about the dancing girl press series
Started in 2004, the dancing girl press chapbook series issues a number of exquisite open edition chapbooks by women authors every year, as well as a handful of full-length collections. Manuscripts are selected from our open reading period every summer, the guidelines for which may be found below. The imprint is devoted to issuing innovative work by women (including female identifying, trans, and non-binary authors), as well exploring the boundaries of book-making, hybridity, and the visual/written arts.
What do we look for?
We especially love collections and projects that offer both narrative and precision of language. Or that which engages and deconstructs existing texts, pop culture, media, art, history, folklore and other subjects. We also have a taste for the strange, surreal, and decidedly gothic, so love to see those books come over the digital transom.
We pretty much consider "poetry" to be a broad field, encompassing traditional verse, prose and hybrid genre work, vispo, found texts, dramatic or performance driven poems, and lyric essays. We also have different reading periods for more defined genres throughout the year If you have manuscript that defies genre and expectations, we would also love to see it. Yearly, we choose a wide range of works, from more traditional personal lyric and narrative poetry to highly experimental and language/based work. We also invite fiction, other kinds of prose, essays. and other experiments.
SUBMISSION GUIDELINES
dgp is happy to accept manuscripts from writers at all stages of their career for publication in our annual book series. With our recent switch to expanded distribution and perfect-bound printing in March 2026, we are accepting submissions of both chapbooks (under 50 pages) full-length collections (over 50 pages), as well as lyric essay projects. We plan to publish a varying number of titles per year chosen from our favorites of the manuscripts we receive each reading period.
Since all shop profits get recycled into upcoming books, compensation for authors is given in copies. While we cannot offer a monetary prize or advanced payment for those manuscripts at this time, if you are chosen to be published in the series, we do offer a payment of 10 copies of shorter works (manuscripts under 60 pages) or 25 copies (for full-length / manuscripts over 60 pages.) We also offer generous discount (40%) on additional copies the author may wish to purchase to sell themselves at readings and events. Books will be available both through the dancing girl press shop and distributed via Ingram to other online book outlets like Barnes & Noble and Amazon.
Simultaneous submissions are allowed, but please let us know ASAP if your manuscript is accepted elsewhere. We aim to keep your work no longer than three months. Please feel free to query us after that time has passed.
Submissions are accepted via e-mail as attachments in Microsoft word only. Please include “Submission/LAST NAME” in your subject line.
Poetry or Hybrid Chapbooks (18-60 pages)
Submissions Currently CLOSED
Next Reading Period: SUMMER 2027 (June-August)
Each summer, we read manuscripts for poetry and hybrid genre chapbooks. These slender volumes typically have a tighter focus than full length manuscripts and allow a tighter focus. They are also a great way to begin your publishing endeavors for emerging poets, and try to save a dedicated number of publication spots for first-time chapbook authors.
Full Length Poetry (60-150 pages)
Submissions currently CLOSED
Next Reading Period FALL 2026 (October-December)
In the fall, we accept a limited number of full-length manuscripts for the upcoming year. They include work that is more traditionally poetry, as well as hybrid writings, erasures, found texts, multi-genre works and more.
Lyric Essays (18-150 pages)
Submissions Currently CLOSED
Next Reading Period (January-March, 2026)
more on this upcoming reading period to come...
Submissions are currently CLOSED
Next Chapbook Reading Period: June 1st-August 31st, 2027
Send all submissions/correspondence to dancinggirlpress@yahoo.com