Home

“I try to create sympathy for my characters, then turn the monsters loose.”–Stephen King

Amanda Crum is a writer and artist whose work has appeared in publications such as Eastern Iowa Review, Barren Magazine, and Dark Eclipse as well as in several anthologies, including Beyond The Hill and Two Eyes Open. She is also the author of The Fireman’s Daughter, Ghosts Of The Imperial, The Darkened Mirror, Dreaming Of Snow (poems inspired by Breaking Bad), and a chapbook of dark fairy tales titled Cinders And Glass. Her first chapbook of horror-inspired poetry, The Madness In Our Marrow, was shortlisted for a Bram Stoker Award nomination in 2015; in 2020, her second book of horror poetry, Tall Grass, also made the shortlist. In 2019, her short story “A Shimmer In The Parlor” was a finalist for the J.F. Powers Prize in Short Fiction. She is also a Best of the Net nominee and a nominee for the 2019 Pushcart Prize. Amanda currently lives in Kentucky with her husband and two children.

View Amanda’s Ladies Of Horror Fiction profile

View Amanda’s Poets & Writers profile

View Amanda’s Goodreads page

Scroll down for a full list of Amanda’s published works as well as links to purchase her books. For news on upcoming projects, head to the “News” tab above.

Novel, The Fireman’s Daughter–published in 2008 by WritingRoom

Short story, “Three Perfect Cigarettes”–first place winner in the WritingRoom short story contest 2008

Short story, “Megan’s Bridge”–Dunesteef Audio Magazine, March 2009

Short story, “Roads Part II”–Strange Circle Magazine, June 2011

Short story, “Water For Sunshine”–published in SQ Magazine Fall/Winter 2010/2011

Short story, “The Robin”–published in literary journal From The Wellhouse June 2013

Short story, “The Cloud Seeds”–Bay Laurel Magazine, published fall of 2013

Short story, “Roads”–Dark Eclipse Magazine, published fall of 2013

Short story, “The Things We Carry”–Fiction Vortex, fall 2014– 3rd place in their 2014 Horror Award contest

Novel, Ghosts Of The Imperial–published by Indigo Sea Press December 2015

Poem, “The Bee Charmer”–Three Drops From A Cauldron special Samhain issue, July 2015

Poem, “The Things We Carry”–Seven Deadly Sins Anthology (Lost Tower Publications), December 2015

Chapbook, The Madness In Our Marrowself-published, placed on the preliminary ballot for a Bram Stoker Award nomination–2015

Poems, “A Rumbling in the Woods (She’ll Swallow Your Soul)” and “The Longest Walk”–Slim Volume: See Into the Dark (Poetry anthology), May 2016

Short story, “Rage”–MacKenzie Publishing/ Two Eyes Open Anthology–August 2017

Poem, “The Witch”–BCTC literary journal The Bluegrass Accolade–May 2017

Poem, “Reassurances From Starboard”–Beyond The Hill anthology (Lost Tower Publications) Fall 2017

Short story, “The Harvester”–Eastern Iowa Review, April 2018

Poems, “Doorway” and “A Sky Full Of Blood”–Kentucky’s Best Emerging Poets, Z Publishing–April 2018

Poem, “A Winter Home”–Bluegrass Accolade, May 2018

Poems, “Mother” and “Tall Grass”–Lonesome October Lit, Sept./Oct. 2018

Flash fiction piece, “Communion”–The Ginger Collect, Oct. 2018

Poem, “Barnlights”–Editor’s Pick, Barren Magazine, October 2018

Poems, “The Woodsman” and “Cinders and Glass”–Gingerbread House Lit, December 2018

Poem, “The Arrow”–Ghost City Review, December 2018

Poem, “She Floats”–Best Emerging Poets of the Southeast anthology, December 2018

Poem, “A Pillow, Discarded”–Corvid Queen, December 2018

Flash fiction, “Communion”–The No Sleep Podcast, 2019

Short story, “The Smell Of Snow”–The Sirens Call Magazine, February 2019

Poem, “A Murmuration Of Starlings”–Nightingale and Sparrow, Feb 2019

Poem, “Dreaming Of Snow”–Ghost City Review, March 2019

Poem, “In The Abbatoir”–Dark Marrow, March 2019

Poem, “Cartography”–Ghost City Review, April 2019

Poem, “The Boy”–Pulp Poets Press, April 2019

Poem, “The Offering”–Bottom Shelf Whiskey, May 2019

Poems, “Magpie”, “Afternoon Rebellion In A Trailer Park”, and “Cookie Cutters”–Chantarelle’s Notebook, June 2019

Poems, “In An Absence Of Light”, “Peppermint and Willow”, and “Bramble And Thorn”–Pussy Magic, July 2019

Short story, “A Shimmer In The Parlor”–Prometheus Dreaming, July 2019

Poem, “Ghost Fractures”–Dark Marrow, July 2019

Middle-grade fiction novel, The Darkened Mirror–Riversong Books, July 2019

Short story, “A Surface Life”–Back Patio Press, August 2019

Chapbook of horror poetry, Tall Grass, August 2019

Short story, “Do You Like The Way It Burns?”–Accursed anthology, 2019

Short story, “Overturn”–The Hellebore, September 2019

Poetry Chapbook, “Cinders and Glass”–Sword and Kettle Press, November 2019

Short story, “Tension”–runner up in the Theme of Absence Halloween Fiction Competition

Poem, “New South”–Z Publishing Best Emerging Poets 2019

Short story, “Orchid In a Bell Jar”–Dream Noir, October 2019

Poem, “Hostage”–Detritus, Dec 2019

Poem, “My Body Is A Haunted House”–Truly U, October 2019

Poem, “A Sigh In The Dark”–Neon Mariposa Haunting Issue, October 2019

Poem, “Roads”, Shut Down Strangers and Hot Rod Angels (Bruce Springsteen anthology from Bone and Ink Press)–September 2019

Poem, “Doorway”–LexPoMo anthology, 2019

Poem, “Power Lines”–Streetlight Press, Jan. 2020

Short story, “A Metamorphosis”–Dark Sire, Jan. 2020

Poems, “Sid”, “Lies We Tell Ourselves In Sunlight”, “You Are My Lucky Star”–Detritus, 2020

Poem, “Great and Terrible”–Ghost City Review, Feb. 2020

Flash fiction, “For The Birds”–won 2nd place in the Molotov Cocktail Flash Fiction Competition, Feb. 2020

Poem, “Vs.”–Nightingale and Sparrow, Feb. 2020

Poem, “Tempus Fireflies”–Dust Poetry, March 2020

Flash fiction, “A Sky Full Of Blood”–Bottom Shelf Whiskey, May 2020

Short story, “Candy Canes”–Dream Noir, May 2020

Creative nonfiction, “Like An Ocean In A Cathedral”–3 Moons Publishing, May 2020

Poem, “Duality“, for the Blood Orange Tarot Project, June 2020

Book cover, Coffin Blossoms Anthology, 2020

Short story, “Retail Hell”–Coffin Blossoms Anthology, 2020

Poem, “When A Gorilla Puts On A Necktie”–The Daily Drunk Mag, July 2020

Poem, “The Deadlights”–The Daily Drunk Mag, July 2020

Story, “Beneath Shifting Skies”–Clay Literary, August 2020

Poem, “In Pipes”–anthology by Broken Sleep Books

Story, “To Leaven His Bones”–Coming Buried Or Not anthology, Sept. 2020

Poem, “Senior Year”–Versification, Sept. 2020

Flash piece, “Purple Honey”–Meow Meow Pow Pow, Sept. 2020

Story, “Walking The Tightrope”–Anti-Heroin Chic, Oct. 2020

Poem, “Clothesline”–Pink Plastic House, Oct. 2020

Flash Fiction, “When No One Answers”–Daily Drunk, Oct. 2020

Story, “The Shape Of Him”–Dream Journal, Oct. 2020

Story, “Call My Name”–Nightmare Press, TBD

Story, “A Spectral Sigh”–Crow & Cross Keys, December 2020

Story, “To Silence The Ringing Of Bells”, Dream Journal, Dec. 2020

Poem, “A Cycle of Endings”–Nightingale & Sparrow/Blizzard, Jan. 2021

Story, “Whispers In The Cyclone”–Tales From The Moonlit Path, Feb. 2021

Flash fiction, “A Cure For Sleeplessness”–Shotgun Honey, March 22, 2021

Story, “Buffalo Road”–Scarlet Leaf Review, March 2021

Flash fiction, “Memento Mori”–The Sirens Call, March 2021

Flash fiction, “What Moves In The Night”–Ghost Orchid Press/Hundred Word Horror anthology, 2021

Flash fiction, “The Drought, The Deluge”–Badlung Press/Depression Cookbook, 2021

Poem, “Pandemic Is Code For Starvation”–The Daily Drunk, January 2021

Short story, “Waking The Trees”–Curious Blue Press/Good Southern Witches anthology, spring 2021

Poetry chapbook, “The Things I’ve Carried”–Daily Drunk Press

Poem, “An Offering”–Fevers Of The Mind, 2021

Poem, “The Exchange”–Rough Diamond Poetry Journal, 2021

Poem, “My Body Is A Haunted House”–Pink Plastic House, October 2021

Poem, “A Lesson”–Verse, Halloween, 2021

Flash, “Worry”–Nightingale and Sparrow, 2021

Flash, “In Memoriam”–Drunken Pen, 2021

Short story, “711”–Gabba Gabba Hey anthology, July 2021

Upcoming publications

Poetry chapbook, A Sorrow Of Ghosts/Nightingale & Sparrow Press

Recognition

Best of the Net nomination for A Pillow, Discarded–Sept. 2019

Cybil Award nomination for The Darkened Mirror–October 2019

Pushcart Prize nomination for “Orchid In A Bell Jar”–Dec. 2019

Poetry chapbook, Tall Grass, shortlisted for a Bram Stoker Award nomination, Feb. 2020

2nd Place, Molotov Cocktail International Flash Fiction Competition, Feb. 2020

Indie Horror Book Award nomination for Tall Grass, May 2020

Short story, “A Metamorphosis”, nominated for Bram Stoker Award consideration by The Dark Sire Magazine, December 2020

Short story, “A Shepherd For The Drying Times”, finalist for The Dark Sire Awards, January 2021

Poem, “Vs.”, included in the Top 10 Micropoets, Nightingale & Sparrow

Book of horror poetry, The Day You Learned To Swim, shortlist for a 2020 Bram Stoker Award nomination

Short story, “A Metamorphosis”, winner of the Audience Choice Award, The Dark Sire, Feb. 2021

Short story, “A Mouthful Of Ice”, winner of the Horror Award, The Dark Sire, Feb. 2022