Submission guidelines
Submitting to EK Books
EK Books is a global publisher of award-winning children’s books. Our motto is “books with heart on issues that matter,” and our books are aimed primarily at children aged 4 to 8.
We reopen on Monday 8 February 2027
Our submission window has closed. Our publishers are now reading everything we received, which takes the rest of this year and the start of next. We are not accepting manuscripts or illustrator portfolios in the meantime.
The guidelines below stay here so you can prepare. Get your manuscript ready now, and you’ll be first out of the gate when we reopen.
Join the Publisher’s Town Hall
What Publishers Expect from Children’s Authors in 2027
A closed-door hour on Zoom with the publisher of EK Books: what we look for, how to stand out in the slush pile, the books we said yes to in 2026, and open Q&A. Strictly limited to 50 places.
- When: Thursday 21 January, 11am Sydney · 1pm Auckland · Wednesday 20 January, 7pm New York · midnight London
- Can’t make it live? Every registration includes the recording and session notes.
- VIP (12 spots): live feedback on your pitch from an EK Books editor, and you can submit from Monday 1 February, a week before everyone else.
Standard $67 USD · VIP $257 USD. Your fee can be credited toward a manuscript review when submissions open.
Before you begin
We welcome submissions from literary agents, as well as new and established authors. Before submitting, please look through our published titles to get a feel for our current list, and take advantage of the resources we make available through the Children’s Publishing Academy.
We expect to receive professional-quality submissions, and strongly recommend new authors begin with the training programs we offer through the Academy before sending in their work.
What we publish
We are particularly interested in titles that tackle themes of neurodiversity, belonging, and being yourself in fun, creative and empowering ways.
We publish globally and vigorously sell translation rights for our books worldwide, so books with a strong local association are often not appropriate for us. For the same reason, we generally prefer books in prose, not rhyme.
When we reopen we will be accepting children’s picture books and illustrator portfolios only. We expect to open to middle-grade and YA submissions in the near future.
Manuscript submissions
What we’ll ask for when the window reopens:
- Subject line, in this format: Submission: [Title]
-
A brief two-paragraph introduction
- Outline your book, and call out the themes and topics it addresses.
- Introduce yourself, with links to your author website and social media. We expect authors to have a strong platform in place to promote their work.
- Your manuscript attached as a Word document, meeting the criteria above.
A note on AI-written pitches
We understand the temptation to use a tool like ChatGPT or Claude to tighten your pitch. But reading hundreds of pitches a month that all share the same structure and vocabulary is not what our editors love.
Treat the pitch email as your chance to show off your own written voice. Be yourself — personal and authentic beats polished and generic, every time.
Illustrator portfolios
- Subject line: Illustrator portfolio: [Your name]
- A two-paragraph introduction to yourself, including links to your previously published works and your website or social platforms.
- Samples attached as one consolidated PDF, or linked on your platform.
When we reopen
Two ways to send us your work, both reopening on Monday 8 February 2027.
Free submission
No cost
Send us your manuscript and it will be read and considered.
- You hear back only if we are interested in exploring publication
- Read by our editorial team
- Follow the guidelines above exactly
Opens Monday 8 February 2027
Assessed submission
From $290 USD
Clear feedback from an EK publisher to help you advance to publication.
- A guaranteed response, with detailed constructive feedback
- A senior publisher from the EK Books team gives you their honest reaction
- A concise written report with clear guidance on how to make your manuscript more appealing to publishers like EK
- Priority consideration — skip the queue and get considered before other manuscripts
Opens Monday 8 February 2027
Submissions reopen on Monday 8 February 2027. Publisher’s Town Hall VIPs can submit a week early, from Monday 1 February. In the meantime, the best thing you can do is keep working on the manuscript, and join us at the Town Hall on 21 January.