532 Top Book Publishers Open to Submissions in 2024 | Reedsy (original) (raw)
DIRECTORY
Best Book Publishing Companies
Showing 532 publishers that match your search.
Small Beer Press
Genres: Science Fiction, Fantasy, Literary Fiction, Diverse Literature, BIPOC, Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry, and Short Story
Location: Boston, US
Website: https://smallbeerpress.com/
Diversity: Diverse Literature, BIPOC
Accepts unagented submissions
Yes Queries -View guidelines →
Indie publisher
Small press
Never Have I Ever
Isabel Yap
Terra Nullius
Claire G. Coleman
In Other Lands
Sarah Rees Brennan
Akashic Books
Genres: Politics, Urban Fiction, Literary Fiction, African-American, LGBTQ+, True Crime, Diverse Literature, BIPOC, Fiction, and Nonfiction
Location: New York City, US
Website: http://www.akashicbooks.com/
Diversity: Diverse Literature, BIPOC
Accepts unagented submissions
Yes Book proposals -View guidelines →
Indie publisher
Small press
Bivouac
Kwame Dawes
A Student of History
Nina Revoyr
Addis Ababa Noir
Maaza Mengiste
Joffe Books
Genres: Mystery & Crime, Thriller & Suspense, Women's Fiction, Historical Fiction, Romance, True Crime, Diverse Literature, LGBTQ+, BIPOC, and Fiction
Location: London, GB
Website: https://www.joffebooks.com/
Accepts unagented submissions
Yes Manuscript entries -View guidelines →
Indie publisher
Small press
The Lantern Boats
Tessa Morris-Suzuki
The Sister's Twin
Jane A. Adams
The Darkest Hours
Margaret Murphy
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Farrar, Straus & Giroux
Genres: Literary Fiction, History, Politics, Math & Science, Narrative Nonfiction, Fiction, Nonfiction, and Poetry
Part of: Macmillan > Farrar, Straus, & Giroux
Location: New York City, US
Website: https://us.macmillan.com/fsg/
Accepts unagented submissions
No
Mid size
Sharks in the Time of Saviors
Kawai Strong Washburn
Slouching Towards Bethlehem
Joan Didion
Everything That Rises Must Converge
Flannery O'Connor
TouchWood Editions
Genres: Art, Photography, Biographies & Memoirs, Cookbook, History, Historical Fiction, Mystery & Crime, Travel, Diverse Literature, BIPOC, LGBTQ+, Nonfiction, Short Story, and Fiction
Part of: Heritage Group > TouchWood Editions
Location: Vancouver, CA
Website: https://www.touchwoodeditions.com/
Diversity: Diverse Literature, BIPOC, LGBTQ
Accepts unagented submissions
Yes Book proposals -View guidelines →
Indie publisher
Small press
The Distilleries of Vancouver Island
Marianne Scott
Show Me the Honey
Dave Doroghy
The Little Prairie Book of Berries
Sheryl Normandeau
Tin House Books
Genres: Literary Fiction, Narrative Nonfiction, Biographies & Memoirs, Diverse Literature, BIPOC, LGBTQ+, Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry, and Short Story
Location: Portland, US
Website: https://tinhouse.com/
Diversity: Diverse Literature, BIPOC, LGBTQ
Accepts unagented submissions
No
Indie publisher
Small press
Things We Didn't Talk About When I Was A Girl
Jeannie Vanasco
How to Order the Universe
María José Ferrada
More Miracle Than Bird
Alice Miller
Knopf Doubleday
Genres: Cookbook, Architecture, Art, Biographies & Memoirs, Business, Historical Fiction, History, Literary Fiction, Mystery & Crime, Environmental, Politics, Math & Science, Religion & Spirituality, Sports & Outdoors, Travel, Self-Help, Comics & Graphic Novels, Nonfiction, and Fiction
Part of: Penguin Random House > Knopf Doubleday
Location: New York City, US
Website: http://knopfdoubleday.com/
Accepts unagented submissions
No
Mid size
Americanah
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
The Secret History
Donna Tartt
Norwegian Wood
Haruki Murakami
Graywolf Press
Genres: Literary Fiction, Poetry, Fiction, and Short Story
Location: Minneapolis, US
Website: https://www.graywolfpress.org/
Accepts unagented submissions
Yes Manuscript entries & contests -View guidelines →
Indie publisher
Small press
The Wild Fox of Yemen
Threa Almontaser
Her Body and Other Parties
Carmen Maria Machado
The Twilight Zone
Nona Fernández
Turner Publishing
Genres: Self-Help, Business, Young Adult, History, Romance, Mystery & Crime, Cookbook, Health & Wellbeing, Art, Nonfiction, and Fiction
Location: Nashville, US
Website: https://www.turnerpublishing.com/
Accepts unagented submissions
No
Indie publisher
Small press
The Emperor's Sword
Andrew Klavan
One Stupid Thing
Stewart Lewis
My Mistress' Eyes Are Raven Black
Terry Roberts
Stone Pier Press
Genres: Cookbook, Environmental, DIY, Nonfiction, and Children's
Location: San Francisco, US
Website: https://stonepierpress.org/
Accepts unagented submissions
Yes Book proposals -View guidelines →
Indie publisher
Small press
Growing Good Food: A Citizen's Guide to Climate Victory Gardening
Acadia Tucker
Growing Perennial Foods
Acadia Tucker
Gwen the Rescue Hen
Leslie Crawford
Browse Publishers in Other Genres 📚
What do book publishers do?
Sure, a book publisher prints and sells your book. But what they do behind the scenes encompasses much more than that. Publishers handle the entire publishing process for books, including:
- Editing the book, i.e. developmental editing, copy editing, and proofreading;
- Designing the book, i.e. book cover design and any necessary interior book design;
- Promotion and marketing, i.e. writing the book’s blurb, email marketing, setting up media interviews, etc.; and
- Production and distribution, i.e. formatting and distributing hardback, paperback, and ebook versions of the book to stores, both online and brick-and-mortar.
Note that the structure of publishing companies may differ, depending on their size. Bigger book publishers may be made up of publishing houses which may, in turn, be made up of imprints — each of which will have its own brand identity in terms of the type of books it publishes.
However, regardless of a publisher’s size, the scope of their work shouldn’t change. Once you sign with a publisher, they will do everything that it takes to bring your book to market.
What are the most prominent book publishing companies?
If we define success by sheer sales volume, then we might point towards the "Big 5" presses and educational publishers (who rake in a LOT of money). Over the past few decades, these giant publishing companies have merged with and acquired most of the mid-sized publishers in the industry. However, a few still remain. Here are today's biggest book publishing companies:
- Penguin Random House (Big 5)
- Hachette Book Group (Big 5)
- HarperCollins (Big 5)
- Macmillan Publishers (Big 5)
- Simon & Schuster (Big 5)
- Scholastic Corporation
- Pearson Education
- McGraw-Hill Education
- Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
- Cengage Learning
Together, these largest publishers dominate the publishing landscape. Countless beloved books come from their imprints, many of which you’ll find in our directory.
The rest of the publishing landscape is largely made up of small publishers, or independent publishers. Most big publishers don’t directly accept unsolicited submissions without a literary agent — but smaller publishers do, making them a realistic and worthwhile route to publication.
I have a long list of publishers. What next?
Congratulations! Now take a moment to thoroughly vet every publisher on your longlist. Scams are a dime a dozen in the publishing industry, and you want to make 100% sure that you’re dealing with a legitimate publishing company. Again, we strongly recommend reading this post and Writer Beware to know what red flags to watch out for.
When you’re confident in all of the publishers on your longlist, it’s time for the most nerve-wracking step: submitting your manuscript to them.
Check out our free resources if you’re feeling daunted by what comes next. Whether you’re learning how to research publishers or how to personalize a submission, we've got you covered.
Free online materials
- How to Submit a Manuscript to a Publisher In 5 Simple Steps. Read it here.
- Directory of 686 Best Literary Agents. Check it out.
- What Do Agents Do? (And Do You Need One?). Learn more here.
- How to Write a Query Letter in 7 Steps. Read it here.
- How to Personalize Your Query Letters. Check it out.
- How to Write a Nonfiction Book Proposal. Learn more here.
- How to Write a Nonfiction Query Letter. Read it here.