Alyson Publications

Please tell editors/publishers you read their guidelines on the
Erotica Readers & Writers Association Website
www.erotica-readers.com

Alyson Publications
http://www.alyson.com/html/Manuscripts.htm 

Alyson Publications is the leading publisher of books by, for, and about lesbians, gay men, bisexuals, and transgender people from all economic and social segments of society and of all ages. In fiction and nonfiction format, Alyson books explore the political, legal, financial, medical, spiritual, social, and sexual aspects of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people and their contributions to and experiences in society.

We are happy to consider book queries with gay, lesbian, bisexual, and/or transgender themes. We only consider solicited manuscripts, which means you must first submit a query letter. If the project you have in mind matches our current interests, we’ll ask to see your manuscript.

Please note the following before submitting a query:

INQUIRY: Send a query letter detailing your novel's plot or the basic outline of your nonfiction idea. Please indicate whether yours is a simultaneous submission (i.e. let us know whether you have submitted your proposal elsewhere).

Your pitch should be concise and direct; you should be able to describe the arc of your novel or the point of your nonfiction book in no more than one page. Include a summary of the book, a chapter outline, the approximate length of your book in words, and a sentence or two about your qualifications to write the book you want to publish with us. Fiction should be accessible to a broad audience. Nonfiction should be written in a popular (i.e., nonacademic) style.

We do NOT want to see sample chapters at this stage. Please do not send manuscripts via email. Alyson usually does not publish photography books or books of poetry; however, poetry may be submitted in response to our calls for submission to anthologies. Children’s book queries should include illustrations or samples of work from prospective illustrators. We will not consider individual short stories or single-author anthologies. You are welcome to submit your short-form pieces to our anthologies. Please regularly check our calls for submissions to learn about anthology projects that might suit your writing style.

For a better understanding of what we’re looking for, please take a look at our published titles in your local gay and lesbian bookstores or at the major chains. You may also view them at www.alyson.com.

SASE: Include a self-addressed, stamped #10-size envelope for reply or provide us with your email address. Please make sure your SASE has appropriate postage and your name and address in both the sender and receiver sections. We will NOT consider or respond to queries that do not include a SASE or a valid email address.

MANUSCRIPT: Again, we prefer to read your query letter before we decide whether to request your manuscript. Unsolicited manuscripts will not be considered and will only be returned if accompanied by appropriate SASE.

DECISION TIME: We try to give serious consideration to each query we receive. Each query will be reviewed and a response will be sent to you within four months. Please do not call to check on the status of your submission. Unfortunately, due to the number of submissions we receive, we cannot offer individual critiques of rejected manuscripts or pitches.

Please send your query letter to:

Book Queries
Alyson Books
245 W. 17th St. Suite 1200
New York, NY 10011

  E-mail this page

Copyright © 1996 and on, Erotica Readers Association, Inc.
All Rights Reserved World Wide. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or
medium without express written permission is prohibited.