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Home > Submissions Guidelines
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SLG Publishing accepts unsolicited submissions by mail and email. Please follow these guidelines when you send in a proposal.
1) We only review projects.
We do not accept scripts without artwork, or art samples without a story. If you are only a writer or only an artist, you need to find someone to work with BEFORE submitting your project. We know this sounds unfair to some people, but please keep our situation in mind. If we attempt to hire an illustrator to draw your script, or vice-versa, we are creating a work-for-hire situation where the artist or writer is going to (rightfully so) expect us to compensate him or her for their time. All members of the creative team need to be fully committed to the project BEFORE it is submitted.
2) If you send your submission through the mail, always include a self-addressed stamped envelope with your submission or your email address.
While we will contact you via phone or email if we are interested in publishing your work, we will not pay postage to send you a rejection letter. If you want to receive a reply, include a SASE. If you want your submission returned, be sure to not only include sufficient postage, but an envelope large enough to hold your materials.
3) All submissions MUST include a cover letter that clearly explains your project.
Do you envision a series or graphic novel? (Please note that at this time, the market favors graphic novels.) Black and white or color? (If you look at our published books, you'll notice that color books are the minority.) We need to know what you want to do, and what you want us to do. If we just get some pages or self-published work without an explanation, it will likely go unread.
4) Let us know if this is a simultaneous submission.
We need to know if you have submitted this book to other publishers. If we contact you about publishing the book, and you are also talking with other publishers about it, it is a matter of professional courtesy to let us know. If you have already signed with another publisher, also let us know. We do not "bid" for projects. We have a standard contract we use with all our creators, and they all receive the same terms. We are very proud of our publishing history and treatment of our creators, and expect anyone who wants to work with us to do so on the basis of this tradition. We will not begin discussing business with anyone until we are sure WE are the publisher that THEY want to work with.
5) Be sure to include ALL of the following:
* A Self-Addressed Stamped Envelope (SASE) if you do not include an email address for reply.
* A cover letter
* A synopsis outlining your story/series, INCLUDING how it ends.
* Character Descriptions
* At least five pages of finished (penciled, inked and lettered) panel-to-panel art (pages that tell the story, not pin-ups)
* A list of possible titles
E-mail Submission Guidelines
When you send a submission by email, please make your cover letter the body of the email and include all the material (except the self-addressed stamped envelope) in one PDF file that is no larger than 10 megabytes. (Please don't email us to ask how to make a PDF. There are tutorials online.) Do not send more than one attachment or direct us to a website to see your comic. Send your email and PDF to submissions@slgpubs.com.
And here are some things you should not do when submitting to us:
1) Do not send CDs or refer us to your website.
2) Do not send original art.
This means do not send your actual artwork — the piece of paper you drew on, the one-of-a-kind that you can’t replace.
3) Do not include postcards, stickers or other promotional material in your submission.
4) Do not send your submission by registered or certified mail.
5) If you receive your rejection letter through email, please do not reply asking for clarification or defending your work.
6) Please do not call the office to check on the status of your submission.
If it has been more than three months since you submitted, you may email submissions@slgpubs.com to check on its status.
Once you have your proposal together and ready to send, you should keep a few points in mind:
Just because we’re a small company doesn’t mean we’re not busy.
In fact, it means that the two people in the editorial department often are very busy. We try our best to read submissions in a timely manner, but please be patient.
We’re still nice people, even if we don’t like your project.
Please keep in mind that when we review your work — we’re not making value judgments about you as a person — we’re merely reviewing a comic book project. Likewise, if we don’t like your work, it doesn’t make us any less human. Sending us hate mail, nasty emails or berating us at a convention is a sure way to guarantee that SLG will never, ever, ever-in a-million-years, publish your work.
We do NOT discuss contracts and business terms prior to evaluating your project.
First submit your proposal. If we like it, we’ll start talking business. But in brief: all books published by SLG are creator-owned — that is they remain the property of the creator. We do not pay advances or page rates; all creators are paid a royalty — a percentage based upon the number of copies sold. The terms of our contracts are confidential and between ourselves and our creators. Do not call or email to find out how much you would be paid or would make if we publish your book. We always hope creators will make money from their books, but this is a small industry, and that doesn’t happen too often.
SEND YOUR SUBMISSION TO THE FOLLOWING ADDRESS:
Submissions Editor
SLG Publishing
P.O. Box 26427
San Jose, CA 95159-6427
Or email it to submissions@slgpubs.com
ONCE AGAIN, DO NOT SEND SUBMISSIONS TO US VIA REGISTRED, CERTIFIED OR ANY OTHER METHOD THAT REQUIRES A SIGNATURE!
Really, sometimes we have to wait in line at the post office for upwards of 20 minutes just to get ONE submission. Seriously, we might reject your project out of both spite and the fact that you decided not to follow this one simple instruction.
Thanks again for your interest in SLG/Amaze Ink.
Dan Vado, President and Publisher
Jennifer de Guzman, Editor-in-Chief
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