Bloomsbury Children’s Books partners with Cocoa Magazine to demystify publishing for children 

Bloomsbury Children’s Books and Cocoa Magazine have announced a partnership that aims to demystify the publishing industry and demonstrate to children the career paths that could be available to them in the future. They will also run a competition for a child to have their story and cover idea turned into a book.

The partnership will run "inspirational and informative" content in each quarterly issue of Cocoa Magazine, alongside a competition that gives children the opportunity to see their own writing in print. The goal is to show children that turning a hobby into a career is an attainable possibility, with each quarterly issue of Cocoa Magazine debunking a different department within the publishing process, including editorial, design, sales, marketing and publicity.

Each issue will feature activities related to the department covered, as well as a short Q&A with Bloomsbury staff about their role and how they got into the industry. The partnership will also include content from Bloomsbury’s authors, illustrators and books to illustrate – particularly to children of colour — that "there are people who look like them in the publishing industry". 

Children will also get the chance to win afternoon tea with one of Bloomsbury Children’s authors or illustrators, as well as winning Bloomsbury books.

Inspired by her daughter, founder and editor in chief Serlina Boyd launched a magazine to celebrate Black girls, Cocoa Girl, and a few months later launched Cocoa Boy. Cocoa Magazine is published by Cocoa Publishing and aims to give Black children aged seven to 11 a voice while providing education about Black culture. Cocoa Magazine has a schools subscription audience and children are at the heart of the magazine, writing and creating the content.

Boyd said: "We are thrilled to be partnering with Bloomsbury to bring one lucky Cocoa reader the chance to see their own short story in print! We want to encourage our readers to consider a career in publishing and this is something as a brand we have wanted to do for a long time. We are so glad to be working with Bloomsbury on this partnership."

Annie Muyang, senior diversity and inclusion manager at Bloomsbury, added: "This one of a kind partnership initiated by the children’s marketing team at Bloomsbury signifies a significant step towards fostering diversity and inclusion within the publishing realm. We are enthusiastic about the opportunity to inspire and mentor the next generation of talent, breaking barriers and creating a space where Cocoa readers can envision a future in the world of literature."

The partnership and competition will launch in Cocoa Magazine’s January 2024 issue and further activity in the magazine will follow in the quarterly issues to come.