UPDATED January 19th 2023: They appear to no longer be accepting submissions. There are no longer any guidelines on their website.
Magination Press is the children’s book imprint of the American Psychological Association. As a publisher they focus on sharing mental health expertise and psychological knowledge. The books they publish include bestsellers and much-loved family favorites including: The Hugging Tree, Something Happened in Our Town, My Whirling Twirling Motor, You’ll Find Me, Papa, Daddy, and Riley, and It Hurts When I Poop! The intended audience of the books publish are children and teens.
Their books are well presented with accessible and appealing illustrations. I have seen many of their books at my local bookstore, which means they have good distribution, even though they don’t disclose the distributor.
As the editors phrase it, “It’s the combined power of psychology and literature that makes our books special.” The work they publish covers a wide range of mental health topics that include but are not limited to anxiety, divorce, mindfulness, identity, death, and depression. For this reason most of their books are written by PhD or PsyD-level psychologists, school counselors, or other mental health professionals. Doctorate-level credentials are not required, the author should have expertise in the topic area their book covers.
Before submitting a manuscript for possible acquisition by Magination Press, you must send a query letter first. If the query letter appeals to the editors, they will contact you and ask that you submit a full proposal, which should include the following material:
- Brief synopsis: Provide a brief summary of the story or nonfiction work. Be sure to specify the psychological issue or situation you are addressing.
- Complete manuscript: Please send a complete story or nonfiction manuscript, table of contents, and all end matter (reference list, additional resources, and afterword).
- Audience: Specify the intended age of the reader, and the situations and uses you envision for the book.
- Author’s credentials: Include a resume or curriculum vitae.
Query letters must be submitted via email or mail. They will only respond if they are interested.
To learn more, go here.
Emily Harstone is the author of many popular books, including The Authors Publish Guide to Manuscript Submissions, Submit, Publish, Repeat, and The 2021 Guide to Manuscript Publishers.
She regularly teaches three acclaimed courses on writing and publishing at The Writer’s Workshop at Authors Publish. You can follow her on Facebook here.
