Putting Together Pitches for Comic Anthologies
Comic anthologies are formed by two methods: through open calls and/or specific curation, when the Editor pre-selects contributors and contacts them ahead of any public announcement. For the purposes of small press comics, this post will focus on the open call aspect of comic anthologies, and the craft of writing pitches.
Getting Started
When pitching to anthologies, a few small steps will set you on the right path.
- Read the guidelines – every anthology looks for something different, and provides information on the book.
- Prepare your portfolio, if you haven’t already – we have a checklist you can follow if you’re getting started.
- Write your pitch.
Here’s where things diverge, and everything becomes based on the guidelines for the anthology. What follows is general advice only, based on what we usually look for. This advice can be used to begin pitching in response to open calls going forward.
Outlines and Page Breakdowns
When we began taking pitches, one thing became clear early on: the people who could provide a breakdown of their story page-by-page understood their comic clearer than those who didn’t. More to the point, we understood their story at an outline level, which made decision-making easier.
Most anthologies will ask for an outline of the story. This is an excellent time to provide a breakdown, page-by-page, to demonstrate the pacing of the comic. It’s a little bit of extra work, but it helps the editor(s) to read it more easily. It doesn’t need to be complicated – a line or two at most per page – but it can be impactful.
If the layout of the book is specified at this point in the process (e.g. how many page turns a story has, or which side of the page it’ll start on), this is a good opportunity to add in the surprises and twists that the reader will ultimately experience when the comic is in its finished form.
Remember: don’t keep secrets from the editor at this point.
You aren’t writing marketing copy. You need to spoil the ending and reveal every twist along the way. The editor needs to know if the story is for them or not.
Pitches, Loglines and Comps
The word ‘comps’ has been used a lot in publishing over the last couple of years, but not in the same way that comic creators are used the word being used. In comics, ‘comps’ refers to complimentary copies. In the broader publishing world, it refers to comparisons, in the context of comp titles.
When writing pitches, your logline and your comp go hand in hand. This is the marketing copy of your story. It’s X meets Y, with a Twist.
The purpose of loglines is to help the editor understand the approach you’re taking to the story, and it gives them something to think about when making decisions.
In general, your comps should:
- Be accurate
- Be recognisable entities
- Be distinct
- Be recent
While fiction publishers prefer comps to be in relation to other books in the genre, comics have gotten away with exploring other media as part of the comparison. Whatever you choose, your comp titles should speak to the editor clearly.
Portfolios and Bios
Assuming you’ve got a short summary and a logline for your story, the last piece of the puzzle that most anthologies look for is portfolios and/or bios.
Portfolios should be made for comics, and bios should be written in the third person.
The latter may be requested if you’ve been accepted, rather than at the pitch stage. Regardless, you should have something prepared for general use.
Pinch Hitters
You might see opt-in sections on pitch forms looking for pinch hitters. Where a book suddenly needs a replacement story, a pinch hitter will come in and complete their story on a tight deadline.
Before you submit pitches
We’ve discussed this at the beginning of this post, but it’s worth mentioning it again: read the guidelines.
Not only should an editor tell you what they’re looking for in terms of contents of a pitch, they should also tell you what rights they require, and what remuneration – if any – they are offering, as well as a general timeline for the project.
Caveat: the following is not legal advice, nor are we in a position to offer legal advice.
In general, you’ll want to look out for claims regarding copyright and/or ownership, and which publishing rights are sought. An anthology project should only be looking for exclusive publishing rights for a limited period of time.
In the case of Limit Break Comics, we specify that ownership remains with the creators, and first publishing rights in both print and digital formats, and exclusivity for one year from publication are sought. In plain English, this means: we get to publish it first, and it can’t be published anywhere else for a year after publication.
You should not sign away copyright of a story – only publishing rights with specific terms attached.
Always consult a lawyer if you are uncertain about rights requested. Members of the Society of Authors can avail of contract checks as part of their membership.
When you get a response
Anthologies are competitive by nature. If you are accepted – congratulations! Now the work begins.
If you haven’t been accepted, it’s worth remembering that the book can only ever be a certain size, and that ‘rejection’ – nasty word as it is – isn’t personal. When editors don’t have time for individual feedback, they may offer general feedback in an email to everyone they have had to say no to. This can vary depending on the book and the editor.
If the offer is there to request feedback, and it’s important to you, ask and be patient. Be aware that feedback may not always be helpful to you as a creator, and could just be something as plain as ‘there were other similar ideas we preferred.’
Good luck
Submitting pitches to anthologies can feel stressful, and not being accepted can feel terrible. Putting in the work, though, can pay off, and it can help you to build relationships in the community as well as develop your portfolio.
Keep an eye on publishers’ responses to submissions, and if you’re struggling to get accepted, ask someone with more experience to look at your pitches to what you might be doing wrong, if anything.
With all of that said, we wish you luck on your comics journey!
