Alastair Mayer’s T-Space Blog

I promised to talk about presenting yourself this week, more specifically about manuscript formatting. But before I talk about the latter, let me say a word about envelopes. Yes, there are still a few places that prefer postal (that’s snail-mail, not whacko crazy) submissions.

Remember, the guiding thought behind all this is to make a good impression on the editor (or first reader), so common sense and professionalism applies. Think about your manuscript as a job application, and act accordingly. Would you send a job application in a screaming fluorescent pink envelope? Sure, it would stand out from the crowd, but probably not in the way you want. Similarly, anything that has to be signed for — certified mail, FedEx, etc — is just going to annoy the recipient. (Also, unless you’re sending something that has been specifically requested overnight — and if you’re at that level, you don’t need to be reading this — don’t waste your money on any kind of express delivery; first-class mail is fine.) Don’t bother taping up the envelope either, that just makes it harder to open. You want the reader in a good mood when they first see your story, not frustrated from trying to tear open the damn tape or spending five minutes searching under the stacks of other envelopes for a pair of scissors.

Keep it simple. A 9×12 inch envelope (don’t fold the manuscript), sealed as designed. Myself, I prefer the white envelopes which self-seal when you peel off the protective tape, but the kraft or manila kind that you lick’n’stick are fine too. Use a damp sponge if you hate the taste of envelope glue as much as I do. And, make sure you get the address right.

On to manuscript format. This has actually been covered in several excellent sites on the web — and a few others with some odd ideas about formatting. Simply put: clean, readable, and certain information in standard locations to make it easy to find. “Readable” means a good sized, clear font, double spaced, with wide margins. That’s the general guide, now to specifics.

Many publisher’s submission guidelines specify Shunn format, which is standard format as described by William Shunn on his web site. There are a few minor changes to that which some editors will allow, but that is the best place to start. Courier, 12 point font, double spaced, one-inch margins all around, on white paper with appropriate details on the first page and header on every other page. (One publisher — who prefers electronic submissions anyway — calls Courier font “evil”. Copy editors editors actually prefer Courier, for reasons I’ll get into another time.)

To reinforce Shunn’s advice, SFWA (the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America) has this article by John Betancourt on their site. It explains some of the reasoning behind the requirements. Author Robert Sawyer (Flash Forward, Wake etc) has a sample manuscript and this checklist on his site. Sawyer suggests using Dark Courier font as it makes a somewhat heavier impression (and is thus easier to read) when laser-printed.

All of the above advice is actually worse than useless, though, if what you’ve submitted is just a bunch of words on pages rather than an actual story. Worse, because by sneakily presenting whatever it is in standard manuscript format, in a professional-looking package, the editor had to waste time reading it (at least the first page) rather than rejecting it for the hot-pink scented envelope or the calligraphic typeface on decorative paper. So next time, something on making sure your writing doesn’t suck.

PS: The Kris’n’Dean show
Dean Wesley Smith has just posted his and Kris’s workshop schedule for next year. These are rather unlike most writing workshops, but are invaluable for any writer serious about treating it as a business. In particular, the “Kris’n’Dean show”, being offered in March, is an overview that is a real eye-opener for newbies. I’d been around publishing and writers for years, and sending off the occasional story, but it wasn’t until being exposed to the “mini” version of the show that Kris (that’s writer/editor/publisher Kristine Kathryn Rusch) and Dean (writer/editor/publisher Dean Wesley Smith) put on at the Denver Worldcon in 2008 that I moved it up a notch and started selling. (Selling fiction — I was selling non-fiction years before, but that’s a different skill set.)