Submission Guidelines

Thank you for your interest in publishing with us. These guidelines will explain everything you must do to submit your work, and are for informational purposes only; in no way are they legally binding. Remember, all submissions to IDYLLIBOOKS™ are also open, so you don't need a literary agent.

The Three Laws of Intermediary Publishing

The following set of rules should help keep things simple:

LAW #1 - We will only accept a complete manuscript.

Just like a traditional publisher, we want to see your best possible work, not a rough draft or a work-in-progress. With that in mind, if you do decide to submit an incomplete manuscript, don't be surprised when you receive a polite rejection letter stating this as the reason.

LAW #2 - We will only accept an original work.

Derivative works and fan fiction have their place on our forums and other writing platforms; but, because copyright infringement can carry some hefty penalties, we don't even play with the idea of publishing these. Keep things original and you have nothing to fear.

LAW #3 - We will only accept a single submission, per author, per month.

Simply put, any submission — be it a novel, a collection of poetry or short stories, a photography or art book, etc. — will take up to four weeks to review. After you've received our response, you're welcome to make a new submission then, or even resubmit an old one. Just remember, our editors need time to properly review your work and to give it the attention it rightly deserves.

Submission Documents

Those few rules aside, your email must include a query letter and completed manuscript. You may send your documents and/or any specific questions not answered here to submissions@idyllifox.com.

1. QUERY LETTER

This is a standard letter, typically no longer than one page, which provides information about your manuscript; namely, the title, genre, intended audience, total word count, and a compelling 2-3 sentence paragraph describing the work. It's important to include as it gives our editors a brief explanation of how it differs from other works. The query letter also provides your contact information and general background in relation to the work.

2. COMPLETE MANUSCRIPT

Manuscripts should be in .doc or .docx format, double-spaced, with 12-point justified Times New Roman font, and one-inch margins. In order to honor our publishing standards, manuscripts must also be clean of any offensive material, including but not being limited to: excessive profanity, vulgarity, and violence, or sexually explicit scenes.

Copyright Notice

United States Copyright Law protects your work so long as it exists in a tangible format, so there's nothing to be afraid of in regards to having your work stolen or published without your permission. During our four-week review however, we ask that you not submit your manuscript to other publishers; and, if your manuscript is accepted, it will be your responsibility to obtain further copyright protections from the Library of Congress. We are nevertheless happy to help with this process.

If needed, you can review the FAQ section of the Copyright Office at the Library of Congress for any specific questions you might have.

Post-Reviewal

After an editor has reviewed your manuscript, it may be (1) accepted for publication, (2) returned with a request to revise and resubmit it, or (3) rejected. If you're asked to revise your manuscript, please don't be offended. This is actually a positive response, indicating that your manuscript has excellent potential for publication with IDYLLIBOOKS™. Many factors are taken into account when deciding which manuscripts are accepted, and rejection doesn't necessarily mean that your work is unwanted either, only that it isn't a good fit for IDYLLIBOOKS™ at the present time. Our resources, finances, time, and staff are limited, and we can only accept a limited number of manuscripts from the many submitted to us. In short, we don't have the time to provide a detailed critique or evaluation of every manuscript that comes our way.

Production & Marketing

We only discuss details regarding contracts, the production process, and marketing plans after a manuscript has been accepted for publication. Please note, in today’s publishing environment, authors are required to be heavily involved in the promotion of their own work through social media and public appearances. IDYLLIBOOKS™ does not provide these opportunities, but simply serves as a platform for promoting your work, should you choose to have it sold through our online store. In the event that an author chooses to publish elsewhere after signing, all services rendered up to that point will be back-charged prior to a contract release.

Note: Some of this content was adapted from Shadow Mountain Publishing's Submission Guidelines.