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DIRECTORY

Best Book Publishing Companies in Raleigh

Showing 8 publishers that match your search.

Algonquin Books

Genres: Literary Fiction, Narrative Nonfiction, Diverse Literature, Fiction, and Nonfiction

Part of: Workman Publishing > Algonquin Books

Location: Raleigh, US

Website: https://www.algonquin.com/

Diversity: Diverse Literature

Accepts unagented submissions

No

Indie publisher

Small press

💥 Hit titles
Water for Elephants

Sara Gruen

An American Marriage

Tayari Jones

The Drunken Botanist

Amy Stewart

Dzanc Books

Genres: Literary Fiction, Biographies & Memoirs, Narrative Nonfiction, Horror, Mystery & Crime, Thriller & Suspense, Diverse Literature, Fiction, Nonfiction, and Short Story

Location: Raleigh, US

Website: https://www.dzancbooks.org/

Diversity: Diverse Literature

Accepts unagented submissions

Yes Contests - View guidelines →

Indie publisher

Small press

💥 Hit titles
We Five

Mark Dunn

Gun Needle Spoon

Patrick O'Neil

In the Event of Contact

Ethel Rohan

C&R Press

Genres: Literary Fiction, Narrative Nonfiction, History, Biographies & Memoirs, Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry, and Short Story

Location: Raleigh, US

Website: https://www.crpress.org/

Accepts unagented submissions

Yes Manuscript entries - View guidelines →

Indie publisher

Small press

💥 Hit titles
Selling the Farm

Debra Di Blasi

A History of the Cat in Nine Chapters or Less

Fu Shivani

In the Room of Persistent Sorry

Kristina Marie Darling

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Supposed Crimes

Genres: LGBTQ+, Action & Adventure, Horror, Science Fiction, Fantasy, Westerns, Diverse Literature, and Fiction

Location: Raleigh, US

Website: https://supposedcrimes.com/

Diversity: Diverse Literature

Accepts unagented submissions

No

Indie publisher

Small press

💥 Hit titles
Penumbra

Dan Ackerman

How to Steal a Star

Geonn Cannon

For by Grace

Adrian J Smith

Wiseblood Books

Genres: Literary Fiction, Women's Fiction, Catholic, Nonfiction, Fiction, Poetry, Short Story, and Novella

Location: Raleigh, US

Website: https://www.wisebloodbooks.com/

Accepts unagented submissions

Yes Manuscript entries - View guidelines →

Indie publisher

Small press

💥 Hit titles
Jennifer the Damned

Karen Ullo

If Nobody Calls, I'm Not Home

Sam Hazo

The Unfinished Life of N.

Micah Cawber

Baen Press

Genres: Fantasy, Science Fiction, and Fiction

Location: Raleigh, US

Website: https://www.baen.com/

Accepts unagented submissions

Yes Contests - View guidelines →

Indie publisher

Mid size

💥 Hit titles
A Call to Duty

David Weber & Timothy Zahn

Frontier

Patrick Chiles

Governor

David Weber & Richard Fox

Press 53

Genres: Biographies & Memoirs, Literary Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry, and Short Story

Location: Raleigh, US

Website: https://www.press53.com/

Accepts unagented submissions

Yes Contests - View guidelines →

Indie publisher

Small press

💥 Hit titles
Anything That Happens

Cheryl Wilder

I Will Shout Your Name

John Matthew Fox

The Origin of Doubt

Nathan Alling Long

Carolina Academic Press

Genres: History, Politics, Law, Sports & Outdoors, Academic, and Nonfiction

Location: Raleigh, US

Website: https://cap-press.com/

Accepts unagented submissions

Yes Book proposals - View guidelines →

Indie publisher

Small press

💥 Hit titles
The Hidden World

Blaise Daniel Staples et al

The World of Classical Myth: Gods and Goddesses, Heroines and Heroes

Danny Staples & Carl A. P. Ruck

Essential Latin for Lawyers

Russ VerSteeg

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.

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Reedsy | Looking for a publisher? | 2024-09

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