Imprints & Submission Guidelines

Submission Guidelines:

As an independent small press publisher located in Northern Colorado, Word Keepers, Inc., encourages socially conscious authors to share their unique voices and visions.

OUR IMPRINTS:

Ahead of the Wave Productions – is our newest imprint, for adaptations of books for movies for television, pilots and television series, and full length feature screenplays. 

Bibliocast is our imprint for nonfiction: We are interested in women’s issues, innovative business books, leadership, self-help, and personal growth. See our current titles published under Bibliocast for a clearer understanding of our current interests.

Sat Nam Imprints is our imprint for fiction and nonfiction books of a metaphysical/spiritual nature.

Imagine Books is our imprint for children’s books. We are looking for children’s books that have a socially conscious voice to give children a foundation of life tools while entertaining and inspiring the wonder of a child’s imagination.

Hawk’s Cry Publications is our imprint for adult trade fiction, general fiction. We are looking for strong stories for a wide readership of books grounded in themes of socially conscious voices.

We Are Not Accepting:

• Poetry/rhyme
• Cookbooks (at this time)
• Academic Textbooks/reference books
• Illustrated coffee table books or Photography books
• No violence or sexual content submissions for our adult trade books. (If your book were a movie it would need a PG or PG-13 rating.)

Your submission must include:

• Proposal of your work, including a brief description
• Introduction, Table of Contents (if applicable) and three sample chapters
• A stamped, self-addressed envelope for our reply
• A brief biography of yourself, your credentials, and what you can do to help market your book. Include all your contact information: physical address, phone numbers, e-mail and URL of website (if applicable). Why are you the only person who could write this book?
• Include one to two sentences that if developed visually, would be the trailer of your book. Offer your assessment of the market for your book, and comparative titles, if any.
  

The Proposal

The proposal provides a general frame of reference for your work. It is your book’s story.

The Book

1. Brief description: In one or two paragraphs describe the work, its approach, and your purpose in writing such a book.
2. Outstanding features: List what you consider to be outstanding or unique features of the work.
3. Ancillary products or services: Do you plan to provide supplementary material or services as a natural offshoot from your book?
4. Audience: name the genre and who you see purchasing your book.

Sample Chapters

1. Sample chapters should illustrate the strongest and most distinctive aspects of your work.
2. It is best to submit three chapters. Two chapters or less leave the reviewer in doubt and the entire manuscript tends to overwhelm the reviewer.
3. Selected chapters should include what best represents your work’s basic idea, its quality, and distinctive features. These chapters do not need to be in sequence.
4. Prepare the material carefully. If the manuscript is full of typographical or grammatical errors, the reviewers’ attention will be diverted from the more important consideration of content.
5. Please do not send the entire manuscript unless we request it, but please do indicate in your letter the current status of the manuscript, whether it is partial or complete, and what the word count is.
   

Your background

1. Please provide a description of your background, relevant activities, and other writing experience.
2. Please attach a brief biographical sketch.
3. Do you have other writing plans when this project is complete?

Competition

1. Top three books in the field: How does your book compare and/or contrast with them? Please discuss each competing book in a separate paragraph. Include author, title, publisher, publication date, length and price (if known).
2. Please focus on comparing topical coverage, organization, writing style, art program, and any other relevant similarities and differences between your project and the competing books.
3. Be frank: This information is written for reviewers, providing them with a comparative framework and should accurately reflect your views.
4. Are you aware of any similar works in progress but unpublished?

Market

1. What is the primary audience for which the book is intended? What other audiences would it serve?
2. What is your expectation of the size of the market?
3. If you have done any market research of your own, we would appreciate receiving a brief summary of your findings.

Additional Information

1. What schedule of completion do you have in mind for your book?
2. What will be the approximate length of your work? Please state whether your estimate is in book or manuscript pages. If dealing in manuscript pages, please describe length in terms of 8 ½ x 11 double spaced pages.
3. What kind of art program is needed for the book?

All materials must be submitted double-spaced and in 12-point font on white 8 1/2 x 11 paper. Please limit your collateral or unusual packaging to the minimum needed to express your point, and always include a self-addressed stamped envelope with sufficient American postage to cover the return of the materials, if desired. If you would not need your materials returned, please state this on your query letter, and let us know whether your submission is simultaneous or exclusive.

Send submissions to:
Acquisitions
Word Keepers, Inc.
7721 Promontory Drive
Fort Collins, CO 80528-9306

Our review process can take a few months, so please be patient. We take submissions seriously, are honored to receive them, and will answer them as fast as we can. Thank you for your interest in Word Keepers, Inc.

How will we respond?

• Email, telephone, and fax queries will not receive a response.
• It may take up to four months to receive a reply. Please do not contact us for updates during this period.
• Only submissions that include a self-addressed stamped envelope with sufficient American postage will be returned or replied to.
• If you would like to receive notification that a submission has been received and logged, please include a stamped, self-addressed postcard, which we will use to notify you.