How to Send Simultaneous Submissions

Simultaneous submissions (or sim subs) are the same manuscript sent to several publications at the same time. Sim subs are convenient for the writer because it can take a long time to sell a piece and he doesn’t have to wait many months--or years--for just one market to respond. While simultaneous submissions are convenient and beneficial for the writer, there is an etiquette you should observe when sending sim subs.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

1. Read submissions guidelines carefully. Only send simultaneous submissions to publications that accept them. Sending sim subs to publications that don’t take them will get you on the editors’ bad side. Query the publications if they don't clearly say in their guidelines whether they take sim subs.
2. Make a list of the publications you would like to contact. You don’t want to send you work out scattershot and see what sticks. Have a good idea about these publications and decide if your work is a good fit. See if they publish works similar to yours.
3. Choose the publications you’re going to sim sub to. It’s a good idea not to simultaneously submit to more than five publications at a time. Make a record of where you’re going to send them. You can use a program like Duotrope Digest’s submissions tracker for free (see Resources below).
4. Tell the publications that your manuscript is a simultaneous submission in the cover letter or in the body of the email, if it’s an email submission. This doesn’t have to be fancy and can read like this: “This is a simultaneous submission.” Always state you’re sending a simultaneous submission in your cover letter.
5. Immediately withdraw all of your remaining sim subs if the manuscript is accepted. This is why your record keeping is so important. Give the title of the piece and the date you submitted it. It can read like this:
   
   January 18, 2008
   
   Dear Editor’s Name:
   
   Please withdraw “Title” (submitted on 9/4/07) from consideration at Name of Magazine. It has been accepted elsewhere.
   
   Thank you for your time,
   Your Name

Tips & Warnings

• After you’ve sent off your simultaneous submissions, have a list of backup publications ready if your work is rejected.
• Always include a Self-Addressed Stamped Envelope (SASE) in every postal submission for the editor's reply.
• If more than one publication accepts your work, take the acceptance from the publication that responded first.
• After you've sold to an editor who takes sim subs, it's good etiquette to send only exclusive submissions to him in the future.
• Don't send sim subs to publications that don’t accept them. If your manuscript is accepted by two publications at once and at least one of them doesn’t take simultaneous submissions, you’ll get in trouble with both editors. Plus, editors talk to each other and you don’t want to develop a bad name with lots of publications.
• Don't send simultaneous submissions if you don’t keep records. You can forget where you have sent your manuscripts. If your work is accepted, this can lead to problems of notifying the other publications where you have sim subs. Editors get upset if they’re really considering a piece, only to find out it was accepted and they weren’t notified.

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