They re-issue books that were previously published and they also publish new books. They are open to manuscript queries. They focus on publishing paperback novels.

They have published established authors such as Stephen King, Lawrence Block, and Cornell Woolrich. A number of their newer novels have won prestigious awards within the field of mystery novels.

They are distributed by Random House and as such their books are often found in brick and mortar bookstores.

Their books have very distinctive branding, and all of their covers have a cohesive feel to them. They have a vintage style pulp cover, with the publisher’s logo on the top left hand corner.

Because they are so focused on publishing a specific, cohesive genre, it is a good idea to pick up one of their books from your local library or bookstore before querying, especially if you are not already familiar with the books or authors that they have published in the past.

All manuscript queries must be made via email. Keep your query letter short and to the point. They do not request sample chapters or anything else. Their contact information is available here.

To learn more about Hard Case Crime and the books that they publish, please visit their website here.

‘The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt.’
– Sylvia Plath

“The greater the artist, the greater the doubt. Perfect confidence is granted to the less talented as a consolation prize.”
– Robert Hughes

The Editors of Authors Publish receive regular emails and Facebook messages that contain one or two sentences and are always the same in their intent, even though they are written by different people. The emails we receive usually say: “I wrote one or two short stories, I want to know if they are any good. Can you tell me?”

This is an interesting question but one I cannot answer. A question that no one person can really answer. I can tell you if your grammar works, or if your spelling is distracting but beyond that we leave the land of the objective and we enter the land of the subjective.

Almost everyone likes to think that they have good taste. I love Leo Tolstoy, Raymond Chandler, and Gabrial Garcia Marquez. All of them are respected and established authors. However, my long list of favorite authors is much more varied and includes a number of genre authors. Authors that would never win the Pulitzer, or even be nominated.

Besides that, there are a number of famous respected writers I do not like. I cannot abide Jonathan Franzen’s writing. I find Fyodor Dostoevsky and Charles Dickens very frustrating. Others love Franzen and despise Tolstoy. That is their right.

Obviously, some writers are a different caliber than other writers. No one would compare Stephenie Meyer and James Joyce’s literary abilities, except in jest. However, that does not diminish Meyer’s ability to sell books.

Besides, even great writers from Ray Bradbury to Ernest Hemingway have written books that even their adamant fans do not like. To be able to tell a writer’s skill based on one short story would be very difficult, as it would depend heavily on the story that was chosen.

Authors so often face self-doubt.  The fact that other people cannot tell you if you are good enough is not reassuring.

However, it is reassuring that most authors seem to doubt their own writing.

I know from personal experience that something I wrote yesterday and seemed terrific at the time can seem horrible the next day. This is more true of creative work than of an article or research based work.

Sometimes I encounter a published poem of mine and don’t like it. I wonder what I ever saw in it. But that critical eye is part of being an artist or a writer. The more I work on refining my writing, improving my craft, and judging my work, the less I am putting work out into the world that I am not proud of.

As you participate in critique groups and gain experience publishing your writing, you will learn more about how readers and other writers interact with your writing. This may give you more confidence in your writing, or it may cause you to question it. Most likely, the outside feedback will do both at different times.

Remember, specific feedback can be helpful. Advice about lines and cliches and character development can really improve your writing. But general statements such as “I like your writing” or “I dislike your writing” are ultimately unhelpful.

Ultimately I think it is important to keep Hemingway’s quote in your mind “We are all apprentices in a craft where no one ever becomes a master.” Don’t focus on the self doubt, focus on improving. And always remember that no one else can tell you definitively how good or bad you are.

Each submission period, a poet may submit up to three poems of three lines. Poets may send poems by mail or through their submission manager. Their submission manager is unique to the journal and its sister magazines, but poets can be assured that they are always professional in how they use the contact information.

Three Line Poetry has a high acceptance rate and pays a token fee of $1.50 through PayPal upon the publication of the paperback issue. There is also an Editor’s Choice poem with each issue that receives a $10 token payment. Upon acceptance, poems are immediately published in the online issue with a paperback issue to follow once enough acceptances have been reached.

In giving contributors advice in sending their work to Three Line Poetry, Lyvers suggests poets not send long lines, rhyme, and love poems. Instead, poets should “choose interesting words” that carry multiple meanings. You can read more advice, enjoy some free issues, and learn more here.

Bio: Mandy Brown is a writer in Central Texas, the 2013 recipient of A Room of Her Own Foundation’s Tillie Olsen Fellowship, and the author of The Sting (Sweatshoppe Publications, 2013). Mandy currently teaches English at an alternative school and loves it! Read more of her writing at mandyalyssbrown.weebly.com.