FAQ – General
1. Are you a vanity press?
a. No, although some of us at the office are pretty vain. We will not ask for or accept any money from our authors during any stage of the publishing process. However, Godiva chocolates probably won't be refused.
2. I have written an awesome story, but there are no LGBT characters in it. Can I still submit to inGroup Press?
a. No! We have nothing against the heterosexual community, and lovingly welcome books with heterosexual characters, but our press will only publish material with LGBT content. Note that our definition of "LGBT content" is pretty fluid. Your book doesn't have to be about a rainbow-breathing Godzilla for us to give it consideration. We just want Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender people to be either the principal characters, or well-represented. Non-Fiction is a different story. Your non-fiction proposal should strictly revolve around LGBT issues and content.
FAQ - Submissions
1. How long will it take for a response to my submission package?
a. If sent by email, give us two weeks to respond to your submission package. For snail mail, give us up to four weeks from when we receive your submission. If you submit to us by snail mail, include an email address and we'll confirm your submission's arrival.
2. How long will it take for a response to my requested full manuscript?
a. Full manuscripts can take up to three months for a response.
3. My submission package/requested manuscript has been out for longer than the listed response time, and I've heard nothing from inGroup Press. When am I allowed to start calling or emailing?
a. Since the staff at inGroup Press is composed of human beings (most of us, anyway), we do celebrate holidays and go on vacation. Although we love to work hard, we may sometimes take a bit longer than expected to respond to submissions. We encourage you to email us if we've exceeded our promised response times.
4. Does inGroup Press only accept exclusive submissions?
a. No way! Life is too short to let your manuscript sit with just one Publisher for up to four months at a time. Just do us a favor: if we’ve requested your full manuscript, just let us know if it's on submission elsewhere.
5. Does my snail mail query have a better chance of impressing you than an email query?
a. Well, our answer to that is simple: Swiss chocolate can be delicately hidden in a snail mail submission, but cannot be attached to an email. Just kidding. Don't try and bribe us with chocolate. All that'll happen is we'll gain more weight and hate you for it. Snail mail submissions are always welcome, and we appreciate the time taken to put these little packages together, but we still prefer email.
6. I received a form letter rejection to my query. Why you gotta be like that??
a. At inGroup Press, we agree that form letter rejections—and those "Bed, Bath, and Beyond" 10% off any item coupons—are the worst things ever. For this reason, you'll never have to ask us the above question. We promise to never send form letters. We'll respond to you with the respect that you deserve, and with the proper thanks for thinking about us during your submission phase. This policy does require something from you, though. We ask that you be kind and fair. If your submission gets rejected, don’t get bent out of shape. Keep at it, work on your submission and story, and feel free to submit to us again in the future.
7. Rumor has it that your name has to be either Stephanie Meyers or John Grisham to dare call the telephone number of a literary agency or independent press. Is this true with inGroup Press?
a. It's true – there's a mass conspiracy in the literary world, and the phone numbers of every lit agency and publishing company are linked to Hell. If you don’t believe me, try calling Writer's House and asking about their query requirements!
b. Yes, you are allowed to call us. However, our website has a decent hold on everything you need to know before sending us your submission. Like most of the agencies and presses, we don't want to get phone calls asking questions that are answered on our website. But don't be afraid to call us. We're an author-friendly press.