House of Anansi is Accepting Manuscript Submissions during August
House of Anansi Press publishes around 40 books per year, and yours could be one of those lucky titles! Twice a year for one-month periods, Anansi accepts unagented manuscript submissions, and you have until the end of August to send them your best work in fiction, non-fiction, or poetry.
Describing their taste in books, they are looking for “work that explodes the status quo. Our fiction list collects the best of commercial and literary novels and short story collections by new voices and household names; our nonfiction list includes creative nonfiction, essay collections, and book-length deep dives alongside more lifestyle-oriented offerings; and our poetry list features experimentations within the lyric by debut poets and those with established reputations.”
Along with your polished manuscript, you’ll be asked to also submit the following:
A pitch letter about your book; this might include your reasons for writing it, why you are the person to have done so, who the ideal reader for it is, and how you see it relating to the list of books we publish.
A brief bio that includes your city of residence, writing credentials, and publication history (if applicable).
A brief synopsis (500 words max) of your project to be pasted into a text box within the submission portal.
Your full manuscript; for nonfiction, a proposal, chapter outline, and writing sample. Please format your manuscript in an easy-to-read, 12pt font with 2.5 cm (1 inch) margins.
For more information on how to submit and what kind of work Anansi is looking for, check out their website. If you’re not able to submit your manuscript before August 31, Anansi will open their portal again for submissions during the month of February.
At this time, Anansi is only accepting submissions from Canadian citizens or residents, or Indigenous Peoples from Turtle Island and around the world who are eligible to hold Canadian citizenship. Before submitting, be sure to take a thorough look at Anansi’s catalogue to get a feel for what kinds of books they publish to ensure your work will be a good match.
Jo Ramsay
is a Canadian media and publishing enthusiast who works as a literary assistant at P.S. Literary Agency as well as the editorial director of Shrapnel Magazine. She’s worked in publishing for over six years at places such as Simon and Schuster, Arsenal Pulp Press, PRISM International, Greystone Books, and This Magazine. She’s lived in Canada, the UK, and Japan.