Open call for manuscript submissions

[Robert_Moriyama]

(Sigh) I've been thinking that I should knit the Al Majius stories together somehow (I think there's enough wordage in them for a short novel...). Now I have a reason to actually try...

[Robert_Moriyama]

... which is the only e-mail address noted on the ethanellenberg.com website. Based on the website, they DO accept submissions of opening parts of novels via e-mail (pasted into the body of the message, not as attachments), described as "the first 50 pages or so" rather than as some number of chapters.

I don't know what could be gained by getting people to send mail to a non-existent address (assuming that fantasy@ethanellenberg.com isn't legit), aside from the joy of disappointing people... The website indicates that they will respond within two weeks of receiving an e-mail submission if they are interested in the sample material (after which it can be assumed that they are NOT interested), but presumably, you would get an immediate bounce-back if the address (fantasy@...) doesn't really exist.

RM

[kailhofer]

There! [gasp, pant, pant]

My submission was sent. Here's hoping!

[kailhofer]

Well, I can vouch that if you submit for this, things do seem to get read:

[area]Just didn't love the writing, best of luck with it. Ethan Ellenberg[/area]

For ego reasons, I'm going to assume that was the actual Ethan Ellenberg and not just a form response. Please don't tell me if I'm wrong.

[kailhofer]

What did you submit, if I'm not intruding?

No intrusion.

It was a contemporary, low fantasy about a witch who's magic always goes wrong in a quest to save a magic treasure from an undead demon unknowingly summoned into the world. She's accompanied by her brother, a photographer obsessed with fame and fortune, a supposedly small child who came with the witch's magic house, and a dragon that becomes trapped in the mind and body of a cow. Along the way, they face hired thugs, werewolves, dastardly illusions and tricks, nearly drowning in the icy waters of Lake Superior, and several wild magical battles to decide the fate of the world.

Just your everyday, run of the mill story, really.

Nate

[Megawatts]

This site should be taken very seriously. ( I know, adverb usage again )

Since I've been with Aphelion a number of years now, I can understand why a publisher or agent would want a space here for their agency.

Aphelion has a large number of writers and many of them are equal to or surpasses many print published story in paying mags! I'm sure other will agree with me on that one!!

George

[Robert_Moriyama]

One reason that an agency looking for potential novelists might advertise here (for free, at that) is that the number of magazines (print or online) that accept longer-form fiction is relatively small. Even Asimov's and Analog and F&SF rarely feature serialized novels anymore. So Aphelion is one place where an agent or publisher might be more likely to find authors who (a) have some experience at writing pieces that at least tend toward book length, and (b) may have books in progress, if not first-draft-complete, and (c) may have longer works available for online perusal as samples of writing quality. If author X submits a first-three-chapters-plus-outline proposal and that author has a 20,000 or 30,000 word novella in the Aphelion archives (speaking of which, we should at least update the Back Issues index), then the agent can get a feel for the overall quality of author X's writing and his/her ability to Tell A Story from beginning to end.

RM

[kailhofer]

I think in their normal submission guidelines they give like a month and then if you haven't heard, they passed on it. You'd have to look to be sure.

In point of fact, however, whatever point it was supposed to be had long since passed when I got word they passed on me.

[Robert_Moriyama]

So, after reading this thread, do I have it correct that YES this is a quality publisher and YES, they DO still accept the first 3 chapters and YES, they do read same?

?

Jim

No, this is not a quality publisher. This is a quality literary agency that will look at your work, tell you if they think it's publishable, maybe make suggestions if they think it's CLOSE to publishable*, and will send it to publishers they think might buy it. A publisher is more likely to look favorably on a manuscript forwarded by a reputable literary agent than they would if it just arrived in the mail from some unknown nebbish like, say, ME.

RM