Memento Vivere Press Submissions
So you're looking to submit to Memento Vivere Press. That's great, and we're glad you're here! During our open submission windows, we accept several types of submissions. Please see the buttons to the left for specific guidelines per manuscript type.Questions? Please don't hesitate to reach out!Editor: [email protected]
Publisher: [email protected]
Submission Guidelines
About the Press
So who are we, really? Check out our philosophy, history, and staff bios here to see if we're the right fit for you and your work.
Submissions Open: Aug. 1 - Sept. 31, 2026
WRITING SUBMISSIONS
GENERAL GUIDELINES FOR ALL WRITING SUBMISSIONS
We do blind reading. Format your manuscripts without identifying material, leaving any identifiers in your original email body. Submissions not adhering to this rule will be discarded without review.Include In Your Submission Email:
- Name and pen name
- Brief “about me”
- Social media if you’d like
- Past publications, if any (not a requirement)
- Has this work been published before?
- Manuscript PDF (see below for formatting guidelines)
- NOTE: You are not required to have a specially formatted cover letter or query letter. They aren't even on our "nice to have" list.Manuscript Formatting Requirements:
Manuscript Title page:
- Title
- Word count
- Any necessary content warnings (use your best judgement)
- 3-6 sentence summary (don't use this as a hook; I want to be spoiled)
- DO NOT include any names/socials/other personal identifying informationManuscript Body Formatting:
- 1.5 spacing
- Times New Roman or Arial, 11 pt font
- Tabbed paragraphs; no extra space between paragraphs
- PDF, not .docx
- Left-aligned, not justified
- Begin chapters on new pages
- Scene breaks should be a hyphen OR three asterisks, centered
WORK-SPECIFIC GUIDELINESLong-Form Work (Novel/Novella/Novelette):
- Word Count: 10k+ (we are not accepting works under 10k at this time)
- Info page(s): Intended audience including any niche interests/markets, 1-3 page synopsis (expanded version of your summary on the manuscript), comparison titles IF you have any (not required)Short Story Collections:
- Word count: at least 5 stories totaling 15k or more
- Info Page(s): list of all titles with individual word counts, brief summary of each story (1-3 sentences), collection theme
- NOTE: When submitting a short story collection, all stories must be finished and included in the submission. Submissions including summaries of or ideas for unfinished stories will be discarded without review.Short Stories:
We are not accepting individual short stories at this time.
Your manuscript should be the best it can be and as close to publishing-ready as possible when you submit it. This does not mean it won't be edited if it is accepted, but a cleaner manuscript stands a much higher chance of acceptance than one that hasn't been reviewed prior to submission.
GRAPHIC NOVEL SUBMISSIONS
NOTE: We do blind reading. Format your manuscripts without identifying material, leaving any identifiers in your original email body. Submissions not adhering to this rule will be discarded without review.Title page:
- Statement art (not necessarily cover art but something that captures the spirit of the project)
- Project titlePage 2:
- 1-3 sentences about the project basics: plot, characters, and theme (not a hook; I want to know the essentials of the whole story)
- 1-3 paragraph summary of the story, including any twists or subversions (again, not hook-y; we want to know the spoilers)Page 3:
- Intended audience (YA, NA, adult, etc), including any niche interests/markets
- Genre
- Expected length in pages
- Color, B&W, or both?
- Comparison titles if you'd like to include them, but not requiredNext Section:
- Character designs for main characters and main protagonist (can be a reference sheet; should give a good look at the art first and additional info as a quick aside)
- Any other relevant character art (sketch pages, poses, sample panels, etc) [not required but will never hurt]Next Section:
- 1-5 page outline/detailed synopsis of the entire project. Tell me the who/what/when/where/why/hows of each act/arc/section (however you're choosing to split things). Again, spoil everything. Bullet points welcome!Next Section:
- 10-20 fully completed pages, including coloring (if desired) and lettering. If there was outside coloring/lettering help used, please credit them.
- Optional: 1-10 unfinished but good condition pages
OTHER SUBMISSIONS OR PITCHES
We're always looking for new and unusual projects to bring to life. Do you have a merch package to pitch? A themed anthology you'd like to curate? A poetry chapbook to let out of your files?You can always email our editor at [email protected] to discuss the project. Please include the following items in your email:- Email Body: your name, the elevator pitch for your project (2 paragraphs max; just the bare-bones basics), your brief history with this kind of project (eg. "I am a merch artist with a storefront [link storefront]," or "I've compiled/edited XYZ anthology.")- General PDF Pitch Package: a detailed 1-3 page pitch of project-relevant information. Include information such as title, theme, intended audience, manufacturing requirements (if pitching a non-book project), and an expansion of your email elevator pitch. When pitching, do not attempt to keep that hook-y air of mystery about the project; we need to have a detailed look from start to finish that includes twists, surprises, or unusual factors so we can factor those into our decision.- For Merch Pitches: Please include a curated selection of relevant art pieces (15 max) in your pitch package. These can be your initial art files OR pictures of physical merch (stickers, charms, prints, etc.).- For Anthology Pitches: Please include anything else you feel may be relevant to the project in your pitch package, even if that's a page or two of rambling about your vision (note: this does NOT exempt your pitch from the 1-3 page detailed pitch requirement; however, we do understand some things don't fit neatly into that box and want to give you the opportunity to explore).- Chapbook Pitches: Please include up to 5 poems you're looking to include in your chapbook, as well as a theme and planned length. (While it can be difficult to judge before formatting, we're looking for at least 40 pages worth of material. It does not all need to be completed to pitch, but we will prioritize pitch packages that include more completed material.)- Other Pitches: If you have something really out there, please let us know any other information you think we might need to make our decision. We may ask you some clarifying questions!
About the Press
Alex (A.C.) Bauer
he/theyPress Role: Editor-in-chief, ownerOkay, so what do I actually do here: Mostly acquisitions and editing! I am the branch that sources our projects, as well as the person who makes your writing shine before launch day. I also format our books, do some miscellaneous back-end tasks, and badger Ynes about fun marketing ideas that I don't have the energy to pull off.My history with Memento Vivere: I came on as a freelance editor in spring 2025, shortly after publishing my novelette, Wildforged, with the press. Then a more permanent opportunity to be editor-in-chief arose, and the rest is history.This is far from the first time Ynes and I have worked together, however - we've known each other for nearly a decade and have run in similar writer communities for the full duration.My publishing experience: While Memento Vivere is my first official original fiction publishing job, I have spent the last six years running, editing, and manufacturing fanzines - over fifty! (And that's not counting those I simply contributed writing to.) Working in a fannish capacity has given me the opportunity to work with people from all over the world and all different experience levels; I've developed a flexible and encouraging editorial hand through this work.About Me: I'm a transmasc, aroace, "brings a 'convention is a hell of our own design' vibe that people don't always ken" sort of person. My whole life is books: when I'm not busy working in a book warehouse or doing press operations, I'm probably writing. And if I'm not writing, I'm noodling on ideas for the next time I hit the keyboard.When I'm not crouched at the computer, you can find me one of two places: on the couch watching TV, or out in the woods disturbing the peace. And if I'm neither of those places, well...I probably just don't want to be found.Vibe: thunderclouds on the horizon, decaying leaf litter, the thud of knuckles against flesh, canid jaws snapping in warningMoral Alignment: chaotic evil - independence and freedom of choice above allSkills: Developmental editing, sensitivity reading for queer (esp. transmasc, aromantic, or asexual) characters, sensitivity reading for mentally ill (esp. autistic, ADHD, depressed, anxious, or bipolar) characters, encouraging authors one-on-one/cheer-reading, full of tips and tricks for chronically ill creatives
Ynes Freeman
she/herPress Role: Founder/PublisherOkay, so what do I actually do here: The people-facing stuff that comes after launch day! Publishing, marketing, author events, and liaising with outside businesses such as bookstores.History with Memento Vivere: Ynes founded the press and has been here since day one!Publishing Experience: Ynes Freeman is an award-winning fiction author, and she is Founder/Publisher at Memento Vivere Press. With a unique career background in management, publishing, and audience marketing, Ynes holds a special blend of business and creative skills. Her passion is working with both people and words, and she enjoys diving deep to get to the heart of “why it matters.”She has more than a decade of experience in publishing operations, spanning traditional industry and independent small press. Ynes served as Content Director on the board of a professional nonprofit society from 2020-2022, and she served on the Writespace board of directors from 2023-2025. She is a Distinguished Toastmaster (DTM) and an instructor whose workshops include “Marketing Minus the Self-Loathing” and “Time Management Minus the Self-Loathing.” She led Creative Central, an online group of more than 800 women writers focused on support and encouragement, from 2019-2021. A strong advocate of diverse voices, Ynes is the publisher of the first book in history written by an Armenian-American lesbian.As a writer, her work is beautiful, intense, and deep. She believes writing is the secret to immortality and that authors live forever through their books, changing the lives of people they will never meet. Under a variety of pen names, Ynes’s work has appeared in Everyday Fiction ezine, Primal Elements (a poetry collection), The Order of Us (a Moms Who Write anthology), Dragons Within, and other anthologies. Her debut novel, Beautiful Serpent, Restless Embers, won silver in the 2024 Bookfest Awards.Learn more about her work by visiting @ynesfreeman on Instagram.Vibe: Charming, energetic, adventurous, empath with boundariesMoral Alignment: Chaotic Neutral - true freedom from both society’s restrictions and a do-gooder’s zealSkills: Marketing and publicity, community building, audience development, operations, project management, the business side of writing
About the PressMemento Vivere Press—founded in 2024 —publishes books that breathe color and life back into the world.The world of creativity has changed: AI runs rampant, Instapoets churn out aphorisms and call it art, and “good” storytelling is defined by likes on social media. Creativity is stifled by big corporate design. This new paradigm often feels more dead than alive. Soulless. A safe, mass-palatable gray designed to be spoon-fed to as many consumers as possible.Memento Mori, Memento Vivere: remember you must die, so remember to live.A reader lives hundreds, thousands, of lives over the course of their existence. In books, we can be anyone. We can be everyone. And at Memento Vivere, we believe that life—in all its great and terrible glory—is not just something that happens to you. It is something you pursue. Something you build with intention and joy in the time that’s been given to you. A series of choices, each one layered upon the last.We publish books that breathe color back into the everyday gray, because when you can choose to be anything, why choose to be passionless? You are more than a consumer. You are a reader: by nature, a creature of indulgence and excitement.So choose to explore impossibility. Choose stories that aren’t afraid of their readers. Choose characters who are more than three adjectives in a trenchcoat. Characters who feel alive. Characters who become.Choose a richer existence.Fill every one of your lives with beauty.Read with bold, audacious love.
Testimonials“It is an outstanding person indeed who can take complex marketing and business concepts and explain them in a way that will make sense to someone from as far outside that field as myself. I have taken modest follower engagement and turned it into robust and growing engagement. Simply put, Ynes is amazing and I can't thank or praise her enough.” – Dr. Nyri Bakkalian, military historian & award-winning author"Ynes is a passionate teacher who ensures students delve deep within themselves to truly find the hard-to-answer questions. I would not have the confidence or a real social media presence without her assistance." – Summer Paige, speculative fiction author“Ynes knows so much about so many aspects of the writing and publishing processes. She speaks clearly and confidently on everything from color theory to branding to titles and more. Her integrity is incredibly high and her passion is helping writers hone their brand and achieve whatever their goals might be.” – Kristine Haecker, contemporary women’s fiction author