Requested Submissions

If we request your writing, please follow these guidelines which elaborate on the information in our request letter. Please send the manuscript, requested pages, or proposal along with…  

  • Cover letter 

    • Make sure to include a cover letter as the first page of your submission. This should be a brief letter stating that we requested your work, what you have included in the file, a paragraph-long pitch, and a brief bio. Please keep it short and factual. It can be the same or similar to your query letter.

  • Bio, platform, brand, and social media

    • Bio. Please include: previous writing credentials including articles, reviews, stories, and books already published; classes that you have attended or taught and degrees you have earned; fellowships or writers’ colonies attended; grants and awards received; and any other experience or pertinent information relevant to your book project and writing career. If your book relates to a topic, particularly for non-fiction books, then author credentials in that area are also important.  

    • Platform. Please include information if you have a built-in venue for selling your book such as workshops you lead. 

    • Brand. Your identity as an author is your brand and should encompass all of your books. Do you have an author statement about who you are (or want to be) as an author? 

    • Social Media. Please also include information about your social media presence including your account name(s) and number of followers.

  • If submitting fiction 

    • A synopsis. Please try to restrict the synopsis to one page with a clear description of the three act narrative of the story including the ending with spoilers included. Your synopsis should not be longer than two pages.

  • If submitting non-fiction 

    • ​A table of contents or outline. It’s fine for this to be several pages as the outline is probably a major portion of the book proposal. Descriptions of what will be covered in each chapter are helpful. Remember, part of the purpose of a book proposal is to whet the reader’s appetite. An agent or editor should finish reading the proposal with two thoughts in mind: the subject is both fascinating and warrants a book-length treatment (not a shorter length such as a magazine article) because there is more for the reader to find out. 

  • Market statement (optional, but recommended) 

    • ​A marketing statement contains information about who will buy and read the book, how the book can be sold by the publisher, and how you as an author will work to promote sales of your book.

    • Identify your audience. The statement should answer the questions about who will buy the book. Who is the target audience for this book? Why is it timely, important, newsworthy, etc.? Why did you write the book? Why are you the right person to write this book? It's also helpful if you include an answer to the end of the following sentence: “My book is the first ever to….”

    • Present your ideas for how you will support the publisher in selling your book. Part of being an author these days is being an ally to your publisher in selling your book. How can you promote your book? Do you have access to get blurbs for your book? Are you a member of organizations that might find your book right for other members? If there are any relevant statistics or figures, these are helpful too particularly for books, both fiction and non-fiction, that focus on a theme or topic. We do not expect a final, polished promotional plan. In general, we find that the sooner an author starts thinking about developing an audience, the better the outcome for sales.

    • By "market" we mean readers, not publishers. We don't need to know which publishers you think would want to publish the project, that's our job. We want to know how you will help the book find its audience and support the book once it's on bookshelves so that it sells well.    


Please put all of these into one file (Word .doc files only. Please do not send Pages docs or PDFs) so that all of the information is together. At this time, we only accept submissions by email.

We try to respond to all requested material within twelve weeks. Please contact us if there is a change in the status of your project.