Nosy Crow holds open call for picture book submissions from writers of colour

Children's indie Nosy Crow is mounting an open call for submissions from writers of colour to broaden its picture books list.

The opportunity also open to writer-illustrators, who can submit images along with their picture book stories.

For a period of four weeks starting 21st January, writers and writer-illustrators are encouraged to submit stories, which will be reviewed by editors and designers on the picture book team. Texts should be suitable for children aged around three to five and can be in rhyme or prose.

Submissions are free and can come from anywhere in the world, but should be written in English and must be previously unpublished. Writers and writer-illustrators must be aged 18 or older.

Alice Bartosinski, senior commissioning editor of picture books, said: “Here at Nosy Crow, we publish brilliant and talented authors and illustrators from a diverse range of backgrounds, but we want to increase that diversity. It’s incredibly important to us that children are able to see themselves in the books we publish, and also that our books allow children to experience worlds and hear voices that are not like their own. And these worlds and voices need to be authentic. I hope that we will receive many fantastic stories that are truly original, funny and inspiring, and I can’t wait to see the exciting new talent that our open submissions window will uncover.”

Kate Wilson, m.d., added: “With a third of our primary school-age children coming from minority ethnic origins according to the Department for Education, it is more important than ever that the books we publish reflect the lived experience of contemporary children, and we look forward to redressing a balance and finding new writers, new stories and new perspectives."