Website
Type Of Publisher
Digital
Genres Published
Essays, Fiction, Poetry, Visual Art
Year Established
2023
Address
Salt Lake City, UT
Name
Kameron Hansen
Title
Managing member
Mission Statement / Editorial Focus
Drawing on our understanding of indie-lit publishing, it is clear that small presses are overworked and are essentially operating as charities. The time required to design, format, edit, print, promote, and distribute each book is immense, and as a result, small presses receive far more submissions than they can accept. Here's a snapshot of the current landscape: Small presses receive numerous submissions daily but can publish only 5 - 10 books a year, resulting in an acceptance rate of less than 1%.
A paperback priced at $15 leaves little to no earnings for the author and press once the bookstore, distributor, and printing costs are covered.
The typical timeline from acceptance to publication is 1 - 2 years.
This unavoidably low acceptance rate of < 1% is fundamentally at odds with the original mission of most small presses, which is, to accept avant-garde writing that would normally be rejected by large, traditional presses. Low acceptance rates place both the press and writers in a difficult situation. To play the odds, authors must submit to hundreds of presses and network extensively— in short, a bunch of things that are disagreeable to the artist’s spirit. This situation leads to frustration all around. Writers are disheartened by the low acceptance rates and lengthy timelines, while presses, despite their altruistic efforts to realize the dreams of writers, find themselves criticized for their limited capacity. Self-publishing has somewhat alleviated this issue for genre fiction, but it remains less appealing for literary fiction. The mission of Dumbo Press is to tackle these issues by creating a streamlined indie press where multiple parts of the publication and promotion process are either automated or outsourced to the writer themselves. We focus on (1) publishing quality writing, (2) publishing fast, and (3) having a reasonable acceptance rate so authors feel comfortable submitting to us.
Accepts Unsolicited Submissions
Yes
What Do You Look For In A Submission?
High craftsmanship, whether that is in the form of narrative, prose, or both.
What Advice Do You Have For First-time Submitters?
Don't sweat it! This is a good place for you to be submitting.
