Submit
Submission Periods
Short Story/Flash Fiction: Jan 1— March 1​
Multigenre Full-length + Open Prose Chapbook: April 1— June ​1
Novel/Novella: July 1— Sep. 1
Essay/Memoir/Nonfiction-Hybrid: Oct. 1— Dec 1
Lost/Found: open on a rolling basis
General Guidelines
​Please note that we do not open unsolicited manuscripts sent directly to our email--all manuscripts should be submitted, during the appropriate reading period, through Submittable. Specific guidelines for each reading period are provided on our Submittable page. We also ask for a full manuscript rather than an excerpt/query—our reading teams are committed to selecting the best books for our press based on what is already on the page. Running a press is a labor of (underpaid) love, and so we have a manuscript reading fee to help offset the many costs accrued by the press, which also allows us to direct 25% of the proceeds from those fees to pay our reading teams for their work. However, if our reading fee is prohibitive, please email splitlipthepress@gmail.com to receive a manuscript fee waiver, no questions asked.
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If, at the close of a reading period, we are unable to acquire a book that we feel fits our press mission, the remainder of the proceeds from that period's reading fees (after paying the readers) will be applied toward submission fee waivers for the next same-genre reading period.
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Split/Lip Press does not tolerate manuscripts celebrating racist, homophobic, or misogynistic perspectives, and will discard such manuscripts unread. We believe in breaking boundaries at Split/Lip, but we will not assist agendas of hate.​​​
Author Care
We are deeply committed to transparency and prosperity for our authors—when publishing with Split/Lip Press, authors can expect:
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A Publishers Marketplace announcement (everybody's favorite social media screen-grab)
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To retain translation and adaptation rights (our contract asks for World English print + eBook only)
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A personalized book design process and a specialized marketing plan for your book, developed in conjunction with our marketing director
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25% royalties on print books, distributed quarterly, which you begin earning with the very first book sale
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50% royalties on e-books (full-lengths only)
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10 complimentary copies of your published book
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Additional copies available to the author for purchase at a discounted rate of print cost + 25%
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Book distribution provided through our small press distributor, Asterism
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Financial assistance for award nominations (full-length books only)
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An online Zoom reading event on publication day, hosted by Split/Lip Press
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The opportunity to read at an AWP off-site event hosted by Split/Lip Press
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All the social media support you can handle!