Sarabande Books is a nonprofit literary press founded in Louisville, Kentucky. Established in 1994 to champion poetry, fiction, and essay, we are committed to creating lasting editions that honor exceptional writing. With nearly three hundred titles in print, we have earned a dedicated readership and a national reputation as a publisher of diverse forms and innovative voices.
For more information, visit: www.sarabandebooks.org.
Annual Submissions Opportunities
NEW! January 1 - February 15: The Sarabande Prize in the Essay
January 1 - February 15: The Mary McCarthy Prize in Short Fiction
January 1 - February 15: The Kathryn A. Morton Prize in Poetry
July 1 - 31: The July Open (poetry, short fiction, and nonfiction)
July 1 - 31: The July Open (translation proposals)
NEW! September 1 - 30: The Sarabande Chapbook Prize
Please submit your work to the appropriate category. If you are submitting a hybrid manuscript, please select the submission category that best fits your work.
The prize includes $1,000, publication, and a standard royalty contract. We’re looking for traditional poetry chapbooks and hybrid/experimental projects.
ELIGIBILITY
This contest is open to any poet of English. Employees and board members of Sarabande are not eligible. Works that have previously appeared in part in magazines or in anthologies may be included. Translations and previously published collections are not eligible.
SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS
- Manuscript must be anonymous
- Manuscript must be typed, standard font, 12 pt., paginated
- Between 20-30 pages, single spaced
Multiple submissions are permitted if submitted separately, each with a submission fee. Edits to submissions will not be permitted, but any publications resulting from this contest will undergo a full editorial and copyedit. Simultaneous submissions to other publishers are permitted, but please withdraw your manuscript if accepted elsewhere.
Sarabande Books is seeking manuscript readers for poetry, essay, and short fiction. Each year, submissions to Sarabande’s annual prizes and open periods are read by a rotating panel of enthusiastic and highly-qualified manuscript readers in their respective genres.
If you’re interested in joining our panel of readers, we invite you to inquire by completing the form below.
We are accepting readers on a rolling basis, so we recommend inquiring early! The inquiry form should take approximately ten minutes to complete.
ELIGIBILITY
This opportunity is open to any reader of the English language who does not and will not have a manuscript under consideration with Sarabande Books through 2024.