Our time and resources are limited, and we have to keep our submissions periods to short windows on an annual basis. Thanks to everyone who submitted this year, and we look forward to reading through and responding to your manuscripts.

The best way to know when the next submission window will open is to subscribe to our email updates! Our email list always gets the first announcement of a planned submission window.

For now, keep writing, and think about preparing your manuscript for us. When our submission period is open, this page will have a link to a form where you will tell us about your story, upload your manuscript, and tell us why you think it’s a fit for Bandersnatch Books.

What sort of submissions do we want?

While we accept submissions in a variety of categories and genres, we’ve learned that we have particular tastes, so here are some tips:

• We are looking for books that are off the beaten path.
  This means that if your manuscript would fit well within another publishing market, it may not be a fit for us. We don’t publish devotionals, fiction specifically written for the Christian market, etc. If you want to publish with Bandersnatch Books, help us see why your book doesn’t fit somewhere else in your pitch.

• We love the classics, and we’re publishing in today’s world.
  Does your book have the feel of a classic or a book published 50 years ago? As you prepare your manuscript for submission, think about how you can keep that feel but make the book work for a modern audience. Remember, most of the people reading your book are also reading books that have been published in the last five years. It’s a delicate balance, but keep those two perspectives in mind.

• We love books for young readers, and are open to titles aimed at adults as well.

  Primarily our titles are targeted at young readers, from picture books, to middle grade, to books for teens and up. We are open to manuscripts whose primary audience would be adults, but want the content to remain appropriate for teens. If you’re addressing heavier themes, consider how you can do so in a balanced manner.

• We love middle grade, and we see some significant holes in what is available.
  If you’ve got a middle-grade book that aims a little older or a young adult book that is appropriate for younger kids to read, you’re in a sweet spot. There are so few books out there for kids ages 11-14, and we want to make more of them. We also love middle-grade books of all genres (realistic fiction, fantasy, poetry, etc.).

• We enjoy fantasy, and we want the stories to be more character-driven than focused on world-building.
  If we can’t pronounce the names of characters and places, or if you’ve spent years developing a complex back story that informs your world but never shows up on the page, we encourage you to look for a publisher exclusively dedicated to publishing fantasy or speculative fiction.

• We love poetry, and we want to make space in our catalogue for really good work.
  If you’ve never gotten feedback on your poems from other poets dedicated to developing their craft, you’re not ready to submit to us. Take time to workshop your poetry with others before submitting samples for publication.

• We love picture books, and you want to make yours the best it can possibly be to stand out from the crowd. (Unfortunately, we will not be accepting picture books in 2024.)

• Think through your manuscript and how it will lay out on pages. Think in terms of “spreads”—two pages together—rather than pages. Consider mapping it out with a template like this one.

• Most picture book manuscripts are less than 1,000 words, and most picture books are 32 pages long. In fact, for toddlers or preschoolers, you’re usually trying to tell a story in 300–500 words.

• We will consider picture books whether you have an illustrator or not, but remember that the pictures are part of the package if you’re coming with an illustrator. You’ll want to submit mockups of the art along with your manuscript. There are some specific requirements for printing artwork, so don’t get too far down the road of creation before you connect with us.

Illustrators and designers

If you’re an illustrator (without a manuscript to submit), we encourage you to reach out to us via email with your name, a few notes about your experience, and a link to your portfolio. We’ll keep you in mind as we have illustration or design needs.

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