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Parasitic Ventures Press

Notes about proposals

Parasitic Ventures Press is looking for proposals for book projects. There is no deadline for submissions, nor for responses. Patience is a virtue.

It should be unnecessary to state that we are interested in work that fits within our mandate, but we will anyway. We are interested in work that fits within our mandate. Of particular interest is what we are today calling 'experimental editing.' [We're not sure why that term requires special typographic treatment, but it does.] We like work wherein the content implicates the form, and the form mirrors the content.

We would say that projects should be critically-engaged, however, as has been recently been pointed out to us, this term is rather meaningless without a proper context. Thus, on our definitions page, we provide a much needed definition of the term ‘critically-engaged.’

Printing of our books will be undertaken as economically as possible, and thus projects which lend themselves to inexpensive production methods will be favoured. In light of the financial constraints on the printing process, we expect that successful editions will be primarily single colour (black). If the use of additional colours is absolutely necessary for a book's realisation, it will be considered. Note that the Press has extensive design, layout, and prepress experience in-house. We can act in an advisory capacity in the design process, or we can actively participate. The press will not, to the best of its abilities, publish books with questionable design (again, we refer you to our definitions page).

Method of producing books will vary widely, from in-house production utilising a range of technologies (desktop printers, hand printed, et cetera) through, on rare occasions, letterpress or offset. Similarly, binding methods will vary widely. We are particularly fond of print-on-demand processes. With an understanding of current artist book economics, print runs will be approximately 100 (unless utilising print-on-demand technology).

See below for details on submissions of proposals, et cetera.

Proposal Submissions:

The design, or even the conception, of proposed books need not be complete in order to submit proposals. Time frames for submission of final drafts of the projects will be developed in consultation. Artists and collectives interested in publishing with the Press should prepare a submission package containing the following items:

• a summary of the proposed bookwork
• if possible, a maquette of several spreads of the book or preliminary sketches
• samples of previous work (either in hard or electronic copy)
• CV (multiple CVs if work is a collaborative effort)

Please mail all submissions to the Press. Electronic format on CD is acceptable. Emailed submissions are highly discouraged (if absolutely necessary, email beforehand for information on how to deliver electronic submissions). The Press will acknowledge receipt of all packages, along with an estimate of the time before decisions are made. The Press won’t necessarily respond to all emails queries in a timely fashion.

Parasitic Ventures cannot guarantee the safety of any submitted material. Please include an SASE for all material that you wish returned. Please contact us for mailing information. Please read on.

Please note: Under no circumstances will portfolios of existing work be considered for production by the press. All accepted projects should be works conceived for the book format.

Artist fees:

Artist fees for printed books will be paid in the form of an advance on sales. They are modest.

Artist’s will receive 5 free copies of their book, plus additional books at cost. Books will usually be assigned ISBNs. Copyright on the books will be held jointly by Parasitic Ventures Press and the artist. PDF versions of the book may be available for download, free of charge, from the Parasitic Ventures Press website. Pricing and distribution will be the responsibility of the Press.

Parasitic Ventures Press will arrange limited marketing and distribution of the books.

Any net revenue on book sales will be shared equally between the press and the artist, paid on an annual basis. Net revenue will also be modest, as we price as close to production costs as we can.