This is it. The moment you’ve been waiting for;our submissions are open once again!
As a small independent publisher, what we’ve found works best for us is to open our submissions in the fall and leave them open until we’ve confirmed our new releases for the upcoming year. This year we’re looking for 3-5 titles to release in 2017 and we’ll keep accepting submissions until we find them.
So how do you submit to us? Well, it all starts here. On our website’s submissions page we list all the types of books we’re looking for and all the ones we absolutely will not be interested in. We also outline what to send us, where to send it, and how long you should expect to wait for a response. We’ve also included some helpful links to videos we’ve made to help you prepare your manuscript and submission package, not just for us, but for anywhere you choose to send it.
But what’s going to set your submission above the rest? What are we really looking for? Well, I’ll tell you.
Your Query Letter
When we receive a submission, the first thing we look at is your query letter. Typically this should be in the body of your email to us. What we’re looking for here is a sense of who you are and what your book is about. Your ability to write well matters even in your query letter because it is your first impression. We’re also looking for the following bits of information:
- Your genre (or target audience)
- Your word count (or scope of the project)
- Your credentials (or writing history)
- Your concept, what hooks your reader.
Your Synopsis
Next, we’re going to look at your synopsis. This should be no more than one page and is simply a way of introducing us to your story, your setting, your characters, and the plot. We’re looking to see if the story interests us, but we’re also trying to gauge your ability to tell a story and wrap it up effectively. We want to see how the story ends and we want to see your style as a writer. Please include:
- Your setting
- Your main characters
- Your concept, what hooks your reader
- Your major plot points
- A satisfying conclusion
Your Sample Chapters
We ask you to send three chapters with your submission package. We’re looking specifically for an engaging opening. We want to be drawn into your story’s world immediately; We want to care about your main character and we want to be interested in what’s going to happen to them. In short, you need to hook us, your reader. Then, you need to hold our attention for three chapters. If you can do that, we’ll ask to see more. We’re looking for:
- Your style, or ‘voice’ of your writing
- Your inciting incident, (again, what hooks your reader)
- Your writing ability (and level of polish)
- Your world-building
- The believability of your characters
- How well you’ve realized the potential we detected in the query letter or synopsis.
If you receive a rejection letter from us:
There are a number of reasons that we might not want your manuscript and we will do our best to tell you exactly why that is. We strive to provide detailed notes for you so that you will be better prepared no matter what steps you choose to take next in your publishing journey. Keep in mind that publishing is a very subjective and selective business and that what doesn’t work for one publisher, may work well for another. Some of the common reasons we pass on a manuscript are as follows:
- It’s not in our genre, or doesn’t fit with our current list of titles (see our collection here)
- It’s not ready for publication and needs improvement of some kind
- Something in it conflicts with our message or values (learn more about us, here)
- It just didn’t interest or engage us
- We ask for the full manuscript, but the story doesn’t realize the potential we see in the sample
I hope you’ve found this blog post helpful and I look forward to reading your submissions!
Go to http://www.mirrorworldpublishing.com/submissions to get started!
