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Happy Friday Scribblers,

It was wonderful to meet and catch up with some of you at our Northern Publishers’ Fair. I met one lovely man who drove up from London! The very reason I started organising the fair in 2019 was to prevent more stressful and long trips to London (at which fair tables and train tickets alone almost engulf any book sales…) because it shouldn’t be necessary to have publishing operations exclusively down south. So I LOVE that we now have movement both ways. Big thanks to Jak, The Purple Snapping Turtle, for capturing the day!

This week has been crazy: I gave a masterclass on getting published to Open University Poets, gave feedback on manuscript pitches to Arts University Bournemouth students, and we opened submissions ourselves!

This week we had a tasty endorsement from Naomi Booth for upcoming short story collection ‘Maps of Imaginary Towns’ by SJ Bradley!

'The worlds that Bradley maps out in this collection often seem beguilingly familiar—but they are liable to suddenly shift, admitting the unexpected and the strange'

And The Morning Star loved ‘The Process of Poetry’, our best-selling craft book edited by Rosanna McGlone. Full review here.

This week we’ve cut the official red ribbon on submissions for novels (and novellas), short story collections and poetry collections, for 2025 publication.

(Anyone feel time is moving way too fast?!) You can read our guidelines here. You should receive an automatic reply once you submit, which may find its way to your email junk folder!

We’re already seeing that this will be our most competitive year for submissions - after the brilliant news of the Small Press of the Year award (British Book Awards, North), and I’m really looking forward to reading your work. If you’re new to submitting manuscripts to publishers, we know the publication journey can be daunting. We have developed a comprehensive online guide to increase your odds of becoming a published author this year, by becoming an empowered and knowledgeable writer. You can find out more here.

Now last week I had the pleasure of talking to the new generation of publishers, about alternative routes into the industry.

Below is a mini version of an hour-long conversation I had with northern editor Jasmine Dove (who also runs Jasmine Reads on YouTube.) Both Jasmine and myself went into publishing without having publishing degrees, or publishing internships. As the most competitive sector of publishing to get into is editorial, below we focus on just that - how do you stand out in an application?

Jasmine: I knew I always wanted to work with books. As soon as I knew what being an editor was, then I knew I wanted to be an editor. I didn't do a publishing internship or a master’s degree - I just gained experience outside of my philosophy degree by doing unpaid work, proofreading, book reviewing, etc. I got a junior editor job at an indie publisher very quickly after graduating.

Isabelle: Why did you move from being an employee to freelancing?

Jasmine: I wanted to work on a wider range of books beyond just children's books. And when I moved to Manchester, I wanted to feel more connected to the northern publishing scene. Being freelance lets me work with lots of different indies.

Isabelle: What advice would you give for applications to stand out?

Jasmine: Demonstrate your specific interests beyond just saying you love books. My book reviewing helped show my passion. Talk about experience from other areas that could be relevant.

Isabelle: How did you network and make connections?

Jasmine: Going to events like the Northern Publishers’ Fair and meeting people was huge. Researching who will be there, taking notes, following up. Just continually trying to connect with people.

Isabelle: Any other tips for developing skills for free?

Jasmine: Reading as much as possible taught me what works in books. Writing yourself and getting feedback is helpful too. Learning from other editors' processes is invaluable.

Thanks for reading Scribblers, until next week!

Love Isabelle x