Category Archives: Submission Guidelines

Thursday’s Three: Things I Learned from Jeff Herman

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I should probably mention that Jeff Herman and I are not close friends. In point of fact, Jeff Herman doesn’t know me from Adam’s house cat. Which is a funny sort of thing we say around here that means Jeff Herman and I are complete strangers.

HOWEVER, I am reading his swell book, Jeff Herman’s Guide to Book Publishers, Editors and Literary Agents 2011, and I feel like a kinda know the guy. I mean, I’m on page 515 (out of 1094) and a body gets a feel for things after that many pages.

So, as I’m done with the publishers section, I’ll share three things I learned:

1. Many publishers, especially those from the publishing conglomerates (ie. Random House, Harper Collins, Simon & Schuster), don’t accept unsolicited manuscripts. If you want your manuscript to find a home there, you’ll need an agent.

2. The independant U.S. presses are more open to unsolicited manuscripts, but do your research! Check the websites and fine print and follow submission guidelines carefully to maximize your chance at acceptance.

3. University presses offer excellent opportunities for publication if you write non-fiction, particularly if you’ve written a book with regional appeal. Some presses accept fiction, too. Look into your local college or university to see if your book will fit and follow guidelines. It may be a long process, but these presses are well-respected.

That was about the gist of 500 pages. Not that there wasn’t tons more exciting stuff that I learned, but if you want details, you’ll just have to get to know Jeff yourself.

Finding Something Friday on Pick-Your-Market-and-Submit

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I found a warm-the-cockles-of-your-heart email in my Inbox this week. I heard from a writer friend of mine whose story had (sorta) been selected as a finalist in a contest. Terrific! And guess where she heard about that contest?

That’s right. Here at the old Hall of Fame. I (sorta) didn’t remember the contest, but that’s beside the point. The point is that people actually win writing contests, or get their stories accepted at markets, all the time. Why can’t that writer be you? So, here’s a few places to submit:

Stories That Lift like (likes?) family-friendly fiction, between 50 to 2500 words. Pay is $5 to $20, enough to buy a cheeseburger or three. Read more about the guidelines here.

Cell Stories would love to put your short (1000 to 1500 words) story on miscellaneous cellphones. Unfortunately, they’re not a paying market. But I mention them because they accept reprints. Maybe you’ve already sold a story or two, but wouldn’t mind one bit sending it out there again, amongst the masses, into cellphone world.

Baconology, a soon to-be-published anthology of horror stories based on what I like to call PORK GOLD, will accept submissions until the anthology is filled. So don’t lay about, like a pig in a sty, rolling around in the mud of story ideas. Get that psychotic pork plot on paper and send it in (more details here).

There, now. That should keep you busy till next Finding Something Friday. Meanwhile, I need to check the last few FSFs. ‘Cause I kinda should be submitting something myself. (And by “something,” I mean something other than whatever totally creepy, but scathingly brilliant, PORK GOLD story I write. Right after, um, lunch.)