The winner of the Evil Twin Manuscript Initiative will secure a $25k publishing deal.
Attention, thrill seekers. The Blacklist and Zando are teaming up on a mission to identify the next great horror novelist. It can be possible You?
Inauguration Evil Twin Manuscript Initiative Zando will select an unpublished or self-published horror novel for a $25,000 publishing deal with the imprint Evil Twin. Submissions will open shortly and close on November 20th, 2026 – so if your Urge The inspired triptych needs polishing, you have a few months.
Furthermore, the brief for this style of competition is detailed. According to initial press, Initiative readers are interested in “upmarket supernatural, Gothic, psychological” fiction, or “any horror sub-genre that might intersect with thriller, mystery, science fiction, and fantasy.” Which covers many sins.
Tropes are welcome, but new approaches are necessary. The only real limit to one’s dark imagination is logical – submitted manuscripts must not be under contract elsewhere. (But no agent is required.)
Zando, founded in 2020 molly sternis a leading indie to watch. On a mission to publish “tomorrow’s cult classics”, the house has focused on nurturing new literary talent in innovative ways. Imprints such as SJP Lit and Gillian Flynn Books carry merchandise on celebrities. But recent partnerships with Crooked Media and Tin House reveal the house’s broader literary ambitions. we are doing politicsRa Poetry, friends.
As for the imprint in question, Evil Twin, launching in February 2026, is committed to publishing “hauntingly human stories that contemplate our darkest fears and darkest questions.” The imprint’s first titles include A.P. Thayer tapeworm And Abe Moss’s morsel.
The upcoming slate includes new work from James Bennett, EJ Green and Neal Sharpson. And, as we’ve covered, Possibly you.
There is no doubt that a moment of horror is coming. According to Randy Winston, creative director of fiction at The Blacklist, the genre is striking a need for collective catharsis.
“Horror novels are some of the most thrilling stories ever told,” Winston said in a press release. “They are disturbing stories that reflect our reality, and create emotional stakes based on grief, mortality and trauma.” As someone who has recently completed a binge Widow’s BayI can co-sign this statement.
Happy submitting, you Ghola.
