How to Submit a Manuscript to a Publisher

You finished the novel, and now you need to get it in front of someone who can publish it. In the English language market that usually means querying a literary agent first, because most large publishers no longer read manuscripts that arrive without one. The process is unglamorous and highly standardised, which is good news: everything about it can be learned.

In brief

• Most big publishers accept agented submissions only, so the first pitch normally goes to an agent, not an editor (Reedsy).

• A query letter runs 200 to 450 words and fits on one page (Jane Friedman).

• The query has four parts: housekeeping, story description, comparable titles, author bio.

• Standard manuscript format is 12 point Times New Roman or Courier, double spaced, one inch margins (William Shunn).

• Query in batches of 5 to 10, leaving 2 to 4 weeks between rounds (Jane Friedman).

• No legitimate publisher or agent asks you for money.

How do you submit a manuscript to a publisher?

For most novelists, you do not submit to the publisher at all. You query a literary agent, and the agent submits to publishers on your behalf.

The reason is structural. Many publishers no longer accept unsolicited manuscripts and rely on agents to bring them books that fit their list (Reedsy, Book Publishers to Avoid). An agent is not a gatekeeper the industry invented to annoy you: they are the filter that makes the volume manageable, and they work on commission, so their interest is aligned with yours.

There are two exceptions worth knowing. Independent and small presses often read unagented submissions directly, sometimes through open submission windows that last a few weeks. And some larger imprints run periodic open calls. Both routes are real, both are competitive, and both still require the same package.

One rule applies to every route: finish the book first. Novelists and most memoirists should have a finished, polished manuscript before they begin querying (Jane Friedman, How to Write a Query Letter).

What goes in a query letter?

Four things, in roughly this order, inside 200 to 450 words on a single page (Jane Friedman).

• Housekeeping: title, genre, word count, and why you are writing to this particular agent. Two sentences.

• Story description: 150 to 300 words on what happens, who it happens to, and what is at stake. This is a pitch, not a synopsis, so it stops before the ending.

• Comparable titles: two recent books that share your readership. They show you know where your book sits on the shelf.

• Author bio: 50 to 100 words. Publications, relevant credentials, relevant life experience. If you have none of those, keep it short and factual.

The things to leave out are just as specific: how many years the book took, what your family thought of it, how many agents have already said no, how much you paid an editor, and how much you love writing (Jane Friedman). None of them tell an agent whether the book will sell.

Most agents also ask for the first 5, 10 or 50 pages pasted below the query, plus a synopsis, which follows its own rules and length. Check each agency's page and follow it exactly, because the requirements differ and the differences are the test.

Standard manuscript format

The reference most editors point to is William Shunn's manuscript format guide. The specification is short: black type only, 12 point Times New Roman or Courier New, double spaced, one inch margins on all four sides, starting from a plain white page with no decoration (William Shunn, Proper Manuscript Format).

Add your name, contact details and approximate word count on the first page, and a running header with your surname, the title and the page number. Indent paragraphs rather than separating them with blank lines. Round the word count to the nearest thousand.

Shunn's own summary of the point is worth keeping in mind: you want to impress an editor with your content, not your font choice. Formatting is not where a manuscript gets noticed. It is only where a manuscript gets dismissed.

Send the file type the agency asks for, usually .doc, .docx or a pasted plain text body. Never send a link to a shared folder unless it was requested.

How do you choose which agents to query?

By checking what they already sell. An agent's recent deals tell you more than any wish list on their website, and agents who represent nothing like your book will pass however good it is.

Build a list of 20 to 40 names before you send anything, then work through it in order of fit. Query in conservative rounds of 5 to 10, leaving 2 to 4 weeks between batches so you can adjust the letter if a pattern of rejections emerges (Jane Friedman). Sending all 40 at once removes your ability to learn anything from the first ten.

Check every agent against Writer Beware, the publishing watchdog run by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association, which tracks questionable agents and publishers (SFWA, Writer Beware: Literary Agents). It takes a minute and occasionally saves a year.

How long does it take to hear back?

Weeks to months, and often never. Response times vary by agency and many now operate a no response means no policy, with the window stated on their submissions page.

Simultaneous submissions are standard practice in the English language market: you may query many agents at once unless one explicitly forbids it. What you must do is tell the others promptly when one offers representation, which is both courtesy and leverage.

Rejection at query stage carries almost no information. An agent reading 50 queries a day is making a fit and market judgement in under a minute, not an assessment of your prose. The signal to pay attention to is the pattern: many full manuscript requests that end in no means the book has a problem after the opening, while silence at query stage usually means the letter, the category or the agent list needs work.

Do you need a literary agent?

For the large publishers, in practice yes. For independent presses, often no.

An agent earns a percentage of what they sell, typically 15 percent on domestic deals. That is the only way a legitimate agent makes money. Any agent charging a reading fee, an editing fee or an upfront retainer is operating outside industry norms, and Writer Beware exists largely to document them (SFWA, Writer Beware).

Going the independent press route means more research on your side and smaller advances, but it is a genuine publishing path rather than a consolation prize. Self publishing is a third option again: you pay for services and keep control of rights and margins, and it is a legitimate business decision as long as you make it knowingly.

How do you spot a vanity press?

By the direction the money flows. A vanity press earns its profit from the author rather than from readers, which means it has no financial reason to sell a single copy.

The warning signs are consistent across the industry:

• Upfront fees of any kind: publication packages, marketing bundles, a required purchase of your own copies.

• They contacted you first: legitimate publishers do not email writers out of nowhere offering deals. Vanity operations find authors on social media and approach them.

• Acceptance with no editorial feedback, often within days. Real evaluation takes months and produces specific comments on the book.

• High pressure sales calls and bestseller promises, paired with a contract that takes broad rights and commits to little in return.

The distinction is contractual, not moral. A traditional publisher invests in the book and earns when it sells. A vanity press earns when you sign. Self publishing is a different thing entirely: there you knowingly buy services and retain your rights.

Frequently asked questions

Can you submit the same manuscript to several agents at once?

Yes. Simultaneous submissions are normal unless an agency states otherwise on its guidelines page. Given how long responses take, querying sequentially would stretch the process over years.

How many pages should you send with a query?

Whatever the agency asks for, commonly the first 5, 10 or 50 pages pasted into the email body. Do not attach the full manuscript unless it has been requested.

Do you need to copyright your novel before submitting?

No. In the United States and the United Kingdom, copyright exists automatically from the moment the work is fixed in a tangible form. Agents and publishers do not ask for registration at submission stage.

What word count do agents expect from a debut novel?

Around 80,000 words is the industry standard for a debut, with 50,000 as a practical floor and anything past 120,000 becoming a harder sell (Jane Friedman).

Should the manuscript be double spaced?

Yes, double spacing is part of standard manuscript format, along with 12 point type and one inch margins (William Shunn).

In summary

Submitting a manuscript is a procedure rather than a lottery ticket, and the three things that decide the outcome are ordinary. Read each agency's guidelines and follow them exactly. Query agents who already sell books like yours. Send a finished, proofread manuscript in standard format.

Everything else is waiting, and it helps to accept early that the waiting is long and the silence is common. Neither of those facts says anything about the book you wrote.

For the material you need before you start, see how many words a novel should have and how to organise a novel.

Sources

• Jane Friedman, How to Write a Query Letter That Gets Manuscript Requests, retrieved 2026-09-16, https://janefriedman.com/query-letters/

• William Shunn, Proper Manuscript Format, retrieved 2026-09-16, https://www.shunn.net/format/story/

• SFWA, Writer Beware: Literary Agents, retrieved 2026-09-16, https://sfwa.org/other-resources/writer-beware/agents/

• Reedsy, Book Publishers to Avoid: 5 Types of Shady Companies, retrieved 2026-09-16, https://reedsy.com/blog/scams-and-publishing-companies-to-avoid/