Guidelines
Thank you for your interest in Cincinnatus Press.
We are a very small publisher and expect to print no more than 4 to 6 titles per year for 2007 and 2008. Before you submit, please read these guidelines carefully to determine if your manuscript is a good fit.
Please also read the section Is Cincinnatus the Right Fit for Me? which describes both our expectations for authors that we sign and our publishing model.
What We are Looking For
We are looking for excellent writing. Before submitting, ensure your work is error-free and and has been closely proofread. If you have engaged the services of a professional editor, even better. Freelance editors can be contacted through http://www.the-efa.org
We’re very interested in controversial topics that take a balanced or unique view point.
Fiction
For fiction titles, Cincinnatus is seeking cutting-edge mainstream, literary, speculative and science fiction, suspense, historical fiction, military/war or other genres. The work must address themes dealing with government, the role of the military in our democracy, the experience of readjustment from combat and other critical themes.
We are not interested in suspense, military or adventure related fiction if it does not seriously address these topics in some fashion. See our books section and read some of them to get an idea of what we are looking for.
Non-Fiction
Non-fiction in any category that seriously address the issues cited above. If you have a how-to manual on dealing with local government or how to get a law passed, that’s fine. We’re also interested in history and biography if it relates to our niche, and self-help for veterans returning from war.
No cookbooks or inspirational. If you are submitting a memoir or war experience, it must be outstanding.
Is Cincinnatus the Right Fit For Me?
Cincinnatus Press is a tiny publisher. Our authors will get lots of personal attention, and we’ll do everything we can to ensure your book is successful, because our livelihood depends on it.
Don’t expect a first print run of thousands of copies or a full page ad in the New York Times. We distribute pre and post-publication review copies and will work with you to arrange events, signings and media, and will work with you to promote your book. However, much as is it with major publishers, promoting your work is the author’s primary responsibility (after, of course, writing a great book!).
If you are unable to commit a substantial amount of time and energy to promoting your work, please don’t submit to us.
Our primary focus for sales are online outlets (in particular Amazon.com) which currently ship approximately 20% of all books sold in the United States. We also focus heavily on the library markets. We do not heavily focus on bookstore sales as this can often be a losing proposition for the small press.
We do pay advances against royalties, but they aren’t big. If we accept your work, we’ll recommend investing the advance on book promotion instead.
Be prepared, if required, to make changes and edits. If you strongly feel that your work is so perfect that not a word can be changed, please consider another publisher for your work. Otherwise, books we accept will be edited both by our staff and a freelance editor.
How To Submit
If you believe your manuscript is right for Cincinnatus Press, and you are an author committed to promoting your work, please send the following via email:
1) A brief query letter describing you and your work. In particular, we want to know your unique qualifications to write this book, and how you will help promote its success. Your cover letter should indicate an email address and phone number where you can be reached.
2) The first chapter only of your manuscript. Please provide it in Acrobat PDF, text format, or Microsoft Word 2007 or earlier. If our virus software detects your work is infected, it will be deleted and we may never see it, so make sure your system is clean before submitting.
3) A brief synopsis of the remainder of the manuscript
In order to be considered, your work must be completed. Please don’t submit queries for half-written novels or spec non-fiction.
Package the above up and email it to:
editor@cincinnatuspress.com with the subject line: ATTN: MANUSCRIPT SUBMISSION
If it doesn’t have that subject line, our spam blocker may eat it, and we’ll never know you sent the query. You can expect to hear back within 4-6 weeks (most likely much quicker). You should receive an immediate autoresponse. If you don't, that means our spam blocker ate it. Try again.
Please, please, please do not send paper manuscripts. We’re not equipped to deal with them, and they will be tossed without being opened.
Finally, if we don't accept your work, don't take it personally. Even if your manuscript is excellent, it may not fit our needs right now, or we may not be ready to accept a new manuscript at this point in time.