Jen R. Albert

My name is Jen Albert, and I am an acquiring editor at ECW Press.

On the fiction side, I specialize in science fiction, fantasy, and horror. I was co-editor-in-chief of PodCastle, a fantasy fiction podcast and magazine, and have been nominated for several major SFF awards for this work, including the Hugo and the World Fantasy Awards. I am interested in all genres of science fiction, fantasy, and horror, and am happy to look at both novels and novellas. I am not a good fit for YA titles or books in the romance category (eg., romance-first fantasy), though I am very open to romantasy and any SFF books that have prominent romantic plotlines alongside the central plot. Please note that I only look at fiction by Canadian authors.

On the nonfiction side, I am interested in trade books in the popular science category, as well as work that crosses over into politics, economics, technology, philosophy, and history. Prior to my work as an editor, I worked as an entomologist, and I have a master’s degree in molecular biology, so I am interested in science-forward and research-based books in these categories. I am an excellent fit for progressive, anti-colonial, and/or anti-capitalist books that contextualize and examine past and present economic, political, and social systems with firm academic grounding and an eye towards an inclusive future, as well as science and philosophy books that seek to understand human behaviour. Examples include the work of David Graeber, Robert Sapolsky, Naomi Klein, and Grace Blakeley. I am not a good fit for business or economics books that do not look beyond the current system, health or nutrition books not grounded in strong research, or for most genres of self-help and memoir.

About ECW: ECW Press is one of Canada’s largest independent trade publishers and has been in operation for over 50 years, having published close to 1,000 books. Our books are distributed throughout the English-speaking world (we have traditional distribution via Simon & Schuster as well as Jaguar Books in Canada) and have been translated into dozens of languages. We release about 50 new titles in a variety of trade genres and will continue to support and promote a vibrant backlist that includes poetry and fiction, pop culture, political analysis, business, sports, music, biography, environment, and popular science.

Submission Guidelines

Submissions should be emailed to jenalbert@ecwpress.com

**Please note that for fiction and narrative nonfiction (eg., memoir), I only consider work by Canadian authors. Non-narrative nonfiction may be international.**

Please email su*********@******ss.com with your manuscript’s title and “attn: Jen Albert” in the subject line. You may also cc me at je*******@******ss.com.

Please include:

1. A cover letter explaining what genre of book you’re pitching (e.g., science fiction, horror, popular science), a short description of your book, and why you think it’s a good fit with my list. Find more tips on writing a good query letter here.
2. A brief bio, including your city of residence and publication history.
3. A sample of the manuscript of 15–25 pages.
4. For non-fiction, please also send an outline of the entire work as you currently envision it, with a detailed table of contents and descriptions of each chapter/section.

Please note that we will consider a novel or memoir only once it has been completed, though you need only send 15 to 25 pages with a query. A non-narrative nonfiction proposal can be considered with only a sample.

We accept electronic submissions only. We prefer .doc, .docx, or PDFs, or you may include the text in the body of the email.

We do not publish books that use generative AI for writing or revisions: everything we publish must be 100% human-authored, and you’ll find that right in our contracts.

Please see the submissions guidelines on our website for more information.

Guidelines & Details