Childrens Book Publishers

Wondering which childrens book publishers to submit your manuscript to? Find out here and also which online companies allow you to create your book your way.

Looking for Childrens Book Publishers to Submit To? Here are a Few to Start With

There are thousands of children’s books published each year, and there are literally hundreds of childrens book publishers contributing to this thriving industry. If you’re trying to break into the business of authorship, you face plenty of real hurdles. For one thing, the competition is high—there are tons of talented and industry-savvy writers already in the business. Secondly, if you don’t have a strong grasp of the current field of children’s publishing, it’s hard to get companies to take you seriously.

Before you can expect to have your manuscript accepted anywhere, it’s crucial to familiarize yourself with at least a few of the major and smaller childrens book publishers. If you don’t know where to begin, read some books by these companies:

Random House Children’s Books: Random House is by far the largest publisher of English-language children’s books in the world. This makes them both a good and a bad target for your manuscript. On the good side, it’s a company with huge resources that is always trying to expand its operations. On the bad side, they tend to focus their efforts on major authors and book franchises, which can make it difficult to get company executives to pay attention to your first-time manuscript.

Candlewick Press: Just about two decades old, Candlewick Press has been labeled one of the fastest-growing and most exciting childrens book publishers, and their books have already received hundreds of honors and awards. The company believes in publishing nothing but high-quality, passionate work that speaks to children around the world.

HarperCollins Children’s Books: HarperCollins is another very large company with a broad reach in the worldwide children’s books market. As their history suggests—they published Where the Wild Things Are, The Giving Tree, Goodnight Moon, and Charlotte’s Web—HarperCollins focuses on publishing well-written, soulful works that stimulate imaginations while enriching children’s minds.

Scholastic: Scholastic is one of the biggest publishing companies devoted exclusively to creating child-centric books and resources, which makes them a large presence in the lives of millions of kids, parents, and teachers worldwide. Their children’s books are known for their quirkiness, for their strong historic and scientific sensibilities, and for their high entertainment value.

Lee and Low Books: Lee and Low is an independent company that specializes in creating books for kids from diverse backgrounds. Founded in 1991, the company has earned numerous awards for its books oriented toward African-American, Asian-American, and Hispanic-American children’s audiences. But even though the company is known for publishing books focusing on specific ethnic communities, they make a point of publishing works that have broad appeal for children of all backgrounds.

Dial Books for Young Readers: A subsidiary of the Penguin publishing corporation, Dial has been around since the late 1800s, and they got into the children’s publishing business in the early 1900s. Their books are perpetually on the top of award-nominee lists, and they’re known for being especially friendly to younger, up-and-coming authors who bring creativity and diversity to their works.