EK BooksBooks with heart on issues that matter
Free · Held quarterly · Everyone welcome
The Publisher's Town Hall
Good news — EK Books is acquiring. Come and spend forty-five minutes with us and we'll tell you exactly what we're looking for, and how to give your manuscript its very best shot.
This session: Tuesday 11 August 2026
45 minutes on Zoom · A short talk, then live Q&A
This quarter's talk
The Top 5 Mistakes Aspiring Children's Authors Make
— That May Be Holding You Back
Save your spot
Pop your name and email below. We'll send you the Zoom link 48 hours before the event.
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Can't make this one? Register and we'll send you the recording, and let you know when the next quarterly Town Hall is on.
What we'll cover
Come and spend some time with your publisher
This is a town hall, not a lecture — a short, honest talk, and then the floor is yours. Bring your questions, and a cup of tea.
The first 30 minutes
A short talk
We'll go through what EK Books is looking for, why we take on some projects and not others, and five common mistakes that might be stopping your manuscript from getting a reply.
- What we're looking for right now
- Why we say yes to some books and no to others
- The five mistakes — and how to fix them
Don't worry — they're all easy to fix.
The last 15 minutes
Live Q&A
Then we open the floor. Bring your questions about craft, the submission process, the market, or building a career as a children's author.
- No gatekeepers, no filtered answers
- The bit everyone tells us they enjoy most
One restriction: we cannot discuss specific pitches or submissions. Please keep questions general so all writers can benefit from them.
Your host
Nathan Thomas
Nathan is managing editor at Exisle Publishing, the parent imprint of EK Books. He reads hundreds of children's manuscripts a year, has a big say in what EK Books takes on, and represents the list at book fairs like Frankfurt and Bologna.
When it's on
Find your time zone
We rotate the hour each quarter so it isn't always the same hemisphere getting up early.
Who you'll be talking to
A little about EK Books
Since 2013 we've published children's books on the themes other publishers tend to avoid. Our motto is 'Books with Heart on Issues that Matter' — and we really do mean it.
We've been nominated three times for Publisher of the Year at the Bologna Children's Book Fair, and our titles have twice won the SCBWI Crystal Kite Award for Book of the Year in Australia and New Zealand. You'll find our books across the UK, USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, and in translation throughout Europe and Asia.
Tuesday 11 August 2026
Come and say hello
Most writers never get the chance to sit down with a publisher and simply ask. Four times a year, you can — and we'd genuinely love to meet you.
Save My Spot — It's Free →Free · Held quarterly · Recording sent to everyone who registers
Got a question before then? Email [email protected] — we always write back.