Trigger to launch children’s mental health and wellbeing imprint

Trigger Publishing will launch trade-focused children’s mental health and wellbeing imprint Upside Down Books later this year, with Alli Brydon, formerly of the Bright Agency, joining as commissioning editor. 

The inaugural list will initially include fiction and nonfiction picture books, activity, and middle grade that focus on mental health issues while also promoting positivity, emotional intelligence, and wellness for children.

The list will launch later in 2019 with Upside Down offering young readers “a unique shift in perspective through comforting, nurturing, playful, and humorous books, while sparking thought, conversation, and action for children and the adults in their lives”, said the publisher.

Trigger chairman Marcus Leaver said: “This is a significant step for Trigger Publishing and shows the ambition we have to be the mental health and wellbeing publisher for all the family. Publishing books for children to help families start those conversations at an early age will help further reduce the stigma of mental health, something that we all feel passionate about at Trigger.”

Brydon spent nearly 10 years as an acquisitions editor at Sterling Publishing/Barnes & Noble, before taking on the role of managing agent of Bright USA and helping to establish and grow London-based Bright Agency in America. In September 2017, she moved on to establish Alli Brydon Creative, a consulting, editorial, and writing business specialising in children’s book publishing.  

Brydon added: “Children’s wellbeing is at such a critical point. Childhood anxiety is on the rise, and bullying constantly takes on new, digital-based lifeforms. I’m thrilled to build a publishing program that will help kids cope with stress, explore their emotions, and celebrate their breakthroughs.