It’s interesting how the process of publishing mirrors our journey through life.
The editing process weathers the book down to expose the best version of itself, just as our experiences in life add to and subtract from our individuality.
Once all the purposeless surface matter is gone, a book cover is designed to resemble the content within. That sounds a lot like the personal image we create for ourselves, through our attitude, style and manners, doesn’t it?
Finally, we are our best marketers as we vouch for the strength and stability we bring to others. And that is quite akin to the promotional activities that a book undergoes to sell itself. We make quite an impression and so does a well edited book.
If you’re in Michigan and looking to create noise for your book, here are 19 top book publishing companies in Michigan that you should consider:
1. Wayne State University Press
The Wayne State University Press works in tandem with the researchers and scholars of Wayne State University to publish their discoveries that are important on a global scale. It is based in Detroit, Michigan and was founded in 1941 by a group of professors who identified the need to disseminate the information that was actively being reaped. The subjects that the publisher covers range from anthropology to media studies, fairy tale studies to fiction, memoirs to dance and tons more. Several of its books have won awards. Know The Mother by Desiree Cooper was the winner in Short Story Fiction category in the 2017 Next Generation Indie Book Awards; whereas, Great Lakes Island Escapes by Maureen Dunphy bagged the prize in Travel Guide category. Here’s how authors can get in touch with this publisher.
2. Baker Publishing Group
Herman Baker established a bookstore in 1939 only to begin his publishing journey a year later, with the release of “More Than Conquerors: An Interpretation of the Book of Revelation”, by Dr. William Hendriksen. The Baker Publishing Group, based in Ada, now promotes writings which are representative of historic Christianity and suit the interests of their evangelical readers. They have several active imprints that you can read more about here – some of the genres they’re interested in are Christian living, marriage, family, self-help, and leadership. Even though Baker Books, Revell, and Bethany House don’t accept unsolicited manuscripts, you could still get your book published with their help. In order to find out more about what opportunities you can have, you should read their Submission Guidelines.
3. Our Daily Bread Publishing
For all God-related texts, you should check out Our Daily Bread Publishing’s catalog. They are a publishing company specialising in content that would interest Christians and texts that are meant to reaffirm people’s faith in God. They began their journey in 1987 in Grand Rapids, Michigan and ever since, have published more than 300 books. They do not publish cartoons, plays, cookbooks, short stories, novels, and a few others.. Some of the most popular titles are Great Is Thy Faithfulness, Discovery House Bible Atlas and Our Daily Bread Devotional Journal. Although they do not accept unsolicited submissions at the moment, they still take into consideration proposals and query letters sent by literary agents. To find out more about submissions, you can contact them here.
4. Scribe Publishing
Jennifer Baum started Scribe Publishing in 2011 to kick-start her dream of working with books. The genres that the publishing house dabbles in are fiction and nonfiction. What’s unique about this company housed in Royal Oak, Michigan is that the range of nonfiction it publishes is quite large, including pets, nature, crafts & hobbies, social science etc. Take a look at the entire list on the submissions page. Authors can proceed to contact them via email, as per instructions given on the submissions page. Keep in mind that they do not publish picture books, children’s books, poetry or religious texts. Since they are currently developing their imprints, it would be ideal for you to check their page as often as possible, in order to stay up to date with any modifications. The publishing house went on to amass great success when several of its books won literary awards. The winner of 2012 Book of the Year in Juvenile Fiction category was Easter Ann Peter’s Operation Cool by Jody Lamb. And Our Dried Voices by Greg Hickey was the finalist in 2014 Book of the Year in the Science Fiction category.
5. Cardinal Rule Press
Based in southeast Michigan, Cardinal Rules Press works with writers in order to create appropriate traditional marketing plans for their books. Currently, their main and sole focus is placed on children’s books. Among their titles we can name “The Jelly Donut Difference”, “Pink Tiara Cookies for Three”, and “The Potato Chip Champ”, all written by Maria Dismondy. Their submissions opened on November 1st, 2019, and will close on February 1st, 2020. Unsolicited manuscripts and agented submissions are welcome, as long as your word count is 1,000. Normally, they respond to all of them in about 4 weeks. You can find the complete submission guidelines here.
6. Subterranean Press
Founded in Burton, Michigan in 1995, Subterranean Press has worked with numerous authors that received Hugo, Locus, Horror Writers Association, and World Fantasy awards. Among them we can name Ann Leckie, Stephen King, Kelley Armstrong, and China Miéville. On average, they release around 45 titles per year. In terms of genres, the publisher specializes in science fiction, fantasy, horror, and thriller. Although there are no submission guidelines provided on the website, you can still request more details by contacting them at info@subterraneanpress.com.
7. Zondervan
Zondervan was founded in 1931 by Pat and Bernard Zondervan, who started their business out of their mother’s farmhouse in Michigan. It wasn’t long until they managed to become an established source of Christian content, and they are now a leading Bible publisher as well. When it comes to preferred subjects, this Grand Rapids based publisher publishes devotionals, fiction, nonfiction, Bible study, reference, and gift books. If you would like to work with them, they currently have two imprints that accept unsolicited submissions, respectively Zondervan Reflective and Zondervan Academic. For this, you will have to send a proposal that includes a brief description of your work, the reasons why they should publish it, a table of contents along with a short description for each chapter, your intended audience, and your CV. To find out more, click here.
8. Parkhurst Brothers Publishers
Based in Marion, Michigan, Parkhurst Brothers Publishers is a business that places a focus on the American storytelling movement. Their ethnic and professional storytellers write for a wide audience, which includes bedtime readers, faith workers, librarians, and anyone else who might enjoy such writings. Novels, memoirs, art/poetry, nonfiction, psychology, and storytelling are the main categories you will find on their website. You should be aware of the fact that they only take into consideration submissions that fit the areas of interest mentioned here.
9. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company
William B. Eerdmans Sr., founded the company in 1911 in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The business is now renowned for its published works on religious topics. Thus, the book categories you will find online are social sciences, theology, philosophy, church and ministry, ethics, and religious studies, among others. If you would like to send them your work, make sure to do so via email exclusively. You will have to mention several details regarding your book, along with a draft table of contents and short descriptions of each chapter, and your CV. The full list of requirements can be found within the submission guidelines.
10. Dzanc Books
Dzanc Books, a not-for-profit publishing organization puts forth short story collections, novels, nonfiction titles and a monthly literary journal. Founded in 2006 by Steven Gillis and Dan Wickett, some of the titles featured on this publisher’s website are Late One Night by Lee Martin (thriller), Darkansas by Jarret Middleton (horror), Inside My Pencil by Peter Markus (poetry collection) etc. The publisher is based in Ann Arbor, Michigan. What’s interesting is that they have a mentorship program for writers, wherein you get to work with editors and published authors. They are currently closed to submissions – however, they hold three yearly contests, so make sure to check the updates for those organized in 2020.
11. Sleeping Bear Press
Established as a children’s book publisher in 1998, Sleeping Bear Press is located in Ann Arbor, Michigan. To become more familiar with their interests, you can check some of their already published titles – “Apple Tree Christmas”, by Trinka Hakes Noble, “Little Yellow Truck”, by Eve Bunting, and “Little Ohio”, by Marcia Schonberg are just three of them. If you have middle grade novels or picture books which you would like to publish, you should know that they accept both fiction and nonfiction. Currently, only email submissions are taken into consideration.
12. Kregel Publications
In 1909, Kregel Books was founded by Louis Kregel. When his son, Robert Kregel, took over in 1949 it became Kregel Publications. It was set up to provide spiritual and religious material. Grand Rapids, Michigan is home to this publishing company that has produced over 900 titles. Some of the categories under which they publish books are Biblical Languages, Fiction, Church History, Theology and Religious Studies, Children’s Storybooks etc.. Unfortunately, they do not accept unsolicited materials. Nevertheless, check out their submissions policy, as they recommend several resources for writers who are interested in getting published. They won the 2017 Golden Scroll Awards for the Publisher of the Year. Some of their recent releases are An Asian Harvest by Paul Hattaway, The Mentoring Church by Phil A. Newton, and Coffee, the World and Jesus, but Not Necessarily in That Order by Ron DeMiglio.
13. New Issues Poetry and Prose
Wish to participate in a poetry and prose contest? Submit your writings to New Issues Poetry and Prose, a poetry publishing company founded in 1996 by Herbert S. Scott. There are specific guidelines you’d have to follow, and those for 2020 have already been updated. If you wish to contact them with any questions, do so via the form on their website. It is located in Kalamazoo, Michigan. New Issues Press was voted #1 in the 15 Feisty Small Presses list in Huffington Post. They have a huge list of published poetry and prose that you can choose from, to seek some inspiration.
14. Willow Books
A publishing house that aims to represent undervalued literary texts, Willow Books is owned by Heather Buchanan and is based in Detroit, Michigan. It was started in 2007 as an imprint of Aquarius Press. In addition to publishing books, they also engage in post-publishing services for the author such as readings, conferences and workshops. Till date, they have published a great many works by diverse people. A couple of their top titles are Blood Orange by Angela Narciso Torres and This House, My Bones by Elmaz Abinader. At the moment, there are no open calls for submissions at Willow Books. However, if you feel like they would be a suitable publisher for your work, you can check here for any updates.
15. Condor Publishing, Inc.
Condor Publishing that came to be in the year 2000 publishes westerns and children’s books. Quite a combination! Authors can contact this publishing house based in Lincoln, Michigan via email. There are a few short stories featured on the website. You can also take a look at other writers who have worked with them. Who knows? Someday, you may be one of them.
16. Gehenna & Hinnom
Fans of Stephen King, Jules Verne and HG Wells have a lot to look out for at Gehenna & Hinnom, a publishing company that has eyes only for good science fiction and horror writings. Instituted in 2015 by author, C.P. Dunphey, Gehenna & Hinnom is located in Hattiesburg, MichiganAlthough they have not updated their submission guidelines for 2020, you can check here for any updates. You can drop in your queries through this form on their website. They’ve come out with a couple of anthology series, one of H.P Lovecraft and another of Philip K. Dick.
17. Pink Flamingo Media
This one’s for mature audiences. Pink Flamingo Media, which was previously known as Pink Flamingo Publications, is a company that delivers BDSM and General Erotica Fiction. It was founded by husband and wife, Lizbeth Dusseau and Ken in the year 1994. Fiona Thomas along with her husband, Kendall, took over the organisation in 2016. It is located in Richland, Michigan. Writers with a forte in erotica fiction are most welcome to contact them for submissions. But make sure to go through their guidelines. They have a range of sub-categories that you can browse or add to (with any luck, if you get signed).
18. University of Michigan Press
A component of the University of Michigan Library’s Michigan Publishing, the press releases writings on a broad range of social science and humanities topics. On their website you will find categories such as archaeology, dance, philosophy, religion, sociology, urban studies, and history. If you want to apply for the series “African Perspectives”, for Applied Linguistics, or for English as a Second Language, there are distinct submission guidelines, and you can find them here. For all the other areas, you have to submit details regarding the book, a table of contents, a chapter outline, a project overview, and a CV.
19. Michigan State University Press
Founded in 1947, the Michigan State University Press was created for the publication of research and intellectual inquiry. Because of this, their interest lies in a broad range of subjects, among which poetry, political science, history, higher education, rhetoric, and women’s studies can be named. They do not accept unsolicited works of fiction, poetry, or memoir. However, if your work still fits their current standards, you can send it both via email or as a hard copy. The full submission guidelines are displayed here.
Book publishing is a bit of a lengthy process, depending on which route you take. But now, you have ample resources and no time for excuses. Get up, go through these Michigan book publishers and pick one that is right for you. Don’t delay the inevitable and contact the publisher at the earliest. Wouldn’t it be just great to introduce your book to the public?
Are you an author who’s had a story published by one of the above book publishing companies in Michigan? Please share your experiences in the comments box below!
19 Top Book Publishing Companies in Michigan is an article from Writing Tips Oasis.
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A 22 year old writer from India, Meera Nair has been blogging for over 5 years. She has a triple major Bachelor’s degree in Media, English and Psychology from Christ University Bangalore. She regularly reviews books for publishers like Bloomsbury, Pan Macmillan, Penguin etc. Reading and writing are two of her utmost passions and she is glad to have the opportunity to share that love with others.