Port Adelaide - home of Ginninderra Press since 2008
Ginninderra Press is an award-winning independent publisher based in Port Adelaide, South Australia
To browse our books, click here. (Or click on MENU at the top right of your screen and then click on Store.)
Ginninderra is part of Canberra's Belconnen area, in which Ginninderra Press operated for its first twelve years before moving to Port Adelaide in 2008. Ginninderra is an Aboriginal word said to mean 'throwing out little rays of light’.
Ginninderra Press, described in The Canberra Times as 'versatile and visionary', is an independent book publisher set up in 1996 to provide opportunities for new and emerging authors as well as for authors writing in unfashionable genres or on non-mainstream subjects. Many of our titles have won awards (scroll down to see the full list).
Ginninderra Press recognises the fact that many people have good ideas for books but cannot get them published, either because of their inexperience in preparing manuscripts or because the potential sales are insufficient to interest a conventional publisher. Ginninderra Press offers expert editing and proofreading, as well as design and lay out services. Scroll down to see submission guidelines. All our books are now print on demand and all (except for our chapbook series - Pocket Poets, Pocket Polemics, Pocket Places, Pocket People, Picaro Poets) are available through worldwide sales channels (including Amazon and Book Depository).
All Ginninderra Press titles go through an editorial selection and review process; only a small proportion of titles is accepted for publication. Where relevant, evidence of peer review is expected. Previous publication is looked on favourably but is not essential.
Ginninderra Press chooses to operate without any direct subsidies from the public purse. The press believes that works requiring subsidies are of their nature likely to be only marginally commercially viable and subsidies encourage over-production. Because it receives no direct subsidies and chooses to publish non-mainstream works, Ginninderra Press of necessity operates on a very limited budget.
Ginninderra Press is owned by Stephen Matthews, who has had extensive experience in teaching, bookselling and editing. After graduating from Cambridge University, Stephen was a teacher in the UK and Australia for nearly twenty years. He then had a very successful bookselling career. Stephen contributed book reviews, author profiles and articles to The Canberra Times and Australian Book Review for many years. He has written manuscript reports for several large publishers and has been a judge for literary awards and competitions.
In 2003, Stephen received a Centenary Medal for his ‘contribution to the writing community and ongoing support for local authors’. In October 1997, he won a Canberra Critics Circle Award for Literature for his ‘tireless contribution to the writing community’. Stephen compiled ‘How Did the Fire Know We Lived Here?’, a best-selling collection of stories about the January 2003 Canberra bushfires which raised over $73,000 for the Bushfire Recovery Appeal. He also edited Eye of the Soul, a collection of interviews with writers for children and young adults.
Benefits of being published by Ginninderra Press
- widely respected, award-winning imprint established in 1996
- access to worldwide sales channels (including Amazon and Book Depository)
- inclusion on the Ginninderra Press website
- marketing support and advice, including free colour flyer/order forms and launch invitations
- opportunities to participate in events exclusive to Ginninderra Press authors (such as readings and forums, as well as special projects like The Heart of Port Adelaide, Collecting Writers, First Refuge and the Pocket Poets series)
Submission guidelines
We do not accept manuscripts from writers resident outside Australia.
We do not publish books with internal colour illustrations.
We do not publish children's books.
Details of our publication arrangements are available on request.
Non-fiction
We favour a focus on matters of social, cultural or political concern. Previous publication is not essential. Maximum word limit is 100,000.
Fiction
We accept novels only from writers previously published by Ginninderra Press. Collections of stories are welcome. We look for manuscripts that are socially aware, combining emotional impact with convincing storytelling. Previous publication is not essential. Maximum word limit is 100,000.
Poetry
We look for manuscripts that combine emotional impact with arresting imagery. Social awareness is also looked on favourably. Previous publication is not essential.
Picaro Poets
Submissions for the Picaro Poets chapbook series are invited from all poets. Details are available on request.
Pocket Poets
Submissions for the Pocket Poets chapbook series are invited only from authors previously published by Ginninderra Press (either in a collection of their own or in one of our anthologies). Details and a sample from the series are available on request.
Pocket Polemics
Submissions for the Pocket Polemics chapbook series are invited from authors with something provocative to say about a social, cultural or political issue. Submissions must be well argued and should be approximately 5,000 words. Authors do not need to have been previously published by Ginninderra Press. Details and a sample from the series are available on request.
Pocket Places
Submissions for the Pocket Places chapbook series are invited from authors who have a favourite place they wish to evoke. Submissions should be approximately 5,000 words. Authors do not need to have been previously published by Ginninderra Press. Details and a sample from the series are available on request.
Pocket People
Submissions for the Pocket People chapbook series are invited from authors who have written a tribute to an unsung man or woman. Submissions should be approximately 5,000 words. Authors do not need to have been previously published by Ginninderra Press. Details and a sample from the series are available on request.
Disk or hard copy?
Complete manuscripts should be submitted in hard-copy form - email submissions are not accepted.
Presentation
Matters such as font size and spacing are left to authors' discretion.
Waiting time
It may take up to eight weeks before a decision is made whether or not to make an offer to publish. Manuscripts that are not accompanied by a stamped, addressed envelope may not be returned.
Production time
It usually takes at least eight months from the acceptance of a manuscript to the date of publication.
Awards & praise
'Ginninderra Press deserves compliments for the spare design of their covers, the clarity of the typeface and typesetting, and the fact that their books are a pleasure to hold as well as to read.' - Canberra Times
2016
My Year With Sammy (Libby Sommer)
Winner, Fiction, Society of Women Writers (NSW) Awards 2016
Building a City (Jennifer Horsfield)
Winner, Non-fiction, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2016
Paths Into Inner Canberra (PS Cottier)
Highly commended, Non-fiction, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2016
A Call To Listen (Colleen Keating)
Equal third prize, Poetry, Society of Women Writers (NSW) Awards 2016
2015
Uncle Adolf (Craig Cormick)
Winner, Fiction, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2015
2014
Meat Pies & Mumbling Blokes (Margitta Acker)
Highly commended, Non-fiction, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2014
Extravagance (Irene Wilkie)
Highly commended, Poetry, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2014
2013
Blue Roses of Orroroo (Margaret Visciglio)
Winner, People’s Choice Award, SA Writers Festival 2013
First... Then... (Melinda Smith)
Winner, Poetry, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2013
The Love Procession (Suzanne Edgar)
Highly commended, Poetry, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2013
The Cancellation of Clouds (P.S. Cottier)
Second prize, Poetry, Society of Women Writers NSW Biennial Book Awards 2013
Waiting for the Southerly (Susan McCreery)
Commended, FAW Anne Elder Award for a first collection 2012
2012
Indigo Book of Australian Prose Poems (edited by Michael Byrne)
Winner, Poetry, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2012
Hard Cases, Brief Lives (Warwick Anderson)
Shortlisted, Mary Gilmore Award 2010/11
2011
A Siege of Contraries (Helen Rose Mitchell)
Winner, People’s Choice Award, SA Writers Festival 2011
A Man of Emails (Michael Byrne)
Winner, Poetry, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2011
A Quiet Day (P.S. Cottier)
Highly commended, Society of Women Writers NSW Biennial Book Awards 2011
The Rough End of the Stick (Ian Rae)
Highly commended, Fiction, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2011
2010
Hornet Bank (Gordon Reid)
Winner, Fiction, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2010
Before Afterwards (Leon Trainor)
Winner, Poetry, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2010
Of Cheese & Chutney (Ian McFarlane)
Highly commended, Non-fiction, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2010
Futures Trading (Craig Cormick)
Runner-up, Fiction, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2010
The Wardrobe (Moya Pacey)
Runner-up, Poetry, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2010
2009
Smoke & Mirrors (Kel Robertson)
Joint winner, Fiction, Ned Kelly Awards 2009
Winner, Fiction, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2009
Sleeping Alone (Michael Thorley)
Winner, Poetry, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2009
The Glass Violin (P.S. Cottier)
Highly commended, Society of Women Writers NSW Biennial Book Awards 2009
Still Life, Other Life (Barbara Fisher)
Highly commended, Society of Women Writers NSW Biennial Book Awards 2009
Bird in the Egg (Steve Holden)
Shortlisted, Arts Queensland Steele Rudd Australian Short Story Award 2009
2008
Rainbow (Jennifer Horsfield)
Winner, Non-fiction, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2008
Not a Flotation Device (Peter Frankis)
Winner, Fiction, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2008
Sundance of Shadow (Kylie Oakes)
Winner, Ron Euling Award for Writing 2008
Chooks in the City (Alyson Hill)
Commended, Non-fiction, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2008
2007
Ghosts in the Helmet Trees (Rory Steele)
Winner, Fiction, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2007
Secrets (edited by Stephen Matthews)
Winner, Children's, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2007
Tangible Shadows (Dawn Bruce)
Winner, Society of Women Writers NSW Biennial Book Awards 2007
Famine in Newcastle (Ryan O'Neill)
Shortlisted, Arts Queensland Steele Rudd Australian Short Story Award 2007
And They're Still Falling (edited by Olwyn Broder, Venie Holmgren & Anabel Macdonald)
Highly commended, Non-fiction, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2007
The Painted Lady (Suzanne Edgar)
Highly commended, Poetry, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2007
Blundstones & a Brown Dog (Christopher Nailer)
Highly commended, Poetry, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2007
Polishing the Silver (Jennifer Chrystie)
Commended, FAW Anne Elder Award for a first collection 2007
2006
A Funny Thing Happened at 27,000 Feet (Craig Cormick)
Winner, Arts Queensland Steele Rudd Australian Short Story Award 2006
Southbound (Michael Byrne)
Winner, Poetry, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2006
How To Succeed Without Really Winning (George Huitker)
Winner, Memoir, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2006
Frieda & the Cops (Elanna Herbert)
Runner-up, Fiction, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2006
Worlds Turned Upside Down (Rochelle Ball)
Runner-up, Memoir, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2006
It Can't Be Forever (Tamara Jermolajew)
Runner-up, Memoir, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2006
Torture (Peter Reddy)
Runner-up, History, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2006
Body Image Body Scrimmage
Yogie Award 2006 for Outstanding Achievement in Youth Participation
2005
Unfinished Journey (Michael Thwaites)
Winner, Poetry, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2005
Trouble in the Garden (Peter Frankis)
Winner, Fiction, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2005
Shortlisted, Arts Queensland Steele Rudd Australian Short Story Award 2005
Mapless in Underland (Melinda Smith)
Commended, Poetry, ACT Writing & Publishing Awards 2005
2004
You (Narelle Wickham)
Winner, Fiction, ACT Publishing Awards 2004
Indigo Book of Modern Australian Sonnets (ed. Geoff Page)
Winner, Poetry, ACT Publishing Awards 2004
Kiandra Gold (Hugh Capel)
Highly Commended, Fiction, ACT Publishing Awards 2004
Cold Touch (Lawrence Bourke)
Highly Commended, Poetry, ACT Publishing Awards 2004
Into the No Zone (Tim Metcalf)
Highly Commended, Poetry, ACT Publishing Awards 2004
'How did the fire know we lived here?' (ed. Stephen Matthews)
Highly Commended, Non-fiction, ACT Publishing Awards 2004
Princess of Cups (Craig Cormick)
Shortlisted, Arts Queensland Steele Rudd Australian Short Story Award 2004
2003
Cut Lunch (Chris Andrews)
Winner, FAW Anne Elder Award for a first collection 2003
2001
Blue (Jennifer Compton)
Shortlisted, NSW Premier's Literary Awards 2001
2000
Collateral Damage (Geoff Page)
Highly Commended, ACT Book of the Year 2000
1999
Not Theirs the Shame Who Fight (Cleve Potter)
'...a jewel of First World War literature.' - Canberra Times
