GUIDELINES FOR SUBMISSION
Hello Writers! Read on.
Although most of the editors at UP have a problem with authority, we take guidelines seriously. Submissions not adhering to these guidelines will be followed up with unbearable silence.
We welcome unagented authors, authors with agents, poets with parakeets. Whatever flavor author you are, we invite you to consider submitting after you’ve researched our press and determined we would make a fantastic team. Keep in mind that we have a less than 3% acceptance rate. We do charge a small, lifetime, reading fee that supports the mission at Unsolicited Press. You can learn about that below.
Not following these guidelines tells our team that you do not take your work, nor our mission, seriously. We don't want to hold your hand through the entire process. We want autonomous authors with guts.
Let’s Get Right to It.
Is Unsolicited Press Open for Submissions?
Yes! We accept submissions on a rolling basis, year-round. If you want to know what our publisher is looking for in the moment, you can email her.
What Does Unsolicited Press Want to Publish?
We're on the hunt for essay collections, all kinds of poetry, experimental works, hybrids, literary novels, novellas, short story collections, memoirs, and nonfiction that pushes boundaries—think literary criticism, history, cooking, health, science, and long-form journalism.
When it comes to nonfiction, though, we're not looking for your run-of-the-mill, dime-a-dozen book. We want a little edge, a bit of grit. So, please, spare us the polished, corporate-ready pitch—Random House might be interested, but we’re looking for something with bite.
Okay, What Does Unsolicited Press Absolutely Never Want to See Submitted?
No cookie-cutter genre fiction here. Your book can have a mystery, but it shouldn’t be a mystery novel. Maybe your character is solving a crime—that’s cool—but it should be one layer in a much deeper story.
And let’s be clear: no previously published or self-published works. If you self-published it, slapped on a new title, and tried to sneak it past us, we’ll know. Our acquisitions process is like vetting a new relationship; by the time we reach out, we know your zodiac sign, your favorite band, and probably your high school GPA.
Well Then, What the Fuck Should I Include with My Submission?
Did that F-Bomb make you clutch your pearls? If so, go ahead and close this tab—we’re not your people. We’re fond of the word. It’s emphatic, not “naughty.” Words mean what you make them mean. But if it didn’t bother you (maybe you even loved it?), here’s what we need from you:
Poetry
A query letter
The entire manuscript
Nonfiction
A query letter
Several chapters, or the full manuscript if you’ve got it ready
We accept proposals and queries for creative nonfiction, essays, and memoirs with an edge. No reference books, please.
Fiction
A query letter
The entire manuscript
Does Unsolicited Press Have Any Hard-and-Fast Rules When Submitting a Manuscript?
Ready to submit? Great! Here’s how to keep us from crying into our coffee when we open your email:
Submit as a Word file, please. PDFs can tag along.
We are staunch defenders of the Oxford Comma.
Put your email address right on the first page.
Don’t send us a fully packaged, obviously self-published piece.
Format for readability—no funky layouts.
No fancy fonts; keep it clean.
A short bio and photo? We’re into it (photo optional).
No copy-pasting your entire novel into the email.
One submission at a time; no need to carpet-bomb us with every manuscript you’ve ever written.
I’m Ready to Submit. Tell Me About the Submission Fee and What to Do Next!
Starting Fall 2017, we’ve instituted a modest submission fee of $5 (after we pay those pesky transaction fees, it’s $4.84, for transparency’s sake). This fee is a one-time deal, so you won’t have to cough it up again for future submissions. What does your fee cover? Oh, just the essentials—like paying for half-a-cup-of-coffee for our fabulous readers, funding marketing campaigns for authors, and covering the admin costs that keep this press running.
Ready to roll? Click on SUBMIT NOW to fill out the form and pay the fee.
When Will Unsolicited Press Deliver the News?
Give us at least six months to respond—sometimes longer, especially if you requested feedback or edits. If it’s been half a year and you haven’t heard a peep, feel free to check in. And seriously, check your junk mail first; sometimes our replies end up lost in the spam abyss.
Want More Feedback from Your Submission?
Want More Feedback from Your Submission?
Sometimes you just gotta know why you were rejected. Trust us—we get it. We offer two add-on options for writers who want feedback, and even a light edit, on their submissions. The smaller feedback request supplies you with the editor’s feedback report while the larger feedback request includes in-text comments and a quick proofreading. The fees are tax-deductible and support our marketing budget. We offer these to writers because it helps our authors’ books reach a wider audience and it gives authors insight as to why we couldn’t accept their manuscripts. You can add these on when you submit your manuscript through the SUBMISSION PROCESS listed above.
FEEDBACK REPORT
Donation for manuscript feedback. This service includes a readers' report (1-2 pages) outlining the manuscript's strengths and areas for improvement. Note: This does not include proofreading or in-text comments.
FEEDBACK REPORT + INLINE EDITS
When you submit your manuscript for consideration along with a feedback donation, you’ll receive a complete review of your full-length work! This review covers the overall scope of your piece and includes a proofreading pass to catch any small, easy-to-miss errors.