For indie authors

One writer. One piece. Ten minutes or less.

10 Minutes To... is now accepting fiction submissions. We're looking for pieces that give listeners a genuine experience of your writing in ten minutes or less — not "what can I cut from my book," but "what can I give someone that might make them want to read more?"

Go to the submission form Read the FAQ

How to submit

Three steps

1

Complete the submission form

Tell us about you and your piece — title, genre, themes, audience, narrator and runtime. You may suggest genres, themes and other categories; final playlist and catalogue placement is determined by 10 Minutes To...

2

Upload your audio

After the form, you'll receive a request to upload your recording — please don't send it as an email attachment. Your reading must be a clean, human-narrated recording, 10 minutes or less. Name the file AuthorName_StoryTitle.wav (or .mp3) — avoid generic names like final.wav.

3

Confirm your upload

Reply to the upload-request email with the complete filename you uploaded, your book cover if applicable, and the one link you want interested listeners to follow — your book page, author site, a universal book link, or another destination you control.

What happens next?

Submitting doesn't guarantee publication. 10 Minutes To... is curated — we review for writing quality, suitability for audio, recording quality, rights and whether the piece works as an introduction for someone hearing you for the first time. If selected, your piece may be included in several curated collections at once — for example Speculative Fiction, Environmental Fiction, Canadian Authors, Young Adult and Hopeful Futures, all from a single episode.

Recording your submission

You don't need a studio

Producing your submission doesn't need to cost you anything. A reasonable microphone, a quiet room and free software — like Audacity — can produce very good spoken-word audio. The performance matters more than expensive equipment.

Formats

WAV is preferred — lossless, and the best source for preparing Spotify and YouTube versions. A good-quality MP3 is also accepted.

Recommended settings

  • Mono, 44.1 kHz
  • WAV: 16-bit PCM
  • MP3: 192 kbps recommended
  • Target loudness: around −19 LUFS

Before you record

  • Choose the quietest room available
  • Turn off fans, TVs and notifications
  • Record a few seconds of room tone first
  • Do a headphone test before the full take

Keep it clean

Spoken-word only — no music, sound effects, ambient audio or third-party clips, even if you believe the material is royalty-free. If a door needs to slam or a spaceship needs to explode, let the words and the narrator create it.

We make only minimal production adjustments — trimming silence, small level tweaks, standardized program identification. We won't repair heavy background noise or reassemble takes, so submit audio you'd consider ready for the public to hear. Recording on your phone is fine if the result is clear and clean; the room matters more than the device.

Frequently asked questions

Before you submit

No. Ten minutes is the maximum, not the target. A compelling four-minute story beats a ten-minute piece stretched simply to fill the time.

No. Complete short stories, flash fiction, excerpts, prequels, side stories, character pieces and alternate points of view are all welcome. What matters most is whether the piece works for someone who's never encountered your writing before.

No — a submission can stand completely on its own. If it is connected to a book or series, we can link listeners to that work.

No. You're welcome to narrate your own work, or another human narrator may perform it, provided you have permission to submit and distribute that performance.

No. Every published piece must be performed by a human narrator.

No. A quiet room, a reasonable microphone and free software such as Audacity can produce excellent results.

No. 10 Minutes To… accepts spoken-word recordings only.

Please do not include:

  • Background music
  • Intro or outro music
  • Sound effects
  • Ambient audio
  • Audio clips from films, television, radio, games or other recordings
  • Commercial jingles
  • Third-party voice clips
  • Other copyrighted audio elements

This applies even if you believe the material is royalty-free, licensed, in the public domain or covered by fair dealing/fair use.

The goal is to keep the rights associated with each episode as simple and clear as possible and to avoid future copyright claims, platform takedowns or disputes over material included in a recording.

Your submission should contain only:

  • Your fiction.
  • A human voice.
  • Ten minutes or less.

Please also do not add a commercial introduction asking listeners to buy your book, visit your website, join a mailing list or follow you on social media. 10 Minutes To… will provide the appropriate author and book information with the published episode.

If your story requires a door to slam, a storm to rage or a spaceship to explode, let the words and the narrator create it.

No, and no. 10 Minutes To... is not a pay-to-play promotional program.

Yes. You retain copyright and ownership of your underlying work. Participation grants us permission to use and distribute the submitted recording under the project's Terms of Service — it does not transfer ownership of your story or book.

No. You may use the same recording on your own website, social media, podcast, newsletter or elsewhere, as long as it doesn't conflict with an agreement you've made elsewhere. The goal is to help your piece travel — not to keep it from you.

Yes — the submission form lets you suggest genres, themes and categories. These are suggestions, not placement instructions; final categorization and curation stay with 10 Minutes To...

No. Playlists and curated collections are editorial products of 10 Minutes To..., and participation doesn't create approval or veto rights over other authors in the same collection.

It may be considered, provided it's accurately disclosed with the appropriate content warnings. Material whose primary purpose is explicit sexual gratification is not suitable for 10 Minutes To...

You can request a corrected link at any time. You may withdraw a submission any time before it's first published; once published, the non-exclusive licence is ongoing, and it can't be withdrawn simply because you've changed your mind. Full detail is in the Terms of Service.

Author submission form

Ready to submit?

This form is the first step. Please don't email your audio file — after submitting, you'll receive separate instructions for uploading your recording.

Section 1 — About you
Used for administration and the Use Agreement. Doesn't have to be displayed publicly.
The name listeners will see if your submission is published.
Optional — not necessarily your final episode link.
Section 2 — Your submission
Is this piece connected to a book or series? *
Suggested maximum 500 characters. Describe the story itself, not promotional copy for the associated book.
Your complete submitted narration must be 10 minutes or less. Shorter is welcome.
Section 3 — Narration
Who narrates the recording? *
If you narrate your own piece, enter your author or pen name.
Do you have the narrator's permission to submit and distribute their performance? *

A submission can't be published without the narrator's permission.

Section 4 — Genre and discovery

You may suggest classifications, but final playlist and catalogue placement is determined editorially. See the full system on the Discover page.

These are suggestions, not a guarantee of placement.
Section 5 — Audience and tone
Reflects this piece, not necessarily the associated book as a whole.
Section 6 — Geographic discovery
Use your author location for geographic discovery (e.g. Canadian Authors)? *

A city, street address or precise location is not required.

Section 7 — Mature content and content warnings
Does this submission contain mature or potentially sensitive material? *
Content warnings (select all that apply)

Content warnings don't automatically disqualify a submission. Material whose primary purpose is explicit sexual gratification is not suitable for 10 Minutes To...

Section 8 — Audio confirmation
Audio format *
Section 9 — Rights and permissions
Section 10 — Important publication terms
Section 11 — Terms of Service

Do not email your audio file. After submitting, you'll receive an audio upload request — reply to it with your uploaded filename, book cover (if applicable), and the link you'd like listeners to follow.

Thank you for submitting to 10 Minutes To...

Your submission information has been received.

Next step: upload your recording. You'll receive an email with instructions for uploading your WAV or MP3 file — please don't send it as an email attachment. Name the file AuthorName_StoryTitle.wav (or .mp3).

Once the upload is complete, reply to the upload-request email with the complete filename you uploaded, your book cover if applicable, and the link you'd like interested listeners to follow. Keep a copy of your submission and recording for your records.