. In the spirit of keeping Portland weird, we've dedicated the Drab to one of our favorite cities in the Pacific Northwest.

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We're looking for flash fiction written from a journalist perspective. The Drab, after all, is a source of news for all things cryptic, paranormal, strange, weird, and creepy. Stories must be about Portland Oregon or the surrounding area. Authors do not have to be from Portland, however your submissions should evoke a strong sense of place, so familiarity with our town is beneficial.

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What we publish

• Horror, Sci-fi, Fantasy tabloid news

• Think Welcome to Night Vale meets Weekly World News meets Portland, Oregon. 

• The tone should be eerie, spooky, but most importantly fun. Our city is visited by Bigfoot, cryptids, time travelers, ghosts, vampires, and plenty of other things yet-to-be-described. Have fun with it. 

• A mixture of storytelling and reporting. "Vampire spotted in Portland" isn't nearly as compelling as an interview with a blue-collar vampire that drives Lyft at nights and is struggling to stay sober...

• Strong sense of characters and/or plot

• Strong references to Portland locale: landmarks, streets, neighborhoods, parks, etc.

• Check out our News page for an idea of what we publish

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Hard Pass

• Racisms, sexism, gratuitous gore, and sexual abuse

• Cannot be deprecating of local businesses or establishments

• Media conspiracy theories: Qanon, chemtrails, “staged” mass tragedies

• Celebrity drama tabloid fiction

 

Tabloid Fiction Submissions [OPEN]

• Submissions should be no more than 1,000 words

• Must reference Portland in some strong way

• The Drab does not currently have funds to pay writers, however we plan to establish payment by the end of 2022

• Have an idea? Send us an email and let's discuss

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Classifieds Submissions [OPEN[

• Up to 45 words

• Must reference Portland in some strong way

• Nonpaying

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Submissions should be sent to Portlanddrab AT gmail DOT com. Please post your submissions in the body of your email. Attachments will not be accepted. Please write Submission in the subject line of your email.  ​Our response time is typically one to four weeks.