What do literary agents/publishing companies do when anonymous manuscripts are submitted?

I'm sure its not a common event, but can the work be published legally?What do literary agents/publishing companies do when anonymous manuscripts are submitted?
They discard them. If you wish to publish anonymously, you can say so. You can also choose a pen name if you wish, but all contracts and financial arrangements must be made with your legal name and social security number. Bu the way, you should know that most publishers put unsolicited manuscripts into what is called the slush pile for clerical persons to respond with form rejection letters. It is not industry standard to submit an unsolicited manuscript with or without your name. You must follow submission guidelines or be slush piled and rejected. Pax - C
They immediately throw them in the trash!What do literary agents/publishing companies do when anonymous manuscripts are submitted?
Shred them, I suspect. If you can't identify the author, then the potential hassle of lawsuits over rights / ownership / etc. would make it too much headache. I've never heard of anyone who wrote a book without have dreams of fame, fortune and the heady feeling of popularity. It would never happen intentionally; so if you accidentally submitted without proper identification, you can rest assured that your work will never see the light of day.
They usually toss it and send a rejection slip quicker than the thought passes.



Unless you sent a return envelope; but then it isn't anonymous!What do literary agents/publishing companies do when anonymous manuscripts are submitted?
Throw it out, but who would do that when you can just request they use a pen name.