The Definitive List of Comic Publisher Submission Guidelines for 2019

The first version of this guide was birthed on March 7th, 2009 – so happy 10 years!

So you want to break into comics but are unsure how and where to submit? Well, you’ve landed on the right page. This latest 2019 update of all of the comic publisher submission guidelines includes 14 new additions, five subtractions, and a lot of fixed broken links (does anyone in comics ever 401 redirect an old page to a new one?).

We’re living through uncertain and turbulent times in 2019. Disney has been spending the last decade buying up all of your childhood, the mainstream comic biz is experiencing a bit of a downturn, and Mark Millar has sold the bulk of his comix empire to Netflix.

The good news is society needs your creations, art, and passion now, more than ever before. Now’s the time to be daring and original. Time to step up and inspire the next generation.

It’s been a long 15 months since 2018’s update. 209,153 of you visited this page 269,751 times since late 2014. I hope you’re still getting some use out of it.

I’ve been keeping this directory alive since 2009, and it’s still a joy to revisit each year. My day to day involves my content marketing / paid social business Massive Kontent – but I’ve never stopped being inspired by all of you badass comic creators.

-Jay

Notes

1. Make sure to click on each company name within the lists to be taken to each publisher’s actual submission guidelines page. This way you’ll find out exactly how to submit to each publisher in the method they prefer. I’ve only included a short synopsis for each publisher.
2. This list only covers print publishers. I typically review twelve months of Diamond Previews order forms to determine who was still publishing in print and distributing to comic shops and bookstores.
3. “This is a great resource, and my company Time Bomb Comics has been regularly listed for a few years now and I’ve found some great creators through it. I still get loads of submissions that don’t follow our specific guidelines though, so the message is simple from the publisher side: follow the guidelines listed! No excuses – publishers are looking for professional talent, so a professional approach from the outset is the way to go. And that means following the set guidelines!” – Steve Tanner, Time Bomb Comics
4. I’ve tried to be as thorough as possible, but there’s a good chance I missed some publishers. Feel free to let me know, and I’ll add them below.
5. Writers will always have a tougher time breaking into the comics industry. Having said that – there’s always room for good writing, and a lot of publishers will still accept writing submissions. But conventional wisdom says to partner up with an artist if you can. An editor is more likely to read your words if it’s already on a sequential page.
6. And as always DO YOUR RESEARCH before submitting to a publisher. Search our their sites, social media pages and a do basic Google search. How is their reputation? Does your work fit with their line of books?
7. You can also check out my list of book recommendations for creating comics.
8. And please don’t email me looking for work. I haven’t published a book since 2009, and I don’t have any connections in the industry.
9. Go here for a complete list of comic publishers. There’s over 225 of them now. Only a third of them accept unsolicited submissions – but it’s good to get an overview of the industry. 

Contents

• The Big 4 Comic Publishers
• Independent Comic Publishers: Arthouse & Literary
• Independent Comic Publishers: Genre, Manga and Pop
• Comic Submission Guidelines for Book Publishers
• Comic and Cartoon Syndicate Submission Guidelines
• Further Reading

The BIG 4 Comic Publishers Submission Guidelines

Dark Horse Comics

Writers, Artists, Inkers, Colorists

Dark Horse Comics is the third-largest comics publisher in the U.S., known for such titles as Star Wars, Buffy & Hellboy.

Linked here are individual guideline policies for writers (both prose and comics), artists, inkers, letterers, and colorists.

Dark Horse still welcomes your submissions, and all submissions will still be reviewed, just as they always have been. The only difference is that submissions can no longer be mailed back to the sender.

All unsolicited story/series proposals must have a full creative team on board. Writer-only proposals will not be reviewed.

DC Entertainment

DC has transitioned their submissions into a ‘Talent Development Workshop’ in which creators need to apply in order to get accepted.

Writers Workshop – How to Apply

• A résumé should include all published writing experience, comics-related and beyond.
• A short composition—equivalent to about a page, or 2000 characters—explaining why you want to be a DC comic book writer.
• Two published writing samples. Comic book work is preferred, but they’ll also accept any published fiction writing that will highlight your skills as a possible DC writer.

Artists Workshop – How to Apply

• A résumé including all published drawing experience, comics-related and beyond. Sequential art experience is preferred but not required.
• A short composition—equivalent to about a page, or 2000 characters. You’ll cover why you want to be a DC comic book artist and how your background will add a unique perspective to DC’s publishing portfolio.
• ART PORTFOLIO – that includes up to five pages of art: at least three pages of sequential art (preferably three pages in sequence with one another) and no more than two illustrations. You may also send DC links to a file share or blog site such as DeviantArt. Portfolios that do not include sequential art won’t be considered.
• You are only required to upload pencils, but they will also accept the finished inks and/or colors as long as you are the penciler AND inker. Neither inks nor colors are required, as DC only want to see YOUR work and not somebody else’s.

Mad Magazine

MAD is actively looking for new talent! They welcome all humor submissions and the best way to know what they’re looking for is to take a look at what they’re doing now! Originality and visual humor are especially prized!

They’re interested in material focusing on evergreen topics, such as dating, family, school and work, plus topical material about celebrities, sports, politics, news, and social trends. They also welcome submissions for their Strip Club (artist-writers or artist-writer teams preferred).

They will not consider movie or television satires, rewrites of established MAD premises, your take on existing features, cover ideas, or gags with Alfred E. Neuman.

Image Comics

Image Comics only publishes creator-owned material. They do not contract creators; they’re only interested in publishing original content for which you would retain all rights. Do not submit any work that utilizes already-existing characters—Image characters or otherwise—as they will automatically be declined.

Image Comics publishes creator-owned/creator-generated properties and THEY DON’T PAY PAGE RATES. Image takes a small flat fee off the books published, and it will be the responsibility of the creators to determine the division of the remaining pay between their creative team members.

Artists: Image accepts inking, penciling, lettering, or coloring samples. These will be kept on file, and you may be contacted if and when the occasion presents itself. If your art-only submission is not kept on file, you will not get a response. DO NOT SEND ORIGINAL ART as your work will not be returned.

Writers: They accept proposals only —please do not send storyboards, scripts, notes, or manuscripts—anything other than a proposal that meets the below specifications will be automatically declined.

Top Cow

TopCow is currently not accepting any writer or project submissions, but artists are welcome to submit work to submissions@topcow.com. Please be advised that you will not receive any feedback and there is no confirmation of receipt.

Alternately you can sign up for their Talent Hunt mailing list as they run a focused search for creative talent from time to time.

Marvel

“Marvel does not accept or consider any ideas, creative suggestions, artwork, designs, game proposals, scripts, manuscripts, or similar material unless we have specifically requested it from you. Marvel is continuously developing and creating its own ideas and materials, and we don’t have the resources to review or respond to unsolicited material. Unfortunately, any unsolicited material you send will not be read or shared. It will be destroyed, and it will not be returned.

While we can’t accept your unsolicited submissions, please know that Marvel is always looking for new comic book artists and writers. We constantly read and review indie, self-published, creator-owned, and web-comics, review popular online art communities, ask other artists for opinions and recommendations, and host portfolio reviews at conventions from time to time. If you are an aspiring comic book artist or writer, we suggest you publish or publicly post your material, continue to create, and if you have the right stuff…we’ll find you.”

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Submission Guidelines for Independent Comic Publishers: Arthouse & Literary

AdHouse Books

AdHouse are a small press outfit. Because of that, they do not have the resources to publish more than they think they should. They tend to be pretty selective in what we do choose.

1. Does the work “feel” like AdHouse. That doesn’t mean it has to look like Ethan Rilly’s work, or read like a Sophie Goldstein book. There’s just a tone to most of their work.
2. Only submit finished (drawn) or near (75%) complete work. And when they say complete, that means a writer working with an artist.
3. Include a cover letter with email or a SASE if you want items returned.
4. If you decide to submit by email, do NOT include attachments that exceed 5mb in total.

Blank Slate Books

BLANK SLATE BOOKS (WE CAN STILL BE FRIENDS, SPARKY O’HARE) is always interested in working with new authors. They are primarily interested in cartoonists who both write and draw – who, in fact, produce the whole comics work. They aren’t interested in art samples or scripts and outlines. They don’t pair writers with artists. They are interested in both black & white and color work. If you are a new cartoonist, making your work in black & white – thus cheaper to print – will improve your chances of getting a response.

Submit no more than 12 pages if you are sending work as an attachment. Just send them your best work.

Your work can have appeared before as small press, webcomic or self-published, and they may be interested in collecting strip work into a single volume.

Look at the kind of books that Blank Slate have published previously as an indicator of what they might publish in

Drawn & Quarterly

Please send all submissions via low-resolution PDF to submissions@drawnandquarterly.com. We do not respond to all submissions, and we do not read scripts. If you mail us a physical copy, which we strongly discourage, please do so knowing you likely will not hear back from us. Please research what we publish in advance to make sure your comic is well-aligned with Drawn & Quarterly’s existing titles.

Fantagraphics

http://fantagraphics.com/flog/frequently-asked-questions/

Fantagraphics Books (Love & Rockets, Hip Hop Family Tree, Eightball) publishes comics for thinking readers – readers who like to put their minds to work, who have a sophisticated understanding of art and culture, and appreciate personal expression unfettered by uncritical use of cliché. Fantagraphics will practically always reject any submissions that fit neatly into (or combine in a gimmicky fashion) the mainstream genres of superhero, vigilante, horror, fantasy, and science fiction.

Try to develop your own, equally individual voice; originality, aesthetic maturity, and graphic storytelling skill are the signs by which Fantagraphics judges whether or not your submission is ripe for publication.

Fantagraphics does not hire illustrators or pair artists with writers. They are looking for independently-created, publishable work.

They want to see an idea that is fully fleshed-out. Please submit a minimum of five pages of completed art (high-quality reproductions only, please — no original art!). They do NOT look at work submitted in digital format, whether via the internet (email, web, Facebook, Twitter, etc.) or disc.

Iron Circus Comics

Completed Works
What Iron Circus Wants:
Graphic novels. Proposals for graphic novels previously unpublished in print, between 150 and 500 pages in length, aimed at readers 12 years of age and older. Both color and black and white proposals will be considered. All genres, with the exception of superheroes, zombies, and children’s books, will be considered.
Erotic graphic novels. Proposals for erotic graphic novels previously unpublished in print, between 150 and 500 pages in length. Both color and black and white. Erotica submissions will be part of the Smut Peddler Presents line of comics, and Smut Peddler creator and content guidelines will apply to these submissions.
Online comics previously uncollected into print volumes.

What Iron Circus Doesn’t Want

• Submissions from creators younger than 18 years of age.
• Monthly serials.
• Children’s comics.
• Fan fiction or re-imaginings.
• Portfolios from colorists, letterers, inkers, pencilers, etc.

NBM

NOTE: NBM is only accepting submissions from already published authors at this time, including ones with proven success in webcomics. They are also not accepting submissions from authors outside of North America, except for adult.

They are interested in general fiction, humor, a satire of fantasy and horror, erotica, mystery. No superheroes.

Nobrow

Nobrow is a publisher, not an illustration agency. You should have a specific type of work collaboration in mind when you submit work to them (i.e., a picture book or perhaps a graphic novel), make sure it is in line with something that they do.

Provide a brief summary and overview of your project. Look at their body of work and think, does what I want to pitch fit in with the Nobrow canon of works?
They have separated the submissions process into three distinct groups.

Category 1: Short-form comics – The 17 x 23 Series: They must be 24 pages beginning to end.

Category 2: Long-form comics/ Graphic Novels: submissions for graphic novels that are 90 pages or more. If you are an illustrator/author or an illustrator and author duo, you should supply a minimum of ten finished pages in the pitch to give them a taste of the ‘look and feel’ of the proposed book.

Northwest Press

Northwest Press is a small publishing house devoted to spotlighting the best in LGBT graphic novels and comics and is focused on encouraging upcoming talent.

Northwest primarily publishes graphic novels and comics and is not currently accepting submissions for prose work.

All the material they publish has strong lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender content. This can either be explicit (stories about situations and struggles tied to the queer experience) or implicit (looking at more general situations through the lens of the queer person).

They can and do publish shorter pieces as digital comics, and are actively seeking new and previously-published work to release digitally.

Secret Acres

FOR PUBLICATION

Secret Acres love comics. They will look at anything and everything. If you’re thinking of sending your work in, take a look at their site first. They have broad tastes, but you can get a pretty good idea of what they like from what’s on there. Don’t send in anything original. They keep whatever we get. Hard copies, mini-comics, .pdf’s and links are all good. Don’t send pitches. If you want to be considered for publication, they’ll need to see a good chunk’s worth. You can send your comics to the address under CONTACT US on the home page. Be sure to indicate that what you’ve sent them is a submission for publication.

FOR THE EMPORIUM

Secret Acres sells its artists’ self-published comics on a non-commissioned basis. The rest of you are not so lucky. If you want SA to carry your self-published comics in their store – send them a copy. If they like it and it fits with them, they’ll send you a form to fill out. The terms are simple: SA gets 50% of cover, you get the rest. Every quarter you’ll get paid for whatever was sold. If you don’t have at least 15 copies on hand, don’t send in a store submission. They may not want 15 copies at once, but they want to make sure that they can have your comics ready to re-stock from you without a long wait. You can send your minis to the address under CONTACT US on the home page. Be sure to indicate that you’ve sent in a submission for the Secret Acres Emporium.

SelfMadeHero

SelfMadeHero is a proud supporter of graphic novel talent from the UK and beyond, welcoming submissions from both new and established creators.

Before you submit your work, make sure you are familiar with what they publish. If they publish your book, it will likely slot into one of the following categories: Original Fiction, Non-Fiction, Graphic Biography, Eye Classics, Sci-Fi & Horror or Crime Classics.

If it is a collaborative project, SMH prefers to receive pitches from writers and artists who have already agreed to work together.

Do you have a pitch?

If you’re happy that your graphic novel project would suit SelfMadeHero’s list, please send a synopsis (not exceeding one A4 page) and at least eight pages of sequential art by email to submissions@selfmadehero.com.

Are you an artist?

If you don’t have a particular project in mind but would like them to know about your work, send a link to your website or portfolio to submissions@selfmadehero.com.

Are you a writer?

If you have written a graphic novel script, please send a synopsis along with the script itself to submissions@selfmadehero.com.

Silver Sprocket

Submission policy:

Try self releasing, its lots of fun!

Sell your work in their shop on consignment.

If you’d like Silver Sprocket to publish your work, the ideal situation is that you’ve already successfully DIY/self-released the comic and want to collaborate on expanded distribution and marketing.

Most of the books in their catalog were previously self-published before SS re-issued them, with the rest coming from experienced creators they already have a working relationship with or whose work they admire.

If the project isn’t done yet, finish making it first, then send them a link or physical copy.

They’ve gotta see what it is — as close to finished as possible — to think clearly about what they can contribute in terms of distribution, marketing, or whatever else.

They don’t know how to be editors or want to tell you what to do.

They’re happy to check out your work in progress and let ya know what they think, but you should find your own editor if you’d like to work with one.

avi [at] silversprocket [dot] net

Soaring Penguin Press

Completed Works

Soaring Penguin Press is open for submissions of graphic novels, or individual, self-contained stories for inclusion in Meanwhile… Submissions may be made by email or by post and can be in whatever form you feel best presents your work.

For individual comic stories for consideration for inclusion in Meanwhile…, please provide the entire story. For graphic novels, a sample of the artwork is acceptable in the first instance together with a synopsis of the story and an indication of story length and how close to completion the graphic novel is.

Top Shelf Productions

(March, Bacchus, The Underwater Welder) Regarding submissions, they’re easy. Just send them a xerox copy of what you’d like them to look at (or email a link), and enough postage if you want the materials returned to you. Do not attach and send image files to their email addresses.

They cannot accept scripts or plot synopses unless they are accompanied by a minimum of 10-20 completed pages (i.e., fully inked and lettered comic book pages).

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Submission Guidelines for Independent Comic Publishers: Genre, Manga, and Pop

2000 AD

So you want to work for 2000 AD? You’ll massively improve your chances of working for their rules.

2000 AD’s submissions period is currently open. It will close again on 1 March 2017.

Artists: They want to see if you can tell a story, not paint an album cover. Send black and white layouts of comic strip work based on the characters of 2000 AD. Only send copies – never originals!
Leave plenty of room for the dialogue and captions in each panel – the more dialogue, the more ‘dead space’ you need to leave. The panels must also flow sequentially – if it isn’t obvious which panel comes next, you’re not doing your job – which is to tell the story.

Writers: If you’ve never had a script published in 2000 AD, start by sending in ideas for one-off, four-page Future Shocks. If and when you’ve proved yourself by writing professional quality one-off stories, you’ll be invited to develop longer series in the future.

215 Ink

Writers, artists
215 Ink currently has open submissions for writers and artist who are looking for a project to work on, as well as complete projects ready to go to print.

The basic guidelines

• Introduction about yourself and your credentials as well as the creative team on the project.
• One sentence summing up your story.
• One page (at most) summary of your story.
• Completed pages for review.

AAM Markosia

Completed Works, Pencilers, Inkers, Colorists, Letterers

Markosia is now accepting comics submissions for works that have been previously unpublished in the UK. They are interested in Sci-Fi, Fantasy, All-Ages and Historical stories. If you feel your comic doesn’t fit into this, they will still look at all submissions.

They are also now publishing prose novels of all genres, so if you have an unpublished novel or one that you now have the rights back to then please contact Harry at harry@markosia.com

Preference will be given to projects that have all creative team members in place. It can be very time-consuming finding artists, colorists, and letterers for individual scripts.
One submission per team at a time.

Project Submissions
Your printed books need to be at least 40 pages; they will print short form comics electronically, but their focus is on collected editions and long-form comics or graphic novels.
Individual Submissions

Markosia is still looking at submissions from writers, artists, colorists and letterers for designated projects.

Writers: they want to see a fully realized script from you. At least a 22-page script. These must be completed in a readable comic format.
Artists (Pencillers/Inkers): Specify whether you want to be considered as a penciler or inker (or both!). They want to see at least five sequential art pages. Preferably from a couple of different stories. Also, send over books you have already been published in.
Colourists: 5 pages of sequential work or any concept sketches you’ve worked on. Try to show a variety of work so showcasing as much of your skill base as possible.
Letterers: Send through some examples of your lettering via sequential artwork.
All submissions to be sent by e-mail.

Action Lab Comics

Completed Works
PROJECT SUBMISSIONS
Action Lab requires that project submissions have a complete creative team (writer, artist, and colorist). They don’t pair creators. They publish fully realized, creator-owned projects. Please include the following:

• A title page, including contact information
• A simple, one-page story synopsis
• 5-6 pages of a sample script
• 5-6 pages of art

ALL SUBMISSION PACKETS MUST BE IN PDF FORMAT.
PORTFOLIO REVIEW: Action Lab is not currently hiring artists. They will review art submissions, should the opportunity to pair creators arise.

Aftershock Comics

Pencilers, Colorists

Aftershock is currently only accepting submissions from pencilers and colorists.
-Make sure your files are in .jpg or .pdf formats and make sure the file sizes are a reasonable size so they don’t bounce back
-If you are a penciler, please send sequential art pages (as opposed to cover art)

Ahoy Comics

AHOY IS NOW ACCEPTING SHORT FICTION AND COMMENTARY SUBMISSIONS.

Ahoy Short Fiction Submission Guidelines

Each Ahoy Comics magazine will include at least one piece of short fiction or social commentary. Ahoy seeks smart, weird, funny articles or stories, which run between 500 and 1,500 words.

They want short fiction for mature readers, pieces that uphold the story-telling legacy of comics. It could be a delirious rant, a personal anecdote, a tale of horror or even poetry. They have a soft spot for submissions with a dash of humor.

These stories can be political, but they must not be based on events that might be outdated by the time of publication. Whatever the subject, it must still be relevant a year from now. Also, the 1,500-word maximum is pretty much carved into stone. The ideal length is about 650 words, give or take.

They will pay $200 per story. Writers will retain full rights to their works. Ahoy maintains the right to publish on their site and to reprint the story in a trade compilation or anthology. If they decide to reprint it, they will pay another 25 percent of the original fee.

This is an opportunity for serious writers to reach the most voracious readers of fiction on this planet: the people who buy comics.

Alterna Comics

Completed Works

They don’t accept story ideas without accompanying art If you send a pitch/idea without art, the submission will be deleted.

• No page rates.
• Submit 8 complete pages. Keep your pitch short.
• You’ll need to have a creative team attached and ready for a long-term commitment.
• Creators retain all rights to intellectual, merchandise, film, television, video game, etc.
• Alterna will only own publishing and distribution rights.
• Art and story must be of professional quality. This includes all aspects such as lettering, coloring, inking, etc. Before you submit, please compare your book’s quality with other Alterna titles of similar genre.

Antarctic Press

Artists, writers

Artists: ONE COMPLETE ISSUE (22-30 pages) of rendered (penciled, inked) SEQUENTIAL art via photocopies. They look for a MANGA/ANIME style of artwork, that many of their creators employ. Examples of published work could be used if applicable.

If you wish to submit your own original series, start with a one-shot or a 3- to 4-issue mini-series.

Writers:

1. 1- to 4-page typed STORY SYNOPSIS and/or TREATMENTS. If they like your idea, they’ll request a script from you.
2. A typed cover sheet of the overview of your story. Example: How many issues the story will be and how many pages per issues. 1- to 4-issue mini-series are preferred over ongoing series. Stories that are finite encourage the retailer to give your new comic a chance.
3. Published work that you’ve done if applicable.

Avatar Press

Artists, colorists, completed works

Avatar Press is a leading independent company which publishes a wide variety of comic books and is currently seeking out additional creators – both new and established – in a number of categories:

ARTISTS: Avatar Press is always looking for talented freelance artists, and often has a range of work in a wide variety of subjects and genres available.

If you have a web page or online gallery of your work available, sending Avatar Press editor-in-chief William Christensen a link to that is a good place to start. Your submission should include a wide range of samples, showcasing all your abilities.

They want to see panel to panel continuity (storytelling), as well as illustrative work (pin-ups, covers, etc.) Avatar will consider penciled and inked pages, penciled pages (so long as the pencils are tight and clean), fully-rendered pencils (grayscale tones), and painted pages.

COLORISTS: Colorists, send William Christensen a link to a gallery of your current work. We require 600 dpi files colored in CMYK with correctly trapped linework

CREATOR-OWNED PROJECTS
Avatar Press is always looking for quality creator-owned projects. All genres and styles will be considered. Include an overview of the story, a detailed plot synopsis, sample script pages, character designs, and sample art pages (panel to panel continuity).

Benitez Productions

Pencillers and/or Colorists

Benitez Productions are looking for a few exceptional artists (pencilers and/or colorists), who understand and can draw a particular steampunk style.

Send art samples – and/or a link to your online portfolio – along with a brief introduction and description of any prior work to:
submissions@joebenitez.com
Art samples should be sent as jpegs or pdfs at web resolution (72 dpi).

BHP Comics

BHP (Plagued, The Women of Science, Killtopia) is looking for Graphic Novels (not for serialized comics) for the Publication period 2020

Things that they need to know.

1. Who is working on the book/comic?
2. An elevator pitch followed by short synopsis. What’s it about? How does the story unfold?
3. An example of the work to date (if any art is completed)

Things you need to know.

1. NO superhero comics
2. BHP is creator-owned, and don’t ‘buy’ the works from the maker. You’d retain at least 50% of the rights to the title, dependant on the contract terms.
3. They prefer complete creator teams and don’t match up artists and writers.
4. They’re open to any genre. Comedy, horror, sci-fi, fantasy, westerns, real-life, crime, romance… just not the guys in capes and tight pants. Ideally, mature and well-structured genre stories, and socially engaging books. No exploitative comics.
5. NO single issues i.e ongoing series. They want graphic novels/complete books. This can be in anything from a small album (Asterix/TinTin style) 48 pages to 288 pages books.

Black Mask Studios

Writers, Artists, and completed creator-owned comics

1. Creator-Owned Comic Pitch Submission Form
2. Artist Portfolio Submission Form
3. Writer Infosheet Submission Form

Blue Fox Comics

Blue Fox Comics (Hexes, Robyn, Sinners) are looking to take on new work gradually. We aren’t like a normal publisher, however, and have a few criteria that we look for.

1. 1. Are looking for graphic novels, over 60 pages long.

1. 1. They should be complete, up to and including, the lettering.

1. 1. They should be in color.

1. 1. They should look professional.

1. If Blue Fox likes them, please be prepared to consider the changes they propose.

Boom Studios

BOOM! Studios are always looking for new talent to work with and explore.

FOR ARTISTS (pencilers, inkers, colorists, cover artists, letterers):

Check out the BOOM! Studios Submissions Form!

Upload examples of your work for the BOOM! Studios Editorial staff to review.

-or-

Find them at a convention!

They accept samples of artwork, commonly known as “leave-behinds,” at their booth. You can leave it with any staffer. Be sure to include your contact info. Try to include examples of your sequential work, not just pin-ups.

NO story pitches, but they will accept published comics (self-published or otherwise) strictly and solely as an example of your artwork.

Editors from BOOM! Studios also occasionally conduct portfolio reviews, found in the Convention’s scheduled programming.

FOR WRITERS:

BOOM! Studios do not accept unsolicited material or pitches. Any unsolicited submissions will be discarded and will not be read.

Caliber Comics

Completed Works

” I am the submissions editor for Caliber Comics. I wanted to make you aware that 1) we exist (we rebooted with Gary Reed in 2014) — http://www.calibercomics.com/ and 2) we DO accept submissions! I can tell you that we are VERY active in accepting good projects. I have personally approved well over a dozen titles in the last two months. We are actively and aggressively looking for creative teams. We accept ANY genre and the titles can be in b/w OR color.” – Andrea Lorenzo Molinari, December.27.2017.

Caliber Comics primarily print black and white graphic novels, whether original stories or collections.  They are NOT doing serialized individual comic (floppies) in printed format.  they’ll consider webcomics and are looking into doing illustrated books and genre novels.  If you are submitting comics, Caliber will only release them in digital form and trade paperback collections….not single printed issues.

They do NOT assemble teams for titles and do NOT pay page rates although some creators might hire letterers or colorists that is purely up to them.  When a title comes to us, it should be with a complete team in place.

They do distribute some titles via Diamond Distributors and put their titles out into the digital markets (Apple, Kindle, Comixology, Nook, etc) but sales are all over the place based on platform, title, creator, etc.  

Comics Experience Publishing

Completed Works

In alliance with digital distributor ComiXology, Comics Experience Publishing offers assistance for new talent to reach a broader audience with their creator-owned work.

Comics Experience Publishing focuses on producing creator-owned titles from new talent associated with C.E. and its online community, the Creators Workshop.

They currently offer a digital publishing model for titles to be distributed through ComiXology, the world’s #1 digital comics retailer.

The requirements to submit to the publishing program are:

1. At least one member of the creative team must be a Creators Workshop member.
2. That member’s portion of the project must be workshopped within the Creators Workshop.
3. Creators Workshop members can submit at any time after the above criteria are met.

Committed Comics

Writers, Scripters, Pencilers, Inkers, Colorists, Letterers, Completed Works

Committed Comics is always looking for talented and driven creators.

Writers: Submit no more than a five (5) page story with a clear beginning, middle, and end. DO NOT send in a five-page excerpt of a longer story.

Pencils: submit no less than three (3) pages of a sequential story and no more than five (5).

Inkers: like pencilers – send in three (3) to five (5) pages and one pin-up/cover piece.

Digital Colorists: submission packet must contain the following: Six (6) pieces of sequential work and two (2) cover/pin-up samples.
Letterers: complete the sample pages on their site. Also please include a tear sheet (1-page example) of some of your sound effects and special effects.

Completed Series: You don’t need to have 100% of the book completed but more than a two-page outline. If you are doing a 4 issue mini-series, have at least one fully completed issue with scripts and layouts completed for the remaining three issues.

Dead Reckoning

Dead Reckoning publishes both nonfiction and fiction. Their primary focus is on military and naval history, military and naval biography, history, and stories of the high seas, but they are interested in any story that can reasonably be derived from that focus—consider espionage, space exploration, political drama, or historical action, just to give a few examples. Topics should be narrative-based and need not be U.S.- or Navy-centric.

While they are interested in pushing their own boundaries, they prefer stories that highlight realism over those that focus on the fantastic or supernatural.

Format

They are looking for stand-alone graphic novels between 128 and 300 pages. Color is preferred. Short, multi-volume stories are possible, but ongoing series are not being considered at this time.

Guidelines

Submit a complete proposal between 7-10 pages in length. Do not submit ideas and/or expect to be connected with missing members of a creative team. Proposals can be submitted in PDF or Word format and should include:

• • Short overview (~1 paragraph)

• • Synopsis (~1 page)

• • Outline (~1 page)

• • Creator bios and contact information (include lists of previously published works, if any)

• • Estimated page count and timeline for creation of the work

• Five pages of complete, representative art from the proposed graphic novel

Submit proposals to submissions@deadreckoning.org.

Deadstar Publishing

Deadstar publish short story compilations, novels, comics and graphic novels and accept submissions for all of these things. Their focus is on horror, fantasy, modern fantasy, historical fantasy and science fiction and submissions should be sent to submissions@deadstarpublishing.co.uk

General Guidelines

• For a complete submissions package start with a 2 line overview. Think of this as an elevator pitch.
• Next, give them a synopsis or description of the work.
• Finally, the submission itself: follow the guidelines from the sections below and you won’t go far wrong. If you’re submitting more than 10mb of files at once they would prefer it if they were sent via a service like mailbigfile.com.

Novels, Novellas and Short Stories

To gain an understanding for your style and an appreciation for the story (or stories) you are trying to tell they like to look over the longer of three chapters/short stories or 30,000 words.

While they do at times accept single short stories for specific projects, as a rule they prefer to work with complete anthologies or collections.

Comics and Graphic Novels

At the moment Deadstar are more interested in one-shots or graphic novels than ongoing comics. If you do want to submit a comics series then have at least one entire arc complete or nearly complete. They’ll will consider projects at an earlier stage than this, and assist you with advice and networking to facilitate in their development but are unlikely to offer a publication contract until that milestone is reached.

With one-shots and graphic novels they are a little more lenient and will accept pieces at the script stage through to fully finished pieces. As well as the general guidelines above, they like to see the longer of three chapters or 28 pages to assess the quality and style of artwork as well as to gain an understanding of the progression of the story.

Dynamite Entertainment

Dynamite Entertainment will not read your submission without a completed and signed Submission Release Agreement.

WRITERS: Please send us an inquiry letter, detailing your writing experience and why you would like to write for D.E. Unsolicited writing samples will not be read. It is their policy to respond to submissions only if we wish to hire the creator.

ARTISTS: Please submit no more than five pages of sample artwork. Please mail in clean 8 1/2″x11″ photocopies of your sample pages and make sure the reproduction quality is high.

PENCILERS: Just send pencils. Do not send inked, colored or lettered pages.

COLORISTS: Don’t send samples colored over your line art. Any flaws in the underlying black and white artwork will influence their opinion of your coloring.

PAINTERS: If you are submitting samples of fully-painted (traditionally or digitally painted) cover work, keep in mind that Dynamite Entertainment covers tend toward iconic shots of single characters rather than groups of characters or storytelling elements.

Golden Liberty Comics

Writers, Interior Artists, Inkers, Colorists, Letterers

Golden Liberty Comics, a division of Golden Bell Studios, is looking for creators with an innate passion for storytelling. Our mission is to reinvigorate the creative process and to reignite the industry’s artistic spark.

Writers: Include A logline that summarizes the premise of the project using 50 words or less.
A fully typed synopsis of the story from beginning to end (i.e. an overview of the complete plot), not just the first issue. Use only one page for your synopsis, however, any additional pages outlining the rest of the story are not discouraged by any means. Do not be afraid to include every major plot thread and reveal in your pitch, and be sure to be as original and unique as possible
Include any completed scripts that go along with the overview of your pitch packet.

Interior Artists: Submit at least five pages of sequential art with a minimum of 20 total panels. This is your chance to select your best material to showcase your ability to draw facial expressions that make an audience “feel” the characters, a skill for designing original and memorable characters that pop off the page, as well as locations that showcase your knack for understanding complex perspective and creating framed shots with depth, dynamic angles, and interesting prop placements. Interior Artists must not send pinups and/or splash pages. Interior Artists may send model sheets (these are the frontal, back, and side views of a character’s design).

Inkers: Include at least five pages of sequential art, but there’s no limit in regard to the panels per page. Inkers should send the initial penciled pages for comparison. A variable of detailed faces, backgrounds, and strongly rendered figures should be included. Be sure to show off a wide variety of textures and techniques in your submitted works.

Colorists: Include at least five pages of sequential art, but there’s no limit in regard to the panels per page. Colorists should send the initial inked and uncolored pages for comparison.

Letterers: Submit five pages of sequential lettered art with no limit on the number of panels per page.

Heavy Metal

Complete works

HEAVY METAL is always searching for cool science fiction, fantasy, and horror comics

COMICS FOR HEAVY METAL MAGAZINE
They’re only seeking completed stories (preferably in full color since most of the magazine features color stories).
They do not pair writers with artists.

Stories can be as short as one page or as long as 96 pages (and now and then, even longer). They’re mainly looking for short stories from 8 to 16 pages in length, but they do print one-pagers, longer pieces and serialize graphic novels over several issues.

NO SNAIL MAIL SUBMISSIONS – all submissions must be submitted via e-mail.

COVER ART FOR HEAVY METAL MAGAZINE
Heavy Metal publishes six issues per year, and if you’d like to submit work to be considered for a cover, it’s pretty much the same process as for comics. Please do not send links to websites/blogs/social media accounts because they don’t have time to surf sites

ILLUSTRATION FOR HEAVY METAL MAGAZINE
They don’t commission single illos – but they do have the “Gallery” and “Artist’s Studio” sections in the magazine that spotlight an illustrator by featuring 6 to 15 pieces of artwork and a short biography of the artist. There isn’t a page rate for them, so they’re for promotional purposes only.

COMIC BOOK SERIES PROPOSALS FOR OUR COMIC BOOK LINE
Comic book series proposals must have at least eight pages of final art included with the pitch material so they can see what the finished comic book pages will look like. Beyond that requirement, please feel free to include as much additional material as you wish.

Hound Comics

Complete works (They do accept penciling, inking, lettering, and coloring samples)

Hound Comics will only publish creator-owned material. Hound will only accept proposals for brand new series or stand-alone graphic novels.

Writers: No script-only submissions. Any script or plotline unaccompanied by art will be unread and discarded. If you are an established professional, please send samples of your published work and they may be able to work something out.

Artists: They accept penciling, inking, lettering, and coloring samples. Art samples will be kept on file and may potentially lead to connecting you with other creators if and when the occasion presents itself.

Submission Guidelines:

• One page, synopsis of the overall story.
• Send (at least 2-3 sequential) fully inked and lettered pages (preferably colored).
• Hound publishes both full color and black and white books. If you have a colorist and can provide color pages, great!

Humanoids

HUMANOIDS is always ready to read new exciting projects and welcome new talents to their family.

1) In order for them to review your project and its potential in one of their imprints (Humanoids Legacy, BiG, Life Drawn, H1), please fill out the Pitch Sheet doc and send to editorial@humanoids.com.

2) If you’re both Writer and Artist, or if an Artist has been attached to the project, they ask for the following elements as well:

– 1 pinup or cover (med to hi resolution)

– 5-10 completed interior pages (med to hi resolution) in PDF format

If you are a Color Artist, please send a PDF portfolio of your work to editorial@humanoids.com.

If you are a Writer and don’t have an artist, don’t worry. They have your back. Fill the Pitch Sheet and if they’re interested, they’ll build a creative team around your project.

3) Be yourself. Don’t try to ape someone’s style (in writing or art). Don’t also start with “I have the perfect pitch for Humanoids”. Humanoids has published many comics in many genres throughout their history. Focus on sending a solid pitch, well written and beautifully drawn.

4) Look at their catalog to understand their different imprints before you submit your pitch.

5) Try not to send a pitch intended for another publisher (you’d look very bad).

Lady Death Universe

Lady Death Universe is always looking for new, up and coming artists and if your stuff is killer, they may consider hiring you. But before submitting samples to us, please note the following:

Currently looking for: Pencilers, Inkers, Sequential artists, Cover artists, Colorists, Letterers

Writers: We apologize, but we are not looking for writers at this time.

TO SUBMIT YOUR ARTWORK-

If you choose to physically mail an artwork submission, do not send originals.

HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR ARTWORK

Via Email (Preferred Method)

1. For penciled and full-color artwork: Scan your artwork at 300 dpi color and save the file(s) in JPEG or TIFF format. Individual images should not exceed 10MB in size. For pencils-only artwork (no color), grayscale is fine. PSD (Photoshop) files will not be accepted.
2. For computer-generated artwork: Save a copy of your file(s) in JPEG or TIFF format. Individual images should not exceed 10MB in size. PSD (Photoshop) files will not be accepted.
3. Attach your image(s) to an email to submissions@coffincomics.com, using “Creative Submission” in the subject line.

Lion Forge Comics

Writers, Artists, Concepts

The Lion Forge, LLC (“Lion Forge”) does not regularly accept unsolicited ideas, treatments, concepts, scripts, artworks, or other materials. However, Lion Forge occasionally considers new ideas, formats, or concepts from outside sources.

If you have an idea, treatment, concept, artwork – you may submit such materials to Lion Forge, but only if you first acknowledge and agree to the Lion Forge Submission Policy and Submission Release Agreement.

Please note that if you choose to submit materials, send a link to publicly-posted portfolios. Any submissions in excess of 25 MB will not be accepted and must be provided by sending a link.

You won’t always get an immediate response, but our editors DO look at everything that comes through the portal.

Red 5 Comics

Pencillers,  Inkers, Colorists, Letterers, Completed Works

Artists

Your submission should include at least five (5) pages of your best sequential storytelling art, not just sketches or pin-ups. These pages should demonstrate an ability to handle a variety of scenes, technology, backgrounds, and characters… ranging from quiet dialog to intense action.

Pencillers: your portfolio should show pencils-only, not inked or colored pages. Make sure the scans are of good enough quality to clearly see your work.

Inkers: your examples should be black-and-white and include a side-by-side comparison with the original pencils.

Colorists: your portfolio should be based on line-art from multiple artists and show your abilities in a variety of styles.

Creator Owned Projects

Red 5 Comics is always open to looking at quality creator-owned projects for publication. You and your team deliver print-ready pages, and Red 5 Comics looks after marketing, printing, distribution and related activity. The comic is published and there is a profit-split. You and your team retain full rights to the intellectual property.

Your project must already have a full creative team committed and on-board, including a writer, penciler, inker, colorist (if color), and letterer. Red 5 Comics is interested only in projects that are G, PG or PG-13 in nature. We will not accept R-rated proposals. No costumed superhero stories at this time.

Red Giant Entertainment

Writers, Pencilers, Inkers, Colorists

Red Giant Entertainment, Inc., is an Intellectual Property development transmedia company.

Unless they specifically ask you to snail-mail something to them — a printed book, a flash drive, bribes — submit your work to submissions@redgiantentertainment.com. We’re well into the 21st Century, and our creators around the world send files digitally.

When submitting .jpgs by Email, LABEL YOUR FILES PROPERLY.

DO NOT send links instead of your samples, although it is OK to include links IN ADDITION TO your samples.

Include a COVER LETTER. Your name, your address, your credits if any, what you’re submitting, and why.

Before you send anything — concept or story or art or lettering or covers — download, fill out and sign the RED GIANT SUBMISSION FORM.

Red Giant does not review any unsolicited story concepts, ideas, proposals, or scripts for properties they already publish, or any property not owned by the person/agent submitting it.

DO NOT SEND UNSOLICITED STORY SUBMISSIONS. They will be deleted.

WRITERS: Please send us an Email outlining your writing accomplishments/experience and why you hope to write for Red Giant Entertainment.
ARTISTS: Five to 10 pages of sample artwork is plenty.
PENCILERS: If you pencil, just send pencils of your sequential pages. Don’t send inks, letters, or colors if you’re trying to sell your penciling skills.
INKERS: Submit .jpgs of the pencils you inked as well as the inks, for comparison purposes. It’s best to show inks over more than one professional penciler.
COLORISTS: Send us sequential samples over PROFESSIONAL artwork.
COVER PAINTERS: traditional and digital painters are welcome.

Scout Comics

Scout Comics & Entertainment is actively looking for creator-owned titles to publish.

Writers: PLEASE DON’T JUST SEND US WRITING SAMPLES! If you’re an established professional looking for help finding an artist, they might very well be able to help, but their model is not to read raw scripts and put together creative dream teams.

Artists: THEY DO ACCEPT inking, penciling, lettering, or coloring samples. They’ll keep your submissions on file and may hook you up with other creators if and when those opportunities arise.

A PROPOSAL should:

• Mention what makes your comic unique and sets it apart from other comics in the genre. It
  should also explain who the target audience is.
• Include A ONE PAGE synopsis of the story. An overview of the ENTIRE series or story arc.
• FIVE (5) PAGES of HI-REZ fully INKED and LETTERED ART.
• A COVER MOCK-UP

Stranger Comics

Artists, Completed Works

Writers: If, however, you have a completed work or you have teamed with an artist for a creator-owned work and are seeking distribution, please see Publishing Services.

Artists: Please send all submissions to stranger@strangercomics.com. Please note your name and specific profession (penciler, colorist, etc.) in the subject line.

Publishing Services: Stranger Comics is a comic book publishing company with full publishing and distribution services. If you have a completed book or a creator-owned work in progress with an artist team, they are happy to consider your book for release through Stranger Comics. Contact joshua@strangercomics.com prior to sending over any pitch material as they may require a submission agreement depending on the project’s stage of completion.

Timebomb Comics

Time Bomb Comics wants to publish a wide variety of comics from a wide variety of genres – science-fiction, thriller, mystery, romance, horror, superhero, adventure – and are looking to work with committed writers and artists

No Viz–style humor strips, parodies of existing works and sex comics.

WRITERS: send a fully scripted short story of no more than five finished comic pages. It can be in any genre, but your story must have a beginning, middle and end. If you have an example of work you´ve already completed or had published elsewhere then by all means send that as your sample.

ARTISTS: Submit no more than five pages of sequential storytelling in any genre which demonstrates your understanding of the comics format. Send work you´ve already completed or had published elsewhere as your sample if you wish.

COLOURISTS/LETTERERS/ETC.
Contact them to find out if there are any current opportunities.

*Note for all submissions*

• Samples must be sent as separate attachments
• NO links to online portfolios (or sites such as Deviantart)

Their guidelines are pretty clear and while they like to hear from new talent any submissions not following the guidelines (regarding how samples are sent) will not be considered.
submissions@timebombcomics.com

Titan Comics

Writers, Artists, Completed Works

Titan Comics welcomes all submissions, and all submissions will be reviewed directly by the editorial team. They prefer to receive all submissions digitally.

NEW PITCHES: The chances of them picking up your title are vastly improved if you are approaching us as a writer/artist team, or if you are an artist writing your own title.

They are still open to writer-only pitches, and do read all submitted plots, so an electrifying concept will still make it through. Titan’s preferred format for new and original series is for stories to be told in four issues, each of around 20-22 pages in length.

If you have an artist on board, seeing art samples is essential. Similarly, if you already have a colorist and/or letterer as part of your team, seeing samples of their work, and how they will work together as a team, is paramount.

Valiant Entertainment

Artists and writers may submit portfolios and previously published work to submissions@valiantentertainment.com

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Comic Submission Guidelines for Book Publishers

Literary Agents Who Represent Graphic Novels

Niki Smith has curated a list of literary agents who represent graphic novels and comics. Every agency on this list has mentioned an interest in graphic novels either on their website or their blog or made a GN sale– no second-hand info unless it was well vouched for.

Arthur A Levine Books

*There are presently no open calls for submissions.

Arthur A. Levine Books do not accept unsolicited novel-length manuscripts outright.

They do look at the following materials:

• Picture Books: Query letter + the full text
• Novels: Query letter + the first two chapters + synopsis
• Other: Query letter + 10-page sample + synopsis/proposal
• Illustration: Three sample illustrations and/or links to online portfolios

They look for strong writing, beautiful artwork, authentic emotion, and ideas or perspectives they haven’t seen before, and enjoy working with debut authors and illustrators.

With the exception of picture book dummies (see below), all submissions are reviewed online through Submittable.

If you are met with the message “There are presently no open calls for submissions,” we have reached our monthly limit on queries. Please wait until the first day of the next month to submit your query.

If you are submitting a picture book dummy (full text and illustrations), it may be sent to them through the mail. (This is the only kind of query that will be accepted through the mail.)

Capstone Publishing

Capstone is closed to unsolicited submissions. However, they are always seeking new authors and illustrators interested in work-for-hire assignments.

If you are interested in writing or illustrating work, please familiarize yourself with their books before reaching out to them.

Authors
Email authors@capstonepub.com and include the following:

• Cover letter
• Previous publishing credits
• Writing sample
• Topics of interest for writing assignments

Illustrators
Email  il.sub@coughlancompanies.com and include the following:

• A link to your website
• One or two illustrations that showcase your best work
• Subject matter and or styles you have experience in illustrating

Capstone is committed to serving marginalized communities. They actively seek Own Voices contributors; please specify in your cover letter if you identify with a specific community.

Groundwood Submissions

PICTURE BOOKS:
Due to the large number of submissions we receive, Groundwood regrets that we cannot accept unsolicited manuscripts for picture books.

NOVEL-LENGTH FICTION:
We are always looking for new authors of novel-length fiction for children of all ages. Their mandate is to publish high-quality, character-driven literary fiction. They do not publish stories with an obvious moral or message, or genre fiction such as thrillers or fantasy.
Please submit no more than one manuscript at a time.

ART GUIDELINES:
Groundwood Books is looking for Canadian illustrators to interpret the words of some of Canada’s finest children’s writers. Their emphasis is on stories of real children in convincing situations and milieus, both contemporary and historical, for all ages from infants to teens. Art may be realistic or abstracted and stylized to any degree, but conventional cartoon and animation styles are not needed.

Nonfiction illustrators are also needed: scientific drawing in natural history and other fields, and historical reconstruction are among the areas we are interested in.

As well, they need cover artists for a wide range of fiction from early readers to young adult.

You may also send digital samples (PDFs, JPEGs, TIFFs) as e-mail attachments.

They also accept physical samples by mail as specified below:

• 4 to 10 black-and-white or color copies or digital color proofs
• 4 to 10 tear sheets, press sheets, postcards
• 1 to 2 published, bound books or sets of folded and gathered sheets

Kids Can Press Illustrator Guidelines

Kids Can Press are interested in and look forward to seeing illustrations of all kinds. Every book is unique, and they never know what they’ll need regarding illustration style.
Send us an email with your contact information and a link to your website or portfolio. Attach only one or two low-resolution JPEGs that best represent your work.

Myriad Editions

Myriad are taking a short break from accepting new submissions while we give proper consideration to those we have so far received this year.

Alongside literary/crime fiction and  literary/political nonfiction they also publish graphic novels.

Graphic novels: documentary comics, graphic reportage, fiction, memoir and life writing, graphic medicine.

Myriad accepts submissions directly from authors, and also from literary agents.

Before you submit your manuscript, explore the other books they’ve published to ensure that yours fits with the style and themes of their list.

Myriad does not publish:

• • Young adult fiction, children’s books, horror, science fiction, fantasy, plays or poetry

• Books that have been previously published or self-published (in print or as ebooks) unless you are a graphic novelist
  
  Literary agents, please note:
  They are unable to consider books that have been published in the USA or those already acquired by a US publisher unless publication is scheduled for at least one year hence.

How to submit

No paper submissions. Email submissions@myriadeditions.com with the following info:

• • Why you think Myriad is the right publisher for your book

• • Details of any previous publications, including online and in literary or other magazines

• • Details of any competition successes

• • At least two comparable titles i.e. books that have been published in the last five years that are similar to yours in style, subject matter and/or readership

• • A synopsis

• (for graphic books) A sample PDF (no larger than 10MB) and a link to your complete work

O’Brien Press

O’Brien Press Manuscript Submission Guidelines

The O’Brien Press are committed to new and developing talent, and encourage any aspiring authors to send their writing in.

However, please note the following:

They publish mainly children’s fiction, children’s non-fiction, and adult non-fiction. They do not publish poetry, academic works or adult fiction.

Should your submission be 1000 words or less then you may submit your work in its entirety. Please number all the pages of your submission appropriately. For anything more than this length — for example, a children’s novel — a synopsis and 2 or 3 sample chapters is more than adequate.

Papercutz (and CHARMZ)

Papercutz are all about publishing great graphic novels for all ages. Popular with reluctant readers and gifted readers alike, Papercutz graphic novels for kids, tweens, and teens include a wide range of genres, including humor, action adventure, mystery, horror, and favorite characters. Papercutz is proud to be the only publisher exclusively dedicated to children’s graphic novels.

If you’re interested in submitting work to Papercutz, please e-mail Salicrup@papercutz.com.

Penguin Publishing

Donald A. Wollheim (DAW) Books are strongly committed to discovering and nurturing new talent, and to keeping a personal “family” spirit at DAW—something they feel is all too rare in today’s world of international conglomerate publishing.

Submission Guidelines

DAW accepts unsolicited submissions of science fiction and fantasy novels. They won’t consider short stories, short story collections, novellas, or poetry. The average length of the novels they publish varies, but is almost never fewer than 80,000 words.

A literary agent is not required for submission. They won’t consider manuscripts that are currently on submission to another publisher unless prior arrangements have been made with a literary agent. It may require three months or more for their editors to review a manuscript. If they take longer than three months to review your manuscript, they no longer require an exclusive submission.

At this time, DAW only accepts electronic submissions through their Submittable page: dawbooksinc.submittable.com/submit.

Quirk Books

How to submit your idea to Quirk?

Quirk loves smart, original, cool, and fun books! However, each editor has their own submissions policy, so please review their guidelines carefully.

Our house policy: They only review digital queries and sample material. No physical submissions.

Who should I contact?

Alex Arnold (Senior Editor) is looking for high-concept, original, and beautifully told stories for the young and young at heart. She specializes in picture books, middle grade, and Young Adult fiction and non-fiction at Quirk. In picture books, she’s especially looking for the funny, inventive, and absurd. In middle-grade fiction, she’s drawn to dark and strange magic, high-concept twists, and family stories with a hook. In YA non-fiction, she’d like to find accessible projects that engage with topics like mental health, toxic masculinity, and intersectional feminism; in fiction, she’d especially like to see queer rom-coms, magical realism, and fresh retellings.

She is only accepting agented submissions and authors referred by other Quirk authors at this time.

Email: Alex@quirkbooks.com

Rick Chillot (Senior Editor) is interested in fiction and non-fiction for adults that has one foot in the familiar and one foot in the strange, and that speaks to fans of sci-fi, comics and superheroes, fantasy, horror, comedy, and unexplored aspects of pop culture history. He especially likes projects with potential for a prominent visual or graphic component. Offbeat humor pitches: yes. Zombies, poetry, or parodies of existing books: no thanks. Graphic novel pitches welcome, though space for those is limited so be sure your work is of professional quality!

Your pitch should have a clear, strong premise that you can articulate in a sentence or two. Don’t just send an idea; send an attachment with a full outline or synopsis, plus sample chapters or full manuscript. If your project relies heavily on visuals, the pitch must have sample art.

Email submissions only, no mailings, please. If agented, please indicate in the subject line.

Email: RickC@quirkbooks.com

Rebecca Gyllenhaal (Assistant Editor) is on the lookout for high-concept, genre-bending fiction and nonfiction for adults, but is open to good proposals in any category.

In adult fiction, her bread and butter is mystery, thriller, and suspense (think Tana French but more high-concept, or Donna Tartt but more commercial). She also loves character-driven sci-fi, genre-adjacent fiction with a literary bent, and gothic or horror fiction, especially when it deliberately plays with the tropes.

In adult nonfiction, she’s interested in pop culture-driven projects, pop history, humor, and gift books with an off-the-wall sensibility. She’d especially like to see any project that can capture that blend of dark yet absurd millennial humor or is driven by cultural obsessions and/or affection.

She is actively seeking diverse authors and pitches and is open to unagented submissions at this time. Please send as much material as you have—at least sample chapters and an outline if not the full manuscript (but keep your cover letter brief and to-the-point).

Email: RebeccaG@quirkbooks.com

Scholastic Canada

Manuscript and Art Submission Guidelines

General Notes

Scholastic publishes recreational reading for children and young people, ages 0–14. Their publishing focus is on books by Canadians or of Canadian interest that engage children by reflecting their own contemporary experiences, affirm positive portrayals of people with differing experiences, and celebrate Canada’s diverse communities.

Illustrators

Professional illustrators interested in working with Scholastic are invited to email sample art and links to an online portfolio to Andrea Casault, Art Director at acasault@scholastic.ca.

Writers

Scholastic Canada is currently interested in reviewing unpublished material from Indigenous creators in all genres and at all levels that corresponds with our publishing focus. No other unsolicited submissions are being accepted at this time.

• • For picture books, submit full manuscript. No illustrations necessary.

• • For junior, middle-grade and YA fiction, submit an outline and three consecutive sample chapters.

• • For non-fiction, submit outline and writing sample.

• • Do not submit original illustrations or other materials.

• Allow 6 months for response.

Seven Stories

An independent press publishing works of literature and nonfiction by voices of conscience.
Books for Progressive Children, Baby Radicals, and Curious Kids of All Stripes

Manuscript submissions, accompanied by a cover letter and two sample chapters only, with a 46-cent SASE or postcard for a reply.

Sterling Publishing

No electronic submissions.

Adult and Young Adult Books

At present, the Sterling list is composed of a broad range of subject areas including current events, diet and health, parenting, pop culture, reference, history, art and artists, music, and everything in between.

Children’s Books
Sterling Children’s Books publishes both fiction and non-fiction, including the classics, picture books, joke books, and novelty formats, as well as books for babies and toddlers. FlashKids imprint publishes workbooks and flash cards for preschool, elementary, and middle school students in essential curriculum areas such as reading, math, writing, test preparation, and much more.

Submissions Guidelines
Please write to us explaining your idea and enclose an outline and a sample chapter of the proposed book (typed and double-spaced, please) along with sample illustrations where applicable. For Children’s books, please submit full manuscripts. No electronic (e-mail) submissions. Be sure to include information about yourself with particular regard to your skills and qualifications in the subject area of your submission.

The Phoenix

The Phoenix are not actively looking for submissions at this time but if you are an artist or think you have a cool idea for an awesome comic that’s appropriate for kids age 6-12 then we’d still love to hear from you.

You can send art samples and story ideas to submissions@thephoenixcomic.co.uk. Obviously, the more fully formed an idea is, the easier it is to consider.

Titan Books

NON-FICTION ART & COMICS REFERENCE
They are looking for strong proposals for these titles, preferably creator or character-led. They prefer writers who have a proven track record in this area, and good contacts in the art & comics world. They are also interested to hear from writers who would be interested in working on licensed publications they have already contracted.

COMICS & GRAPHIC NOVELS
The majority of Titan’s graphic novel titles are licensed from overseas publishers or acquired through agents. They do publish a growing number of originated graphic novels. They run portfolio sessions at comic conventions where your work may be reviewed. They are interested to hear from writers and artists who would be interested in working on licensed projects they have already contracted.

TwoMorrows Publishing

If you have an idea for a book you’d like TwoMorrows to consider publishing, please e-mail publisher John Morrow at twomorrow@aol.com

To help them better evaluate your idea, send a 1000 word (or less) proposal, including a detailed description and highlights of the project, who you see as the main audience for it, and a breakdown of the chapters of the book.

For details on submitting art and articles for their magazines, please contact each of their editors directly for the submission requirements:

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Comic and Cartoon Syndicate Submission Guidelines

Andrews McMeel Syndication

Andrews McMeel Syndication is always looking for great new comics and columns.

Submission Guide for Comics
-4 to 6 weeks of samples of a proposed feature
-A letter explaining the purpose and scope of your material.

Creators, Inc

Creators, Inc. distributes a great variety of continuing features, such as comic strips and panels, columns and political cartoons, as well as books and original manuscripts. They are constantly on the lookout for quality features. The potential distribution for your work includes virtually every American newspaper that buys syndicated material, as well as other national and international publications.

Since 2015, Creators only accepts submissions digitally. All hard-copy submissions will be returned to the sender without being opened, read or considered in any way.

They like to develop a personal relationship with the artists and writers they syndicate – include some information about yourself with your submission (resumes are fine). While having been published before is, of course, a great recommendation, good writing, and cartooning stand on their own, and your material will be considered whether you have a cabinet full of clips or not.

King Features

King Features is always happy to look at new comic features for possible syndication. They believe in the art of cartooning and place great importance on looking at new material. They carefully consider every comic strip or panel idea submitted.

Your total submission package should include:

• A cover letter — that briefly outlines the overall nature of your comic strip.
• 24 daily comic strips — on 8-1/2″ x 11″ paper (you can fit up to 3 or 4 strips per page).
• A character sheet — that shows your major characters (if any) along with their names and a paragraph description of each.
• No submissions via email.

WHAT DO KING FEATURES LOOK FOR IN A SUBMISSION?
“We are looking for comic features that will simultaneously appeal to the editors who buy comics and the readers whose interest the comics must sustain for years to follow. We don’t have a formula for telling us which comics will do that, but we do look for some elements that we believe people respond to.

First, we look for a uniqueness that reflects the cartoonist’s individual slant on the world and humor. If we see that unique slant, we look to see if the cartoonist is turning his or her attention to events that other people can relate to.

Second, we very carefully study a cartoonist’s writing ability. Good writing helps weak art, better than good art helps weak writing. Good art is also important. It is what first attracts readers to a comic strip. We look to see that your art is drawn clearly and with visual impact. We want our comics to be noticed on a page.

Finally, we look for your ability to sustain a high level of quality material. We want comics that readers will enjoy for years and years.”

Tribune Content Agency

Tribune Content Agency accepts electronic-only submissions for columns, commentary, comics, editorial cartoons, puzzles and other content, including high-profile digital ventures and multimedia offerings.

They are looking for well-established brand names and talent with a history of strong audience appeal. Referrals from established contacts or agents are preferred. They approve and take to market only a small fraction of the content they receive.

Washington Post

Submit a Cartoon
To submit your editorial cartoons or comic strip/panel for consideration, please provide at least 24 cartoons in one multi-page PDF document, with at least two dailies on each page.
Email your submission to cartoonsubmission@washpost.com

Further Reading

Resources: How To Break Into Comics and Survive Once You’re There

A constantly updated list of resources for creators in all ends of the business, from the mechanics of pitching to the psychology or surviving, how to exhibit at shows, crowdfunding basics and more.