SFF Editors Who Accept Direct Unagented Queries

writera

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I know this is rare, but I know of at least one editor who sometimes takes unsolicited queries via social media. I wonder, does anyone know if any other SFF editors have this practice, and if so which ones?
 
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Aggy B.

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Tor has a slush pile. They are (at this point anyway) always open to queries/submissions. Singer may allow authors to put her name on a sub though to make sure it's getting to her assistant/reader.

Baen and DAW also have slush piles. (DAW requires exclusive submissions though.) I'd say that any publisher without a slush pile is unlikely to have editors willing to look at stuff out of the blue. Although some will get involved with pitch contests on social media or pitch sessions at conferences/conventions and ask for direct submissions that way.

(It is possible to sometimes make personal contacts with editors, but unless the house has a policy of looking at unagented subs it's rare for an editor to just decide to do so. They would have to have a lot of confidence in the MS because otherwise they are opening themselves up for loads of unsolicited pitches - more than usual - and all the other staff as well.)
 

TSJohnson

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Tor has a slush pile. They are (at this point anyway) always open to queries/submissions. Singer may allow authors to put her name on a sub though to make sure it's getting to her assistant/reader.

Baen and DAW also have slush piles. (DAW requires exclusive submissions though.)

I believe Baen's submission guidelines also state that they "prefer not to see simultaneous submissions."
 

Aggy B.

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I believe Baen's submission guidelines also state that they "prefer not to see simultaneous submissions."

I think that's true. But used to, with DAW, you had to actually sign a thing to say you weren't subbing it anywhere else. (Which isn't really a contract so not enforceable, but still a thing which they expect to be taken seriously.) Kind of a step up from "prefer not to". :)
 

Harlequin

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DAW don't make it exclusive if it takes longer than 3 months to get back to you.

Baen do have a theoretically exclusive sub policy but it can take up to nine months to hear a first response. Legend has it someone got a first response from them three years down the line after they'd signed with somewhere else.
 

waylander

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Head of Zeus take unagented subs
 

Aggy B.

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DAW don't make it exclusive if it takes longer than 3 months to get back to you.

Baen do have a theoretically exclusive sub policy but it can take up to nine months to hear a first response. Legend has it someone got a first response from them three years down the line after they'd signed with somewhere else.

DAW changed their policy after it started taking two years to get a response. And then they had a period where you could sub elsewhere after a certain number of months had passed but if they decided to bump it up for further consideration they would ask you to pull it from any other publishers. (It's been a while since I've looked at their slush info as I have an agent now.)

Regardless, if a publisher doesn't take slush then it's highly unlikely any of their editors will do so.
 

TSJohnson

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DAW changed their policy after it started taking two years to get a response. And then they had a period where you could sub elsewhere after a certain number of months had passed but if they decided to bump it up for further consideration they would ask you to pull it from any other publishers.

Looks like this is still in effect and the period is three months. However, they are ending their practise of taking subscriptions in hard copy, and are moving to electronic submissions next year. This will put their open submission policy on hiatus for a while. Remains to be seen for how long.
 

PeteMC

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Also, Angry Robot are running an open submissions window right now. Gollancz occasionally have one, as well.