Tilbury House is a press based out of Maine that publishes children’s books including board books, beginning readers, picture books and middle grade titles.
They have published some very successful children’s books, including Talking Walls, Sheila Says We’re Weird, and Playing War. Each has a focused message involving a social issue. You can get a feel for their catalog as a whole here.
Tilbury House used to publish books aimed at adults, primarily regional nonfiction about Maine or the northeast, but this is no longer the case.
They only accept electronic submissions. The subject line of your email should contain the words “Tilbury House Submission” along with the title of your work. You should also include in the subject line the subject (science, nature, etc.) of your manuscript, and if it is fiction or nonfiction. The body of the email should contain a detailed cover letter and a brief summary of your manuscript. They’d also love to know of any published books that have similarities with yours, and how your book will be different.
There is no need to provide illustrations alongside a picture book story. If you have already illustrated your story, the art work will be considered separately.
It seems like they have a very clear marketing plan for most books, which is a good thing. This is one reason why they are only interested in such a narrow range of publications.
They only respond to submissions they are interested in. They try to do so within six months. You can see their full submission guidelines here.
Emily Harstone is the author of many popular books, including The Authors Publish Guide to Manuscript Submissions, Submit, Publish, Repeat, and The 2024 Guide to Manuscript Publishers. She regularly teaches three acclaimed courses on writing and publishing at The Writer’s Workshop at Authors Publish. You can follow her on Facebook here.
