Founded in Spartanburg, South Carolina in 1995, Hub City Press is the South’s premier independent literary press.
Focused on finding and spotlighting extraordinary new and unsung writers from the American South, our curated list champions diverse authors and books that don’t fit into the commercial publishing landscape. The press has published over ninety high-caliber literary works, including novels, short stories, poetry, memoir, and books emphasizing the region's culture and history. Hub City is interested in books with a strong sense of place and is committed to introducing a diverse roster of lesser-heard Southern voices. We believe strongly that the publishing industry needs to promote a more diverse range of experiences, and so have committed ourselves to spotlighting lesser-heard Southern voices including: people of color, members of LGBTQ and gender diverse communities, people with disabilities, neurodivergent people, as well as ethnic, cultural, and religious minorities.
Funded by the National Endowment for the Arts, our books have been widely praised and featured in the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, NPR, the San Francisco Chronicle, the Wall Street Journal, Entertainment Weekly, the Los Angeles Review of Books, and many other outlets.
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Unagented Submissions
Submissions for novels are open in March and September each year. Nonfiction submissions are in April and October. In general, our publication schedule operates at least 12-18 months in advance of release. Check our Submittable page to see what we are currently looking for. Please do not send queries for incomplete projects. We cannot respond to queries by phone, and voicemails will not be returned. Please do not call regarding submissions or submission status. Due to the size of our staff and the volume of queries we receive, we are unable to respond to every query.
Hub City publishes writers living in or from the South. What's the South? A complicated issue, to say the least, but the short answer for our purposes: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia.
Please take a look at this letter from Press Director Meg Reid on what we are looking for during open queries.
Please familiarize yourself with our catalog before submitting.
*Please note that our submission period for September-October 2023 has been adjusted. We have set aside 2 weeks in September (September 1 - 15) for an open call for prose manuscripts (novels or nonfiction projects) for completed, full length Southern book projects from Black, Latinx, SWANA (South West Asian/ North African), Asian, Pacific Islander, and Indigenous writers. If you do not identify as BIPOC, you may submit your manuscript during our standard open calls. A shortened call for fiction will open September 16. Our nonfiction call will open as usual in October.
Gravy Quarterly
Hub City Press is the national distributor of Gravy Quarterly. Published by the Southern Foodways Alliance, the quarterly journal shares original narratives that are fresh, unexpected, and thought-provoking. Gravy tells stories about the changing American South. Each year, Gravy supports the work of over 100 writers, illustrators, and photographers in the South and beyond. Gravy was named the Publication of the Year by the James Beard Foundation and awarded the MFK Fisher Distinguished Writing Award, among many other nominations and honors.
What to receive updates from us about news, publication announcements, query openings, prizes and more?
Book Prizes & Partnerships
The Cold Mountain Fund SeriesThis series is a partnership between Hub City Press and National Book Award Winner Charles Frazier, spotlighting extraordinary fiction and nonfiction writers from the American South. Cold Mountain funds are primarily targeted for more substantial book advances and for book marketing. We do not take submissions for the Cold Mountain Fund. Hub City Press chooses these titles internally. |
C. Michael Curtis Short Story Book PrizeThe C. Michael Curtis Short Story Book Prize includes $5,000 and book publication. The prize is open to emerging writers in thirteen Southern states. Submitters must currently reside in the South and must have no more than one previously published book. Submissions: September 1 - December 30, biennially (opens 2023) |
New Southern Voices Poetry Book PrizeThe New Southern Voices Poetry Book Prize includes $1,000 and book publication. The prize is open to emerging writers in thirteen Southern states. Submitters must currently reside in the South and must have no more than one previously published collection.
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South Carolina Novel SeriesThe South Carolina Novel Series publishes a novel by a resident South Carolina writer biennially. Writers are awarded $1,500 and book publication. Co-sponsored by the South Carolina Arts Commission, the South Carolina State Library and South Carolina Humanities. Submissions: November 1 - February 15, biennially
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Hub City Writers Project|
186 West Main Street
Spartanburg, SC 29306
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864-577-9349
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