What Makes a Submission Stand Out
A few thoughts from the other side of the slush pile
Hello gentles all,
Today, I'd like to let you peek behind the curtain a little bit and see me with my Acquisitions editor hat on. What are Quills and Cosmos Press looking for? When I dive into the pile of submissions, what am I hoping to find? I'll tell you what I can.
My personal method of operations is to glance at the cover letter, get a feel for who's writing. I skip the synopsis, which I know you labored over, but I save it for later. And then I turn to the submission. We request the first three chapters, so that's what I start with.
I'm not just looking for perfect grammar. It's not a super-polished pitch or gimmick. Following the guidelines does help (a lot), but that's even not the heart of it.
Here's what matters to me, as an editor & small press publisher.
Voice
This is probably the number one thing that stops me in my tracks. A strong voice, a lived-in voice, a voice that knows itself. You don't have to be flashy. But you do need to have a real voice, with something to say, in a tone that matches the world.
Clear sense who the story is for
Quills and Cosmos publishes science fiction and fantasy by women, BIPOC, LGBTQ+, and other underrepresented voices. We're looking for stories that reflect that lived experience, where the identity isn't just surface level, but in the bones of the story.
Emotional resonance
A fancy way to say it made me feel something. I want to care about your characters. I want to cheer for them. I want to ache with them. The best submissions leave an emotional mark.
All that said, and you can meet all of these marks, and still get a rejection. Because sometimes it just comes down to the book meeting me where I'm at, and taking me on an adventure. Not everything has to be earth-shaking.
Now, on a Manuscript Wishlist, what am I looking for?
Strong female/nonbinary characters. There are a lot of books with strong dudes as the MC. Give me something different.
A bit of sci-fi. We're loving all the fantasy we get, but we'd enjoy some good sci-fi as well, and we don't see as much of this.
Own voices, telling stories outside the norm.
Thanks to everyone that has submitted to us so far. We're reading, we're listening, and we're excited about what's next.
With hope and highlighters,
Meagan