- Submissions are Open -

What We Want

We are currently seeking quality novel and novella length science fiction, fantasy and horror submissions. Sub-genres of these categories are also acceptable. We also occasionally publish books on self-promotion, genre history and writing technique.

Submissions for genre related books on self-promotion, history and writing technique are currently not open. Please query us first.

We are not interested in young adult, erotica, romance, religious fiction, mystery, short stories*, self help, general non-fiction or poetry.

Manuscripts should be aimed at an older (aged 20 and up), well-read, mature audience. We work with new and established authors.

* Please see the Flash Fiction Challenge.

Format

Please be sure that you send us the best version of your work. Before you submit (see below) your novel or novella should be complete (not a work-in-progress) and have already undergone extensive editing and revisions.

Length:

Novella: 50,000 – 80,000 words
Novel: 80,000-100,000+ words

(Please note that while we do accept some manuscripts above 100,000 words, we recommend novels be under the 100,000 mark.)

Manuscript Style:

A manuscript should be double spaced, with one space after a period. We prefer italics to underlines, minimal formatting (no single character ellipses or spaces between periods in ellipses, no curly or “smart” quotes, and no fancy characters as section breaks), and Courier New or Times New Roman font. The title page of your manuscript should include the title, your name and contact information, and total word count.

File format:

We will only accept electronic submissions. Full/ complete manuscripts should be attached to an email as a .rtf (rich text) file. Please only submit one manuscript at a time.

Cover Letters:

Cover letters (as attachments) are not required, however you should have the following in the email:

• Subject should have the words “submission” and your title and name.
• A brief (3 sentence max) description of your book. This should include the exact word count and the genre.
• Any writing credits you have (not required).
• And contact information further to, and including, the email address you are sending the submission from (for example: website)

See below for a (very rough) example.

Subject: Submission “Death to Butterfly” by Joe Orange

Attachment: deathbutterfly.rtf

Dear Acquisitions Editor,

“Death to Butterfly” is an 80,000 word Science Fiction-Action novel about a Venition (Venus) spy who’s code name is Butterfly. She manages to get on the wrong side of the notorious Martain “Dorti” mobsters who own and control the Martain terraforming project. Butterfly must find a way to destroy the Dorti’s hold on the project, before they use all of Mars’ resources to hunt her down.

I have had one short story published with OnSpec called “Forever”. It can be found in Issue Number 45, July, 2009.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Joe Orange (joe@email.com)

JoeOrange.com

Query letter:

Query letters are only required if you are unsure you fit within our guidelines, or for genre related books on self-promotion, history and writing technique. Please include the following in the body of your email (no attachments): your name, email address, your title, genre, word count, a brief synopsis of your story (5 paragraphs) and any relevant credits you may have. The section on cover letters above for an example.

How to Submit

Sending your Submission:

Hopefully you have actually read the above guidelines. While we sometimes overlook small errors, if it is obvious that you didn’t take the time to read our guidelines it’s very likely we won’t take the time to read your work. We apologize, but due to the amount of submissions we receive we have to enforce this.

Please send your submission to:  submissions @ absolute-x-press .com

Response Time:

If you have included the word “Submission” in your email subject line, you should receive an automated response email indicating we have received your submission. As we are still in a transition period (blog post), our response times will be longer than normal. However, we aim to get back to everyone between 6 – 8 weeks after your submission.

If you have not heard from us after 8 weeks, please send us a follow up email. Please put “Follow Up” and the full title of the original email into the subject line. (Example: Follow Up – Submission “Death to Butterfly” by Joe Orange).