ABOUT US

Bitterleaf Books is an independent press based in York which publishes fantasy stories for writers and readers who need to escape into fictional worlds. We publish writers from all backgrounds, and encourage marginalised groups to submit to us. Our press has been set up by two York St. John students, Shannon and Emma, as part of their Master's degree in Publishing. Find out more about our co-founders in the 'Meet the team' page. We are a not-for-profit organisation, our 'profit' is knowing we have helped writers in getting their work into the world. 

Our aim is to provide a safe space for writers to share their work, particularly first-time writers who may have struggled to be published. We understand how daunting and difficult it is for first time writers to find their feet in the publishing world so we aim to provide a hassle-free service that ensures our writers feel as safe as possible. 
 
We chose the name ‘Bitterleaf’ due to it being a plant often used in tea, and has medicinal properties. We hope that our books can provide their own type of healing, similar to the plant its named after, for people who need to escape into a fantasy world where the stresses of university life can be forgotten for a while. We hope that people can enjoy our collection of fantasy stories with their own cup of healing tea (or other hot beverage) and be swept away into magical lands. We value our readers just as much as we do our authors, without our readers we would not have the platform to do what we dream. If you would like to help us throughout our journey as a beta-reader, please email us at admin@bitterleafbooks.com :)

Our books will be in an 'anthology' form, focusing on short stories, flash fiction, and poetry. In the build up to the opening of the submissions, we will announce a theme in which an author's work should fit nicely within. All themes will be connected to fantasy fiction, it is up to the author to provide us with their own take on this theme. Please also check our submission guidelines beforehand.