Manuscript Submissions: Open Reading Period
*Submissions are open as of June 15, 2024. We will be reading for our 2026 catalog on a rolling basis throughout the summer months. When we are ready to close, we will share an update with a final deadline.*
We are seeking full-length manuscripts in the following genres:
- Fiction (novels and novellas, short stories, etc.)
- Poetry collections (full-length)
- Creative nonfiction (memoirs, essays, etc.)
- General nonfiction (reported or critical essays, cultural projects, etc.)
- Hybrid collections
Prose manuscripts vary in length across categories; we are generally more interested in the project’s sense of cohesion than specific word counts. For full-length poetry, we would prefer collections with at least fifty pages but are willing to consider shorter manuscripts.
Currently, we are not reading chapbook manuscripts or considering submissions for our Prose Series. If this changes, we will update this page and announce on our socials.
Note: We prefer to see full manuscripts rather than proposals. However, if you do not have a completed manuscript but have made substantial progress on a project that you think could be a strong fit for us, please send a sample and overview of the book along with a projected date of completion.
If you have any questions, general queries should go to Casie Dodd at submissions@bellepointpress.com. Please do not send full submissions to this address.
Formatting and Basic Guidelines:
- We use a Google Form to process submissions; after you submit the form, you should receive a confirmation email (with a discount code for our online shop!). If you don’t receive one, please contact us at submissions@bellepointpress.com to confirm receipt.
- In addition to basic information about the manuscript (genre, description/overview), the form asks writers to answer a few short questions about how their project fits into our vision and catalog.
- Please do not bypass the Google Form or email submissions directly to this address.
- Include your name and contact information (including current location) on the title page. Otherwise, we are flexible on formatting.
- Excerpts/pieces may have been published individually but never as a collection; this includes self-published work. Please include any acknowledgments of previous publications as needed in the manuscript.
- Why no self-published work? One of a publisher’s roles is to help bring new work to market. In an industry often overwhelmed with books, prioritizing previously unpublished projects helps focus the publisher’s resources more efficiently. This is common practice for many smaller publishers.
- Previously published works that have gone out of print may be considered on a case-by-case basis. If you’re interested in submitting this kind of book, please also include information about the previous publisher, release date, and reversion of rights.
- Simultaneous submissions are welcome, but let us know if the manuscript is accepted elsewhere via email to the submissions address.
- Please submit your manuscript in a .doc/.docx or PDF format.
- Submissions are always free!
- We do our best to work through submissions promptly, but please allow three months for a response. Each manuscript is carefully considered.
- We are currently focused on US-based writers.
Terms of Publication:
- Authors will be offered a standard royalty contract that includes a small cash advance and author copies + a discount on additional copies; this varies depending on the type of project.
- We also develop a personalized marketing plan with each author to promote their work, including social media, potential interview/review outlets, and author events.
- As of July 1, 2024, Belle Point Press titles are distributed to the trade by Independent Publishers Group, which includes sales to independent bookstores, libraries, Amazon, Bookshop.org, Ingram, and wherever else you get your books. We also focus on direct sales through our website and various events around the region.
What we’re looking for:
- Our mission is simple: stick around and read. What does this mean in practice? Two things, broadly speaking:
- At Belle Point Press, we are often preoccupied with stories defined by people who invest in the places they call home—who decide to make a place into a real community, with all its particular qualities. In a time when many often find themselves displaced or restless (for many reasons), we’re most interested in cultivating writers committed to their places. If you’d like to learn more about our vision, check out this post.
- As a press centered on building a community around our region, we are primarily interested in seeing work from writers tied to Arkansas and the surrounding area, including Oklahoma, Louisiana, Texas, Tennessee, Mississippi, and Missouri. We also consider the broader South and the Gulf Coast to be in conversation with this multifaceted region. (This connection doesn’t necessarily have to be explicit in the work itself.). Show us what it means to be from around here.
- Writing with a clear sense of place (whether still rooted here or hovering around its margins)
- We tend to focus on literary work (i.e. poetry, literary fiction, creative nonfiction) but are open to seeing other types of nonfiction projects (such as reported or critical essays and other cultural projects related to the region).
- Want to know more? Read these tips from our Founder/Publisher.
We look forward to reading your work!