Welcome to Subbub, a new low-cost, high-functionality Submissions Manager. Let’s start by explaining a few concepts.
Markets
Markets are the basic unit in Subbub. A market can be either a competition or a magazine. For example, the Bridport Prize would be a market. Granta magazine would also be a market.
Events
For each market, a number of events can be defined. In the case of a market that’s a competition, an event would be a specific run, such as the 2023 Bridport Prize. In the case of a magazine, it would be a specific issue, such as Granta Issue 161. In some cases, such as a one-off charity anthology, a market might not have any distinct events.
Categories
Each event can be divided up into individual categories. For example, the 2023 Bridport Flash Fiction Competition would be a category within the Bridport 2023 event. Poetry submissions for Grata Issue 161 would also be regarded as a category. Once again, an event might not need to be divided up into categories.
Within each category, a set of conditions can be defined so that when one of these is met, a specified action can be taken. This mechanism can be used to decide if a given user is to be blocked (for example on the basis of age or geographical location) or if varying payment deals are to be offered (for example on the basis of geographical location or the number of entries being submitted).
Users
In order to make use of Subbub, you’ll need to register for a user account. It’s entirely free. There are three types of user privilege in Subbub: manager, reader and writer. It is entirely possible that one individual user may be a manager for one or more markets, a reader for one or more others and a writer for several others as well.
Managers
Managers are the people who set up and control markets. They also form teams of readers, who are allocated to incoming submissions either manually or according to preset algorithms.
Readers
Readers are the people who read submissions on behalf of managers. At the discretion of the managers, readers are granted permission to read entries at one or more stages of the submission process. For example, one set of readers might be given the job of reading the open submissions and compiling a longlist, and another might be given the job of whittling that longlist down to a shortlist and so on. The structure of the reading process is defined on a market by market basis.
Writers
Writers are the people who submit entries to markets.
Dashboard
Initial access to Subbub is usually via the dashboard. This gives a different set of information for each of the different types of user. If you are not already logged in, you will be required to log in to your account first before accessing the dashboard.
- For a writer, the dashboard gives a summary of the state of your submissions.
- For a reader, it gives a summary of what progress you are making in working through your allocated submissions.
- For a manager, it gives an overview of the state of play of all the markets you are permissions to manage.