Propose a Book

Young Clergy Women International (YCWI) members, On the Road members, and YCWI alumnae are welcome to submit a letter of inquiry with a book idea for our Chalice Press book line. To join Young Clergy Women International, please submit a membership application. Proposals from non-members will be returned unread. So long as you are a future, current, or former member of YCWI, you are eligible. One does not have to be a US citizen to write a proposal.

Chalice Press is looking for books in a variety of genres. Please review YCWI’s featured books and the Chalice Press website to better understand the types of books they are currently publishing. The types of work that Chalice Press is NOT soliciting is particularly important to pay attention to: poetry; dissertations; cookbooks; collections of sermons or newsletter columns; festschrifts; or collections of essays.

Submit a Letter of Inquiry

You will start with a letter of inquiry to present your idea for publication. If you would like to write a letter of inquiry for the YCWI Book Series, first review the information on Chalice’s Author Guidelines at Chalice Press. These will be required later in the process. Do NOT submit directly through the Chalice site if you are submitting an inquiry through YCWI.

In your 1-2 page letter of inquiry, please be sure to address the following questions: 

  • How will your book grab the audience’s attention? What is the hook of the book?
  • What assumptions does this book challenge?
  • How will your reader’s life be enhanced by reading your book? What are the takeaways?
  • Who is your audience?
  • How are you uniquely qualified to write the book?
  • What is your platform?  How will you let your audience know about your book?

Submit your inquiry letter in Microsoft Word format to chalice@youngclergywomen.org. YCWI’s Chalice Work Group will review your inquiry letter and may send it on with our endorsement to the Acquisitions Team at Chalice Press. The next step would be a full book proposal with a writing sample. Chalice will make all decisions about publication. YCWI Chalice Work Group is available to the author for support and guidance through the process.

Young Clergy Women International (YCWI) is a network of the youngest ordained clergy women. Since 2008 we have partnered with Chalice Press to publish a YCWI book line. Interested in pitching a book? Start here: How to Propose a Book