Submissions

MUSA SUBMISSION GUIDELINES


All Musa imprints and special calls are currently open to submissions. 
The Darkside Chronicles shared world project will open to submissions on April 1, 2013.

With your submission to Musa, please send the following to submissions@musapublishing.com :

A query letter, including a synopsis of your story and your publication history if applicable;
a full synopsis of your story and the first twenty pages of your manuscript EMBEDDED IN THE EMAIL.

We will not open any attachments in your query email. Ever.

If we like what we see, we will request your entire story in standard electronic manuscript format (1 inch margins-top, bottom, and sides; 12 pt Times New Roman font, double spaced, non-justified right margin)

SHARP-TOOTHED

Therianthropy (n) – The metamorphosis from human to animal form. See: lycanthropy

The world of legend, myth, and fiction is filled with tales of men and women who have the ability to transform into animals. The most popular of these, of course, are werewolves. However, there is an abundance of animals that have been paired with shape-shifters, weres, and skinwalkers that have yet to shine.

Musa’s Erato GLBT imprint is seeking stories of these other therianthropes and shape-shifters. Use creatures from ancient legends, or make up your own, but make sure to show us the animal in your hero or heroine. We want to see more than just wolves this Halloween!

Genres: Romance (all heat levels)
Heat levels: All
Length: 15k-100k+
Special requirements: All stories must feature a GLBT romance in order to qualify for the Erato imprint.

Submissions due: Submissions will be considered on a rolling basis but will be accepted through October 31, 2013. Early submissions are encouraged.

To Submit: Send a letter and synopsis in the body of an email to: sharp.toothed.subs@gmail.com

Please attach your complete submission as either a .doc or .rtf with the following formatting: Times New Roman 12 point, double spaced, left-aligned, non-justified, no bolding.

All submissions must follow Musa’s standard content guidelines. Any submissions that do not follow these guidelines will be rejected. Make sure to include SHARP-TOOTHED in the title of your email.

New Saterotica Line Announces Call For Submissions

 Saterotica [sat-ih-rot-i-kuh] (noun) 1) a state of understanding that sex is the greatest practical joke of all time. 2) of or having the ability to laugh with the participants, as opposed to at them. 3) an erotic, humorous story from Musa Publishing

 Saterotica stories will satirize the erotic romance genre, by either taking a shot at some of our favorite (direly awful) stories from the past, the kind that was hidden in brown paper bags at the back of Mom's closet in 1975, or by taking a standard erotic situation and making it...well,  not quite so standard and very funny. Sometimes, the greatest romances are intensified by a strong dose of laughter. Saterotica is not for BAD erotic romance. The plotline must have a legitimate romantic element.  The satire comes into play by poking fun at the genre. While we realize that humor is entirely subjective, stories hinging on bigotry, cruelty, and/or prejudice toward a person or group of people will not be accepted for the  Saterotica line. Additionally, all standard content restrictions for Musa submissions still apply (no water sports, scat, incest, pedophillia, etc).

We are looking for fully developed stories between 7,000 and 20,000 words.  The minimum word count is absolute; the upper word count can bend if the length is justified by the plot.  We are looking for both het and gay, menages, BDSM, and any combination thereof. Humorous elements must satirize the erotica genre, using cliches, tropes, and/or incidents that change the intent of the story from titillation to comedy. Please send submissions (query letter, first twenty pages, and one paragraph synopsis) to editor@musapublishing.com and include "Saterotica" in the subject line.

SPECIAL CALL:  Tuesday Temptations

Erato is seeking steamy stories for our  Tuesday Temptations line. From whirlwind romances to the ultimate dirty weekends, we’re looking for stories 15k and under to steam up our screens and make our staff blush. GLBT erotica and erotic romance may both apply, in all sub-genres. Make it fun, make it sexy, make it great! To submit: follow our regular submission guidelines and be sure to indicate that your story is for  Tuesday Temptations.

SPECIAL CALL : Under the Cape

 Everybody loves a hero—someone who rides in to save the day because that’s what needs to be done. Some heroes have super powers, and some risk it all on cunning and human talent, but all of them are people we look up to. Whether they’re in movies, TV shows, books, or comic books, heroes are a product of the world that needs them, and the popularity of superhero movies today make it clear that a lot of us are looking for some rescue.

 Musa is seeking stories of GLBT heroes and heroines for our Erato  imprint. We want to know who your heroes are and what makes them tick. What are they like between missions, who do they love? Do they have families, or have they been left all alone in their tragic origin story? After they fly off into the sunset, they have to go somewhere, so tell us. Tell us about what it really means to be a hero, and show us the person under the cape.

Genres: Romance (sweet through erotic), Action/Adventure
Heat levels: All
Length: 15k+

Special requirements: All stories must feature a GLBT romance in order to qualify for the Erato imprint.

Submissions due: Submissions will be considered on a rolling basis but will be accepted through 11/1/12. Early submissions are encouraged.

To submit: Send a letter and synopsis in the body of an email to headeditor.erato@gmail.com, and attach your complete submission as either a .doc or .rtf .

 Any submissions that do not follow these guidelines will be rejected. Make sure to include UNDER THE CAPE in the title of your email, and make sure to submit to the appropriate imprint.

SPECIAL CALL: What Honor Requires

Some soldiers serve because they feel a call to duty. Others serve out of obligation. Whether they enlist or are drafted, fight in wars or patrol the homefront, these military men and women have one thing in common: their honor. Even when they don't seek conflict, honor requires them to protect their loved ones or fulfill their mission.

In a special call for Veteran's Day of 2013, Musa is seeking stories of military valor for our Urania Imprint. From the lowest grunt to the highest general, we want know what sacrifices it takes to serve a space navy or a warlord wizard. How did they get where they are now? What did they give up to be here? Tell us the story of the grizzled veteran finding his place in the world after the wars are ended, or the rookie grunt defending her country in a foreign conflict she doesn't understand. How does a lone supply sergeant keep up with the requirements of a steampunk army?

Genres: Science Fiction, Fantasy, Action/Adventure
Heat Levels: 0-2
Length: 20k+

Submissions call opens February 1, 2013.
Submissions call closes May 27, 2013.
Expected Publication dates November 2013.

Special requirements: All stories must feature science fiction or fantasy elements (or any subgenre of these two) to qualify for the Urania imprint. All accepted authors must be available for manuscript edits during June/July 2013.

To submit: Send a cover letter including word count and synopsis in the body of an email to urania@musapublishing.com and attach your complete submission as either a .doc or .rtf with the following formatting: Times New Roman 12 point, double spaced, left-aligned, non-justified, no bolding.

Any submissions that do not follow these guidelines will be rejected. Make sure to include WHAT HONOR REQUIRES in the title of your email. Any submissions sent before the submission call opens will be deleted unread.

Imprints

AURORA/AURORA REGENCY

Great historical romance requires exceptional authors and precise editing to deliver the rich, accurate historical detail that readers demand. In order to continue to develop and actively promote our historical romance titles, Musa Publishing will establish a historical romance concentration by expanding the existing Aurora imprint.

Effective immediately, the Aurora imprint will be the imprint for all pre-20th century historical romance titles released by Musa. Existing historical romance authors and titles will be migrated to the new imprint and all submissions for historical romance should be directed to Aurora.

This imprint builds upon the exceptional success of Aurora Regency which will continue to thrive as a distinctive and exclusive category within Aurora that produces fresh traditional Regency romance from new voices and established voices alike.

Head Editor, Elaine Golden  You can reach her at head.editor.aurora@gmail.com.

CALLIOPE 

Calliope is the heterosexual romance/romantic erotic imprint at Musa Publishing.

Calliope welcomes diverse romance—all of the following are welcome:

contemporary, traditional erotic romance (highly erotic material with plot—HEA or HFN ending a must)
horror, crime, drama with romance as a strong element of the story, humor, paranormal, science fiction, fantasy

Preferred length is 25,000-150,000 words.  Exceptions can be made, but always include word count in your submission cover page.

What Calliope Is Looking For:

Head Editor, Aimee Benson 
I’m looking for smart, sexy romances with a fresh, modern voice. I like small town love stories where the setting could be a character in itself. I enjoy science fiction and fantasy romances where the world building is unique and creative.

Menage in any pairing (MFM, MMF, FFM, FMF) is great--I want to understand how and why characters choose this non-traditional relationship!  I love paranormals especially sexy shifter stories.

But above all, I want smart and sexy character-driven romances. I want deep POV, I want complicated relationships, I want tension that leaps off the page and tangles me in knots. Make me blush! I want to acquire romances I can’t stop thinking about for weeks afterwards.

A note on BDSM: I love the flavor that BDSM can add to a story, however, I like BDSM to be portrayed in a thoughtful, nuanced way. I want to understand and relate to the characters in the relationship, how and why this fulfills the needs of each individual. I am not interested in kinky tastes being described as a mental illness or something in need of a cure.

You can reach Aimee at head.editor.calliope@gmail.com .

CLIO

Clio is our historical fiction imprint.  Historical romances are not published through Clio; they are published through the Aurora Regency imprint.  At Clio, we want to see strong, well-researched historical fiction. We do fact check historical fiction stringently, having editors on staff who specialize in history.  Current especial interests at Clio are widespread--from classical Greek and Rome to ancient Egypt, medieval, the Tudor dynasty, the French Revolution, American history--particularly colonial America, Victorian and Edwardian.  If your story is NOT from these historical eras that's okay--we still want to take a look at it. Anything set after World War II will not be considered at Clio, but will be redirected to the imprint the acquisitions team feels is the best fit for the project. 

ERATO

EUTERPE

MELPOMENE

Melpomene is the home for award-winning mysteries and thumbnail gnawing suspense at Musa. With a prolific core of outstanding writers and top tier editors who thrive upon a page-turning whodunnit, we are always seeking new and outstanding voices with fully developed and intricate plots.  Our preferred minimum word count is 50,000 words, but we will consider shorter works as long as the plots are adequately developed and resolved. 

PAN

POLYHYMNIA

Polyhymnia is Musa Publishing's home for special projects, like the Homer Eon Flint collection.  We do not seek unsolicited submissions for Polyhymnia. 

TERPSICHORE

Terpsichore publishes contemporary literature--literary, women's fiction, humor, true confessions-style stories, and family sagas. At this time we are particularly interested in humor and women's fiction novels, but will consider other types of contemp lit stories. 

THALIA 

By the pricking of my thumbs, something wicked this way comes to Musa.  Thalia is the destination for all stories creepy and crawly--paranormal and horror tales make up the body of work in Thalia.  When we say paranormal, we do not mean paranormal romance.  In other words, Thalia vampires are monsters, Thalia werewolves are carnivorous, Thalia magic is serious and hard core and usually not very nice. We will consider stories from novelette to novels and are currently wanting to see well-written and thought-provoking horror as well as paranormal stories that take the reader someplace entirely new. 

URANIA 

Speculative fiction is rampant at Musa, where the Urania imprint is one of the largest and most varied. Urania publishes science fiction, fantasy, urban fantasy, steampunk, cyberpunk, space opera, and any mashed up variation of one or all of these sub-genres. At this time, Urania is only considering novellas and novels for publications. 

WICCAN HAUS

THE DARKSIDE CHRONICLES

The Darkside Chronicles is a shared world project that will begin publication in the summer of 2013.

The Darkside Chronicles is seeking stories from 35,000 to 100,000 words in the grand tradition of shared world projects like Thieves World, Borderlands, and The Fleet. We are looking for stories in science fiction, fantasy, urban fantasy, horror, romance, paranormal, and noir in combination with the steampunk foundations of the world. .Musa will provide interested authors with an extensive bible of backstory, history, and information necessary to the uniform creation of the world.

Questions about the project and requests for the world bible can be sent to the attention of Celina Summers at editor@musapublishing.com. The Darkside Chronicles will open to submissions on April 1, 2013. 

Guidelines

WHAT MUSA IS LOOKING FOR

Musa is a digital (ebook), royalty-paying small publisher. Musa does not charge fees for set up, printing, or anything else. Money flows to the author, not the other way around. Musa Publishing has a zero tolerance policy toward plagiarism. This includes fan fiction of any sort--disguised or not.

Musa will consider submissions from 5,000 words to epic novel for all imprints.

We will consider reprints to rights reverted stories. We do not accept multiple submissions. We will publish all books electronically. When we begin our print program, we will take selected Musa titles to small print publication.

WHAT MUSA IS NOT LOOKING FOR

Musa absolutely will not publish any stories that include the following:

Pedophilia
Incest (unless a historical set in an ancient setting like Egypt or some fantasy stories)
Necrophilia (this doesn't apply to the Undead—like vampires)
Gratuitous rape or rape intended to titillate (rape as necessary for the plot and presented in a non-titillating fashion will be considered)
Snuff
Scat or golden showers
Bestiality (shapeshifters in human form is okay)
Material that discriminates or displays extreme prejudice against another race, gender or sexual orientation
Retooled fan fiction
Blatant fan fiction

If you have any questions about the submissions process, please email us at submissions@musapublishing.com or send the question through our help desk feature on our website.