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History Through Fiction Press (Gold Star Program) Gold Star

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About Us
Founded in 2019 by Minnesota Author and Historian Colin Mustful, History Through Fiction is an independent press publishing high quality fiction that is rooted in accurate and detailed historical research. As publishers of historical fiction, we seek to provide readers with compelling narratives that also act as valuable historical resources. Our books, though fictionalized, include important primary and secondary source materials that are disclosed to readers through a variety of traditionally nonfiction elements such as footnotes, endnotes, or a bibliography. This way, readers may enjoy a fictional narrative while also examining the historical foundation upon which that narrative is based. By combining elements of fiction and nonfiction, our authors provide readers with an immersive experience that is both entertaining and educational.

Mission
To address the gap between history and storytelling through well-researched, engaging, and diverse narratives.

Vision
To help readers across the world discover new authors, learn new histories, and become engaged critical thinkers with a knowledge of the past and a broad, culturally relative understanding of the present.

Values
At History Through Fiction we value engagement with the past through well-crafted fiction that is based on real events and people. We believe in promoting, creating, and sharing diverse, authentic, and transparent stories and voices. We represent authors who are committed to conveying the historical elements of their stories directly to their readers. We produce content that is relevant to readers and writers alike, while proliferating history, historical fiction, writing, and reading in a manner that is educational, entertaining, and promotes dialogue about the past and its relevance for us today. We support independent authors, book sellers, and publishers.

Full-Length Manuscript Submissions Free

Open

Closes on Saturday, August 31, 2024 11:59 PM CDT (in 109 days)

History Through Fiction, and our new hybrid imprint HTF Publishing, is interested in publishing high quality fiction rooted in historical research. We are looking for stories about real people and real events. Though fictionalized, our books include nonfiction elements such as footnotes, endnotes, a bibliography, or some form of transparency that allows reader to delve into the history upon which our stories are based. When submitting, consider whether your historical novel is informative and educational in addition to being a compelling fictional story.

All submissions must be made through our Duosuma Submission Platform. Please submit the following:

  1. A query letter with your word count (via Duosuma in your cover letter)
  2. A synopsis of 500 words or less (via Duosuma in your cover letter)
  3. The first 10-15 pages of your manuscript (as an attached file or Drive link)

We’ll carefully evaluate your submission, checking to see if it catches our interest, fits our niche, and merits a full evaluation. If it does, we’ll request the full manuscript.

After receiving your full manuscript, we’ll carefully evaluate it for overall craft, content, and quality. If we LOVE your story and believe it’s a great fit for our audience, we'll extend to you either a traditional publishing contract with History Through Fiction or a hybrid publishing contract with HTF Publishing.

If we offer you a traditional publishing contract, it means that we consider your work to be an impeccable fit for our specialized market and that your story surpasses even the most exceptional historical manuscripts. Our traditional publishing contract includes a small advance on royalties and requires no financial investment from the author. If we offer you a hybrid publishing contract, we absolutely love your story and believe it will resonate with our audience, but we also believe we can use our expertise to assist you in enhancing it further. With a hybrid publishing contract, our aim is to collaborate with you to create a novel that, upon completion, closely resembles our traditionally published works. Our hybrid publishing contract requires a financial investment from the author.

History Through Fiction accepts multiple submissions and unsolicited manuscripts. We encourage first-time and experienced authors to submit. Writers who identify as BIPOC, LGBTQ, or as a member of other marginalized and traditionally underrepresented communities are strongly encouraged to submit their work. Once you submit, please be patient for a response. If you have not heard back from us within three months, send us a polite follow up email.

*History Through Fiction will not accept submissions that have used Generative AI in any step of the writing process.

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