Submissions

Would you like to send us your manuscript? Portage & Main Press and HighWater Press accept different kinds of submissions. Please read the descriptions below to help determine which imprint is the best fit for your submission.

Portage & Main Press

Since 1967, Portage & Main Press (PMP) has been publishing quality educational resources for teachers and students. Our authors are master educators, dedicated to the success of all learners. Our books – practical, yet based on solid theory and research – help teachers make real change in their classrooms and in the lives of their students.

Portage & Main Press seeks manuscripts that advance the goals of professional educators. Does this sound like your manuscript? Click here to read the full submission guidelines for Portage & Main Press.

HighWater Press

HighWater Press (HWP) books reflect a wide-ranging expression of Indigenous cultures and experiences. HWP develops and promotes unique voices that bring a new understanding of Indigenous peoples and communities, through their artists, to Canadian and international readers.

Does this sound like your manuscript? Click here to read the full submission guidelines for HighWater Press.

Portage & Main Press Submission Guidelines

PMP PUBLISHES

Books that focus on collaborative, inclusive, project-based, inquiry-based best practices, books that are curriculum-based, and books that include Indigenous perspectives and knowledge.

PMP DOES NOT PUBLISH

Books outside the educational realm (including general fiction, children’s fiction, memoirs, poetry, and general nonfiction).

Student writing, dissertations, or personal journals.

For all submissions to Portage & Main Press:

To submit, please provide

• A cover letter, including a short biography and a brief synopsis of the book. Tell us why your book is a good idea, who would buy it, and what distinguishes it from competing titles.
• A table of contents or outline
• A representative sample of the manuscript (no more than 20 pages)
• Information about proposed illustrations or photography
• A CV indicating your previous writing experience and your credentials and expertise in the proposed subject area.

All submissions should be provided in a standard, letter-size document in a regular 12-pt font. Email submissions should be sent as a PDF that conforms to these guidelines.

Include your name, address, and email address in your cover letter and on the manuscript.

If you are submitting your manuscript simultaneously to other publishers, please tell us in the cover letter.

Please do not submit an original copy of your manuscript, as manuscripts cannot be returned, and we cannot be responsible for unsolicited manuscripts. Likewise, do not submit original artwork or photographs.

Do not send your full manuscript. If we like your sample, we will contact you for more.

Please note that it may take from three to six months to respond to your query.

Submissions should be emailed to acquisitions@portageandmainpress.com or mailed to

Acquisitions Editor
Portage & Main Press
100-318 McDermot Avenue
Winnipeg, MB
R3A 0A2

We regret that, due to the volume of queries received, we are unable to provide feedback or critiques of your work. Please make use of resources in your community, such as writers-in-residence at your local library, and writers’ groups for these purposes.

HighWater Press Submission Guidelines

HWP PUBLISHES

HighWater Press exclusively publishes books written by Indigenous authors in the following categories

• Adult nonfiction titles on Indigenous history, culture, and contemporary conversations.
• Genre fiction and general fiction for adults, including new adult titles.
• General fiction, genre fiction, and nonfiction for middle years (ages 8-12) and young adult (ages 12 and up). Nonfiction titles for middle years and young adults should be relevant to school curriculums for the age group.
• Children’s literature and picture books.

HWP DOES NOT PUBLISH

Poetry, natural history, dissertations or other scholarly works, self-help, how-to, or cookbooks. We are not interested in manuscripts written solely to convey a moral or lesson.

For all submissions to HighWater Press:

To submit, please provide

• A cover letter, including a short biography and a brief synopsis of the book. Tell us why your book is a good idea, who would buy it, and what distinguishes it from competing titles. For fiction, include the main characters, setting, and theme.
• A table of contents or outline (nonfiction).
• A representative sample of the manuscript (no more than 20 pages) or a detailed proposal (for graphic novels).
• Information about proposed illustrations or photography.
• A CV indicating your previous writing experience and your credentials and expertise in the proposed subject area.

All submissions should be provided in a standard, letter-size document in a regular 12-pt font. Email submissions should be sent as a PDF that conforms to these guidelines.

Include your name, address, and email address in your cover letter and on the manuscript.

If you are submitting your manuscript simultaneously to other publishers, please tell us in the cover letter.

Please do not submit an original copy of your manuscript, as manuscripts cannot be returned, and we cannot be responsible for unsolicited manuscripts. Likewise, do not submit original artwork or photographs.

Do not send your full manuscript. If we like your sample, we will contact you for more.

Please note that it may take from three to six months to respond to your query.

Submissions should be emailed to acquisitions@highwaterpress.com or mailed to

Acquisitions Editor
HighWater Press
100-318 McDermot Avenue
Winnipeg, MB
R3A 0A2

We regret that, due to the volume of queries received, we are unable to provide feedback or critiques of your work. Please make use of resources in your community, such as writers-in-residence at your local library and writers’ groups, for these purposes.