Submissions – children’s – Morgen 'with an E' Bailey

Click here for the main mixed format submissions page, or for Flash fiction & short stories, non-fiction, Novels, Poetry, Sci-fi, fantasy, horror etc., Scripts or Opportunities on this blog.

Below is a list of some outlets welcoming submissions of writing for children – do let me know if you know of any others. Thank you.

Children’s / YA

Aaron Shepard has some ‘dangerous myths and terrible truths’, a quick intro to writing children’s books and publishing them.
Amazing Kids! magazine welcomes unsolicited submissions.
Chicken House “no longer accept unsolicited manuscripts, but we do offer unpublished writers of fiction (for children aged 7-18) the chance to submit their work to the annual Times/Chicken House Children’s Fiction Competition.”
Children’s Writer is a monthly “newsletter of writing and publishing trends” which you can subscribe to online. They offer a free edition so you can see what you’d be paying for ($19 if US / Canada based, $15 a year for outside the US).
Christchurch City Libraries has a page on writing and illustrating for children.
Cricket mag (no, not a sport magazine!) has a list of some opportunities.
Cultureword “helps new writers fulfil their potential’ and has a yearly children’s writing competition.
Hong Kong-based Custom Books “publish fiction… historical, crime, thrillers, adult romance and erotica, sci-fi and selected books for teens, young adults and Kindi Corner. Occasionally non-fiction or a self-help book will take our eye. View our current books, read our author comments and if you wish to publish then read our Submission Guidelines.”
Dmoz lists outlets for writers of children’s and kids / teens.
Duotrope is one of the best resources for submission opportunities around.
Highlights for Children is a general-interest, advertising-free magazine for children up to age twelve. It was founded in 1946 by Dr. Garry Cleveland Myers and Caroline Clark Myers, and is still owned and run by their family. The magazine has no religious or organizational affiliation. Highlights has a circulation of about two million and is published monthly. Their guidelines are listed here.
Let’s Tell Stories was set up by Francesca and Javier Orti due to “our belief that words give structure to our thoughts and feelings, and stories put perspective on things, offer understanding, help us reframe ideas, and look for solutions. Basically they are a hugely enjoyable tool that can help people improve their lives and inspire themselves to be better.
We are not looking for the next Nobel prize, or the perfect grammar, or best creative writing. In fact, we are not looking for anything. We just want to create a space that shares the power of writing, reading and stories. The site is still in evolution, but you can visit it here. You can find out more about the project, and its founders on there, as well as see some examples of the stories we are looking for.”
Lou Treleaven blogged a list of children’s publishers accepting unsolicited manuscripts (last updated July 2012).
New independent publisher Mythmaker is looking for new writers to submit original children’s and young adult fiction.
The National Association for the Education of Young Children’s guidelines are here.
A brilliant resource is My Perfect Pitch.com which has a page of publishers currently accepting book submissions.
http://www.newpages.com/classifieds/calls lists a variety of opportunities in varying genres.
Noodle Tools has a list of online opportunities for young writers.
The Society of Children’s Books Writers & Illustrators (scbwi) has a Top 10 of frequently asked questions about children’s book publishing. They also have an anthology called Undiscovered Voices which is currently closed to submissions but this may change so worth keeping an eye on.
Small but Mighty Writers runs free-to-enter writing competitions for authors aged 7-11 and 12-15, as well as being a ‘creative writing community for young writers’.
Stone Soup says they are “the leading publisher of children’s writing and art in the English-speaking world”.
Stuff Kids Write is “seeking funny notes, cards, letters, or stories kids have written.”
Suite 101 is a great site for advice and they have an article on selling children’s writing.
US Kids Magazine writers guidelines are here.
Write4Kids has a great page of frequently asked questions.
The Writer’s Advice Centre for Children’s Books may well be of interest / use to you.
Writer’s Relief invites you to learn how to publish a children’s book.
Writersonthemove.com blogged their part 1 of ‘Writing for Children: Submissions to Contract to Book Promotion to Career’ on 1st September 2011 (which included two websites on agents: http://agentquery.com and http://www.guidetoliteraryagents.com/blog) then part 2 later in the month.
Writingforchildrenandteens.com has tips on simultaneous submissions, albeit from 2007, (as does http://www.underdown.org/multiple.htm) and on how to package submissions.
The Writing Squad is a development programme for writers aged 16-20 living, working or studying in the north of England.
Also see the Submissions info. page for mixed opportunities and other genres.