Call for Chapbook Submissions: Red Bird Chapbooks

 Chapbook Guidelines

NOTE: This year, in an effort to respect our volunteer editorial board’s time and energy, we will be capping the number of poetry manuscripts to 100, fiction manuscripts to 30, and CNF manuscripts to 30. This is the total number of possibilities that will be put into the pool for our editors to review and select from. In the spirit of fairness, this will be first come, first serve. The reading period will open at 12:01am on November 1st.

Please follow guidelines carefully. Manuscripts that deviate from these guidelines will not be read or considered.

General

Send manuscripts for consideration only during open reading periods. Our 2023 reading period will open November 1st at 12:01am.

Manuscripts are accepted electronically, by email only. We do not accept manuscripts via US Mail or Submittable.

Email manuscripts to:

 

possibilities@redbirdchapbooks.com

Red Bird accepts simultaneous submissions.

Only one manuscript per genre per author per reading period.

Previously published poems, stories, essays, excerpts may be included in your manuscript. Please provide publication acknowledgements (title of poem/story/essay, where and when published) in the body of your email.

We publish poetry, non fiction, fiction, illustrated, and multi genre/hybrid chapbooks.

 

Illustrated chapbooks are limited to 3 color images; Black and white images are unlimited.

Projects will be selected within three to six months after the reading period closes.

All authors who send us possibilities will be notified of their status within six months. If you have not heard from us after six months, please reach out via email.

Any questions or queries outside of designated reading periods should be emailed to:

 

admin@redbirdchapbooks.com.

Red Bird reserves the right to refuse any manuscript.

Formatting

Format your possibility email as follows…

Enter the genre and your manuscript title as your subject line. Examples from past titles include:

• Poetry - The Heart of Everything That Is

• Fiction - Tree in Winter

• Non Fiction - My Life as a Pencil

• Multi Genre - Book of If & Ever

• Pamphlet - Three Oranges

Enter your contact information, a brief bio, and any publication acknowledgements in the body of the email. Do not include any contact or identifying information or publication acknowledgements within your manuscript.

Attach your manuscript as a single Word .doc or .docx file. Manuscripts received in any other file format will not be read. Do not paste manuscript into the body of your email.

A cover letter is not required. That said, we're a curious bunch and would love to know how you heard about us:

Did you see a post about our reading period somewhere?

 

Did a friend or colleague suggest you send us your possibility?

 

Do you have any favorite Red Bird authors or chapbook titles?

Please feel free to share these tidbits in your email when you send us your possibility.

Format your manuscript…

A typical chapbook manuscript is as a Word Document between 24 and 26 pages in length. Manuscripts should be no longer than 26 pages, not including the cover page. The Table of Contents, any section page breaks, dedication pages, etc. do count towards this 26 page limit.

Manuscripts should include the Table of Contents (if necessary) and the manuscript text only. Tables of Contents page(s) are necessary if more than one piece of writing (poem, short story, essay, vignette, etc.) appears in the manuscript.

Manuscripts must be formatted as Microsoft Word documents. Use standard .doc or .docx files only.

Remove all special formatting from your Word document before attaching it to your email. You may use page breaks, but do not use section breaks, tables, WordArt or other special formatting within your manuscript. Do not include images in your manuscript.

Poetry Manuscripts:

• Each poem should begin on a new page

Prose Manuscripts:

• Each story or essay should begin on a new page

• Manuscript body should be double-spaced

Manuscripts with artwork, illustrations or images:

• Color images are limited to 3; Black and white images are unlimited

• Send artwork as separate attachments

• Images should be provided as high resolution jpeg files

• Identify image in the file name (e.g. Image 1, Image 2, etc. or a brief description of the image)

• Note placement for each image within the manuscript (e.g. by page number or other reference point such as adjacent piece of writing or by listing on the Table of Contents)

• Do not include images in manuscript document