Open Coop Day 2025
For author-illustrators and middle-grade fiction & graphic novel creators
December 5, 2025
Starts at midnight ends at 11:59 PM eastern time
Please read carefully:
- We only want books created by humans.
- We are AI intolerant.
- We want to be surprised, in the best way.
- Manuscripts in English, please.
- ONE submission per creator.
- Send your best work.
ACROSS GENRES, we seek:
- SMART HUMOR
(scatological humor is not welcome; we are all punned out; slapstick in limited doses). - CHARACTER-DRIVEN stories with true series potential.
- PLOT-DRIVEN stories with character!
- Stories with HEART
(we are not interested in one-note/joke projects) - Shorter texts (c. 25K or hybrid MG, for example)
- Contemporary/light magic or grounded fantasy/whimsy
- VOICE. Whatever genre, we want to see/hear a strong, original voice.
- Even in the digital illustration landscape, we want to see a hand-drawn look with fun line and textures.
MIDDLE-GRADE FICTION:
- We are open to middle-grade fiction created by writers and by author-illustrators.
- Fun(ny) and real-life COMING OF AGE middle-grade fiction and young middle-grade graphic novels or illustrated chapter books full of heart but not issue-driven.
PICTURE BOOKS & GRAPHIC NOVELS:
- Author-illustrators only.
- We are only interested in seeing illustrated fiction by author-illustrators who have at least one finished and polished picture book, young graphic novel or chapter book or illustrated middle-grade fiction, ideally ready-to-go.
