Looking to publish? Meet your dream editor, designer and marketer on Reedsy.

Find the perfect editor for your next book

1 million authors trust the professionals on Reedsy. Come meet them.

DIRECTORY

Best Young Adult Book Publishing Companies in Canada

Showing 10 publishers that match your search.

Dundurn Press

Genres: Art, Architecture, Biographies & Memoirs, Business, Health & Wellbeing, History, Humor, Middle Grade, Mystery & Crime, Politics, Sports & Outdoors, Travel, True Crime, Young Adult, Literary Fiction, Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry, and Children's

Location: Toronto, CA

Website: https://www.dundurn.com/

Accepts unagented submissions

Yes Book proposals - View guidelines →

Indie publisher

Mid size

💥 Hit titles
Persephone's Children

Rowan McCandless

Lost Shadow

Claire Gilchrist

Nothing Will Be Different

Tara McGowan-Ross

Inkyard Press

Genres: BIPOC, Diverse Literature, Fantasy, Fiction, Horror, Thriller & Suspense, and Young Adult

Part of: HarperCollins > Harlequin > Inkyard Press

Location: Toronto, CA

Website: https://www.harlequintradepublishing.com/shop/brand/inkyard-press.html

Accepts unagented submissions

No Manuscript entries - View guidelines →

Small press

💥 Hit titles
Counting Down with You

Tashie Bhuiyan

The Keeper of Night

Kylie Lee Baker

Shadow of the Fox

Julie Kagawa

Fitzhenry and Whiteside

Genres: History, Biographies & Memoirs, Middle Grade, Young Adult, Sports & Outdoors, Education & Reference, Photography, Cookbook, Travel, Health & Wellbeing, Medical, Nonfiction, Children's, and Poetry

Location: Toronto, CA

Website: https://www.fitzhenry.ca/

Accepts unagented submissions

No

Indie publisher

Small press

💥 Hit titles
Fitzhenry and Whiteside Book of Canadian Facts and Dates

Richard Pound

Fitzhenry & Whiteside Canadian Thesaurus

Richard Dionne

In Deep with the Octopus

Norma Dixon

Looking for an editor to polish your query letter?

The best professionals are already on Reedsy, come meet them. Create your free account to request free quotes today.

Learn more about the Reedsy Marketplace.

Red Deer Press

Genres: Picture Book, Middle Grade, Young Adult, History, Humor, Science Fiction, Math & Science, Environmental, Diverse Literature, BIPOC, Children's, Fiction, Nonfiction, and Poetry

Part of: Fitzhenry & Whiteside > Red Deer Press

Location: Toronto, CA

Website: https://www.reddeerpress.com/

Diversity: Diverse Literature, BIPOC

Accepts unagented submissions

Yes Queries & manuscript entries - View guidelines →

Indie publisher

Small press

💥 Hit titles
The Boy Asked the Wind

Barbara Nickel

The Pact

Amanda West Lewis

Rainbow Crow

David Bouchard & David Jean

Dancing Cat Books

Genres: Picture Book, Middle Grade, Young Adult, Diverse Literature, and Children's

Part of: Cormorant Books > Dancing Cat Books

Location: Toronto, CA

Website: https://www.dcbyoungreaders.com/

Diversity: Diverse Literature

Accepts unagented submissions

Yes Manuscript entries - View guidelines →

Indie publisher

Small press

💥 Hit titles
The Band of Merry Kids

David Skuy

Enid Strange

Meghan Rose Allen

The Marrow Thieves

Cherie Dimaline

Annick Press

Genres: Picture Book, Middle Grade, Young Adult, Education & Reference, Diverse Literature, LGBTQ+, BIPOC, and Children's

Location: Toronto, CA

Website: https://www.annickpress.com/

Diversity: Diverse Literature, LGBTQ, BIPOC

Accepts unagented submissions

Yes Book proposals - View guidelines →

Indie publisher

Small press

💥 Hit titles
Yara's Spring

Jamal Saeed & Sharon E. McKay

Salma the Syrian Chef

Danny Ramadan

The Ghost Collector

Allison Mills

Mythos and Ink

Genres: Science Fiction, Fantasy, Feminism, Middle Grade, Young Adult, Religion & Spirituality, Comics & Graphic Novels, Diverse Literature, LGBTQ+, BIPOC, Fiction, Nonfiction, and Children's

Location: Toronto, CA

Website: https://www.mythosink.com/

Diversity: Diverse Literature, LGBTQ, BIPOC

Accepts unagented submissions

Yes Queries - View guidelines →

Indie publisher

Small press

💥 Hit titles
Under the Lesser Moon

Shelly Campbell

Super Sick

Allison Alexander

Thy Geekdom Come

Casey L. Covel

Heritage House

Genres: Art, Photography, Biographies & Memoirs, History, Middle Grade, Young Adult, Math & Science, Travel, Sports & Outdoors, True Crime, Humor, Nonfiction, and Children's

Part of: Heritage Group > Heritage House

Location: Vancouver, CA

Website: https://www.heritagehouse.ca/

Accepts unagented submissions

Yes Book proposals - View guidelines →

Small press

💥 Hit titles
Railways Nation: Tales of Canadian Pacific

David Laurence Jones

Scallywag on the Salish Sea

Sara Cassidy

Wagon Road North

Art Downs

Second Story Press

Genres: Picture Book, Middle Grade, Young Adult, History, Politics, Biographies & Memoirs, Historical Fiction, Women's Fiction, Feminism, Mystery & Crime, Thriller & Suspense, Jewish Literature, Health & Wellbeing, Diverse Literature, LGBTQ+, BIPOC, Children's, Fiction, and Nonfiction

Location: Toronto, CA

Website: https://secondstorypress.ca/

Diversity: Diverse Literature, LGBTQ, BIPOC

Accepts unagented submissions

Yes Manuscript entries - View guidelines →

Indie publisher

Small press

💥 Hit titles
The Birds That Stay

Ann Lambert

The Butterfly Effect

Eve Zaremba

The Abortion Caravan

Karin Wells

Arsenal Pulp Press

Genres: Cookbook, LGBTQ+, Young Adult, Cookbook, African-American, Middle Grade, Picture Book, Biographies & Memoirs, History, Humor, Politics, Comics & Graphic Novels, Diverse Literature, BIPOC, Fiction, Children's, Poetry, and Nonfiction

Location: Vancouver, CA

Website: https://arsenalpulp.com/

Diversity: Diverse Literature, BIPOC

Accepts unagented submissions

Yes Manuscript entries - View guidelines →

Indie publisher

Small press

💥 Hit titles
Butter Honey Pig Bread

Francesca Ekwuyasi

The Girl Who Was Convinced Beyond All Reason That She Could Fly

Sybil Lamb

Iron Goddess of Mercy

Larissa Lai

What do book publishers do?

Sure, a book publisher prints and sells your book. But what they do behind the scenes encompasses much more than that. Publishers handle the entire publishing process for books, including: 

  • Editing the book, i.e. developmental editing, copy editing, and proofreading; 
  • Designing the book, i.e. book cover design and any necessary interior book design;
  • Promotion and marketing, i.e. writing the book’s blurb, email marketing, setting up media interviews, etc.; and
  • Production and distribution, i.e. formatting and distributing hardback, paperback, and ebook versions of the book to stores, both online and brick-and-mortar. 

Note that the structure of publishing companies may differ, depending on their size. Bigger book publishers may be made up of publishing houses which may, in turn, be made up of imprints — each of which will have its own brand identity in terms of the type of books it publishes. 

However, regardless of a publisher’s size, the scope of their work shouldn’t change. Once you sign with a publisher, they will do everything that it takes to bring your book to market. 

What are the most prominent book publishing companies?

If we define success by sheer sales volume, then we might point towards the "Big 5" presses and educational publishers (who rake in a LOT of money). Over the past few decades, these giant publishing companies have merged with and acquired most of the mid-sized publishers in the industry. However, a few still remain. Here are today's biggest book publishing companies:

  • Penguin Random House (Big 5)
  • Hachette Book Group (Big 5)
  • HarperCollins (Big 5)
  • Macmillan Publishers (Big 5)
  • Simon & Schuster (Big 5)
  • Scholastic Corporation
  • Pearson Education
  • McGraw-Hill Education
  • Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
  • Cengage Learning

Together, these largest publishers dominate the publishing landscape. Countless beloved books come from their imprints, many of which you’ll find in our directory. 

The rest of the publishing landscape is largely made up of small publishers, or independent publishers. Most big publishers don’t directly accept unsolicited submissions without a literary agent — but smaller publishers do, making them a realistic and worthwhile route to publication. 

I have a long list of publishers. What next?

Congratulations! Now take a moment to thoroughly vet every publisher on your longlist. Scams are a dime a dozen in the publishing industry, and you want to make 100% sure that you’re dealing with a legitimate publishing company. Again, we strongly recommend reading this post and Writer Beware to know what red flags to watch out for.

When you’re confident in all of the publishers on your longlist, it’s time for the most nerve-wracking step: submitting your manuscript to them. 

Check out our free resources if you’re feeling daunted by what comes next. Whether you’re learning how to research publishers or how to personalize a submission, we've got you covered.

Free online materials

Reedsy | Looking for a publisher? | 2024-09

Get a professional opinion on your query letter

Reedsy editors have worked at major publishers. Ask for a "query letter review."