SUBMISSIONS

WHAT WE PUBLISH

Literary fiction and narrative nonfiction rooted in lived experience

Memoirs and personal essays from underrepresented voices

Literary fiction and narrative nonfiction rooted in lived experience

Poetry collections, especially experimental or bilingual work

Literary fiction and narrative nonfiction rooted in lived experience

Poetry collections, especially experimental or bilingual work

Hybrid or genre-defying writing that resists classification

Work that has been rejected for being too "controversial," "niche," or "complicated"

Poetry collections, especially experimental or bilingual work

First-time authors with no previous publishing credits

Work that has been rejected for being too "controversial," "niche," or "complicated"

OUR SLIDING SCALE MODEL

OUR PHILOSOPHY

We use a transparent, trust-based sliding scale publishing system.

Your financial situation does not determine whether your work is considered.

It determines how the publishing costs are shared.

COMMUNITY TIER

$0 – $500

For first-time authors, low-income writers, and those facing financial barriers.

Fully subsidized publishing support

Covered by Sustaining Tier authors and grant funding

No documentation required

No shame, no gatekeeping, no justification needed

SUPPORTED TIER

$500 – $2,500

For authors with some financial capacity who still need partial support.

Shared-cost publishing model

Covers part of editorial and production costs

Helps sustain Community Tier access

SUSTAINING TIER

$2,500 – $5,000

For authors, organizations, or institutions with full financial capacity.

Covers full production costs

Directly funds Community Tier publishing

Supports ongoing mission operations and free programming

WHAT EVERY AUTHOR GETS

Regardless of tier, every accepted author receives:

Full editorial support (developmental + copy editing)

Professional interior layout and cover design

ISBN registration and copyright filing

Print and ebook production

Distribution through IngramSpark (40,000+ retailers and libraries)

Author copies of their book

Inclusion in Prohibition Press bookstore (physical + digital)

Launch event opportunity (reading or community event)

50–60% royalties on net sales (tier dependent)

We are not in the business of owning your story.

We are in the business of helping it reach people.

SUBMISSION PROCESS

Step 1: Send Your Manuscript

Include:

A short description of your work
Your manuscript (or sample pages if nonfiction)
A brief author bio (no publishing credits required)
Genre and approximate word count
A note on your preferred sliding scale tier (optional at this stage)
One sentence on why Prohibition Press feels like the right home for your work

Step 2: Review

Step 1: Send Your Manuscript

If your work resonates, we will request:

Full manuscript (if not already submitted)
Additional materials if needed (outline, proposal, etc.)

Step 3: Conversation

If we move forward, we will schedule a conversation to discuss:

Editorial direction
Publishing timeline
Tier structure
Agreement terms

Step 4: Offer

Step 3: Conversation

If accepted, you will receive a formal publishing offer outlining:

Tier structure
Rights and royalties
Timeline
Editorial plan
At this stage, e strongly encourage all authors to review contracts with a literary attorney or advisor.

At this stage, we strongly encourage all authors to review contracts with a literary attorney or advisor.

We publish stories that mainstream publishing overlooks, underfunds, or actively suppresses.

WHAT WE PUBLISH

Literary fiction and narrative nonfiction rooted in lived experience

Literary fiction and narrative nonfiction rooted in lived experience

Literary fiction and narrative nonfiction rooted in lived experience

Memoirs and personal essays from underrepresented voices

Literary fiction and narrative nonfiction rooted in lived experience

Literary fiction and narrative nonfiction rooted in lived experience

Poetry collections, especially experimental or bilingual work

Literary fiction and narrative nonfiction rooted in lived experience

Poetry collections, especially experimental or bilingual work

Hybrid or genre-defying writing that resists classification

Work that has been rejected for being too "controversial," "niche," or "complicated"

Poetry collections, especially experimental or bilingual work

First-time authors with no previous publishing credits

Work that has been rejected for being too "controversial," "niche," or "complicated"

Work that has been rejected for being too "controversial," "niche," or "complicated"

Work that has been rejected for being too "controversial," "niche," or "complicated"

Work that has been rejected for being too "controversial," "niche," or "complicated"

Work that has been rejected for being too "controversial," "niche," or "complicated"

We are especially interested in work by BIPOC, SWANA, immigrant, LGBTQ+, low-income, and otherwise marginalized writers.

What We Do Not Publish

OUR SLIDING SCALE MODEL

OUR PHILOSOPHY

COMMUNITY TIER

SUPPORTED TIER

SUSTAINING TIER

WHAT EVERY AUTHOR GETS

Regardless of tier, every accepted author receives:

We are not in the business of owning your story.

We are in the business of helping it reach people.

RIGHTS & AGREEMENT

Authors retain full copyright of their work.

We only acquire the rights necessary to publish and distribute your book (print and digital unless otherwise agreed).

Additional rights (audio, foreign language, film, etc.) remain with the author unless explicitly negotiated.

If a book sells fewer than 50 copies in 24 months, rights automatically revert to the author.

We believe in author autonomy, editorial independence, and long-term creative ownership.

SUBMISSION PROCESS

Step 1: Send Your Manuscript

Step 1: Send Your Manuscript

Step 1: Send Your Manuscript

Step 2: Review

Step 1: Send Your Manuscript

Step 1: Send Your Manuscript

Step 3: Conversation

Step 3: Conversation

Step 3: Conversation

Step 4: Offer

Step 3: Conversation

Step 3: Conversation

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM US

We read every submission ourselves. Response times vary depending on volume.

SUBMIT YOUR WORK

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We read every submission ourselves. Response times vary depending on volume.