Deadline: September 10, 2026
Applications are open for the She Writes Press Toward Equality in Publishing (STEP) 2026. Each year, they run the STEP contest to offer two authors publishing packages (plus a 500-book print run), one author per season, to publish on She Writes Press. The purpose of this contest is to support inclusivity across She Writes Press publishing program, and to fortify their own mission to give voice to women writers.
She Writes Press is unique in the world of publishing because they are neither traditional publishing, nor are they self-publishing. As an independent publisher, they bill themselves as a “third way” for authors, and they proudly occupy a much-needed alternative in a rapidly changing publishing landscape.
Benefits
Both packages include the full services of the She Writes Press Publishing Package (each valued at $12,000 + a 500-copy print run):
- Custom interior design for up to 100,000 words
- Custom cover design
- E-book file conversion and upload to 130+ distribution partners
- Traditional distribution to the trade via Simon & Schuster
- Proofreading of the final manuscript
- Copyright filing and obtaining your Library of Congress control number
- Warehousing of short-run printed books
- Preordering and fulfillment of all orders
- Support of the book through the production schedule and post-publication by an assigned editorial manager
- Complimentary Advanced Reader Copies (ARCs)
- Initial print run of 500 copies to the Simon & Schuster warehouse
Eligibility
One entry per person. Open to all countries and regions. Entrants must satisfy all the following requirements:
- Anyone over the age of eighteen.
- Women only (a writer identifying as female/woman, trans, non-binary, or genderqueer).
- Women of color (by which we mean people whose heritage is African; Indigenous to the Americas and Australia; Latinx; Asian/Pacific Islander; Arab; or people of mixed racial heritage with one or two parents who fit into the above groups).
- Agented or unagented work qualifies.
Application
Submit via Word or PDF attachment both a chapter-by-chapter summary and either:
- the first 50 pages of your manuscript OR
- a full nonfiction book proposal (that includes sample chapters)
For more information, visit She Writes Press Toward Equality in Publishing.
