Submission Rules & Requirements

• Shaherazad Shelves publishes only genre fiction.

  • This is a quick way to describe any book with a clear genre label, including historical fiction, romance, science nonfiction, fantasy, sci-fi, and literary fiction, as well as genre blends like alt-historical fantasy, ecofiction, sci-fi political romance, and literary thriller. Manuscripts with unclear genre(s) are rejected.

• Shaherazad Shelves publishes only Muslim-centered and Muslim-friendly work.

  • Our mission is to proliferate healthy, positive, and ethically honest books to defend against the dehumanization and faithwashing of Muslims and ethnic groups through media. We reject manuscripts that don't align with this principle, even if the author identifies as Muslim.

• Shaherazad Shelves publishes only high-quality books.

  • While manuscripts don't have to be super-polished to be acquired by Shaherazad Shelves, please note that the editorial team will prioritize a well-edited novel over the publication date. This means we will edit manuscripts thoroughly to meet our quality standards, even if it delays the initial estimated publication date by anywhere from six months to over a year.

• Shaherazad Shelves adheres to sadaqa jariya, the Islamic concept of charity after death.

  • This means that when one of our authors passes away, their book royalties will go to charity.

  • Authors who do not align with this should NOT submit.

• Shaherazad Shelves publishes only work comparable to our current list.

  • The manuscript must be complete, self-edited, and comparable to a work Shaherazad Shelves has already published. Manuscripts that fail to meet all of these will be rejected.

• Shaherazad Shelves' submission link is open only from October 24 to January 24.

  • Shaherazad Shelves uses the Query Manager submission link below for agented and unagented work. Manuscripts emailed from anyone other than a literary agent will be rejected.

  • In addition to this annual timeframe, we will post open calls for specific genres throughout the year on our social media, so stay connected on our Twitter/X and Instagram.

• Shaherazad Shelves will NEVER ask authors for money.

  • We are a small, albeit traditional, publishing house. This means there are no reading fees, authors receive annual royalties, and Shaherazad Shelves will pay all major expenses for legal protections, editing, and cover design.