Linen Press fills the niche left by the big publishers who pack the chain stores with thinly-written celebrity memoirs, blockbusters and predictable series. We publish four to six books a year and each is meticulously edited, printed and produced. We are a hands-on publisher, working closely with every author to edit manuscripts line by line and to turn a very good manuscript into an exceptionally fine book. We practise what we preach.

Linen Press is looking for beautifully written manuscripts which are relevant to women’s lives and which surprise us with their style and content.
We welcome submissions from established and emergent writers, writers of all ages and backgrounds, writers from minority groups, and those who write in English as a second language.

Fiction

We publish literary fiction and top end contemporary fiction. We are looking for complex, layered novels that explore ideas and issues that are relevant to women. Your narrative must have finely drawn, credible characters, a beautifully mapped-out backdrop, and a style that is distinct and makes us want to read on. I want to lose myself in a book that takes me into another world and keeps me there.

Non-fiction

We will consider memoir, life-writing and biography that is seriously relevant to women’s lives.
A warning – there are many, many memoirs already out there about troubling, tough and traumatic times and our tsunami of submissions reflects this. We will consider life stories, but they need to startle us with their originality and brilliant style. In this genre, you are up against extremely tight competition.

We do not publish….

We do not publish children’s books, illustrated stories, romantic fiction, chick lit, fantasy, science fiction or horror. We only consider collections of short stories and poetry by Linen Press authors and other previously published authors. Please don’t send any submissions in these genres because they will not be read.
Nor do we accept submissions originated, written or edited by Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology.

What happens next

We receive between seven and twenty submissions every week. It’s a monumental task to read them but we read some or all of everything that comes in. Your synopsis is important because it is an open door into how you write.

We are a very small indie press and cannot respond individually to every author who approaches us with a manuscript. Nor can we offer feedback and critiques. If we like what we read, we’ll be back in touch within three to four weeks to ask for the first fifty pages. After reading those, we’ll email again to discuss the next moves.

Submission guidelines

• Submissions via the form below. We ask you to include a short writing CV, a synopsis and the first 2500 words of your completed manuscript.
• Put the title of your work in all files. Name your file using the title of your work and your name, or an abbreviation of these.
• A brief synopsis is really important for us. We don’t want to know the plot but we do want to know what kind of book you are sending in. Tell us: What genre? Which themes and issues are addressed? What makes your writing unique? Why is your book relevant to women?

Those who submit to us must purchase one of our books from our shop to sample the kind of prose we are looking for. This is partly to contribute a small amount to the time-consuming work of reading many submissions, partly so that you are somewhat familiar with our list.

We acknowledge that for some of you, this cost may be a barrier for entry. If you can’t afford to buy a book, please email us at submissions@linen-press.com.
Please visit the Linen Press bookshop to make your purchase, and we’ll cross reference your order with your submission.