As a freelance editor for comics and graphic novels, i wanted to be. See and download a host of comic script examples at the comic book script. What does a cover letter for a submission look like. Because the submission process seems so mysterious, cover letters are viewed as talismans or lucky charms, the magic object that will open the door leading to publication, fame and fortune. You have one page and 300 words or less to woo a literary agent into falling in love with your story and then requesting your manuscript. A brief, typed cover letter that summarizes your project and your previous work, if relevant. Comic book letter columns are also commonly referred to as letter columns or lettercols, letter pages, letters of comment locs, or simply letters to the editor. For your submission, if you have already completed your work in a different format, that is fine. Join cgc to get direct submission privileges, 247 order tracking and more. Your cover letter is your submission, and should include. How to write a successful cover letter superhero nation. As of this writing, marvel comics has a line on their submissions page that.
This time i actually show a pitch example and stress the importance of length. If youre having trouble writing your query letter to send to literary agents, i highly. Marvel does not accept or consider any ideas, creative suggestions, artwork, designs, game proposals, scripts, manuscripts, or similar material unless we have specifically requested it from you. If it is an email submission, address your email to the proper person, attach your materials and send it. Do not hand image comics employees submissions at comic book conventions.
The definitive list of comic publisher submission guidelines for. Image takes a small flat fee off the books published and it will be the. Month 6 30 days after diamond receives your books and your invoice for those books, theyll cut you the publisher a check for those books. Your submission should only contain original content that you own and will retain all the ownership rights to. By signing this document, you are acknowledging that dynamite entertainment continually generates new comic book ideas inhouse, as well as from outside sources, and that dynamite entertainment has no liability for similarities between your submission and possible future dynamite entertainment products or. Upon diamonds receipt of your books, you may send them an invoice for those books. And with the internet we can collaborate with cocreators across the globe. Five keys to the perfect cover letter for your graphic. Graphic novel publishers accepting open submissions jay.
Iron circus comics will be accepting unsolicited submissions from comic creators beginning in november of 2015. The cover letter should be no longer than two a4 pages preferably one and made up of a few brief paragraphs, see below for the breakdown of what should be in the cover letter and can appear in any logical order you choose. Now youre read to pitch your project to this publisher. You have an entire creative team behind you, a team that includes a writer, penciller, inker and letterer. Theres a very specific standard for query letters that you should not deviate from, when possible. Dark horse accepts two types of unsolicited submissions art samples or storyseries proposals from writerartists or writer and artist teams. The most common comic book letters material is metal. Include contact information name, email address, address, phone and fax numbers clearly printed on the top of the page.
For graphic novel submissions, send a sample of artwork along with a. Due to a high volume of submissions we are unable to respond to each proposal individually. Typically there are submission guidelines for a sending a childrens book to a publisher, and youre expected to adhere to them. But after speaking to editors and agents that specialize in comics, i was able to. Please familiarize yourself with our current output before submitting any proposals. Submitting features to andrews mcmeel syndication submit a feature. Sure, it doesnt cost you anything to send a submission, but it does cost the editor his or her time. In part one of this tutorial series i gave a pep talkbeatdown about how difficult it is to cold pitch publishers and what youre up against.
A pitch is where you send your idea for a comic book to an editor. How to submit to get your comic strip syndicated how to become a comic strip, comic book and graphic novel artist. Jun 24, 2015 youve found the perfect publisher for the graphic novel or comic series youve been developing. Then i hung the letters using the command velcro strips. Dynamite the official site killing red sonja, george r. Stranger comics is a comic book publishing company with full publishing and distribution services. Heres a complete list of comic book, manga and graphic novel.
May 30, 2012 comic book lettersbought the letters from hobby lobbygot some old superhero comic books together and cut them upused mod podge to apply the comic books papers to the letters. Month 6 30 days after diamond receives your books and your invoice for those books, theyll cut you the publisher a. I know that the strictures of standard format for book manuscripts is pretty hard to wrap ones head around the first time one hears. A brief, typed cover letter that summarizes your project. Publishers accepting submissions careers in comics. Questions from whitney my question is about query formats in regards to graphic novels. What should be included with the comic stripspanels you submit. How to write a cover letter for manuscript submissions. To find a comic shop near you, please use the comic book shop locator. With modern computers and incredible graphics software, anyone can write, draw, and letter a comic from their bedroom. A pitch is where you send your idea for a comic book to an editor, in the hope that they will like it enough to publish it. Andrews mcmeel syndication is always looking for great new comics and columns. Your book might be part of a trilogy, but thats not the most important thing about it if you cant sell one book, you wont be able to sell the other two. Youve found the perfect publisher for the graphic novel or comic series youve been developing.
Do not send a submissions agreement with art samples, only with storyseries proposals. Comic book publisher submission guidelines for artists. How to write a darn good query letter ny book editors. Each submission will be a supervillain sitting at a huge table explaining why they should be voted as the supreme archvillain, then they go. Submissions which do not follow the following instructions will be ignored. What you are about to read is the definitive list of the 100 greatest black comic book superheroesvillains of alltimeall ranked. Usually two weeks after diamond ships the books, the book will release on wednesday at comic shops. Dark horse comics is the thirdlargest comics publisher in the u. Are you an agent or publisher accepting graphic novel submissions. January 21, 2015 compulsive admin update comic book submission. Always send an sase self addresses stamped envelope with it.
Otherwise, we dont have the resources to respond to each submission. Image comics submission january 21, 2015 compulsive admin update comic book submission, comic books 10 comments this is an article that originally appeared on my personal blog on april 15, 20. Image area for each art scan should be pixels wide by 1500 pixels high. Stratum will always look at your submission, while we cant promise a response, we do promise weve looked at what youve sent us. Marvel does not accept or consider any ideas, creative suggestions, artwork, designs, game proposals, scripts, manuscripts, or similar. Include a cover letter with email or a sase if you want items returned. You will be happy to hear that cover letters arent actually too complicated to write. If you are sending inking samples, make sure you also send a copy of the original pencils. Also to agents and publishers, it really helps to mark if youre interested in nonfiction works in comics, too. A cover letter that accompanies a manuscript or a manuscript synopsis is also known as a query letter, and it should contain a compelling overview of the work, details about the writers background. Over the years, weve found that many creators are not familiar with the fundamentals when it comes to preparing a comic book for print. With that said, we make our best attempt to reply to every submission as soon as possible. Apr 24, 2012 comic strip submissions for comic strips you have to submit directly to the companies by mail mostly.
Apr 02, 2019 comic submission guidelines for book publishers. The opposite of this mistake but still a mistake is a letter that tells the entire plot, or in case of a picture book, a synopsis that is as long as the manuscript. Idw publishing titles are available from penguin random house. Images submission page looks different since then, but the process has remained the same. Therefore, the cover letter should be straightforward and concise. The definitive list of comic publisher submission guidelines for 2019 the comic publisher landscape 2018. When i wrote my article on writing a synopsis, i mentioned that it was one of the most challenging tasks for authors. This is an article that originally appeared on my personal blog on april 15, 20. Graphic novels are like nonfiction submissions in that way. Make sure your last name is a part of the name of each of the files.
Follow the link for their full requirements and make sure to follow them to the letter. A terrific cover letter never sold a bad manuscript, and many lovely books have sold in spite of their cover letters. Heres 7 of the best free book comic fonts that you can use in comic books, graphic novels and other commercial projects. Above all else, remember a publishereditors time is valuable. Make sure your submission is under fifteen megabytes in size. Comic book lettersbought the letters from hobby lobbygot some old superhero comic books together and cut them upused mod podge to apply the comic books papers to the letters. We will try to respond to everyone, but if we like it well be in touch. Of course it would be cool to see your comic book on the stand at your local comic shop but at the same time, your publisher isnt interested in doing you a favor, theyre trying to make money or at least not lose it all selling comics. You need to understand a bit about publisher submission guidelines, if you want to break into the comic books.
Writing a cover letter to accompany your manuscript submission is a mechanism that enables you to detail the most vital elements of your work. With many submission guidelines asking for the first 510 pages pasted in the body of the email, i was wondering how to go about keeping the script format this way. I only used one on each letter since they are so light and it has worked for me. Publishers, even small ones, are overwhelmed with pitches. Maybe more than at any other major comic book publisher, as a matter of fact, says marvel talent liaison c. We prefer four to six weeks of samples of a proposed feature so that we can judge the quality and consistency of your work.
Treat your cover letter as a business letterafter all that is what it is. The company was founded almost six decades back by editorpublisher duo, harvey kurtzman and william gaines to disseminate quality humour comics. If an editor is interested in working with you, you will be contacted. Please include a letter explaining the purpose and scope of your material. Please note your name and specific profession penciler, colorist, etc. They are an american comic book publisher that is wellknown within the comic industry for allowing creators to keep the s of their creations. A query letter is a onepage letter sent to literary agents in an effort to get them excited about your book. Send a query letter to an agent, who will represent you in finding a publisher.
Nowhere does this letter say what sort of book this is or what its about. If you do not receive a reply within one month of submitting consider your proposal declined. A literary agents guide to querying your graphic novel. That means we create and develop concepts applicable across comics, books, cartoons, tv shows, movies, toys, apparel, and beyond. Writing a cover letter if youre just joining in, i revealed in my previous post that the title of my new comic strip is k is for krick, and that krick is a schoolteacher. Writing a cover letter the manuscript appraisal agency. Thats only part of the story for breaking in as a comic book writer, artist, or business professional. Hiveworks comics takes submission for webcomics made by individuals and small teams.
We would prefer to see comic strips over comic book or graphic novel pages, however. Trade publishing works very differently than the comics world, and you need to. Comic book submission archives compulsive creative. Due to the large volume of submissions dark horse comics receives every week, we cannot guarantee a quick turnaround time. For another, the formal query letter you might send for a novel is not strictly. Please keep this as succinct as possible and do include major plot points and spoilers. A submission letter from a new writerartist might look something like this. I used to letter all of the various comics that we created back in the midlate 2000s. Image comics submission january 21, 2015 compulsive admin update comic book submission, comic books 10 comments. Dont be fancy just staple your photocopies together and put it in an envelope with your cover letter.
Only submissions including a signed submission release form in their proposal package will be read. Your himilayan adventures can go into the author profile. A comic book letter column is a section of an american comic book where readers letters to the publisher appear. Anyone whos as crazy about comics as i am and loves to create them has probably. For nonfiction, platform and qualifications are very important, so your query should be 60% about the book, 40% about your platform if your book is about surviving in the himalayas, your adventures are. January 21, 2015 compulsive admin update comic book submission, comic books 10 comments this is an article that originally appeared on my personal blog on april 15, 20. This list of submission guidelines includes links to comic book publishers.
How to submit a childrens book to a publishing company. Read through these guidelines before you submit your material for our consideration. Id love to know why it is so difficult for talented, motivated individuals to get into the industry, considering that there is more interest then ever in the comic industry. Format with your address at the top of the page, right justified. Many comic book publishers do not want to be inundated with submission packages. Each submission will be a supervillain sitting at a huge table explaining why. Did you scroll all this way to get facts about comic book letters. How to format and submit graphic novels lara willard. For a fiction submission, ensure the letter is more about the book than you.
I would think that the companies would go out of their way to encourage fresh talent with new ideas to be harvested. Sep 18, 2012 here comes the pitch part two posted by jim zub on september 18, 2012 leave a comment 19 go to comments in part one of this tutorial series i gave a pep talkbeatdown about how difficult it is to cold pitch publishers and what youre up against. Five keys to the perfect cover letter for your graphic novel or comic. So many times nonfiction authorsillustrators have to navigate your submission guidelines and then have to try to figure out to submit as fiction or nonfiction, because you may have graphic novels marked as fiction only.
You can read our basic guidelines below, but i can recommend the book how to write the cover letter for your submission to a publisher. If you look at our track record over the last 18 months, i think youll find the names of more new writers and artists in marvel books than ever before. A lot of wouldbe comic writers are under the impression that pitching their comic story is all about showing how much work theyve done. The cover letter otherwise known as a query letter, by comparison, should actually be pretty simple. A subsidiary of dc entertainment, mad magazine is yet another excellent platform for your upcoming comic book series. Of course it would be cool to see your comic book on the stand at your local comic shop but at the same time, your publisher isnt interested in doing you a favor, theyre trying to make money or at least not lose it all. Put letter and manuscript into envelop, seal and post. Five keys to the perfect cover letter for your graphic novel. The main aim of your cover letter is to give the agentpublisher more detail about your manuscript and you, the author. If you submit more than the first 8 pages, your submission will be automatically deleted. This means the little guys like us are lucky if anyone in the company even looks at our submissions if the names arent recognizable. Jan 07, 20 so please do not let that deter you from writing comic scripts.