If you’re looking for a list of publishers of outdoor books, the following compilation of publishing houses has been put together for you.
1. Lyons Press
Headquartered in Connecticut, Lyons Press is a publishing company that was founded by Nick Lyons almost 40 years ago. They specialize in high-quality books on nature, outdoor recreation, animals, sports, fishing and hunting, military history, and American history. They also publish books on cooking, true crime, travel, arts and entertainment, biographies, and more. Titles on their list include The Kid Who Climbed Everest by Bear Grylls, Basic Wilderness Survival Skills by Bradford Angier, and On the Water by Guy de la Valdene.
Should you be interested in submitting your work to Lyons Press, you can check out their submission guidelines here. Email submissions are preferred. For general inquiries, you can reach Lyons Press through their online contact form.
2. Skyhorse Publishing
Founded in 2006, Skyhorse Press is an independent publisher based in New York. They publish books across a range of subjects, but their main categories are adventure, outdoor sports, nature, country living, true crime, reference, and history. They currently have more than 9,000 titles on their list, and hundreds of new ones are released each year. Some of their most recent books include Buzz into Beekeeping by Charlotte Anderson, The Wild Mushroom Handbook by Kristen and Trent Blizzard, and The Little Red Book of Running by Scott Douglas, among others.
To submit your work to Skyhorse Publishing, check out their submission guidelines here. They are currently looking for books in the following categories: outdoor sports, travel and adventure, history, health and fitness, pets and animals, military history, and more. You can also reach the Skyhorse team through their online contact form.
3. Mountaineers Books
Founded in 1960, Mountaineers Books is an independent publisher located in Seattle, Washington. The press was founded by volunteers of The Mountaineers, a non-profit community of climbers in the Pacific Northwest, with the goal of making their climbing knowledge available to the public. Since then, they have expanded their publishing scope to include a wider range of subjects, including nature and the outdoors, marine sports, fitness, hiking and backpacking, conservation, travel, and more.
If you are looking to get your work published by Mountaineers Books, you can send them a book proposal via email or post. Take a look at their submission guidelines for more information on what to include in your proposal. Should you have any additional questions, you can contact Mountaineers Books here.
4. Falcon Guides
Falcon Guides is an award-winning publisher that was established in 1979. They primarily publish books on the outdoors, particularly wildlife identification, conservation, and outdoor activity guides. They also publish books on sports and recreation, travel, foraging, self-help, photography, history, health and fitness, and cooking.
Falcon Guides welcomes submissions via email or post, but email submissions are preferred. To submit your work, prepare a proposal including a description of your book, a table of contents, a sample chapter, and an overview of your background and experience. Once you are ready, you can email your proposal to Falcon Guides’ editorial team. For more information, you can find their submission guidelines here.
5. Milestone Press
Located in North Carolina, Milestone Press was founded by Jim Parman and Mary Ellen Hammond in 1992. They specialize in reliable guidebooks for outdoor enthusiasts and adventurers. They have guidebooks for family adventures, hiking, mountain biking, road biking, motorcycling, and more. They constantly review and update their guides to make sure that the information is relevant and up to date.
If you have a manuscript that you think would be a good fit for Milestone Press, you can submit a proposal including the following information: a brief description of your book, a table of contents, your qualifications, and a few sample chapters. Please note that they do not publish books outside the outdoor adventure genre. For more information, check out their submission guidelines here. You can also reach them through their contact form should you have any further questions.
6. W. W. Norton & Company
Founded in 1923, W. W. Norton & Company is an employee-owned publisher headquartered in New York. They publish all kinds of books, including fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and textbooks. Several of their books have won the National Outdoor Book Award, including Forever on the Mountain by James M. Tabor, The Last Man on the Mountain by Jennifer Jordan, Buried in the Sky by Peter Zuckerman and Amanda Padoan, Continental Divide by Maurice Isserman, and The Human Age by Diane Ackerman
W. W. Norton & Company only welcomes submissions from literary agents at the moment, but if you have any general inquiries or concerns, you can get in touch with them here.
7. Fulcrum Publishing
Located in Colorado, Fulcrum Publishing was founded by Bob Baron more than three decades ago. They publish books in various areas, including travel, history, education, nature and the environment, health and wellness, gardening, current affairs, and more. They also have a wide selection of outdoor titles, such as Colorado Outdoor Lover’s Guide, Great Road Rides Denver, Rocky Mountain Walks, and Transcendent Summits, among others.
If you are interested in submitting your work to Fulcrum, you can send them a proposal with a brief synopsis, a few sample chapters, an author’s biography, and information about your target audience. Learn more by checking out the submission guidelines on their website. For general inquiries, contact Fulcrum via email.
8. Stackpole Books
Established in 1930, Stackpole Books is a trade publisher based in Pennsylvania. They specialize in non-fiction books in the areas of travel, outdoors, wildlife, cooking, military history, arts and crafts, and regional interest. Authors whose works they have published include Amy Gunderson, Jason Randall, George Daniel, Ralph Peters, Brad Angier, Duane Raleigh, and Sharon Silverman, among others.
Stackpole Books does not have any open calls for submissions at the moment, but you may reach them via email for any editorial questions.
9. Burford Books
Burford Books is an independent publisher headquartered in Ithaca, New York. They mainly publish books on the outdoors, particularly outdoor living, travel and adventure, gardening, food and wine, military history. They also publish books about life in upstate New York and the Finger Lakes. Their books are available in both print and digital formats, and their titles are distributed worldwide, primarily in the US, Canada, and the UK.
Burford Books welcomes submissions from both new and established authors. For detailed information on submitting a proposal, you can take a look at their submission guidelines here. For general inquiries and other concerns, you can reach Burford Books via email or through their online contact form.
10. Storey Publishing
Storey Publishing specializes in practical books that promote self-reliance. Whether you are interested in growing your own food or would like to spend time exploring nature, you can find information and encouragement in one of Storey Publishing’s books. Their categories include nature and the outdoors, health and wellbeing, farming and sustainable living, farm animals, house and home, gardening, and children’s non-fiction.
Storey Publish is always happy to receive proposals from authors. If you are interested in submitting your work, you can check out their submission guidelines here. Once you are ready, you can send them your proposal via email. Should you have any additional questions, you can get in touch with Storey Publishing here.
11. Menasha Ridge Press
Menasha Ridge Press, an imprint of AdventureKEEN, is an Alabama-based publisher that has been a leader in outdoor book publishing for more than three decades. They specialize in books about the outdoors, wildlife, wilderness sports, cooking and dining, history, and travel. They also have several award-winning and bestselling book series, including Day and Overnight Hikes, Five Star Trails, and 60 Hikes Within 50 Miles.
If you have a manuscript or book idea you think Menasha Ridge Press might be interested in, you can fill out their submissions form. For any additional questions or concerns, you can get in touch with Menasha Ridge Press through the contact form on their website.
12. Timber Press
Timber Press, an imprint of Workman Publishing, is an award-winning press based in Portland, Oregon. They were founded in 1978 and joined the Workman family in 2006. Timber Press is most known for their books on gardening and horticulture, but they also publish books on the outdoors, natural history, regional interest, nature and science, design, and crafting.
Timber Press accepts submissions directly from authors. To submit your work, prepare a proposal with an overview of your book, a table of contents, author information, and a list of comparable titles. You can then send them your proposal via email. Find more information on their submission guidelines here. For general inquiries, you can contact them here.
13. Sandstone Press
Sandstone Press is an independent publisher based in the UK. Many of their books have won or been shortlisted for a number of literary prizes, including the Man Booker, Commonwealth, Arthur C. Clarke, Not the Booker, and more. Their books cover various areas, including travel, outdoors, the environment, music, historical fiction, legal thrillers, memoirs, biographies, crime, and general non-fiction. Their latest outdoor titles include Chasing the Dreams by Hamish Brown, The Mountains Are Calling by Jonny Muir, Along the Divide by Chris Townsend, and The Easternmost House by Juliet Blaxland, among others.
If you are interested in getting your work published by Sandstone Press, you can check out their submission guidelines here. Should you have any general inquiries, you can get in touch with them via email.
14. Vertebrate Publishing
Located in Sheffield in the UK, Vertebrate Publishing is an award-winning publisher that specializes in publishing books about the outdoors. Although they are most known for their comprehensive mountain biking guidebooks, they also publish books on other outdoor activities, such as climbing, cycling, running, and walking. They also publish narrative non-fiction with strong adventure themes.
Interested in getting your work published by Vertebrate Publishing? You can send them a proposal via email or post. To learn more about submitting a proposal, you can find their submission guidelines here. If you have any additional questions, you can reach the Vertebrate Publishing team through their online contact form.
15. Wild Things Publishing
Founded by Daniel Start and Tania Pascoe, Wild Things Publishing is a UK publisher dedicated to creating beautiful books that inspire people to experience and enjoy nature. Their most recent titles include Lost Lanes: Northern England, Wild Guide: Central England, Mountain Bike Camping Adventures on the Wild Trails of Britain, and Adventures Around the Edge of Britain’s Hidden Islands, among others.
If you have a great idea for an outdoor book, you can submit a proposal to Wild Things Publishing via email. In your proposal, include your book’s title and subtitle, a short synopsis, a few sample chapters, and a chapter outline. You can get in touch with Wild Things Publishing here if you have any other questions.
16. Rocky Mountain Books
Rocky Mountain Books is a Canadian publisher that was founded in 1979 by Tony and Gillean Daffern, both renowned mountaineers. Since then, Rocky Mountain Books has grown into a leading outdoor book publisher, releasing around 30 new titles each year. Their areas of interest include adventure and travel writing, mountaineering, running and cycling, nature and the environment, indigenous culture, social justice, climbing and hiking, and more.
Rocky Mountain Books is currently accepting email proposals in all areas they publish in. If you would like to submit your work, you can start by checking out their proposal guidelines here. Should you have any other questions, you can reach Rocky Mountain Books here.
17. Greystone Books
Founded in 1993, Greystone Books is a Canadian publisher specializing in non-fiction books about the outdoors, sports and recreation, history, nature and the environment, travel and adventure, social issues, indigenous people, health and wellness, food and drink, and literary non-fiction. Some of the authors they have worked with include Julie Angus, Wade Davis, Anita Albus, Charlotte Gill, David Suzuki, and Harry Thurston, among others.
To submit your work to Greystone Books, you may send them a proposal containing a description of your book, a chapter outline, a list of comparable titles, and a sample chapter. For more information, you can find their submission guidelines here. If you have any additional questions about their submission process, you can reach Greystone Books’ editorial team via email.
Are there any other publishers of outdoor books that should be on this list? Please tell us about them in the comments box below!
Hiten Vyas is the Founder and Managing Editor of Writing Tips Oasis.