House of Anansi Submissions
House of Anansi Press is open to direct submissions from authors twice a year, for a one-month period each, beginning February 1 and August 1. The portal is now closed for submissions. Agents are welcome to submit to individual editors or the publisher at any time.
Before submitting, please take the time to familiarize yourself with our imprints (see below) and recent books to see if your work fits with Anansi’s publishing program.
WHAT WE PUBLISH
House of Anansi publishes about 35 books annually. Our fiction list collects the best of literary, upmarket, and genre novels, as well as short story collections by new voices and household names. Our nonfiction list includes creative nonfiction, essay collections, and book-length deep dives alongside more lifestyle-oriented offerings. And our poetry list features experimentations within lyric traditions by debut poets and those with established reputations.
Currently, we are not accepting submissions of personal memoirs or autobiographies.
For children’s and young adult literature, please refer to Groundwood Books.
WHO SHOULD SUBMIT
Please note that during our open submission periods, Anansi prioritizes submissions from Canadian citizens or residents, or Indigenous Peoples from Turtle Island and around the world who are eligible to hold Canadian citizenship. Writers submitting work through the portal must not currently have an agent, nor should the project submitted be previously self-published in book form.
In particular, we are looking to engage with work by writers from historically underrepresented communities, including—but not limited to—those who are Black, Indigenous, people of colour, disabled, neurodivergent, LGBTQIA+, debuting later in life, or without an MFA.
HOW TO SUBMIT
House of Anansi is open to submissions twice per year, for a one-month period each:
- February 1–29
- August 1–31
During these periods, you will be able to submit your work through our online portal. We use submission periods to ensure that we are able to respond to all submissions in a timely manner.
Our editorial team recognizes and is grateful for the time and effort involved in formatting your submission to our specifications. Please read our submission guidelines carefully.
Include the following in your submission:
- A 1–2-page pitch letter telling us about your book. This might include your reasons for writing it, why you are the person to have done so, who the ideal reader for it is, and how you see it relating to the list of books we publish.
- A CV that includes your city of residence, writing credentials, and publication history (if applicable).
- A brief synopsis (250 words max) of your project to be pasted into a text box within the submission portal.
- Your full manuscript or proposal.
Title your documents in the following format:
- [Last Name]_[First Name]_Pitch
- [Last Name]_[First Name]_[Title of Work]
Please use a legible, 12-point font, double spaced, with 2.5 cm (1 inch) margins, and insert page numbers.
Please note that Anansi prefers submissions in PDF format and only accepts .docx, .doc, and .pdf file formats.
We accept multiple submissions, but please limit your submissions to one per genre.
If you select “send me a copy of my responses,” you will receive an email confirming receipt of your submission. We do not charge a fee to submit.
ON WITHDRAWALS AND UPDATES
If you need to withdraw your submission, please send an email to submissions [AT] houseofanansi [DOT] com, subject line: SUBMISSION WITHDRAWAL.
We will accept simultaneous submissions, but we request that you advise us if this is the case and inform us right away if your manuscript is accepted elsewhere.
Please do not send unsolicited submissions to our submissions email. Submissions sent to this address will be deleted.
WHILE YOU WAIT
We receive hundreds of solicited and unsolicited submissions each year. The review process typically takes 4–6 months, though it may take longer in some instances. Phone calls and emails will not hasten the process. We appreciate your patience.
Thank you for considering House of Anansi Press as a home for your manuscript!
In the meantime, get to know our acquiring editors on the House of Anansi blog, here.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
- Is there a word limit for submissions?
We do not have any hard rules about submission lengths; however, we prefer prose manuscripts under 100,000 words in length. If you are curious about the range of books we have previously published, please see our backlist.
- How can I update my contact information after submitting?
Please email updates about your contact information to submissions [AT] houseofanansi [DOT] com.
- Can I send a submission via email outside of the open submissions periods?
Please send us your work through the submission portal during our open submission periods. Due to the volume of submissions we receive, we are unable to review unsolicited manuscripts that come to us outside of these windows.
- Can I submit multiple manuscripts at the same time?
We accept multiple submissions, but please limit your submissions to one per genre, i.e., one poetry manuscript, one fiction manuscript, and/or one nonfiction proposal/manuscript.
- Can I submit a co-authored manuscript if I am a Canadian citizen/permanent resident but my co-author is not?
Yes, you can submit your work to us.
- Can I request a faster timeline than 4–6 months?
Unfortunately, we cannot accommodate requests to rush submission reviews. We give careful attention to each manuscript that comes to us; due to the volume of submissions, we are unable to guarantee a faster timeline. Thank you for your patience!
- Do you accept manuscripts that were previously self-published?
Unfortunately, manuscripts that were previously self-published are ineligible for submission.
- Can I submit a short story collection if individual stories in the collection have been published in magazines?
Yes! As long as the manuscript itself is unpublished in book form, it is eligible for consideration. Please include all information about your publication history on your CV.
- Can I send a hard copy of my submission through the mail?
Anansi is unable to accept physical submissions. Any hard-copy submissions received will be marked return to sender.
What's an imprint?
An imprint is a brand within a publishing house that focuses on specific subjects, genres, or audiences.
Anansi (Fiction) publishes groundbreaking Canadian literary and upmarket fiction that has a unique flair, memorable characters, and a strong narrative voice.
Anansi (Nonfiction) publishes compelling narrative nonfiction and meticulously researched, thesis-driven works to wrestle with the mind and passions.
Anansi (Poetry) publishes the best of Canadian poetry, from debut collections to selections by established and award-winning poets.
Astoria is devoted to award-winning and high-calibre short story collections with compelling and memorable premises and strong narrative voices.
Arachnide publishes the best fiction and nonfiction from French Canada in translation.
Spiderline is home to genre-bending, ground-breaking, experimental, innovative, unexpected, and unconventional speculative writing in all its forms, from horror and science fiction to psychological thrillers and mysteries.
Anansi International publishes fiction and nonfiction from around the globe, often in translation, as a means of presenting Canadian books in conversation with the wider world.
Ambrosia is a lifestyle imprint that features visually arresting gift books and cookbooks, along with creative and engaging nonfiction.
The Walrus Books is a partnership with The Walrus magazine designed to publish excellent book-length nonfiction.
