Baen Books

With a catalogue of over 2,000 titles and a list of over 500 authors, North Carolina-based Baen Books are one of the biggest publishers of science fiction and fantasy in the world. Authors published by Baen include Kevin J. Anderson, Paolo Bacigalupi, Elizabeth Bear, Greg Bear, Aliette de Bodard,

Lois McMaster Bujold, Nancy Kress, Elizabeth Moon, Jerry Pournelle, Justina Robson, Catherynne M. Valente, and hundreds more.

In science fiction the editorial team are looking for powerful plots with solid scientific and philosophical underpinnings. For fantasy any magical system must be both rigorously coherent and integral to the plot, and ‘overall the work must at least strive for originality’, which is a polite way of saying no Lord of the Rings, Game of Thrones or Harry Potter imitations. Submissions will be judged primarily on plot and characterisation. Baen prefers a direct style of prose which doesn’t call attention to itself. You can get an idea of the sort of writing Baen prefers by downloading the selection of free stories at https://www.baen.com/free-stories-2023.html

To make a submission use the form at https://baen. com/slush/index/submit. Submissions are accepted from anywhere in the world. Upload your complete manuscript as an RTF document. Include a synopsis, but a cover letter is not necessary. Preferred manuscript length is between 100,000-130,000 words, but will consider outstanding novels of any length. You are asked not to make simultaneous submissions, though these are not ruled out, given response time can be as long as 12-15 months.

Payment is by negotiation, but is considered ‘very competitive’.

It is essential to follow the very detailed full guidelines, which include extensive information on formatting and other details. To find this go to www.baen.com/faq then click on the second link down.