Octopus Arms

There are a lot of exciting things going on at the start of a new year, but for me, this year’s exciting thing is a little different from usual: I can finally talk about the new project I’ve been invited to work on, a publishing company called Oktopus Ink.

Oktopus Ink will publish young adult and new adult science fiction and fantasy featuring diverse characters, especially diverse protagonists.  The editors are especially looking for LGBT+ characters, characters of color, and characters who represent diversity of ability, though OI will also be interested in books with non-Western settings and representing diverse religious beliefs as well.

If you’ve been paying attention, you’ll probably know that diversity in entertainment is something I’m incredibly passionate about.  I’m incredibly excited to be on the OI team, and I’m looking forward to the work we’ll publish.

(Find out more about Oktopus Ink after the jump!)

While this has been in the works for almost a year (!), we’ve been working on a lot of the background parts of getting the company ready to launch.  When the publisher approached me about helping her start a company, she asked for my help with the business side of things, which is why you’ll find me listed on OI’s staff page as the Business & Sales Manager.

Her vision of what she wanted to do was really the thing that drew me in.  The Oktopus Ink mission, as found on our website:

We wish to speak directly to the reader–to tell them that their experiences matter, to give them a place of refuge, to introduce them to perspectives that might differ from their own, and to show them that the world that they live in is not the only world. … Our goal is to encourage the progress of acceptance by promoting diversity, advocating equality, and above all else, changing hearts and opening minds.

Even though I’m not on the editorial team, there are lots of things I’d like to see Oktopus Ink publish.  I’m a huge fan of non-Western settings and characters, and I love well-researched depictions of characters from different cultures.  Diversity of ability is another huge draw for me, especially since it’s so rare to find, and I’d really love to see fantasy and science fiction that has non-Christian religious or philosophical influence.

Oktopus Ink will be open for submissions starting February 1, so get your manuscripts ready to submit!  Emi and Monica, the editors accepting manuscripts, will be looking for novellas 16,000-40,000 words and novels 60,000-100,000 words.  Emi is especially interested in fantasy, lesbian romance, school stories, and large monsters; Monica’s really looking for fantasy, science fiction grounded in scientific concepts, time travel, complex villains, and new interpretations of fairy tales and mythology.

If you’d like to learn more about how to submit work to Oktopus Ink, check out our submissions page.  You can also follow OI on Twitter, Facebook, and Tumblr.