agency. Owning our companies gives us the power to publish the stories that we believe in. Children’s fiction is gradually getting better at representation on the page, but we believe that true inclusion means space for everyone, at all levels of the publishing journey. It’s only when the owners, editors and senior management at publishing houses are drawn from a wider and more diverse pool of talent that we will see this change embedded. Change cannot only come from the bottom up – it needs to be led, from the top down. So micro presses such as ours, owned and led by diverse teams, have a key role to play in creating a better publishing ecosystem. Inclusion is only meaningful when under-represented groups have power. We need under- represented children, reading inclusive books, to know that they too can have the agency to create the world they want to see, and to be in charge when they’re older.


And we think that working together, mutually supporting each other, is a positive way to create change; pulling on each other’s strengths to better realise our vision.


What’s the aim of Strength in Stories? Publishing is a tough industry, particularly for small presses. So our aim, first and foremost, is to keep being able to get the books out that we think deserve to be seen, from authors that we think deserve to be heard. Our authors and illustrators learn with us; often it’s their first step in publishing. We’re a part of the industry that is open to publishing emerging creatives. We love working with and nurturing debut talent that may have otherwise been overlooked. Our different perspective on publishing allows those we work with to have more freedom and creativity in their work.


This takes time and dedication, so we are supporting each other, as a group and asking, as a group, for support. This year, we will publish three titles


Sheju Adiyatiparambil-John, Judy Skidmore, Sonya McGilchrist and Ebony Lyon.


– one from each publisher – reflecting our core values and giving a chance to some debut talent.


Dinosaur Books Ltd will publish an upper middle grade adventure: Last Girl In by new British Caribbean author, Cheryl Diane Parkinson Last Girl In features a cricket-loving,


London girl – Kerry Ann. She’s bold, brilliant (at cricket) and determined to both play the game she loves and to live her life on her own terms. This is a magical, time- slip tale in which Kerry Ann discovers how to face down the local bullies by learning from her granddad’s experiences in London back in the 1950s. It’s a celebration of cricket, the Windrush generation, British Caribbean culture, and girls in sport. Parakeet Books Ltd will publish Paper Boats, a beautiful picture book by Devjani Bodepudi, illustrated by fresh talent Anushka Bansal.


Aadi visits his lovely Nanamma in India but it’s monsoon season and Aadi is bored, bored, bored! Nanamma has some tricks up her sleeves to relieve his boredom but who’s that watching from behind the rain clouds? Formy Books CIC will publish My Brother is the Prettiest Queen in the World, a heart-warming and empowering LGBTQIA+ inclusive picture book written by debut author Ashley Baptiste and illustrated by Kandice Johnson. Perfect for ages five, the title is an uplifting and heart-warming celebration of


Spring-Summer 2023 PEN&INC. 25


family togetherness and acceptance. If you’d like to help embed change in UK publishing, a great way to support Strength In Stories and these debut authors and illustrators, is to pre-order our books for your libraries, either via our website or through Gardners, Peters or Askews. And if you would like to find out about events for your libraries, please get in touch, via www.strengthinstories.com. PEN&INC.


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