If you're looking for a quick publish - this isn't the place to stop. We have several titles currently being edited and several more that are in line for editing.
If your genre isn't listed below, we aren't accepting submissions for that genre. Please adhere to the genres and dates below. Any submissions received outside of the listing below will not be reviewed.
Paranormal Romance (any heat level)
09-01-2009 until 10-31-2009 (spring 2010 releases)
01-15-2010 until 03-15-2010 (summer 2010 releases)
06-01-2010 until 07-15-2010 (fall 2010 releases)
Steampunk Romance (non-erotic)
01-15-2010 until 05-15-2010 (fall/winter 2010 releases)
Fantasy Romance (any heat level)
09-01-2009 until 10-31-2009 (spring 2010 releases)
01-15-2010 until 03-15-2010 (summer/fall releases)
Contemporary Romance (erotic romance)
01-15-2010 until 03-15-2010 (summer/fall releases)
06-15-2010 until 07-15-2010 (fall/winter releases)
Holiday Romance (any heat level) - special December edition
08-01-2010 until 10-15-2010 - novella to full-length
08-01-2010 until 11-01-2010 - short-story (up to 15,000 words)
*The above timelines are for authors not currently signed with us. If you already have a contract with Wild Horse Press, you may contact us about a submission at any time. However, Christmas/Holiday stories cannot be accepted past the deadline and still make publication for December of that year.
What does it mean to accept open submissions? It means that you do not need an agent in order to submit your book. A lot of the larger publishers do not accept unsolicited manuscripts. That's one of the perks of selecting a small publisher.
While we publish all genres of Romance, at this time we are only accepting submissions in specific genres (see above). If you send a submission that is a sub-genre we are not currently accepting, we will not review it.
Please be sure to read this entire page before submitting your work! You may also wish to review the FAQ page for additional information. We recommend browsing all of our pages to make sure we're the right fit for both you and your book.
*Accepting US Authors. UK & Canadian Authors will be accepted with the understanding that royalty payments will be made in US dollars via PayPal only. At this time, we are not accepting Authors from other countries. We apologize and hope to add more countries in the future as our staff grows.
Short Story –> 15,000 - 23,999 words
Novella –> 24,000 - 40,000 words
Novel –> 40,000 - 100,000 words
* anything under 15,000 will only be accepted as a Free Read
By accepting erotic stories, we seem to have opened a door that we can't shut. So to clarify further, we will not accept stories that contain:
Now, while we don't want sexual violence in the story, if it's in the background as part of the plot development or character development (or if there's a build-up toward something happening, but the hero swoops in and rescues the heroine in time), that's okay. But if the majority of your story is about a woman being constantly abused sexually, especially if you're graphic about it, then please don't send it to us - that isn't the type of story we publish.
Once you have reviewed the genre and date list above to ensure we are accepting your particular genre at this time, please do the following:
Email your complete manuscript. If you are currently published elsewhere and have an author page, please include a link.
In the body of the email, be sure to include:
1. your name
2. pen name (if any)
3. working title
4. word count
5. genre
6. has it been previously published? (if yes, explain)
7. a 1 paragraph blurb about your title
Be sure that the file is attached as a .doc or .rtf file. This should be your final manuscript. Please make sure to read over your manuscript before sending it to us. It should be as polished as possible. If you are submitting the same manuscript to more than one publisher, you need to notate that in your email.
If your story is pasted into the email and not attached, it will not be reviewed for acceptance. Do not submit only the first three chapters, we request the entire manuscript up front. Please check your document for spelling errors, puncutation, etc. before submitting it! The document should be formatted in the following way:
When you submit your file, it will take approximately 3-6 weeks for review. If there are no other manuscripts pending, then it may take less time. If you have more than one manuscript you would like to submit, you may submit up to three at one time (not all in the same email please!).
If you have submitted your manuscript to other publishers, please notate that in your email.
At this time, we have accounts with Amazon Kindle, All Romance Ebooks, 1Romance Ebooks, Coffee Time Romance, and we have a LuLu EStore for e-book sales. Once we have enough titles and authors in house, Wild Horse Press will submit an application to Fictionwise for additional e-book listings.
Print titles will be available on Amazon.com and Target.com websites. We hope that by Fall 2010 we will have enough successful titles to begin the distribution process. We will select a few titles to use as guinea pigs to test the waters by Spring 2010. However, it is not guaranteed that we will be signed with a distributor (such as Ingram or Baker & Taylor) in the near future as we are a new company and will need time to grow.
Using a distributor is a great way to get your books out into stores - HOWEVER - some large chains order more books than they are able to sell. Then they return those books so the authors don't make any money from the sales. In order to make sure this isn't an issue for our authors, we will hold off on signing with a distributor until we are certain that Wild Horse Press, and its authors, are 100% ready for that step!
Our contract is for both print and e-book rights. The term is for two (2) years. If your title does not sell within (3) three months of being listed, the price may be reduced. If at the end of (6) six months your title has not sold, Wild Horse Press may decide to remove the title and all rights would revert back to the Author. However, this has not been an issue thus far and is not likely to happen.
We ask that our authors self-promote their work and maintain a webpage. Does this mean we don't do anything? No, it's doesn't. We post ads with various sites (such as Coffee Time Romance, iRead, and other romance websites), online press releases, and promote in several groups. However, we have noticed that authors who promote their books tend to make better sales. The readers enjoy hearing about your upcoming release from the creator of the tale rather than from the company making it available for sale.
Commission is 40% on e-book sales and 10% for print sales. Please keep in mind that commission is based off the actual amount that Wild Horse Press receives and not the listed price. Sales sites, such as Amazon Kindle, charge a fee for listing your book with them. If your title is listed for $5.98, Wild Horse may only receive $2.25 for that sale - making your commission $0.90 for that one sale.
If you are offered a contract on your submission, you will be given time to review the contract prior to signing and returning it.
Please see our FAQ (frequently asked questions) section for additional information on commission; how much input an author has on their covers; and other pertinent information. It is advised that you read all information on the Submissions and FAQ pages prior to submitting your work. This way you are not surprised by anything and are fully informed.
If your book has been previously published, we require a letter showing that you have the rights to the title again. We will not review your title without it. If you self-published through Fictionwise or another e-seller, we need proof that their rights have expired. Otherwise, we could face serious legal action from those companies. If we decide to offer a contract on a previously published title, a new cover will be created - no exceptions.
