Writing for the 'Vampiress Carmilla' Fan Page
The fun of writing for a horror magazine's fan page
The bimonthly horror comics anthology magazine Vampiress Carmilla from Warrant Publishing Company is an homage to the 1960s horror magazines that were produced by the now-defunct Warren Publishing, such as Vampirella and Creepy. Amid the magazine’s sexy horror strips, Vampiress Carmilla includes a “fan page” that showcases readers’ submitted artwork and prose stories. My story “Amusing” appears in the most recent issue of Vampiress Carmilla, number 29.
“Amusing” is my third story published in Vampiress Carmilla, the two previous titles being “Graveyard Picnic” and “Killer Filler.” Writing a story for the fan page is challenging; you want to craft an engaging horror story with about 700 words.
“Amusing” features the struggling writer Justin, invited to a party by his estranged college friend, Travis Teed. Travis is a celebrated horror author, and the party serves as a venue for Travis’s first public reading of his new novel. There is tension between the two friends, although Justin enjoys meeting Travis’s lovely assistant, Alicia.
In writing “Amusing,” I wanted to establish a macabre mood. The setting is Travis’s mansion cellar, decorated to gruesome effect; like me, Travis is trying to disquiet his audience:
There was a human body’s worth of blood covering the pentagram drawn in chalk on the cellar floor. Or so it seemed.
But things are not what they appear, and Travis’s spooky props hide a more sinister truth. Just like my story. Beyond the creepy setting and tragic ending, “Amusing” has something to say about writing. The story is a metaphor for the real sacrifices writers make to pursue the craft, such as the time spent writing stories, rather than engaging with family and friends.
The audience applauded. “And the words came. I couldn’t stop writing. Later, as I lost time, family, and friends, I came to realize how much my muse demanded. The sacrifice. I benefited from my muse’s magic, but it was a very dark magic.”
There are no financial payments for the fan page stories published in Vampiress Carmilla; indeed, you’ll have to pay for a Vampiress Carmilla Fan Club membership to have your stories and artwork considered for publication (your membership fee also entitles you to receive a cool membership card and an official club pin). But having your story featured —knowing that other readers will see it and perhaps get a chill from it — is priceless compensation.
NOTES AND FURTHER READING:
Vampiress Carmilla #29 (Warrant Publishing Company, November 2025 Issue)
Vampiress Carmilla Fan Club (www.vampiresscarmilla.com)
“INTERVIEW: Rich Sala (Warrant Publishing/Shudder and Vampiress Carmilla magazines)” (Chet Reams; cryptofmadness.blog, May 10, 2024)
Attention, all Secret Dictionary Club members — use Code Nine to decipher the following message: XDA JPNWCB QJEN MNBCAXHNM CQN EJVYRAN LXENW RW MNCAXRC.
POST-CREDITS SCENE:
THE BLACK TERROR WILL RETURN…
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