GUIDELINES FOR WRITERS
- Please submit plays and musicals suitable for performance by community
theatres and junior and senior high schools. (Separate guidelines are
available for our religious catalog. See them at
www.95church.com.)
- Include a cover letter giving us a brief description of the story of the
play, its running time, its performance history, and if it has earned any
awards. In addition, we would like to know a little about your writing
experience.
- Let us know if this is a simultaneous submission.
- Our standard royalty contract is 50% of royalties and 10% of copy sales.
Playwrights are paid twice a year. Outright purchase contracts are limited
to extremely short pieces (such as skits) and some religious plays where no
separate performance royalty is charged.
- We receive hundreds of manuscripts a year and want to give each careful
attention and review. That's why it takes us about 2 months to respond.
- You may submit electronically or via snail-mail.
EMAIL:
Using your cover letter as the message, attach your play as a Microsoft Word or PDF document and e-mail to this special address: NewWorks@histage.com.
SNAIL-MAIL:
Susan Shore, New Plays Editor
Eldridge Publishing Co. Inc.
PO Box 14367,
Tallahassee FL 32317
(Please do not use certified or registered mail. It actually takes longer to receive. Include a self-addressed, stamped postcard if you’d like verification of delivery. For our response, please include your e-mail address or a self-addressed, stamped envelope.)
Special Tips for Submitting
- We like all kinds of plays and are always open to new ideas. Generally speaking, our customers like plays with more female than male roles or flexible casting in which roles can be played by either men or women. This is not a hard-and-fast rule, however.
- Don’t worry too much about formatting—just be sure to number your pages. Our editors are more concerned with content.
- We strongly recommend having your script workshopped, read, or performed. Scripts rewritten after this process are of a much higher caliber.
- Include any reviews, production photos, or DVDs, if available.
We offer 18 distinct advantages to publish with us
-
You are given a proof copy of your work to approve before
publication. We encourage you to add dedications and first performances and
original cast lists. Any awards or compliments from reviews are also
included.
-
Full-color art is specially designed to help advertise your
show. A black and white version of the art is designed into your script
cover.
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Eldridge applies and pays for copyright in your name.
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You receive a dozen complimentary copies upon publication.
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Your biography, photo (optional), and brief interview about
your new work is posted on our web to let customers get to know you.
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Promotional packages of your new play or musical are sent to
six directors or theatres of your choice.
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Your work is highlighted as “New” through color and special placements in
our catalogs and on our website for a full year.
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One new full-length play or musical is selected each month
to be featured in our web spotlight and in our monthly e-newsletter.
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Our catalog is mailed to some 30,000+ U.S. junior and senior
high school and thousands of community theatres across the country twice a
year.
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We advertise your work in package flyers; ads in such
publications as “AACT Spotlight,” “Teaching Theatre,” and “Stage
Directions,” and in a wide assortment of conference ads and programs.
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Royalties are paid promptly twice a year, in January and
July, not just annually.
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Individual royalty reports are posted to your own private
web page for you to download at your convenience.
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Online production buttons list group names, locations and
upcoming dates, so if you find your show while web-surfing, you can verify
performances are licensed. Performance locations also allow you to attend a
show if nearby.
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We encourage customers to comment on your show and submit
high-quality production photos, all to help increase your show’s visibility.
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Eldridge follow-up programs done in-house allow you to feel
confident every effort is being made to protect your work from unlawful
copying or unlicensed performances.
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Select plays and musicals are also translated and sold in
Europe through a publisher in the Netherlands.
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Editors will keep you in mind for new play ideas they’d like
to see developed.
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Eldridge editors handle any other details with your best
interests always in mind: to give you time to do the work you do best—write
plays!