Submitting Manuscripts to Scottish Cultural Press

The aim of Scottish Cultural Press

• We aim to publish books with a Scottish content (e.g. Scottish culture, history, biographies of famous Scottish people etc).
• We are always interested in receiving original work that meets these criteria.
• We are not looking for work with a Scottish backdrop or loose Scottish connection (e.g. fiction which just happens to be set in Scotland). In addition, we are not currently seeking fiction or poetry titles.

Before submitting any work to Scottish Books

• Before submitting any work please thoroughly examine our current catalogue at www.scottishbooks.com. This will help you decide whether your work fits into and/or complements our current list.
• You may also find it useful to study the content format of such books (e.g. number of pages used, average word length, layout of text with illustrations, the use of appropriate language for intended readership etc, and incorporate this into your work.
• Because we receive a great quantity of manuscripts please phone us first to discuss the suitability of your manuscript before sending any work.

SPECIFIC GUIDELINES

When submitting any work to scottish books/scottish cultural press your cover letter should be typed and include: your name and address, date, manuscript title, brief synopsis, category of work (e.g. history, biography, area studies etc.) and intended market/readership. If you have had any other relevant work published or experience you may wish to mention this also.

• If you have any extensive work to send (e.g. a manuscript for a long fiction title) please send a sample chapter only. If we need to read more we will be able to contact you directly.
• Please do not send any original artwork. Photocopies (colour and/or black and white) are perfectly acceptable. We are happy to accept artwork incorporated into or alongside manuscripts.
• Please ensure you label all separate artwork and/or manuscripts with your name and address.
• All work you wish to be returned to you must be accompanied by a stamped addressed envelope with the correct postage. Please ensure that packaging is of the correct size and offers the protection your work requires e.g. some work may require a hard-back envelope, while others may need bubble wrap protection.

Additional Notes when submitting work to Scottish Cultural Press

Due to the many manuscripts we receive and the tight publishing schedules we work towards we are unable to respond to manuscripts immediately. In most cases you should expect to wait at least six months.

This also means we are unable to individually comment or give feedback on manuscripts. If you need objective advice on your work contact someone with experience in this field. This could be a bookseller, a writer in residence (contact your local library), or a published writer, etc. Alternatively, you may choose to pay a freelance Reader to provide objective feedback on your work (consult your local library for details).