In recent years, small presses have published a number of highly acclaimed, successful novels -- like The Sleeping Father and Sacco and Vanzetti Must Die! -- previously rejected by big presses. Small presses often devote time and resources to the quiet or experimental books that bigger presses ignore, bringing them to reviewers' attention and going after foreign rights and film deals. If you think the small press world might be right for you, then the profiles below, listed alphabetically, will serve as a gateway.
Dalkey Archive Press
Though I carefully alphabetized this list to avoid ranking them, I very well might have given Dalkey Archive the number one spot anyway. Dalkey Archive is a well-established, well-respected press that publishes fiction in the tradition of Joyce, Rabelais, and Gertrude Stein. (They also published the Sacco and Vanzetti book mentioned above.) And in terms of basic materials -- paper, binding, etc. -- it far outstrips many of the major presses these days. It's definitely a niche publisher, but if you fit there, you really couldn't do better.Dzanc Books
© Dzanc Books
Founded in 2006, Dzanc Books is an independent, non-profit press with OV Books and Black Lawrence Press as imprints. In addition to publishing fiction, Dzanc hosts a writer-in-residence program with public schools and awards the annual Dzanc Prize, which also has a community service component.
Fiction Collective Two
Fiction Collective Two(FC2)
Like Dalkey Archive, Fiction Collective Two publishes fiction that may be too innovative or challenging for major presses. It's a collective, so once you've been published by them, you get to help shape the Press's list. And since it's been around since 1974, it's certainly earned its chops as a publisher of high-quality books.
Future Tense Books
Used with the permission of Kevin Sampsell.
Founded in 1990, Future Tense Books is an innovative press out of Portland, OR, with a focus on language. They only publish a few books a year, but they do take chance with what they publish. Publisher Kevin Sampsell says, "I sometimes publish work that is very sexual or very experimental or very humorous. If I can get a combination of the three, well, that's even better."
Gival Press
Robert L. Giron
Gival Press is an award winning, privately owned press located in Arlington, Virginia, and founded in 1998. They publish literary work with a social or philosophical message, in English, French, and Spanish, and they tend to keep their books in print longer than a commercial press might.
Livingston Press
Livingston Press, of the University of West Alabama, was founded in 1984. The nonprofit press publishes ten books of fiction a year. They look for offbeat fiction with a strong voice.Marion Boyars Publishers
Marion Boyars is a long established, independent literary publishing house, with a reputation for publishing brave, articulate books often ahead of their time. Famous books include Requiem for a Dream, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, and K: The Art of Love.McPherson & Company
An independent press since 1974, McPherson & Company publishes literary nonfiction and fiction (contemporary American and British fiction; translated Italian, French, and Spanish fiction), books in the arts and general culture, and a rediscovery series, Recovered Classics.Paul Dry Books
Paul Dry Books Logo
Paul Dry Books is a small, independent press located in Philadelphia that publishes lively fiction (mostly young adult) and nonfiction, including former St. Martin's Press CEO Thomas McCormack's The Fiction Editor, the Novel, and the Novelist. As of 2007, they weren't taking unsolicited submissions, but, still, it's a press to keep an eye on.
Pleasure Boat Studio
A small, independent press located in New York, NY, founded by Jack Estes in 1996, Pleasure Boat Studio offers a personal touch. You can expect publishing a book with them to be a collaborative venture from beginning to end.Press 53
© Sheryl Monks
Located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, Press 53 is a small,
independent publisher of literary fiction, poetry, and nonfiction. They champion the
work of short story writers, poets, literary novelists, memoirists and others who
face challenges in the publishing industry.
Soft Skull Press
Richard Nash
An independent press based in Brooklyn, NY, Soft Skull Press brought us the aforementioned The Sleeping Father by Matthew Sharpe. For years, Soft Skull Press has been one of the most dynamic presses out there, not only in terms of its list, but in terms of publicity and marketing.
