John F. Blair, Publisher Manuscript Guidelines

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John F. Blair, Publisher, publishes 5 to 10 new books each year. We specialize in regional books, with an emphasis on nonfiction categories such as history, travel, folklore, and biography. We publish only one or two works of fiction each year. Fiction submitted to us should have some connection with the Southeast. We do not publish children’s books, poetry, or category fiction such as romances, science fiction, or spy thrillers. We do not publish collections of short stories, essays, or newspaper columns. To gain a better understanding of our publishing program, please review our title list. Please note which books are Blair's and which are published by our distributed lines. For more information, visit our prospective authors page.

When submitting a proposal, please remember that it may take up to two months for the editors to review it. Blair has an acquisitions committee, which includes several staff members. There is no specific editor to whom you can address queries or with whom you can discuss your manuscript. If you call our office, we can only tell you whether your manuscript has been received. There is no staff member available to talk to you about your work.

Outlined below is the basic procedure for submitting manuscripts.

All submissions:

Manuscripts should be typed and double spaced.
Clear photocopies are acceptable.
Works of moderate length—50,000 to 100,000 words—stand a better chance of acceptance than short works or works of great length.
It is important that writers supply a self-addressed, stamped envelope (SASE) if they want a response. We will not return your sample or respond to your query without return postage.

Nonfiction proposals:

Include a cover letter that gives a brief description of the project.
Include an outline of and/or introduction to the project.
Include at least 30 pages of the text, preferably the first chapter.
If the project will include illustrations or photographs, please send samples. Do NOT send originals. Clear photocopies are acceptable.
Supply a market analysis of the book. Unless there is something about the potential market that would not be obvious to the uninitiated, this analysis should concentrate on the titles, publishers, and dates of all similar books, with an explanation of how your book differs from each.
Send a biography of the author, including publishing credits and credentials in the field. If the project also has an illustrator or photographer, please include that biographical information as well.

Fiction proposals:

Any fiction submitted should have some connection with the Southeast, either through setting or author’s background.
Send a cover letter, giving a synopsis of the book.
Include the FIRST TWO CHAPTERS (at least 50 pages) of the manuscript. You may send the entire manuscript if you wish. If you choose to send only samples, please include the projected word length of your book and estimated completion date in your cover letter.
Send a biography of the author, including publishing credits and credentials.

Note: Do NOT submit original artwork or photography, and please make a copy of your manuscript.
Please note that materials unaccompanied by a SASE will NOT be returned.

We do not accept proposals on disks, over the Internet, or by fax.

Mail all submissions to:

Acquisitions Committee
John F. Blair, Publisher
1406 Plaza Drive
Winston-Salem, NC 27103

We are always eager to find writers who can meet our editorial requirements. Thank you for your interest in us.