30 Best YA Publishers (Young Adult Publishing Companies)

Finding the right young adult publishing house for your enticing novel or nonfiction manuscript might be tricky.

That’s why I put together this list of 30 YA publishers, from big-house imprints like Tor Teen and Dial to small presses that read unagented work. Each entry says what the publisher looks for and how to approach it, with a link to its guidelines where they exist. About half of them take submissions without an agent, and some open only in short windows. You might also find value in exploring my extensive list of over 2,000+ publishing companies.

Submission policies change without notice, so check the publisher’s own page before you send anything, and never pay a reading fee. Last verified: October 1, 2026.

Here are the most notable YA publishers:

1. Tor Teen

Tor Teen is the young adult imprint of Tor Publishing Group, part of Macmillan, and a natural home for YA science fiction and fantasy. Its catalog has included Cory Doctorow, Brandon Sanderson, Susan Dennard, TJ Klune’s The Extraordinaries, and Naomi Kritzer’s Catfishing on CatNet. Tor does not accept unsolicited manuscripts outside its occasional, announced open-door windows, so plan on querying an agent.

2. Entangled Publishing

Entangled Publishing is a large romance house behind bestsellers such as Fourth Wing. Its teen list now runs through two young adult imprints: Mischief Books for readers 13 and up and Mayhem Books for 16 and up, across contemporary, fantasy, paranormal, sci-fi, and historical stories. Entangled accepts agented and unagented submissions through its Submittable portal. Send the first three chapters only, because full manuscripts are deleted on receipt, and allow about 90 business days for a reply. Authors pay no fees.

3. Page Street Publishing

Page Street Publishing accepts YA fiction queries by email or through its form. Send a one-page query with your pitch, word count, and category, the first three chapters in the body of the email, a synopsis, and a short author bio. It looks for edited manuscripts of 60,000 to 90,000 words with protagonists aged 15 to 18, in genres from fantasy to mystery, and actively seeks creators of color and LGBTQ+ authors. It does not publish middle grade or chapter books. Submission guidelines.

4. Quirk Books

Founded in 2002 in Philadelphia, Quirk Books publishes unconventional, high-concept books for adults and young readers, including Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children and Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. Its list runs to horror, humor, pop culture, and children’s and YA fiction. Quirk is not accepting submissions right now and will update its submissions page when the inbox reopens. Submissions page.

5. Soho Teen

Launched in 2013 by the independent Soho Press in New York, Soho Teen began with YA mysteries and thrillers and now also publishes novels about identity and self-discovery, often with inventive structures. The list is small, about seven to ten titles a year, which makes every slot competitive. Soho does not accept unagented, unsolicited submissions, so you’ll need an agent.

6. Charlesbridge Teen

Charlesbridge Teen is the young adult list of Charlesbridge, the Massachusetts children’s publisher, covering YA fiction and nonfiction for readers 12 and up. The house has long sought BIPOC and other underrepresented voices. Its open submissions program is paused, so Charlesbridge is not accepting unsolicited manuscripts for now. Watch its submissions page for a reopening. Submissions page.

7. Sky Pony Press

Sky Pony Press is the children’s imprint of Skyhorse Publishing, launched in 2011. It publishes picture books, chapter books, middle grade, and YA fiction and nonfiction, along with reissued classics. Skyhorse accepts proposals by email: send a query, synopsis, outline, and sample to its submissions address with “Children’s” in the subject line. If they’re interested, expect a reply in four to six weeks.

8. North Star Editions

North Star Editions is a privately owned Minnesota publisher of books for children and teens. Its trade fiction runs through two imprints on this list, Flux for young adult and Jolly Fish Press for middle grade, while its nonfiction lines serve schools and libraries. North Star accepts fiction submissions for both imprints and also posts work-for-hire opportunities and editorial internships. Work with us.

9. Sourcebooks Fire

Sourcebooks Fire is the young adult imprint of Sourcebooks, an independent, women-led publisher in Naperville, Illinois. It publishes teen fiction and nonfiction across romance, humor, drama, mystery, suspense, and action. Sourcebooks no longer posts submission guidelines for the imprint, so look for a current call on its site or reach it through a literary agent.

10. Clarion Books (HarperCollins)

Clarion Books, a HarperCollins children’s imprint that came over from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, publishes fiction and nonfiction for readers up to 17, including the Carmen Sandiego and Curious George series. HarperCollins does not accept unsolicited submissions apart from its Heartdrum imprint, so Clarion is an agented route.

11. Bancroft Press

Bancroft Press is a small independent publisher guided by one motto: “Publish What You Love.” Its list spans literary and commercial fiction, memoir, history, and narrative nonfiction, and it has published YA novels. Bancroft accepts submissions by email or web form, marked Fiction or Non-Fiction, and aims to reply within about six months. Submission guidelines.

12. Clean Teen Publishing

Clean Teen Publishing is now an imprint of CTP Publishing, alongside Crimson Tree, Changing Tides, and CTP Pulse. It wants upper YA (16+) and new adult novels of 50,000 to 100,000 words in any genre, with a soft spot for paranormal romance, and only series of three or more books. Submissions open once a year, in October, and CTP accepts them from authors or agents: paste the first three chapters into the body of an email, with no attachments. AI-assisted work is turned away. Submission guidelines.

13. Holiday House

Founded in 1935, Holiday House publishes only children’s books: hardcover fiction and nonfiction from picture books through YA, including the I Like to Read series and the Margaret Ferguson Books and Neal Porter Books imprints. Holiday House accepts submissions by email, a query plus a Word or PDF file, or by US mail. It replies within four months only if it’s interested and won’t consider AI-created material. It never charges authors, so ignore anyone who asks for money in its name. Submission FAQ.

14. Red Deer Press

Red Deer Press, an imprint of Fitzhenry & Whiteside in Ontario, publishes picture books, juvenile and young adult fiction, and some adult titles. It started in 1975 as a poetry publisher tied to Red Deer College before broadening its list. Its submissions page says it is not accepting new submissions at the moment, so check back before you send anything. Submissions page.

15. Albert Whitman & Company

Albert Whitman & Company has published children’s books since 1919, with stories that encourage empathy, inclusion, and responsibility. It accepts unagented email submissions: young adult fiction for ages 12 to 18 up to 70,000 words, and middle grade up to 35,000 words. Guidelines for unrepresented authors.

16. Hot Key Books (Bonnier Books)

Hot Key Books is the teen and YA imprint of Bonnier Books UK, a boutique list behind titles such as We Were Liars and Jordan Ifueko’s novels. It favors bold, original fiction that often crosses over to adult readers. Bonnier does not accept unsolicited manuscripts or proposals, so you’ll need a literary agent.

17. Flux

Flux is the young adult fiction imprint of North Star Editions, publishing novel-length YA in every genre since 2006. Each book gets editing, design, and worldwide distribution. Flux accepts agented and unagented submissions through Query Manager: a query, a synopsis, and the first 50 pages, with no mailed copies.

18. Free Spirit Publishing

Free Spirit Publishing, an imprint of Teacher Created Materials since 2021, has published practical self-help and social-emotional learning books since 1983, including its Self-Help for Teens line on mental health, neurodiversity, and bullying. It’s a fit for nonfiction, not YA novels. Free Spirit accepts proposals from authors and agents through Submittable: a cover letter, résumé, market analysis, outline, two sample chapters, and a promotion plan.

19. Persea Books

Founded in 1975 by Michael and Karen Braziller, Persea Books is an independent literary publisher in New York whose list includes teen fiction, poetry, fiction, essays, memoir, and revived classics. At the moment Persea reads only poetry queries, sent by email with up to twelve sample pages, and it runs two annual poetry prizes: the Lexi Rudnitsky First Book Prize and the Lexi Rudnitsky/Editor’s Choice Award. Contact and submissions.

20. Watershed Books (Pelican Book Group)

Watershed Books is the Christian young adult imprint of Pelican Book Group. It wants faith-centered fiction of 25,000 to 65,000 words for readers aged 14 to 19, from adventure and mystery to romance, sci-fi, fantasy, and coming-of-age, with layered protagonists who grow spiritually without the story turning preachy. Watershed accepts submissions through Pelican’s online fiction form, and agents use a separate query address. Books that have already been self-published aren’t considered. Submission guidelines.

21. Amberjack Publishing (Chicago Review Press)

Amberjack Publishing, acquired by Chicago Review Press in 2019, publishes women-centered commercial and literary fiction for adult and YA readers, from the Black horror anthology All These Sunken Souls to the ballet rom-com Pas de Don’t. Chicago Review Press no longer accepts fiction proposals and takes nonfiction only, so read Amberjack’s list for comparable titles more than as a place to pitch a novel.

22. Dancing Cat Books

Now called DCB Young Readers, this Cormorant Books imprint publishes middle grade and young adult fiction and nonfiction, plus picture books, by Canadian authors only. It welcomes Indigenous, LGBTQ2S+, and other underrepresented writers. DCB accepts unagented middle grade and YA manuscripts through CanSubmit: the whole manuscript plus a 200-word synopsis. Picture book manuscripts are on hold for now, though illustrators may email portfolios.

23. Second Story Press

Founded in 1988, Second Story Press is a Canadian feminist publisher of adult, young adult, and children’s books about social justice, human rights, and equality, often with strong female characters. Most of its authors are Canadian citizens or permanent residents. Second Story accepts submissions; its guidelines list the categories it’s reading now. Submission guidelines.

24. Pajama Press

Founded in 2011, Pajama Press is a Toronto literary press publishing picture books, early chapter books, middle grade, and literary nonfiction, with a strong interest in diverse and immigrant stories. Its current guidelines cover middle grade and picture books, not YA. Pajama Press accepts unagented email queries; for middle grade, send a summary and the first ten chapters, and allow four to six months for a reply. Submission guidelines.

25. August House

Based in Atlanta, August House publishes picture books, story collections, and resource books rooted in world folktales, oral tradition, and scary stories. It isn’t a YA fiction house, but it suits retold folktales and storytelling projects. August House accepts proposals by post only and replies within about six months if interested. Submission guidelines.

26. Jolly Fish Press

Jolly Fish Press is the North Star Editions imprint for middle grade fiction, from light, imaginative tales to stories that tackle difficult subjects, while YA manuscripts go to sister imprint Flux. North Star accepts middle grade fiction for Jolly Fish in set query windows, so check its current guidelines for the dates before you send.

27. Peachtree Publishing Company

Peachtree Publishing Company is an independent Atlanta house, founded in 1977, that publishes board books, picture books, and middle grade and young adult fiction and nonfiction, including its Peachtree Teen imprint. Peachtree does not accept unsolicited manuscripts. It reviews agent queries and requested materials only.

28. Usborne

Usborne is a UK children’s publisher led by Managing Director Nicola Usborne. Its non-fiction, baby, activity, and picture books are written in-house, and only the fiction list takes outside manuscripts, through literary agents. Usborne does not accept unsolicited manuscripts and warns writers about impersonators asking for money. Manuscript FAQ.

29. Versify (HarperCollins)

Versify is Kwame Alexander’s imprint at HarperCollins Children’s Books, publishing picture books, poetry, novels, and nonfiction under the motto “change the world, one word at a time.” It has been closed to submissions since April 2020, so you’ll need an agent.

30. Dial Books For Young Readers

Founded in 1961, Dial Books for Young Readers is a Penguin Young Readers imprint publishing everything from board books to YA novels such as I’ll Give You the Sun, with Newbery and Caldecott Honors to its name. Dial does not accept unsolicited submissions, so an agent is required.

Names you may be looking for

Polis Books

Polis Books was an independent New York publisher of crime fiction, thrillers, and YA. It closed in 2024, and its old web address no longer belongs to the press.

Speaking Volumes

Speaking Volumes is a UK live literature organization that runs events and tours for underrepresented writers. It does not publish books.

Conclusion

The biggest YA imprints mostly work through agents, but this list also holds plenty of presses that read unagented manuscripts, from Page Street and Flux to Albert Whitman and Holiday House. Match your book to the publisher’s age range and genre, follow its guidelines to the letter, and keep an eye on the ones with seasonal windows. Next up, you may want to explore a guide on coloring book publishers.