If you’re recently written an exciting thriller or are currently working on one, you might wonder who the best publisher is for your novel.

While self-publishing is always an option, there are dozens of publishers out there looking for excellent thriller stories, from small, independent presses to large, traditional publishers.

In this post, you’ll find 36 thriller publishers that are currently accepting submissions.

Thriller Publishers Open to Unsolicited Submissions

The following thriller publishers accept unsolicited submissions and do not require an agent to submit your work.

1. Brash Books

Brash Books was founded by award-winning mystery authors Lee Goldberg and Joel Goldman. They specialize in thrillers, mysteries, whodunits, and stories of suspense.

Submission Guidelines: www.brash-books.com/submissions

2. Hard Case Crime

Hard Case Crime specializes in hardboiled fiction novels, as well as thrilling graphic novels and comics.

Submission Guidelines: www.hardcasecrime.com/submissions

3. Joffe Books

Joffe Books was founded in 2014 by Jasper Joffe. They were proud to shortlisted for Independent Publisher of the Year at the British Book Awards in 2020 and 2021, and specialize in thrillers, crime fiction, and suspense novels.

Submission Guidelines: www.joffebooks.com/submissions

4. Seventh Street Books

Seventh Street Books is an award-winning publisher of mystery, thriller, and crime fiction.

Submission Guidelineswww.seventhstreetbooks.com/submissions

5. Bella Books

Bella Books publishes unique stories across all genres, including mysteries and thrillers, that celebrate the diversity of the lesbian, queer, bisexual, and gender non-conforming communities.

Submission Guidelineswww.bellabooks.com/submission-guidelines

6. Bitter Lemon Press

Bitter Lemon Press is a London-based independent publisher that specializes in thrillers and other contemporary crime fiction books. 

Submission Guidelineswww.bitterlemonpress.com/submissions

7. Bloomsbury Publishing

Bloomsbury is an independent publishing house established in 1986, and is also the original publisher of the Harry Potter series. They publish a variety of fiction genres, including crime, thriller, and mystery novels.

Submission Guidelines: www.bloomsbury.com/submissions

8. Bold Strokes Books

Bold Strokes Books publishes a variety of genres including thrillers, with a special focus on YA fiction and LGBTQ fiction.

Submission Guidelines: www.boldstrokesbooks.com/submissions

9. Camel Press

Camel Press publishes mysteries, cozy mysteries, mystery thrillers, romantic suspense, romance (historical and contemporary), westerns and select historical fiction.

Submission Guidelines:
www.camelpress.com/submissions

10. Carina Press

Carina Press is a digital publisher that specializes in romance and romance subgenres, including romantic suspense thrillers. They also release select titles in print and audio.

Submission Guidelines: www.carinapress.com/submission-guidelines

11. Felony & Mayhem Press

Felony & Mayhem publishes mystery fiction for adults. The company launched in 2005 and now has over 100 titles in print.

Submission Guidelines: www.felonyandmayhem.com/submissions

12. Kensington Books

Kensington Publishing was founded in 1974 in New York City. It’s a multi-generational family business and publishes over 500 titles each year across many genres, including thrillers, romance, historical fiction, cozy mysteries and non-fiction.

Submission Guidelineswww.kensingtonbooks.com/submissions

13. North Star Press of St. Cloud

North Star Press is a family business that specializes in a variety of genres, including mysteries and thrillers.

Submission Guidelines: www.northstarpress.com/submissions

14. Crooked Lane Press

Crooked Lanes Press was founded in 2014. They’re dedicated to crime fiction in both print and digital formats.

Submission Guidelines: crookedlanebooks.com/contact/

15. Dark Edge Press

Dark Edge Press is relatively new to the game, founded in 2020. They’re the number one crime fiction publisher in Wales, and also publish literary fiction, contemporary romance novels, and popular historical fiction.

Submission Guidelines: www.darkedgepress.co.uk

16. Fahrenheit Press

Fahrenheit Press publishes crime and thrillers exclusively and accepts both agented and unagented submissions.

Submission Guidelines: www.fahrenheit-press.com/submissions.html

17. Level Best

Level Best accepts submissions in crime fiction, including mystery, thriller, suspense, historical, traditional, and contemporary novels.

Submission Guidelines: www.levelbestbooks.us/submissions.html

18. Tule Publishing

Tule Mystery is a newly developed imprint that ranges from amateur mysteries to in-depth crime novels. They’re open to submissions of cozy mysteries, thrillers, and more.

Submission Guidelines: tulepublishing.com/submissions/

19. Bancroft Press

Bancroft Press is proud to publish stories they’re passionate about, regardless of the genre.

Submission Guidelines: www.bancroftpress.com/submission

20. Black Best Sheet Books

Black Bed Sheet Books publishes horror, sci-fi, fantasy, thrillers, and anything with a dark tone.

Submission Guidelines: blackbedsheetbooks.com/submissions/

21. Penmore Press

Penmore Press is an Arizona-based independent publisher that publishes mysteries and thrillers, as well as other fiction and nonfiction genres.

Submission Guidelines: www.penmorepress.com/submissions/

22. Bluewater Press

BluewaterPress is a small publishing company whose books include include exciting non-fiction, inspirational self-help, educational manuals, thriller novels, and more.

Submission Guidelines: bluewaterpress.com/pages/how-to-publish-with-bluewaterpress-llc

Agent Required

The following publishers require a literary agent to submit your manuscript.

23. Simon & Schuster

Simon & Schuster is one of the “Big Five” publishers, and the third largest publisher in the U.S.

Submission Guidelines: www.simonandschuster.biz/submissions

24. Poisoned Pen Press

Poisoned Pen Press is an independent publisher of mystery novels based in Scottsdale, Arizona. They publish all kinds of thriller and mystery subgenres, from ghost stories to political thrillers.

Submission Guidelines: poisonedpenpress.com/submissions/

25. Allison and Busby

Allison & Busby is an independent publisher established in 1967. They publish many fiction genres, including crime, mystery, and thriller novels.

Submission Guidelines: www.allisonandbusby.com/submission-guidelines

26. Grove Atlantic

Grove Atlantic is an independent publisher based in New York City. They publish a variety of genres, including mysteries and thrillers.

Submission Guidelines: www.groveatlantic.com/submissions

27. Hachette Book Group USA

Hachette Book Group (HBG) is a division of the educational publisher Hachette Livre. HBG publishes both nonfiction and fiction, including mysteries and thrillers.

Submission Guidelines: www.hachettebookgroup.com/submissions

28. Harlequin

Since 1949, Harlequin has been a leading publisher of books for women across dozens of genres and subgenres, including all sorts of thrillers.

Websitewww.harlequin.com

29. HarperCollins

HarperCollins is one of the world’s largest book publishing companies and one of the Big Five. They’ve published mystery novels by greats like Agatha Christie and Karin Slaughter.

Submission Guidelineswww.harpercollins.com/submissions

30. No Exit Press

No Exit Press is an imprint of Oldcastle Books. Since 1987, No Exit Press has primarily published crime fiction.

Submission Guidelines: www.noexit.co.uk/submissions

31. Oceanview Publishing

Oceanview is a fast-growing independent publisher of mystery, thriller, and suspense titles.

Submission Guidelineswww.oceanviewpub.com/submissions

32. Soho Press

Soho Press is an independent book publisher that produces 80-90 books a year and is known for its award-winning international crime fiction, and groundbreaking young adult fiction.

Submission Guidelines: www.sohopress.com/submissions

33. Tyndale House Publishers

Tyndale is a Christian publisher that publishes books in a variety of genres, including suspense and mystery thrillers.

Submission Guidelines: www.tyndale.com/faq

34. Amphorae Publishing Group

Amphorae is a woman- and veteran-owned publishing house that publishes literary fiction, historical fiction, science fiction, LGBTQ Fiction, and mystery/thrillers. They actually do not require an agent to submit, but agented submissions are reviewed first, and unagented submissions can take 9–15 months to review.

Submission Guidelines: www.amphoraepublishing.com/about/

35. Angry Robot Books

Since 2009, Angry Robot has been publishing adult science fiction and fantasy, including sci-fi thrillers.

Submission Guidelines: www.angryrobotbooks.com/submissions/

36. Belle Books

BelleBooks was founded in 1999 with a focus on Southern fiction, and in 2008 added a second imprint, Bell Bridge Books, to expand its offerings.

Submission Guidelines: www.bellebooks.com/Contact

Publishing Your Thriller

Finding a potential home for your manuscript is just the first step toward getting your story published.

Whether you plan to approach a literary agent or publisher next, you should make sure you know how to write an outstanding query letter so you can effectively pitch your story.
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