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festival 2008

Manuscript Submission

Do you have a manuscript you would like to get published? Then you'll want to take advantage of a special opportunity exclusively for Festival 2008 attendees: an online book proposal system that enables you to post one proposal to a secure online site that can be accessed by editors attending Festival 2008. If an editor is interested in your proposal, he or she will contact you directly and perhaps even arrange to meet at the Festival to discuss your project further. We had a large number of attendees take advantage of this service in 2006, and some were even offered book deals.

Here's how it works: You will develop a proposal (specifications below) for a book that you have written or are in the process of writing. Following the guidelines below, you will e-mail your proposal to us, and we will post it to a secure site that is available only to editors attending Festival 2008.

It is our hope that such a system will provide aspiring writers with a concrete way to present their manuscripts to editors and will improve connections between writers and editors at the Festival. Please note, however, that writers should not rely on this system as their only means to connect with editors at the Festival, since we cannot guarantee that every editor will choose to view proposals on this site. Aspiring writers are therefore also encouraged to visit the exhibition hall during the Festival, since some of the editors there will set aside time to meet with writers on an individual basis.

In order for this manuscript system to work, we kindly ask that you follow the guidelines exactly and submit only what is requested.

General guidelines:

  • Festival registrants may submit only one manuscript proposal.
  • The service is available for electronic manuscript proposals only; we cannot accept paper copies of your proposal.
  • This service is available only to individuals registered for the Festival. Submissions from individuals who are not registered for the conference will be deleted.
  • The Festival staff is unable to answer specific questions regarding the content of your proposal or offer any assistance in writing it. If you've never written a proposal before and need assistance, there are many resources online that can help you.
  • We will accept submissions beginning in December 2007. The deadline for submissions is March 17, 2008. (Please note that it is to your advantage to submit your proposal as early as possible.)

The process:
You will send an e-mail to ffw@calvin.edu. In the subject line, please write the word "proposal," followed by the category to which your manuscript belongs. Please choose from one of the following categories:

  • children's/young adult
  • plays/drama/film
  • poetry
  • non-fiction: creative non-fiction
  • non-fiction: spiritual writing
  • non-fiction: academic
  • non-fiction: memoir
  • non-fiction: Christian living/devotional
  • non-fiction: comparative religion/multifaith
  • fiction: literary fiction
  • fiction: religious fiction
  • fiction: genre fiction (mystery, romance, thriller)

The subject line of your e-mail, then, might look like this:
proposal: non-fiction: memoir

In the body of your e-mail message, please include only the following information: your name, the tentative title of your book, and a brief summary (no more than 100 words).

To the e-mail, please attach your proposal in a Word document that contains the following information (in the order indicated below):

  • author name, contact information, and brief bio
  • book summary or overview (include estimated length of book and estimated date of completion)
  • table of contents (if non-fiction)
  • book's intended audience/readership
  • brief title comparison (list of competing/similar books on the market)
  • marketing strategies/promotion ideas
  • possible endorsers
  • book excerpt (The excerpt should be no more than 3,000 words, single-spaced, and should contain one or two sample chapters of your book.)

Please do not send additional attachments or information. After we have received your proposal and have posted it on our secure site, you will receive a confirmation via e-mail.

The deadline for submitting a manuscript is March 17, 2008. We are unable to accept proposals submitted after this date. (Please note that it is to your advantage to submit your proposal as early as possible.)