Open Submissions: The Guidelines!
By Anne Perry
Posted on July 2, 2015 in News with tags Open Submissions, Writing Advice
Back in March we announced that we’d be opening for submissions in August. Well, August is nearly upon us! So it’s time for us to share our submission guidelines with you. Please read these carefully and remember that we absolutely will not read anything submitted to us before August 3rd.
Good luck polishing your manuscript – we can’t wait to get stuck in!
What we’re looking for:
We publish a wonderful, exciting, diverse list of SFF here at Hodder – and we’re always on the lookout for new talent.
Specifically, we are looking for novels (50,000 words or more) that contain some element of the speculative or fantastic. Simply put, we’re looking for awesome science fiction, fantasy and horror novels.
This open submissions period is a chance for unagented authors to get their manuscripts in front of us.
If you have an agent, please do not submit to us during this open submissions period. Ask your agent to send us your manuscript via the usual channels.
How to submit:
The submissions period will open at 12 am GMT on 3 August, 2015, and will close on 16 August, 2015, at 11.59 pm, GMT.
We will NOT read anything submitted outside this period.
During the submissions period, please send your submission with the subject line ‘submission – TITLE – your name’
to hodderscape@hodder.co.uk.
- For example: submission – A THANE OF GROANS – Anne Perry
Please include only the following attachments:
- The first 3 chapters or the first 15,000 words of your novel, whichever you prefer.
- make sure your pages are numbered.
- A single cover page with the following information:
- Your name
- Your contact information
- The title of your novel
- The word-count
- A synopsis of your novel. This must be no more than two pages long.
PLEASE NOTE that you may attach the cover page, synopsis and first three chapters as a single document or three separate documents.
Do not send us your entire novel.
If we would like to read the rest we will contact you to call it in.
Multiple Submissions
Multiple submissions are allowed. If you would like to submit more than one work, please:
- send a separate email for each submission using the subject line template above.
- let us know that you have submitted more than one work.
If you are submitting several related works, say, three novels that make up a trilogy, please let us know the following information in the synopsis and on the cover page:
- what number the specific work is in relation to the others (for example: Book 2 of 3)
Format:
- Word docs only. Both .doc and .docx are fine.
- Please use Times New Roman in 11 or 12-point font.
- Please double-space your submission.
What to expect:
We will first send you an email to confirm that your submission has been received. If you do not receive a confirmation email from us within two weeks of your submission, please email us at the above address.
We will read through every submission that we receive. We will make every effort to get back in touch with you by 30 September, 2015, to let you know our decision.
Please do not email us to ask whether we’ve read your submission yet.
The Nitty-Gritty:
We are not open to poetry, children’s fiction, non-fiction, short stories or novellas.
We will accept YA/crossover submissions, but:
- your submission must contain an element of the speculative or fantastic, and
- your submission must be firmly crossover.
- That is, your novel must also appeal to non-YA readers. You’ll have to use your good judgement here, but if we feel the submission skews too young, we’ll reject it.
This is only a submission; by sending us your manuscript you are not granting us any rights to your novel.
If we pass on your manuscript, we will delete your email and all attachments.
If you have any questions, please post them in the comments and we’ll answer!
Answers to FAQs:
- We are open to submissions from anywhere in the world, not just the UK.
- If you would like to submit a previously self-published novel, please let us know in your email that it was previously self-published.
Hello,
For your open submissions that you’re offering between August 3 and August 16, are you accepting submissions from outside of the UK?
Thank you!
~Erin
Yes, definitely!
This is probably a stupid question, but by double space do you mean double line spacing? Double spacing after a full stop? Double space between each letter?
Don’t worry; it’s not a stupid question. Double-spaced refers to the line spacing. Please do not put double spaces between each letter. Double spaces after each full stop are up to you.
Here is a good website with 16 tips for formatting a manuscript nicely. (Although we request that submissions be written in Times New Roman, not Courier.)
Does the novel have to be finished?
Nope. We only require the first 3 chapters or 15,000 words. If we like it and we call it in, and it’s not finished… well, we’ll cross that bridge when we get there.
Does the synopsis have to be double-spaced?
Great question! No, if you need the extra space you should take it.
Thanks, Anne. That’s good to know.
How much detail are you after, synopsis-wise? A full outline, or better to keep it concise?
We’ll want to know the plot of the entire novel – but as you only have two pages for your synopsis, you’ll have to be concise!
What if the story has already been self-published, for example, on Amazon?
As mentioned in the instructions above, please tell us that the novel was previously self-published when you email us your submission.
Hello Anne,
A quick question – if you’ve been scribbling away for years just for an open submission call like this – are you open to multiple submissions or should we submit only one of our projects?
Multiple submissions are fine!
Would you consider a novel that is currently being serialized on Wattpad (but isn’t yet available elsewhere), if the serialization would continue after the novel was submitted?
If we liked the novel and wanted to buy and publish it, we would probably ask that you stop serializing it.
Does the novel have to be standalone, or can it be part of a larger series?
Either is fine.
How do you feel about steampunk?
Steampunk has elements of the speculative and/or fantastic categorically built into it – so we’re on board!
Can we submit more than one novel?
Yes, absolutely.
Hi Anne,
Are multiple submissions allowed?
Cheers!
They are!
Would you accept multiple submissions from one author, in particular a fantasy and a science fiction?
We will accept multiple submissions, but SFF or Horror only, please!
Poor, brave, slush reader. You have my sympathy for the grinding task ahead, my admiration for taking it on and opening the doors, and my most profound jealousy for when you find something magnificent. I wish you the very, very best of luck
Thanks! We’ve got a team lined up and we’re very excited about it!
When it comes to formatting, should italicised words and passages be shown as italics or underlined?
I prefer italics but won’t stop reading if the author has chosen to use underlining instead.
Thanks, Anne.
A couple of quick questions if I may – you mentioned Steampunk, how about comic Dieselpunk? And science fiction comedy in general?
Secondly, there is already at least one author out there with the same name as me, if I wanted to be published under a pseudonym would I have to put that as the name on the submission? Or would that be something to be dealt with later?
Thank you.
Any -punk is fine, as long as the submission contains some element of the speculative or fantastic.
Please submit under your real name; if you’re concerned that we’ll be confused, let us know in your email that you have the same name as a famous author but you aren’t that person. (As someone with the same name as a famous author, I understand!)
Would you accept a book previously published by a now defunct indie publisher?
I’m afraid not.
Is dystopian fiction acceptable?
Dystopian fiction is inherently speculative, so yes!
Many thanks!
Hi there, quick question. Are you looking for professionally edited submissions?
If so, are there any editing companies that you would recommend that I hire prior to submission?
No, the manuscript does not need to be professionally edited.
Do you accept simultaneous submissions?
Yes.
Hello!
I didn’t see any rule stating that the manuscript needed to be complete. Mine is nearly there, but I wanted to check just in case. Generally, I feel they should be completed, but I’d like to take the opportunity to submit to you if its not done by then all the same!
It does not need to be complete.
Probably a silly question, but I’d rather ask than get it wrong. For the one page cover letter, aside from including the required information above, should we also include a query-letter style paragraph or two presenting the story – or do you want only that basic information and the attached full synopsis and chapters?
Please include only the basic information requested above on the cover letter. We should be able to get the flavour of the novel from the partial you submit and from the 1-2 page synopsis.
Do you want plot spoilers in the synopsis? The story I am hoping you will love has a twist at the end—do you want to know what it is?
Yes, please tell us how the book ends! Even if that spoils the twist – that’s the price we pay as commissioning editors!
With regards to the cover information, you request word count, is that the word count for the submission or for the completed novel, im sure it’s a daft question, but would not want to make a simple mistake. Thanks
It’s not a daft question at all! Please include the word count of your completed novel.
Hope you don’t mind me asking another question!
You said “Word Docs” – Word has two formats, the earlier.doc and newer .docx….which one would you like?
What is the policy on books that are co-written? As in two people worked on the story together.
Also what is the policy books that would have an occasional illustration drawn by a third party?
Like If I asked a friend to draw the cover art and a few illustrations per every 5-8 pages
Co-written is absolutely fine; please make it clear in your submission that there are multiple authors.
Please do not include a cover image or illustrations with your submission. If you wish to let us know that you have already generated these or feel, for example, that internal illustrations are necessary to the novel, please let us know in the 1-2 page synopsis.
Hi Anne,
Thank you for answering all these questions, but I have yet another one for you!
I will be sending you the first book in a series, and I have already written the second one. Can I send you the first 15,000 words of both and both synopsis, or would you prefer just the first one?
Also, for multiple submissions, (I’ve been busy) would you prefer each one attached to a separate email, or all attached to one email?
Thank you!!
Ken
You may send the second one as well, as long as you make it VERY CLEAR in the synopsis that it is the second in a series and you’ve also submitted the first.
One email per submission, please!
Thank you!
Two quick questions:
1 – You ask for the first 3 chapters or the first 15,000 words…can it be somewhere in between the two? (i.e., more than three chapters, but fewer than 15,000 words, just to a logical breaking point)
2 – What level of contact information do you need? Just email, or full address?
Thanks!
1. Yes, that is fine.
2. We require at least an email address; you are welcome to include more contact info if you wish.
I am wondering about mature content. Sexual material, swearing, violence ext… will a little of these elements done in a tasteful fashion be unacceptable? Are you guys only looking for books geared towards young-adults?
As mentioned in the submissions guidelines above, we are not only looking for books geared towards young adults. Mature content is completely acceptable.
Good afternoon.
I would like to submit my manuscript to you, but originally it was a 5000 page, single spaced novel, which I’ve had to break down i into 12 shorter books. Which ending should I include? The ending of book 1 or 12?
Thank you.
Karen.
If you are submitting the first of the twelve books, please only submit the first 3 chapters or 15,000 words, as above. In your synopsis, please let us know that it is one of a twelve-book series but describe the plot of only the book you are submitting.
Hi Anne – I understand multiple submission are fine – are separate emails preferred, or one email inc. all submissions? Thanks in advance.
Separate emails, please, all using the subject line formatting as given above.
Thank you kindly,
Craig
I just saw this. I’m part way into writing a book which is intended to be the first of three 70-80k word long novels telling a single fantasy story set in the modern day. I have outlines for all three (in diminishing detail, but all three book endings are there). Would you be interested and if so, what would you want to see – 15,000 and the outline for all three, or just the first?
The outline for the first only, please, including a line about how it’s the first in a trilogy.
Hi, If the book has illustrations and a specific artist is currently doing the drawings, should the illustrations be included in the submission?
Should we put the cover letter, synopsis and first three chapters into 1 document and attach it to the email or would you prefer three separate attachments?
Either is fine. Just make sure, if they’re all different attachments, that your name is clearly marked on each document.
I use a different font (aerial) at one point to indicate that the text is from a newspaper – is that acceptable?
That’s fine!
Do you want a covering letter with pitch as well as the cover sheet, and if yes, should it be in the text of the email or attachment only?
Statements about multiple submissions – in the email or in one of the attachments?
All we want is
– one cover letter
– one 1-2 page synopsis
– 1 word document containing the first 3 chapters or 15,000 words of your novel.
All must be ATTACHED to the email, NOT included in the body of the email.
You may make them a single attachment or three separate attachments, whichever you prefer.
You may make multiple submissions but each submission must come via a separate email.
Re. telling us about the multiple submissions: please include that information in the body of your email.
This might be a stupid question … does the cover page have to be the first page in the word document or does it have to be a separate page?
Thanks!
Not a stupid question; I’m not clear in the instructions above. Either is fine.
Hi, can I just confirm that it is ok for the synopsis not to be double spaced? Formatting it that way makes ours just over two pages. Also you mentioned in an earlier post that you don’t accept cover illustrations. My daughter, (And co-author!) and her friends spent a lot of time and effort creating a conceptual cover for our book. Do you really not want to see it?!
Yes, the synopsis can be single-spaced.
No, I’m afraid we are not accepting cover illustrations.
I might have missed this mentioned in the guidelines or the comments, but do you want headers–page number/author name/title of manuscript on each page of the document? Or should those be omitted–I’ve heard that it can mess up the format if they’re included. Should we delete them before submitting?
I didn’t mention it, which I should have. Yes, a header with author name and page number would be helpful.
Another question–what is the cap on word count? Do you accept manuscripts longer than 120,000 words? My manuscript should fall between 130,000 and 140,000 by the time it’s completed. Do you accept manuscripts that length?
I tried to be very clear in the guidelines above that we will ONLY ACCEPT the first three chapters or 15,000 words. DO NOT SUBMIT THE FULL MANUSCRIPT.
I know that! I meant, normally, when it comes to your published novels, what is the word count cap? I understand that for the competition you’re looking for only the first three chapters/first 15,000 words. I just wanted to make sure that, if it turned out you were interested in the manuscript, that the word count wouldn’t turn you off. That’s all–the confusion was my fault, since I didn’t make myself clear enough. Sorry about that.
Annnnd I said ‘competition’ when I meant ‘submission’ time. Oops.
Don’t worry, we’re not intimidated by long books!! Tad Williams’ novel To Green Angel Tower is 520,000 words.
Question three (this is the last question, sorry for taking up so much time): Should we consider prologues as one chapter if we submit three chapters?
Yes.
Thanks so much for answering all my questions!
Hi, strange question, but I’d want to use a pseudonym if my book were to be published, should I use my real name on the cover page etc, or the name I plan to use? I know that’s a bit of an odd question, but thought it was best to ask!
Please use your real name for the time being – the most important information for us is your contact information.
Someone asked earlier about headers with name and page number. My page numbers are in a footer at the bottom right of each page. I could also include a header with my name for each page; but isn’t that distracting for the reader?
Please advise – thank you.
It’s not distracting, I promise!
Thank you for the reply re headers.
Please would you clarify re word count. If the novel is, say, 86,745 does that count as 87,00 or if 86,312 as 86,00, i.e. rounding up or down to the nearest whole 1,000.
Thank you.
Please specify the exact word-count. If your novel is 86, 745 words long, please tell us that.
Thank you for clarifying that.
I was just wondering, in the two pages explaining the story, would you like me to explain just the storyline of the first book or do you want me to explain everything of the story since I planned it out to be a trilogy?
That’s up to you, though I suggest you spend most of the space you have describing the synopsis of the book you’ve submitted and limit the talk about the rest of the series to a sentence or two.
Hi Anne,
Would you also consider submissions for sample fantasy art?
I’m afraid this is just for novels!
I’m afraid this might also fall into the stupid question pile, but is the 15k words/three chapter requirement exclusive? If three chapters are longer than 15k words is that acceptable or is 15k a hard limit?
15,000 words OR three chapters, whichever you prefer.
Ok, thanks Anne!
Hello Anne – should the synopsis continue from the end of the first 15000 words/three chapters or cover the whole story, including the first part? – Thanks.
Definitely include the first 15,000 words/3 chapters in the synopsis, even if it’s only a line or two.
Dear Ms Perry,
My novel would probably belong in the speculative genre, but as its genre is a little ambiguous, I thought I should check before sending it. It is partly set in an afterlife in which the dead allocate the fates of the living. The narrator is dead. Each chapter begins in the afterlife following one character who works in a particular department of allocation. They allocate a fate to a particular individual. The chapter then follows that individual from birth to death until they die and then begin the next chapter as an ‘allocator’ in the afterlife. Would this be acceptable to submit or is it a bit too lacking in fantastical/speculative elements?
Yours sincerely,
Emma Dawson
That’s 100% speculative so it’s definitely one to submit!
That’s great news. Thank you!
Hi. I just thought of another question I’d like addressed–if we’ve written up a Glossary of Terms/Proper Nouns for our fantasy submission, would you like this included? Or should we avoid attaching this to the document?
Thanks for taking the time to read this!
No, please don’t include the glossary – just include the documents specified above.
Dear Ms Perry
If my submission should not be successful, when would I know please, so that I can submit the MS elsewhere, e.g. to an agent?
We will try to let you know about the status of your submission by 30th September. You are more than welcome to submit your manuscript elsewhere while you’re waiting.
OK thank you very much for confirming that. And for letting us know too, as other open subs I’ve seen didn’t email – basically said ‘if you don’t hear from us, assume you weren’t successful’, which always makes you wonder if they did receive the submission.
Dear Ann,
I’ve read through all the questions, but I’m afraid that I need another answering.
Would you accept a finished novel that is an alternative history, science fiction romance (not erotica)?
Thank you for taking the time to answer questions, it’s much appreciated.
Jo Thwaites
Yes, that would fit our criteria.
Once submissions have closed, just wondered if it would be possible for you to post an occasional progress update on here – as in “we have now replied to all people who submitted on 4th and 5th of August” – assuming you are working in date order. That would be helpful – allow folks to track if an email has gone awry.
That’s a very good idea – yes, we’ll do something like that.
Hi Anne
I’ve got a novel set a few years in the future with a dystopian/dark feel. Would that fit your criteria?
It would indeed!
Thank you for clarifying.
Hi, I just have a question about the following:
We will accept YA/crossover submissions, but:
– your submission must contain an element of the speculative or fantastic, and
– your submission must be firmly crossover.
That is, your novel must also appeal to non-YA readers. You’ll have to use your good judgement here, but if we feel the submission skews too young, we’ll reject it.
It mentions you will accept YA/Crossover but then further down it implies it must be firmly crossover, does this mean it can just be YA or does it have to be Crossover YA?
Apologies for being unclear; we mean crossover YA.
Great thank you for clarifying!
Hi Anne,
I have a question about word-count in the covering letter. If the manuscript is still in progress, would you prefer the current word-count, an estimated final word-count, or both?
Current word-count, please – might as well mention that it’s in progress, too. You could add an estimated final word-count.
I’m sorry, I’m still a little confused about the emails – whether or not any text at all is OK in the body of the email. I’ve understood that the covering page to your specification, plus synopsis, plus 15,000 word sample is to be attached (either as 3 documents or one) and NOT pasted in the body of the email. Generally, I also put two or three sentences in the body of the email along the lines of “Dear Ms Perry, Please find attached my fantasy novel, xxxx, in which…. ” unless the instructions say to leave the body of the email blank. Do you want the body of the email to be completely blank?
No, the body of the email does not need to be completely blank – what you suggest above is fine.
If my submission was previously self-published, do I need to make sure it is not for sale through any venue before I submit?
No, you can leave it up. If we accept your submission and buy your book, then you’d have to take it down… but for now, leave it up!
You mention that you will be accepting submissions that have previously been self-published. What about submissions that are imminently going to be self-published (i.e. basically at the same time as submitting for your consideration)?
I’m very keen to submit to this open call, and thank you for allowing us to do so, but I don’t feel like I can delay until October an advertised self-published release that is scheduled to happen in the coming fortnight!
Go ahead and self-publish! If we call in the rest of the novel and then decide to make an offer for it, we can discuss taking your self-published edition down then.
Thank you kindly – that is just what I wanted to hear! 🙂
Is the Times New Roman required for the three chapters / 15,000 words only, or for all three documents?
I’m asking as I don’t partiularly like it; I’d rather use another font for the cover page and full synopsis if possible.
Also, could you just confirm that the start time is 01:00 am BST on 3 August?
Yes, Times New Roman is required for all three.
Thank you for your answers to all the questions above but I’m afraid I have another one.
There seems to be two schools of thought regarding the synopsis, one that it should be quite factual and deal with the plot in a matter of fact kind of a way whereas the second school wants to see an emotional understanding of what the characters are going through.
I was just (at this late stage) wondering which approach you’d appreciate most regarding the synopsis.
My thanks for your patience with us all…
Whatever works best for you – I’d say go for whichever appraoch you think best encapsulates your work!
I’m sorry, I have a question too. My chapters are quite short, so I’m going for the 15,000 words, and the question is: how hard is a hard limit? Should I cut off in mid-sentence, or may I go over a bit to get to the end of a scene? Or should I stop short and be a few hundred words under?
To the end of the sentence/paragraph, I think. Or stop a few hundred words under, whatever you think reads better.
Thank you so much for doing this, and I really appreciate all the comments in this post.
I have a somewhat “snowflake” question: I’d like to submit about 15,751 words because that includes an additional chapter and introduces the last POV of the novel. Or should I just skip that and stick to the hard 15,000 word count?
Thank you for your patience and I apologise for being daft.
Please stick with the 15,000 word limit.
Noted, thank you Anne!
I’m trying to submit three chapters and I’m getting a bounceback message.
Can you please advise?
Cathleen
We’ll email you to discuss.
Having giggled my way through the questions I find I have to ask one! I can’t find your Email address, probably can’t see for looking.
Hodderscape@hodder.co.uk
Ha! clot that I am, have found it in the address bar! see, can’t see for looking!
No worries! We enlarged it in the body of the post, too.
I self-published a science fiction novel nine years ago. A small, now-defunct company called Poetry Monthly Press printed it for me. Though I was the actual publisher, in that I paid for it, a copy or two is available on Amazon, where the publisher is listed as ‘Poetry Monthly Press.’ In the light of this, would you accept the book as a submission?
Sure – First 3 chapters or 15,000 words, as above!
Thanks!
hello! My novel is YA (With crossover appeal, I believe) and it’s teens who travel in time to a magical version of WW2. Is this acceptable? I haven’t heard the term speculative before so am a little uncertain….
Thanks!
Yes, as long as it’s firmly crossover.
Great, thank you.
I’m curious, will there be another open submission anytime in the future?
Probably, but we don’t know when yet.
Hi! First off, thank you so much for doing this. I hope your editors have lots of coffee and infinite patience and I appreciate what you guys are doing for us unagented authors from the bottom of my heart.
I would like to know if this needs to be an exclusive submission though. If we have our MS on sub to other agents/publishers, do we need to withdraw it to enter or can we continue to sub elsewhere?
No, you can continue to sub it out elsewhere.
Thank you!
I have heard that some publishers do not like prologues to novels, what are your thoughts on this?
Depends on the prologue!
Hi. Does the synopsis also need to be double spaced?
No.
Hello there.
Alright. I have a stupid question too. I am sending the first three chapters of my novel, which adds up to 12 633 words. I would really like to include the prologue though, which I feel is quite important to understanding where the story begins. By adding the prologue, the word count becomes 16 444. Would this be a problem? I’d like to avoid cutting the third chapter – it’s a pretty good chapter.
Sorry; we really do need to limit it to three chapters and/or 15k words.
Okay cool, thank you! Let me see what I can do. Hopefully the synopsis explains the story enough the cut the prologue
Hi – I have a book I’m thinking of submitting. The first four chapters come to less than the 15k. Is it okay to send all four? It breaks the story at a better place, I think. I suppose I could make my chapters longer but the chapter breaks make sense where they are so I’m hesitant to do that.
Cheers
Niki
You can send the first three chapters OR the first 15,000 words, whatever suits you!
Thanks for the reply, and the exciting opportunity. I’ll have a think 🙂
One last question before I send these off to you – is there any specific way you would like our attachments to be named? Should our name or the Title be in it, or can we simply name them “Cover Page” , “Synopsis” , “Chapters” ?
how about ‘TITLE – cover page’ ‘TITLE – synopsis’ ‘TITLE
Perfect! Thank you for the prompt response. I’ll be sending them now. I look forward to hearing from you. Good luck with all the reading!
Dear Ms. Perry:
I can’t seem to find in this submission request what rights are on offer. Electronic only? British? European? North American? Or do we only find that out if you purchase our manuscript? Thank you for any light you can shed on this matter.
We’ll be looking to purchase full volume rights, including physical, digital and audio throughout the world, but will be open to negotiation once we make our first offer.
I haven’t seen this asked yet, so I’m going to.
When you say you’ll let everyone know by end of September does that mean you’ll send all the emails out at the end of September or gradually email people as and when you’ve read their MS?
I’m horribly impatient! But totally understand what a humongous job this must be for you all! You have my utmost respect 😀
Thanks!
Laura
We hope to have replied to everyone by the end of September, and we won’t begin sending out responses until the submissions period has closed.
Hi, Anne!
This will be my first submission, so please bear with me…
Regarding Chapter Titles, would the following formatting be correct?
*Start each new chapter one-third of the way down the page
*The Chapter Number and Chapter Title should be in all caps, separated by two hyphens:
CHAPTER 1—THE THRANE OF GROANS.
*Begin the body of the chapter four to six lines below the Chapter Title.
Thanks!
Shannon
You can format the chapter headings in whatever way you feel is best.
Thanks so much, Anne!
Do you need any readers? I’d love to offer my services if you do
Very kind of you, thank you! We’ve got a whole crew working diligently away, but thank you for the lovely offer.
Hi, one last question – a very basic one, and sorry if it seems stupid, but this will be my first submission anywhere. When you say 2 pages for the synopsis, Is that A4 pages?
Ooops, sorry posted in wrong place. Will re post in it’s own question and not in SK’s message.
Hey there! I’m curious about something that I cannot seem to find in this post. Could you tell us what rights are on offer with this call for submissions? Are we talking electronic only? North American? Euro zone? Some combination thereof or hitherto unmentioned? Or is this something you can only share with those who are selected out of this particular crop of talent? (Thank you for this opportunity!)
We’ll be looking to purchase full volume rights, including physical, digital and audio for the world but are, of course, open to negotiation once an offer is made.
Thank you very much for clearly that up. It is appreciated. 🙂
Hi, how complete need it be? I have 5 volumes I’ve been working on for years. Vol 1 is almost ready for self-publishing, but the punctuation of the rest is all over the place (as I have concentrated more on the first 2. I’m going to spend the next few days fixing that on my submissions, but may not have time for all of them. Will it matter?
You are welcome to submit as many books as you like but the submission MUST be ONLY 15,000 words or three chapters. We will not read complete manuscripts at this stage in the open submissions process. I’d suggest you tidy up any submission before sending it in; typos inevitably sneak into any manuscript, but lots of typos can turn off the person who’s reading and reviewing your submission and result in a turn-down.
Thanks. Yes I read that it’s 15000 words, or 3 chapters, only and have split them out from the start of each volume. I’ll do my best. Is it ok to send each one in as it’s ready or is all 5 at once better?
Whichever you prefer.
Thank you. I think I’ll be burning the midnight oil for a while. Thank you very much for this opportunity.
Hi, one last question – a very basic one, and sorry if it seems stupid, but this will be my first submission anywhere. When you say 2 pages for the synopsis, Is that A4 pages?
That’s right!
Phew! Thank you.
Quick few questions, sorry for asking them during the submission time.
1: When it says provide a word count for the total manuscript, what do you do if it isn’t finished yet? Do you give the current word count or a projected one? Mine is nearly finished, but I don’t know if it’ll be done before the submission deadline.
2: Are working titles okay? Should it be marked as a working title?
1. A projected word-count is fine.
2. Yes, that’s fine.
I have 2 questions please:
1. Is the deal on offer a traditional you publish in all territories & the author gets royalties for each sale?
2. I’ve only just seen this & don’t think I’ll be able to finish 3 chapters within the time frame as I was working on a non SFF novel until very recently. I have an ending & a synopsis, I just haven’t started writing it yet. Do you know when your next open submissions will be?
Thank you
1. The deal will be subject to negotiation.
2. We don’t yet know when we’ll be re-opening for submissions, but it won’t be for another year at least.
Thank you for replying. Perhaps I didn’t ask clearly enough? What I’m aiming to discover is are you aiming to ‘buy’ or ‘license’ our works? There is an important distinction between the 2 & therefore of the value of what you’re offering & negotiations or no, there must be a baseline
Subject to negotiation makes me think I need to get a solicitor
We are looking to buy the right to publish manuscripts throughout the world. ‘Subject to negotiation’ means that, if I offer for a manuscript, I will offer to publish it in particular territories at particular royalty rates and for a particular advance, and the person with whom I’m negotiating will counteroffer, and we’ll continue until we can agree terms, at which point we will sign a contract giving Hodder the right to publish under those terms.
That’s what I wanted to clarify. Thank you
What is your average pay rate per word, and do you offer any advances on royalties? Thanks!
We will offer for the manuscript in full, regardless of word-count, and advances and royalties are subject to contract and negotiation.
Oh my goodness. I’ve just realised that in my second submission I forgot to add the header with the information and page numbers. May I resubmit?
Yes, just let us know in the body of your email that you’re resubmitting.
Thank you! Sorry, I’m an idiot. I’ll try to do better.
Hi Anne, just read through the comments and you say all 3 documents should be in Times New Roman? I have submitted my manuscript in TNR but not my cover page or synopsis. Should I resubmit?
Hi Anne, I aw in an earlier comment that all 3 attachments should be in Times New Roman? I have submitted my ms in TNR but not my cove page or synopsis. Should I resubmit?
No, that’s fine.
thank you
That should be ‘saw’, doh!
Hi Anne. Firstly thank you for the opportunity. I have been working on my Synopsis and hope to submit by the 8th. A couple of questions. Should the synopsis be double spaced and is a prologue and three chapters okay if it comes in at under 15000 words? (<13000 words)
The synopsis can be single-spaced if you wish, and yes, 3 chapters and a prologue is fine if it’s under 15k words.
Thanks very much for the swift reply
Hi- would ‘no short stories’ also discount a novel-sized collection of short stories? They’re really good, by the way 😉
– Thanks, Bret.
Sorry – ‘no short stories’ includes a novel-sized collection!
HI, this one really is the last question. I decided to just go submitting my volume 1 (just the 15,000 words.) I am still working on volume 1 though, including possibly some edits to come of the beginning. Any new edits after submission will be saved into a new file. My actual question, is:-
Does this information (that volume 1 is a second draft and still a work in progress, and that the rest of the story is written but very much a first draft) go into the cover page or the email?
Finally found a relevant reply higher up. I see that the information goes into the synopsis, not the cover letter.
Hi Ms. Perry:
Only half of my novel is finished. I’m assuming that it will be between 180-200k words by the end. Do you want an estimate or what I have already (90,000).
Also, it’s the first of a trilogy. Do you need brief blurbs summarizing books 2 & 3 included in the Synopsis?
Tell us the word-count for what you’ve completed already and also include an estimate for the final novel. And if you think your synopsis would be strengthened by including summaries of books 2 and 3, please include them.
Do you want to see prologues included in submissions?
If yes, would a prologue count as one of the opening three chapters?
Yes, a prologue would count as a chapter.
Hi Anne
Just seen your reply to one of the later queries which answers my question about the prologue, so feel free to ignore the previous question.
Thanks
Too late!
Would you rather receive 11k words that finish neatly at the end of a chapter, or 15k that cuts off weirdly in the middle of something?
That is entirely up to you. If you think the whole 15k is more representative of the work, include it. If you think the 11k is a better stopping-point that will leave us gasping for more, send that.
Hi,
I will be submitting the first 15,000 words of a completed novel, however I am also considering sending on its sequel. The sequel is about three chapters from completion, and as is my way, I haven’t yet titled it. Would I be deemed terribly unprofessional if I was to submit the partial as ‘untitled’? Thanks.
No, that’s fine.
Epic. Thank you 🙂
Hi Anne,
Quick question. is a word count of 48,288 too short for a story to be submitted? Thanks
Novels are generally 50,000 words at the very minimum… maybe just something a little longer? Sorry!
Thank you. Maybe next year 🙂
Just wanted to say that you should delete the period at the end of the email address: hodderscape@hodder.co.uk
Thanks!
Anne, your patience is saintly! Thanks for all the information.
Hi Anne,
I’ve tried to send through a submission, and received a response from your team that it was caught in a spam folder and so I needed to resubmit. I have done this, but haven’t received any confirmation that this second (and third) attempt arrived safely.
I’m wary of sending in the same submission too many times, what do you advise as the best approach at this point?
Thank you!
We haven’t had a chance to log and respond to the subs recently, so please be patient; if you don’t hear from us by the end of the open submissions period, leave another comment here or email us without attachments and we’ll be in touch!
That’s reassuring to read. I’ve been refreshing my email every hour (almost) since I submitted on Friday, and I was beginning to worry.
Many thanks for the quick reply, that’s good to know and I’ll be patient for the next week!
Hi Anne–I’ve written a novel and have a completed first draft. But I’m in the process of seriously revising it (the villain has been significantly changed, which of course is altering aspects of the plot). I can certainly give you an outline of how I intend things to go, but would you still want the word count for the original soon-to-be-defunct draft?
Probably an estimated word-count would be best.
Hi – if you accept unfinished novels, is it ok to NOT send a synopsis with those? I’m not a plotter, so won’t be able to write a synopsis for something where I don’t know what’ll happen. (I mean, I have a vague idea, but not good enough to write a coherent synopsis!)
I’m afraid we’d really need a synopsis to get a sense of where the book is going to go. You wouldn’t have to stick to it as you finish the novel, but if we like the chapters you send in and we want to know more, that’s going to be very helpful for us.
I will attempt something. Thank you for the reply, Anne.
I notice that manuscripts which aren’t quite finished can be submitted. Because it’s not complete yet, I can’t really say what the final word count will be. Is that okay?
Just give us your best estimate.
Hi Anne, just a quick question. Would I be okay to send in the first four chapters?(totaling around 12k words) I feel like the best represent the world, at least better than if I left the fourth chapter out.
And thank you in advance for your reply 🙂
Yes – we’re after the first three chapters OR fifteen thousand words, whichever you prefer.
Hi Anne, I was wondering if I would be able to send in the first four chapters (around 12k words) as I feel they best represent my novel.
Also thank you for replying to everyone here, it’s been very helpful!
(Also slightly worried I might have double posted as I didn’t see my first comment show up.)
We must have crossed wires – I just replied as you were resubmitting your comment! Anyway, my answer is as above.
Ah I thought so haha, thank you very much though. Can’t wait to submit, just trying to polish my synopsis.
Hi Anne,
If the three chapters are shy of 15, 000 words, does that matter? mine will come in around 8,000. If so, should I send the fourth as well?
Thanks,
Jim
Hi, Jim,
Three chapters OR up to 15,000 words is fine.
Thanks very much.
I hope I’m not beating a dead horse, but I have to ask. Three chapters for me comes in closer to 30K words. Apparently I have large chapters. Should I stick with the 15K and just send that, or would you prefer the whole three chapters?
Honestly, whichever you prefer!
Should we add any headers/footers to the manuscript that contain our name?
If you like! It’s not mandatory.
I have a weird situation. I prepped my novel for self-publication, to the point that I assigned an ISBN in Bowker. The book was *never* published. However, d*** Google Books is pulling a listing as if it was actually published.
Would you consider this “previously self-published?” And if so, should I explain this situation in the email body, or in the cover page attachment?
Thank you! *submitting SOON*
Sure, just let us know in the body of the email!
Thanks, Anne–and thank you for this opportunity!
Not sure if my other comment went through–apologies if this is duplicate.
I prepped my book for self-publishing, to the point of assigning an ISBN and uploading a cover image to Bowker. Though the book was never sold in any format, Google Books is pulling the cover, author, ISBN, etc. in search results for my title, listing June 2015 as the publication date.
The book was *never* published.
Should I notify you of this bizarre situation in my submission? If so, should I notify you in the email body or in the attachment?
Thank you!
I just wasn’t in early enough to approve your earlier comment. No worries!
Hi, Anne, I am agented but have a REALLY cool project underway that’s unfinished. It’s also a bit experimental and having a ‘yes, we’d love to see more’ would be very meaningful given the length of the process. One of the coolest parts of this open door is the ability to send in unfinished work. Would you take a sub even though I already have an agent and would at some point be able to submit later? Thanks for your time.
This opportunity really is meant for unagented authors, so I’m afraid we’d rather wait for your agent to submit.
10-4, thanks for the quick reply, Anne.
Hi, just wondering, would 45,000 words be okay? Or is the minimum strictly 50K?
Sorry this is late; we really are looking for 50,000 or more.
Hi,
I am submitting today (a little close to the line, I know!) and I was wondering if it is ‘safe’ to make submissions from ‘gmail’ addresses, or if these will be caught by your spam filters. Also, how long should I wait for a confirmation before assuming that my message has been sent to a spam folder? And if that happens, will I still be able to re-submit if the deadline has passed? Thanks for your help with this!
Should be fine!
Because I am amazingly clever, there’s a chance that I’ve sent you a duplicate submission. I had a glitch with my e-mail and may have either sent you an e-mail with no attachment, or an attachment with an empty e-mail (or possibly I sent nothing at all the first time- there’s nothing in my sent mail folder, but that might not mean much since my browser crashed while all this was going on). 🙁 I apologise profusely for that, but I thought it would be safer to just send it all again rather than hoping that the first one went through! I hope it won’t be a problem.
Should be fine – I’ll let you know as soon as I can.
Thanks Anne! I appreciate it!
Hi,
Silly question, but I’ve emailed my submission to you at hodderscape@hodder.co.uk but have just noticed on your site the address is listed as hodderscape@hodder.co.uk. (extra full stop at end). Did I get the adress right first time? thanks!
That should be fine. The final full stop was just me putting one at the end of the sentence!
Hi Anne,
I just submitted my three chapters at 1:41 PM PST today; however, on the cover page, I realized I made a small mistake on my address (I put the zip code before the state). Will I be dinged for that mistake?
Nope, that’s no problem.
You’re accepting stories until mid August, and expect to read them all by end September? I recommend cucumber slices for your aching eyes, and thank you very much for the speed!
Sylvia
sending a bit late because of internet problems ;(
Thanks!
Hi Anne,
As I submitted my work late last night I figured this may be a reason to why I didn’t get a confirmation but can I ask if you did receive it. Thank you.
We’re just catching up on everything – please be patient!
Hello Anne, will you be doing another open submission in the future? I ask, as my work is too rough to submit at present!
Kind regards
Donna
I’m sure we will! Stay tuned..
Hi, Anne. I submitted at 1:30 AM (GMT) on August 3rd, and I haven’t received a confirmation e-mail. Is this something I should worry about?
Please email hodderscape (hodderscape@hodder.co.uk) with your name and the title of your story and I’ll search the database and get back to you!
Done. Thank you.
My internet server froze last night as I was trying to upload and when it decided to start again it was 12:17 a.m. does this mean that I have missed the window, or will my submission still be looked at?
I’m afraid that may be too late. Don’t worry; we’ll hold another open submissions period in the future!
Hello, I received an email saying I submitted my entry too late, and we already had some email correspondence about this, but I think I figured out what the issue is. In the guidelines you said that the cutoff time was 11:59 pm GMT, which would be 7 hours ahead of my timezone, but it seems at this time of the year the UK is on BST, which is one hour more than GMT, making it 8 hours ahead of my timezone. This would explain why you received my submission at 12:56 am and not 11:56 pm like I thought. I’m not sure if this will change your decision, but I thought it was important to point out.
Thanks for pointing that out. In the future we will be careful to differentiate between GMT and BST if necessary.
Unfortunately, our decision stands.
Is that fair though since the information in the guidelines was innacurate? You posted the cutoff time in GMT but you’re using BST, which means everyone who submitted in the final hour did submit their entry by 11:59 pm GMT, but will still not be considered.
I’m sorry but I’ve made our position clear.
Many thanks for your earlier reply concerning my daft email address question! Received my submission confirmation email today ,thanks. Apologies for sending you several identical submissions, wanted to be sure they had reached you ok! cheers
I sent my submission in on the 11th Aug but got no response. I sent an email hodderscape@hodder.co.uk on the 22nd, and another one from a different email address on the 29th. I’m just back from holiday and I still haven’t received any response to any of these, so I thought I’d try here. Did my submission get through?
I found a single email from you caught in the spam filter – please accept our apologies! Please resend the submission and we’ll reply right away.
Thanks,
Anne
I have resent from the email address on this form.
Hi, you mention in your post that you will try to let everyone who submitted know by Sept 30th if they had been successful or not. Since we have not heard anything can I assume we were not lucky enough to have been selected to forward our complete MS?
Thanks.
Hey Nigel and Deanna,
We will be responding to every submission we received. We got a tonne of submissions and have started sending out responses, but we won’t be finished until the end of the October. Here’s a full update: http://hodderscape.co.uk/open-submissions-an-update/
Best,
Fleur
Okay, thanks!
Hi, I missed open submission period. I didn’t find out about it until it had already closed. Will you be having another? Any idea when? Thank you.
Yes, probably in August of this year. Stay tuned to Hodderscape for more information!
A quick question, if you do decide to publish do I incur any fees?
Absolutely not. We’re a traditional publisher which means that, if we decide to move forward with a project, we would offer a traditional publishing contract, including an advance and setting out royalty payments. We are not a self- or hybrid-publishing house and we absolutely would not charge any author anything.
Dear Editor,
I have penned a novel which comprises various elements like those of unobserved corners humanity, of magic realism, thriller and to some extent those of science fiction. It would be exclusively unique, I can say, in its narrative structure and style regarding its genre. Would I submit this to you in this time span you announced for the men of letters? Thank You, Best wishes….
Hi,
I’m afraid we are not currently accepting submissions, but we plan to hold another open submissions window later, so please keep an eye on the website and our Twitter feed for any updates!
Hi,
Thank you for the reply. That was my mistake. My secretary mistakenly informed me about that. I think, it was of the previous year. But one thing I want to ask, if I want to submit my manuscript in a normal procedure what steps should I take ? Thank You
Please have your agent send it directly to me at Hodder – I’m reluctant to give out my private email address here, but if your agent doesn’t have it, he or she can send the submission to the Hodderscape email address and I’ll pick it up from there. hodderscape@hodder.co.uk
Ok, I will do so. Thank You.
today is 26 Sept. 2018 – are you open for submissions at this time?