Bump in the Night – Tales of Cryptids and Monsters – Coming 2025
Modern mythology is nothing without stories of cryptids and monsters to fill our hearts with wonder and dread, and so we’re back with our fifth anthology, Bump in the Night. Edited by Paul Carroll, the book seeks to fill the world with stories of creatures like Moth Man and the Jersey Devil, from a nature versus society perspective.
WHAT ARE WE LOOKING FOR?
Bump in the Night will feature four-page comics, taking a well-known cryptid or folk monster and giving it a twist. Think along the lines of Princess Mononoke, and the fight back of nature against the humans who sought to consume the resources of the forest. We’re expecting weird and wonderful, and perhaps a little bit horrific.
Every story should consist of four pages, with page 1 beginning on the right hand side of the book, in full-colour. You will have two page turns when the book is in print, and one spread. Note that full-colour in this instance does not necessarily mean technicolour, and the Editor is happy to talk to people about the colour design of their comics.
When preparing your pitch, consider:
- How recognisable is the story to the public?
- Is your story unique enough when compared to existing materials?
- How can you put a twist on a familiar tale?
- Are the changes you propose to make to the story going to make it unrecognisable to readers?
Please note that we are not looking for:
- Ideas using copyrighted creatures (this includes Slenderman, we checked) or original creatures, or creatures largely associated with gothic and horror stories (i.e. vampires, zombies, werewolves) unless based upon a specific regional variety with its own lore and stories
- Stories that are more than four pages in length
- Stories that do not have an ending
- Illustrated prose or poetry
- Illustrations that are not comics
As with our original trilogy of anthologies, we are unlikely to accept multiple pitches examining the same creature unless the stories are radically different from one another. Creative teams are permitted (and encouraged) to submit more than one pitch.
Please note that we are only accepting pitches from complete teams (or solo creators). Writers and artists may only be included in the book once. We don’t advise joining multiple teams, as this is guaranteed to leave someone disappointed. Letterers have been on multiple teams in the past, and are welcome to continue as such provided they can balance their own workload.
Stories should be suitable for teens.
Please note: we will not be accepting any work made using AI.
PROJECT TIMELINE
Pitches are open as of February 05, 2025. The deadline for pitches is March 02, 2025. More details on pitching and the link to the form are below. Please note that the form will close at 9:59pm (GMT) on March 02, 2025.
On March 23, 2025, applicants will be advised whether they have been accepted into the anthology. If you pitch more than one story, you will be advised specifically which one has been chosen.
Creators will be asked to take part in an interview series for The Nth Panel Grid, Limit Break Comics’ podcast. It is intended to complete the recording of interviews before the Kickstarter campaign.
On May 01 through to May 31, the book will be funding on Kickstarter.*
The deadline for final pages is September 27 with Kickstarter fulfilment planned for October.*
It is intended that Bump in the Night will launch at Thought Bubble 2025.
WHY PITCH TO US?
Limit Break Comics has been building its brand in Irish comics since July 2018, with the publication of thirteen books, including short story collections, an on-going series and a one-shot story. 2021 saw the publication of Turning Roads, which received backing on Kickstarter from over 500 people. This was succeeded by Down Below, with over 880 backers on Kickstarter, and Fractured Realms with over 400 backers on Kickstarter. In 2023, Limit Break Comics was nominated for Best Publisher in the European Science Fiction Society Hall of Fame Awards.
Last year, we funded Wish Upon a Star, a collection of far-future adaptations of fairy tales; this book is due for release in 2025.
As well as offering a platform to lots of lovely comic readers, we want to pay contributors!
Payment of €65 per page will be made to each creative team in the book, made via PayPal, upon the successful funding of the book via Kickstarter. Teams are responsible for deciding how they split the payment.
Contributors maintain copyright over their work; Limit Break Comics is granted first publication rights for one calendar year.
HOW TO PITCH TO BUMP IN THE NIGHT
Pitches should be made through this form. You may submit more than one pitch. We are seeking pitches from complete teams for this project, which includes creators who can complete all of the work solo.
When pitching, you do not need to submit sample art or a script related to the story. Please provide:
- Portfolio links for each creator in the project
- A working title
- A logline for the story
- A brief summary of the story
- The cryptid or monster your story is based upon
WHY KICKSTARTER?
We’ve built up a community on the platform, and despite the challenges associated with running these sorts of projects, we still love them and want to keep in touch with our readers with new stories and new ideas.
WHO IS THE EDITOR?
Paul Carroll is the editor of Turning Roads and co-editor of Down Below, Fractured Realms and Wish Upon a Star, as well as the writer behind Plexus, Meouch and The Dark House. In 2021, Paul co-founded IrishComics.ie. When not working in comics, Paul writes prose and publishes short story anthologies through Cupán Fae, and was Chair of Octocon in 2023 and 2024.
In 2023, he was selected to participate in the third iteration of the Irish Writers Centre’s Evolution Programme, and to teach first year Creative Writing students at the University of Galway about comics, and taught An Introduction to Writing Comics at the Irish Writers Centre.
QUERIES?
Any queries should be sent to paul @ paulcarrollwriter.com.
Personal contact information will only be shared with members of individual teams.
*These dates subject to change, but contributors will be notified in advance.
