Are you a writer who lives in the state of Oklahoma?
Have you just completed the writing of a book and want to publish it?
Continue reading to find out about 5 top book publishing houses in Oklahoma.
1. The University of Oklahoma Press
The University of Oklahoma Press is the University of Oklahoma’s publishing arm. Founded by University President William Bennett Bizzell in 1929, OU Press is the oldest university press in the Southwest, and it continues to be one of the region’s leading presses. It is the press behind many award-winning books, such as David Van Holtby’s Lest We Forget, Louise Siddons’ Centering Modernism, and Mark Santiago’s A Bad Peace and a Good War.
OU Press is most known for publishing books about Native Americans and the West. It also publishes books that are significant not only to the state of the Oklahoma, but to the entire country as well. As part of its mission to expand its program, OU Press seeks scholarly books on the following subjects: language, classical studies, literature, women’s studies, the natural sciences, archeology, political science, and military history.
If you’ve written a manuscript that falls under one of the subjects OU Press is interested in, you may submit your book proposal to the appropriate editor. You can find the contact information of all the acquisitions editors here. Before submitting your proposal, be sure to check out the submission guidelines on the OU Press website. OU Press is currently headquartered in Norman, Oklahoma.
2. The RoadRunner Press
Located in Oklahoma City, The RoadRunner Press is a traditional publishing house committed to celebrating the diverse talents of artists and authors from the region. Its founder, Jeanne Devlin, is an award-winning writer that has worked with Simon & Schuster, St. Martin’s, and a number of bestselling authors. Although The RoadRunner Press is a small company, its team members are all passionate about their mission of building a diverse selection of titles, one book at a time. Since its founding in 2005, The RoadRunner Press has been publishing around 10 titles each year, and it aims to expand its operations over the coming years.
The RoadRunner Press primarily publishes young adult fiction, but it also publishes non-fiction, adult fiction, and children’s picture books. Because of its team’s commitment to diversity and inclusion, books that highlight stories and voices from Native American nations and the American West are of particular interest. If you have a manuscript or an idea you think The RoadRunner Press might be interested in, you can get in touch with founding editor, Jeanne Devlin, via email.
3. 4RV Publishing
4RV Publishing is an award-winning publishing house located in Edmond, Oklahoma. It was founded by Vivian Zabel, a retired teacher and award-winning writer who decided to start her own publishing company out of her desire to provide other authors with the opportunity to have their books published by people who care about their work. According to Zabel, she came up with the idea when she was starting out as a writer. She realized that for many aspiring authors, the only options were getting an agent, subsidy publishing, vanity presses, or self-publishing. But she believed that authors also deserve to build personal connections with the people handling their work. That is how 4RV Publishing was born.
4RV Publishing works with authors of fiction and non-fiction books for all ages. The following 4RV imprints are currently open for submissions: 4RV Tweens and Teens, 4RV Young Adult, 4RV Biblical, and 4RV Fiction. 4RV also has an imprint called Children’s Corner that specializes in illustrated children’s books, but submissions are currently closed. 4RV Publishing does not accept work that contains violence, sexual content, and bathroom humor. Vulgarities and profane language are also frowned upon.
Should you be interested in submitting your work for 4RV Publishing’s consideration, you can find the submission guidelines here. At the moment, 4RV only accepts submissions from authors located in the US, Australia, and the UK.
4. Mongrel Empire Press
Founded in 2007, Mongrel Empire Press is a publishing house located in Norman, Oklahoma. It is an eclectic house that values diversity. In fact, that’s where the name Mongrel Empire comes from. According to editor and founder Jeanetta Calhoun Mish, the name is a celebration of Oklahoma’s diversity—not just its people, but also its flora and fauna and land. And true to its name, Mongrel Empire seeks amazing writing by Oklahomans, particularly fiction, non-fiction, and poetry that crosses boundaries, work that is often overlooked by other presses. In 2012, Mongrel Empire opened its arms to Leaving Holes & Selected New Writings, an award-winning collection by Native American poet Joe Dale Tate Nevaquaya. Prior to being published by Mongrel Empire, Nevaquaya’s collection remained unpublished for two decades.
Although Mongrel Empire is partial to work written by Oklahomans, writers from everywhere are welcome to submit. Mongrel Empire’s submission portal is closed at the moment, but it will reopen as soon as their current backlog is cleared. If you are are interested in submitting your work, you can visit Mongrel Empire’s website to learn more about their submission guidelines. You can also get in touch with the Mongrel Empire team through their online inquiry form.
5. Penny Candy Books
Penny Candy Books is an independent publishing company in Oklahoma City that specializes in children’s literature. It was founded in 2015 by Chad Reynolds and Alexis Ortega, two poets who met in graduate school and shared a common goal—to make a difference. Penny Candy is the realization of that goal. At Penny Candy, they publish children’s books that promote diversity—in stories, authors, characters, and readers. In fact, they focus on voices that are often unheard, unrepresented, or forgotten. They believe that children’s books should reflect the complex realities of the world, which is why they seek authentic stories that ask questions.
Since Penny Candy’s founders are both poets, the books they publish are interesting and unexpected, both in language and illustration. Some of the titles Penny Candy has published include BE/HOLD by Shira Erlichman, Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Black Boy by Tony Medina, Trini’s Big Leap by Alexander de Wit and Beth Kephart, and Henry the Boy by Molly Felder.
Penny Candy accepts submissions from February to March of each year. Submissions can only be sent through their Submittable page, and those sent via email will not be read.
Are there any other book publishing houses in Oklahoma that you’re aware of? Please tell us about them in the comments box below!
Hiten Vyas is the Founder and Managing Editor of Writing Tips Oasis.