There are some real things to think about before dashing off to the post office.  You may have finished the writing, but you've only just begun the process.                                         
           
a. Cover letter.

Send one if you have something to say.  It is fine not to send one, but it is not fine to send one that is overbearing or clearly self-serving.  The Golden Rule applies here: What would you like to read, really, about someone else, especially after having read 20 other manuscripts that day?  A hello, some recent publications if you have any, and maybe a little bit of bio information.  Certainly include anything they or their ad has asked for.

  • ADVICE. Saying you are an MFA student in your cover letter is possibly not the best thing to say.  Also, don't be flip.  Your humor may not be an editor's humor.  In fact, it rarely is, no matter how funny you think your newest acerbic observation is.  Wait until the work has been accepted, and even then take care.

b. General protocol.

i. For all genres, 1" margins all around.
ii. Choose a regular font, nothing fancy.  Courier, Times New Roman, CG Times, Palatino, or Garamond, all in 12 pt. size.

  • ADVICE. Courier is the font most often found on typewriters.  Though the editorial scene is clearly changing, remember that you are often still submitting to a generation of editors that grew up on the typewriter, not the computer.  And they have feelings about this.  Take this as food for thought.
  • Courier is the largest typeface, even in 12 pt., and will extend the length of your manuscript considerably.  Palatino is also a reasonably large type.  Use this information when page or manuscript length is a consideration.

iii. Use regular white paper, never colored papers.
iv. Don't bind the pages, fiction or poetry, or use any kind of cover.  Paper clips are okay, but not necessary unless there is a particular need.
v. Double space prose, single space poetry, unless you are purposely trying something different.
vi. Each poem is typed on a different page--never put two or more poems on a single page, no matter how short.
vii. Using your last name in the header is fine, unless you are submitting more than one piece of writing.  In that case, use a word or phrase from your title, so that it can't be confused with whatever else you've sent.
viii. You do not need to put "by [your name]" under your title.  The only time when this is possibly necessary is if you use a pseudonym.
ix. Do not right-justify your work, certainly not in poetry but not in prose either.

  • ADVICE. Space in writing often has meaning, serving as punctuation of a sort.  Allowing a computer to stretch out a line--sometimes quite awkwardly--suggests a meaning where there is none.  Plus, it looks goofy when that happens.
  • Also, the reader's eye falls into a reading rhythm.  Type that starts to jump around upsets that rhythm and has an affect, however negligible, on the reader, an affect not usually positive.


c. Physical page layout.

For poetry, when poem fits on one page:


Name
Address
Phone Number
[3-5 spaces here]
Title (against left margin)
[space--3 to 5 spaces here]
Body of poem



For poetry, when poem continues to next page:


Name
Address
Phone Number
[3-5 spaces here]
Title (against left margin)
[space--3 to 5 spaces here]
Body of poem
[several spaces before end, clearly toward right margin:
        (cont.--with break) or
        (cont.--no break)
"break" here means stanza break.  You can write "cont.--with stanza break" if you wish, but it's not particularly necessary, unless you have some special circumstance.



Second page for poetry (and all succeeding pages, appropriately numbered):


[Word from poem title, or your last name], 2

[About 2-4 spaces here]

Continue poem.

[If poem goes to succeeding pages, make sure you continue with this notation at the bottom, again several spaces before end, clearly toward right margin, and in the same place as where you've put it on the previous page:
        (cont.--with break) or
        (cont.--no break)



For prose and non-fiction:


Name       [you can list word count in the upper
Address      right if you wish, but it's not necessary]
Phone Number
[Skip to about the middle of the page here]
Title (centered)
[space--3 to 5 spaces here]
Body of story or prose writing



Second page for prose and non-fiction (and all succeeding pages, appropriately numbered):


[Word from story title, or your last name], 2

[About 2-4 spaces here]
Continue story.
[At the end of the story, consider putting something like 3 hash marks at the end and along the left margin in order to let the reader know for certain that the piece is finished.  This is especially important if your ending happens to occur toward the bottom of the page.]

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