Submissions & Queries
General submissions are closed
Please note: All submissions received during the 2022/2023 open submissions windows are currently sitting on hold as the our editor deals with personal life issues. We do promise to get back to everyone as soon as we can.
What We're Looking For
Dark Brew Press focuses primarily on dark, speculative fiction from almost any primary genre. However, with that being said, we are open to any well-written speculative fiction story that piques our interest even if the darkness is only a light touch. Below is a list of a few things that might be hard sells for us, but if you think we might love it anyway, by all means, please do give us a try.
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Anything that could be classified as erotic fiction
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Gore-based horror
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Anything that is about current events
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Experimental literature
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Overtly gratuitous violence
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Stories intended for young adults
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Stories written in third person present.
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Anything that would be a better fit under historical or literary fiction.
Now, how about a list of things we want to see more of?
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Diversity and inclusion done well. We live in a world full of all kinds of people, we like to see that in our books as well!
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Psychological horror
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New twists on old themes
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Genre blending and bending fiction
When it comes to length, we are open to novelettes, novellas, and full-length novels. We will also consider short story collections from a single author. We do not do multiple author anthologies, but we will consider co-written work.
General Submission & Query Guidelines
General submissions are open February 1 to March 1
We will only accept electronic submissions and queries through the email address provided below. Please be sure that you follow all guidelines listed here or we may reject your submission or query without reading it.
Please keep in mind that submissions should include: a query letter, a full synopsis and a sample of your manuscript. A query should include: a query letter and a full synopsis. If your query piques our interest, we will ask for a sample at that time.
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All submissions should be in standard manuscript format. Despite this site using Courier, we actually prefer to read our submissions in Times New Roman, 12pt, double-spaced, and non-tab indented paragraphs. Please do not underline for italics. In a digital world, such things are no longer necessary. Please just use italics where you want italics to be.
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Please include the first three chapters or 10K words (which ever is shorter) as a .docx attachment for all submissions. Please do not include your document in queries—we will let you know if we are interested in reading more after we've looked at your query.
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Submissions and queries should include a short cover letter in the body of the email that includes an elevator pitch, any publishing credits you currently have (none is fine, we all start somewhere!), genre and sub-genres, who you believe your target audience is, word count, your author bio, and contact details. Comp titles are entirely not necessary, but if you are including them, please tell us in what way you think your story compares to the chosen comp titles.
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Submissions and queries should include a full synopsis as a separate attachment. Remember, a synopsis should be a full breakdown of the major plot points including the resolution written in your own voice. Please include any unique elements about your story that might interest us as well. This should be no more than 2 pages in length, in the standard manuscript format listed above.
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Queries only should also include what stage the work is currently at (fully completed, in revisions, or currently being drafted)**please note that we are less likely to accept work that is incomplete.
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If your query or submission is for a series, please indicate how many of the sequels have been planned or written, and include a one paragraph summary for each of the future stories in the series.
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Make sure the title of your email states QUERY or SUBMISSION along with the name of the story and your name as well.
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Simultaneous submissions are welcome, but please let us know that the work has been submitted elsewhere.
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Multiple submissions are allowed for up to two unrelated works per author within an open submissions period. Please do a separate email for each submission.
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Reprints are fine. Please do provide a detailed account of where and when the work was previously published. Any previous sales data is useful as well. If you are submitting a novel that has been self-published, it must not be currently in print. However, reprints are a slightly harder sell depending on the publishing history.
How and What We Pay
A lot of novel publishers don't bother with this section, but we like to be right up front about these things. You deserve to know before going through the entire process. We are a small, independent publisher which means the model that the big 5 publishers use doesn't work if we want to stay around in today's market.
Our payments are based on NET INCOME. This means, all royalties are based on what we get paid after the bookseller takes their cut. Our aim is to be as generous with our authors as we can be, while still making sure all costs of running a publishing house are covered so that we can keep selling your books for years to come. Typically, we offer a 60/40 split of the net revenues.
The other thing that is important to note is that we don't mail royalties. We only payout via PayPal.
Are you ready?
If you've read all the "small print" and think you're ready for this, go on and send us that email.
Just two final things. If submissions are listed as closed and you send us your manuscript, it will be an automatic rejection unless you are submitting in response to a Twitter pitch event "like". In that case, please note it in the first line of your cover letter along with a copy of, or link to, the tweet we liked.
Queries are always welcome. So, if you just need to know right now if we might be interested, go on and query us.
One Last Suggestion
If you use The Submissions Grinder website, please log your submission using our market id link below. If you don't use it yet, we highly recommend it. Diabolical Plots is a great publication and the service they provide through The Submissions Grinder is amazing.