Canadian publisher Second Story Press seeks adult and kid lit, fiction and nonfiction, new authors welcome

Bernice and the Georgian Bay Gold
by Jessica Outram
published by Second Story

Second Story Press

20 Maud Street, Suite 401
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
M5V 2M5

https://secondstorypress.ca/

Second Story Press is a Canadian feminist press. They publish a mix of fiction and nonfiction, with books for all ages: from babies up to adults. They look for manuscripts dealing with the many diverse and varied aspects of the lives of girls and women, and those that fall under the banner of social justice and children's empowerment.

Like everyone else, Second Story is particularly looking for authors and illustrators from communities that have traditionally been underrepresented in books, including creators who are Indigenous, Black, people of colour, people with disabilities and members of the LGBTQIA+ community.

Second Story focusses on Canadian authors (either citizens or permanent residents of Canada who are currently living in Canada), and almost all their authors are women.

Second Story does not publish poetry, short story collections, traditional romance novels, rhyming picture books, or books with anthropomorphized animals. They require non-sexist, non-racist, and non-violent stories.

In your query letter, include a brief biography, a brief summary of your book, and why you’re the best person to write it. For all juvenile work, identify the intended audience / age range for your book. Consider how your book fits into Second Story’s list, how it’s different from similar or competing titles published by Second Story or any other press, and how your book fits into the marker; i.e., who is it written for?

What Kids Did by Erin Silver
published by Second Story

Include a C.V. with information about any relevant work, previous publishing credits, and academic history (where applicable) particularly for nonfiction. If you don’t have any publishing credits, don’t worry. Second Story happily publishes new authors. Please include information about any social media presence you have. 

Include a synopsis of your work (500 words maximum).

Adult Fiction and Nonfiction: Send the first three chapters.

Children’s/Teen Books: Send the first three chapters.

Children's Picture Books: Please send the entire manuscript. You do not need to include illustrations if you are not a professional illustrator.

Email your submission to: submissions@secondstorypress.ca

Format the subject line thus: ADULT/JUVENILE FICTION/NONFICTION, AUTHOR NAME, PROJECT NAME; e.g.: Juvenile nonfiction, Erin Silver, What Kids Did

Your query letter may be in the body of your email, but attach your C.V., synopsis, and sample chapters as a Word document or a PDF.

Please note that it can take a period of 7–10 months to receive a response.

Illustrators:

Second Story accepts portfolios only from Canadian illustrators. Please send samples of your work and a C.V. either by mail or by e-mail to illustrators@secondstorypress.ca

Please put Attn: Illustrator’s Portfolio on the package or in the subject line. 

See Second Story's full submission guidelines here.

If you're interested in writing for children or for young adults, join us for a weekly class this summer (see here) or in the fall (see here).

And don't miss pour upcoming one-day Kid Lit workshops with an editor from a children's pubilished and weekly classes, see here.

And check out upcoming How to Get Published workshops here.

Check out upcoming writing retreats here {and scroll down - because there's usually more than one)

See all of Brian’s upcoming weekly writing classes, one-day workshops, and weekend retreats here.

Navigation tips: Always check out the Labels underneath a post; they’ll lead you to various distinct collections of postings. For more children’s and young adult publishers, see here {and scroll down}. For book publishers in general, see here {and scroll down}.