We are elated to bring back submission opportunities for full-length titles to Not a Cult via the Solstice Prize. The Solstice Prize is granted in three genre categories, awarding a $2,000 advance and a publishing deal with Not a Cult for each category:
- Poetry, mixed media & art books will be considered in this category but are judged much more stringently due to their complexity.
- Nonfiction, essays
- Fiction, novels, or short stories
Not a Cult will accept submissions for the Solstice Prize from February 3, 2026 through April 17, 2026. Recipients of the award will be announced on June 21, 2026.
Please upload your submission file as a single PDF that includes the elements stated under the guidelines.
Guidelines for Poetry:
- A ten-poem sample from your manuscript
- Please indicate the approximate length of your full manuscript
- A book description
- About the author
- Comparable titles
- Any relevant past publications
- Any relevant public-facing social media accounts
- *If you’re submitting mixed media / something that would constitute an art book, please submit samples of the visual material
Guidelines for Nonfiction:
- 1,500-3,000-word excerpt from your manuscript
- Please indicate the approximate length of your full manuscript
- A book description
- About the author
- Comparable titles
- Any relevant past publications
- Any relevant public-facing social media accounts
Guidelines for Fiction:
- 1,500-3,000-word excerpt from your manuscript
- Please indicate the approximate length of your full manuscript
- A book description
- About the author
- Comparable titles
- Any relevant past publications
- Any relevant public-facing social media accounts
The submission fee for the Solstice Prize is a purchased title from www.notacult.media within the submitting year.
Network Press is honored to announce the Nick Simmons Book Award not only to commemorate our dear friend Nick, but also to continue in his legacy toward incentivizing, promoting, and connecting the thinkers, creators, and builders of tomorrow.
Via this award, Network Press is proud to open up its first opportunity for non-fiction manuscript submissions pertaining to the future of human society. Whether the work deals with technological, geopolitical, or social change, the Nick Simmons Book Award is granted to an outstanding work that casts a focus on what is to come.
The recipient of the award will receive a $5,000 advance and a publishing deal for the submitted work as a book under the Network Press catalog.
Guidelines:
Submitted as a single PDF, please include in your book proposal...
- A book description, including the working title
- About the author
- A 5,000-7,500 word sample of your manuscript
- Please note the full length of the manuscript
- Comparable title(s)
- Any relevant past publications
- Any relevant public-facing social media accounts
Network Press will accept submissions for the Nick Simmons Book Award from February 3, 2026 through April 17, 2026. The recipient of the award will be announced June 21, 2026.
The submission fee is a single purchased title from www.network.press within the calendar year of submission.
Ark Press specializes in genre fiction — primarily science fiction and fantasy, but also political thrillers, alternate history, mystery, and historical novels. We focus on stories where humans triumph over adversity — alien, evil, or natural. We promise readers that in every Ark book, “The humans win in the end.”
We aim to reclaim the Great American Novel of decades past and serve the reader who thrives on intricate plots, richly imagined worlds, and stories that grapple with the big questions of humanity.
The Nitty Gritty:
- Novels only. No short story collections, anthologies, poetry collections, novellas, picture books, graphic novels, cookbooks, nonfiction, instruction manuals, or telephone directories.
- Word count: 60,000 on up, but longer works will need to justify their length. Ideal range, depending on genre, is 75,000 - 120,000 words.
- All submissions must be complete. No partial manuscripts will be considered.
- All submissions must include an Ark Press Novel Treatment. (See below.)
- Novels must be written in American English.
- Genre: Ark Press is, broadly speaking, a genre publisher. We are looking for science fiction, fantasy, thrillers, alternate history, historical fiction, mysteries and crime novels, techno-thrillers, spy novels, satire, and yes, even literary fiction.
- While we are actively seeking novels with series potential, ensuring that the first novel in your series stands on its own will greatly increase your chances of acceptance.
- Youthful protagonists okay, but we do not publish middle grade or children’s fiction.
- Previously published manuscripts will not be considered.
How to Write an Ark Press Novel Treatment
In order to present your novel in the best possible manner, Ark has adopted a novel treatment format that we request you follow.
The goal of the treatment is to present a clear, compelling vision of your project as well as its potential readership and market—and to give us a feel for your talent and skill for telling a story. This is not dissimilar to the standard query letter and synopsis, but there are key differences.
Ark treatments should be no more than 2,500 words long and should ideally be somewhere in the 1,000 – 1,500-word range, exclusive of the writing sample. The 2,500 maximum is not a hard cap but a guideline. Word count suggestions for each part are offered below to give you an idea of what to do, but are only suggestions.
The Overview (200 words):
A concise, vivid introduction that draws us into the world of your book. Present the concept, main characters or central figure(s), essential conflict, and general setting. The overview should provide a hook that sparks immediate interest without overwhelming detail. Tell us how the book ends.
The Story Summary (800 - 1800 words):
A start-to-finish narrative breakdown of your book’s story in a compelling, engaging manner. We do not want an outline. Draw us into the world and events of your story as if you were telling it directly to readers.
Some things to keep in mind to present this material to us in the best light possible:
- Show, Don’t Tell: Avoid exposition. Instead, let us infer key details about the plot, characters, and setting through context.
- Include the Ending: Conclude your book essay with the resolution of the novel. Clearly explain how the book ends and how the major story arcs are resolved. Avoid teasers or open-ended statements.
- Depict Motivations and Stakes: Clearly convey your protagonist’s motivations and what is at stake for him. Do the same for your major antagonist—what drives him, and what are the consequences of his success or failure?
- Highlight Your Worldbuilding: As you describe the events of the story, depict the setting and milieu. If this is a science fiction or fantasy novel, provide a brief but vivid explanation of the new technology or magical system and how the story depends on it.
- Elucidate with Details: Consider incorporating dialogue from the book that reveals character motivations and highlights key moments. Describe specific scenes to give a sense of how the story unfolds and how you write action, emotion, and setting. Use these examples to immerse the reader in your narrative style.
Length of Book: State the book’s word count.
Comp Titles (200 words):
Compare your book to three to five successful titles published within the past five years or so, explaining how it aligns with and differs from them. It would also be a great idea to show how the book appeals to male readers who love deeply imagined stories in the tradition of Great American Novels of yore, whatever the genre. This is our editorial focus at Ark Press.
Author Biography (50 – 100 words):
A concise, relevant introduction to who you are professionally. Highlight previous publications, research, professional experience, or personal expertise. If you’ve won awards, built a platform, or have credentials that will help market the book, this is the place to tell us.
Marketing and Publicity (50 – 100 words);
If you have an existing platform, let us know! Outline your social media presence, newsletter subscribers, professional networks, etc., in detail with numbers. We are potentially partnering in a business venture with you, after all—your novel.
Potential Endorsements (50 – 100 words):
Include a list of authors, influencers, or eminences you personally know who might endorse the book—that is, who will provide short blurbs of praise. If you do not have any, that is fine.