Shambhala Publications is an independent publishing company based in Boulder, Colorado. They are distributed by Penguin Random House Publisher Services. They were founded in 1969 and “is dedicated to creating books, audio, and immersive courses aimed at improving lives—in ways big and small—in the hope of contributing to the development of a thoughtful, kindhearted, and contemplative society”.
They have approximately 40 employees, and about 1,600 titles in print. The work they publish often is focused on meditation, as well as a range of spiritual traditions “from Buddhism and Taoism to contemplative traditions within Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, and Sufism.” They also publish books on health, wellness, yoga, and martial arts, as well as books on psychology, emotional well-being, and mindfulness.
They allow authors to submit previously self-published books, which is very unusual. All submissions must be made via email.
They ask that all authors, at minimum, include “a synopsis, a chapter outline, a brief biographical statement or résumé, and two sample chapters”. They try to respond within 12-15 weeks.
They also publish books for kids between the ages of 0-8 and you can learn more about their guidelines for children’s books here.
To learn more about submitting work to them, go their website here. Please read their full guidelines carefully before submitting.
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.
