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Submission Guidelines

Here are the guidelines, follow them and we'll be able to move faster on your submission. ;)

• E-mail us your request to staff@Novaminds.net Please include the title of the story and a one page synopsis. We'll let you know if it sounds like the kind of story we'd like to offer our readers at Novaminds.net. If so, you will be sent further instructions for sending us your PDF file.
• We are looking for Science Fiction; not Sci-Fi or Fantasy. What we are looking for is probably better characterized as "Speculative Future Fiction". It should challenge the reader's mind. Stories that are primarily bug hunts, robots that suddenly get feelings, or alien abductions gone wild are not interesting to us.
• Submit only your most polished work, and please indicate the revision number. As you get feedback on the site, you may re-submit new revisions as you hone your story. Review it for how many of the senses it engages with the reader, how believable the characters are, how original the story is, and overall how engaging it is. These are the same criteria by which reader's will provide feedback on in the "Reader's Choice" survey pages. We're not looking for perfection, just polish.
• Do not be afraid to submit your work. We don't allow any bashing in here. Our aim is to provide a constructive, but honest, environment for you to grow as an author. Our aim is to put more joy into the process, not less. Above all else, this should be a great experience for you. That is our number one goal.
• Submit only the first two chapters for novels (keep to less than 45 pages), the entire thing for short stories (less than 20 pages). Provide a teaser (like you'd see on the back of book cover.
• If you are already published (self published or otherwise) and wish to use this site to advertise your book, provide a link inside the PDF to whatever websites are relevant, including shopping sites from where your book can be bought. We will also provide the same links on the Novaminds.net website. Make sure your publisher is OK with all of this. Novaminds.net takes no responsibility for any submission that is in violation of an existing contract. If you submitted it to us, you are by default establishing you have the authority and legal right to do so.
• Only PDF files will be posted. There are a number of services on the internet that will convert files to PDF for you. Search Snap.com for "free PDF conversion" without the quotes.
• Make sure your name, title of the work, and page numbering are clear and evident.
• Submit only one work per month. We're only human. If you would like to become a reviewer, please let us know by sending an e-mail to staff@Novaminds.net.

Copyright Protection
Please read our entire Disclaimer and DCMA statement. When you submit anything to us, you are agreeing to the statements made on that page.

All works submitted to Novaminds retain their original copyright status. We assume no rights whatsoever to use your stories in any way you do not explicitly authorize; including reproducing it for downloading, highlighting excerpts on the website, or claiming any profit from your work that may result due to its presence on this website. You are in control and we are your champion. If you are unfamiliar with U.S. Copyright Law, check out this highly useful Wikipedia posting. Make sure to download the forms and follow through on the suggested registration procedures.

Pros and Cons of Novaminds.net
As an unsigned author it's great to have a free place to get your creative works exposed to a large and appreciative audience. Novaminds might be a first step toward testing the waters for you and helping you become an accomplished writer. That's what we're all about. Where you need to be cautious is in deciding to let an ENTIRE story or book become downloadable for free from Novaminds. Providing the full manuscript online is the equivalent of self-publishing your book, and once you do this your chance of an agent working with you to pitch that particular story to a publisher decreases. At least that's the way the industry stands at the moment. However, should an agent decide to represent you anyway we would need to pull the story from our site because the agent would, understandably, not want to continue offering for free that which is about to be pitched to a publisher. And this we would do enthusiastically, with loud cheers and congratulations to you! The agent would usually require more re-writng anyway so that by the time your book hits the stores, it will have become even more amazing than it was when you honored us with it on Novaminds.net.

But Novaminds can be a great place to get your work in front of readers and agents in the first place, and have fun doing it while contributing to the evolution of the science fiction literary form. It's also a great way to network with writers who share a common passion, and who knows, maybe a collaborative spark or two will fly!