Please email your proposal to the appropriate acquisitions editor. We strive to respond to all submissions in a timely manner. Please note, however, that we receive and carefully consider hundreds of submissions each month. This takes time and it may take up to two months to respond to you so we encourage your patience. If an editor is interested in your proposal, he or she will be in touch about the next steps in the evaluation and publication process. If we request your manuscript, we prefer that you send it to us on an exclusive basis.
Scholarly proposals should include:
- Working title
- Brief description of your project including its main arguments
- Explanation of how your project contributes to the field
- Information about your book’s intended audience, comparable/competitive titles, and fit with an area in which the press acquires
- Table of contents
- Chapter summaries
- Projected total word count (including notes and bibliography) and number of illustrations, if any
- Manuscript status (if not finished, provide an estimated date of completion)
- Sample chapter(s)
- CV
Proposals for edited collections should also provide a list of contributors, indicating which have committed to the project and which pieces have been previously published.
Trade proposals (sports, Potomac Books, creative works) should include:
- Query letter
- Working title
- Brief description of your project
- Information about your intended audience and comparable titles and/or authors
- Projected total word count and number of illustrations, if any
- Manuscript status (if not finished, provide an estimated date of completion)
- Biographical details and summary of your platform
- Sample chapter