About Nightmare Sideshow

Welcome to Nightmare Sideshow, a midnight carnival of stories for those who like their horror strange, smart, and just a little too real.

We built this site because we love horror stories… and we want a place where those stories can be enjoyed with a good experience. Here, it’s just you and the story, no distractions, no noise, just the flicker of your screen and whatever’s breathing behind you. Part story collective, part media company, all horror. 

Every tale you’ll find here comes from writers who live for the eerie and the unsettling, urban legends, digital ghosts, folklore gone wrong, tech gone too far. Some are short. Some stay with you. All are nightmares worth sharing.

Read. Submit. Scream.
Welcome to the show.

Nightmare Sideshow Guidelines

Before you feed your story to the Sideshow, read this. We love ambition, originality, and atmosphere — but we also love clarity, respect, and keeping our readers safe.

These are the rules that keep the carnival running.

🩸 What We Accept

Original fiction only. No plagiarism, AI spam, or “rewrites” of other people’s work.
Word count: 800–2,000 words is ideal. Longer tales may be split into parts.
Genres: Horror, thriller, dark sci-fi, uncanny fantasy, speculative dread, urban legends, psychological weirdness, and black humor.
Language: English (for now).
Formatting: Plain text in the submission form. Keep paragraphs short and readable.

Content Rules

We welcome disturbing material — but not irresponsible material.
Please avoid:

Hate speech, bigotry, or targeted harassment
Real-world identifiable victims or events
Sexual violence or exploitation, especially involving minors
Graphic content that exists only to shock

If your story involves heavy themes (self-harm, suicide, abuse, etc.), include a content warning at the top of your submission. Our goal is to unsettle, not harm.

Author Rights

You own your story. Always.

By submitting, you grant Nightmare Sideshow a non-exclusive, perpetual license to publish your work on this site and official media channels (such as audio or video adaptations).

You can publish your story elsewhere anytime — just credit first publication on Nightmare Sideshow.

We do not alter your words without permission. Light edits (grammar, pacing, formatting) may be suggested before publication.

👻 Editorial Standards

We favor stories that:

Open strong — grab the throat in the first paragraph.
Focus on mood and voice over cheap twists.
Keep a consistent tone and a satisfying conclusion.
Read well aloud — we may perform them later.

We don’t favor stories that:

Spend 700 words describing someone waking up or scrolling their phone.
End with “and it was all a dream.”
Feel like a ChatGPT dump with horror keywords.

🕰️ Review Process

Every story is read by an editor.
If accepted, you’ll receive an email with edits and a publication date.
Rejected stories may receive short feedback when time allows.

We read every submission, but due to volume, please allow 2–3 weeks for a response.

Privacy & Data

We only collect your email to contact you about your submission.
We never sell or share data.
You can request removal of your story or information anytime by emailing nightmaresideshow@gmail.com.

Our Ethos

Nightmare Sideshow exists for one reason: to bring back horror that feels handmade, human, and haunted.
If your story makes someone check behind them before turning off the light — you’ve done your job.

Submit. Watch. Remember.
The Sideshow is always hungry.