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Though Engine Books has no specific allegiance to any particular form or style of fiction, the work we publish falls squarely into the category of “literary,” which the press defines generally as “everyday life made worthy of art.” In the case of “genre” work—crime fiction, romance, sci-fi, etc.—manuscripts should rise beyond the usually formulaic nature of the genre.

Submissions to Engine Books are currently closed. We will update our operation when the pandemic is appropriately managed and children have returned to school.

All styles of literary fiction are happily considered. Of course, that’s not a very helpful answer. Instead of attempting to prescribe an aesthetic for the press, I present here a list of my favorite books. The one quality they all share is a big storytelling heart—human stories large in scope. If you feel your manuscript bears similarity to any of the books below or to the excellent titles already in the Engine Books lineup, please consider sending a query letter.

If your manuscript contains vampires, werewolves, ghosts, or other supernatural creatures, or if its plot relies heavily on references to said creatures, it is extremely unlikely that Engine Books is the right press for you. If your primary readership will be YA or teen readers, Engine Books is definitely not the right press for you. Excellent publishers exist for such books; please look elsewhere to find one.