What We Publish

We are looking for manuscripts and book dummies by authors and illustrators from under-represented groups. We particularly love stories that make us laugh, cry or move us in some way and that open our hearts and minds to the lived experiences of minority groups. We almost exclusively publish stories with child protagonists and are not looking for stories with exclusively animal characters.

The kind of books we’re looking for…

  • Short narratives usually between 100 and 800 words, that work with pictures to tell a story across 12 double-page spreads. The text should flow well enough to read out loud, but the full meaning of the story should only be revealed in the interplay of text and illustrations. We do NOT require authors to provide illustrations or source their own illustrator if they are submitting a picture book manuscript.

  • Narratives usually between 4,000-6,000 words, that make up an 80+pp chapter book ready for plenty of two-tone or coloured illustrations.

  • Narratives usually between 10,000-15,000 words, that make up a 128+pp chapter book ready for several two-tone or black & white illustrations.

  • Narratives of 30,000+ words ready for a few black & white illustrations at significant points in the narrative, such as chapter headings.

  • We do, on occasion, consider poetry, non-fiction and graphic novels across the age spectrum, so if you feel that your offering is exceptional, please submit it following the same instructions as for a fiction author.

How to submit your manuscript or portfolio


Firstly, please sign up to our newsletter; joining our family of authors means understanding and valuing our list. If you are from an under-represented group and think your book concept would be a good fit for us, please submit a cover letter in the body of your submission email, and your manuscript/dummy/portfolio as an attachment, and send to submissions@lantanapublishing.com.

Download the Submission Letter for an example of a great cover letter.

Submissions Letter

What happens next?

We would love to respond to every submission we receive but unfortunately the volume is just too high. If your manuscript has caught our attention, we'll be in touch within 12 weeks to tell you the good news. If you haven't heard from us by then, please assume we aren't able to take your story through to publication.

We value every submission. Good luck!