Table Of Content“Since its inception, the African Small Publishers’ Catalogue has given space
and visibility to the small independents of our books industry and community,
including articles of advice for writers, and wisdom of experience-sharing in terms
of difficulties and challenges overcome.”
– AFRICA IN WORDS
“This Small Publishers’ Catalogue is a way of uncovering and bringing this important
work to light. The Catalogue offers some insight into the extent of small publishing.
It is useful as a resource for new small publishers or those who want to venture into
self-publishing, it offers an idea of who is doing what and how they are doing it.”
– DENNIS ABRAMS, PUBLISHING PERSPECTIVES
AFRICAN
SMALL
PUBLISHERS’
CATALOGUE
2021
Edited and compiled by
Colleen Higgs & Aimee-Claire Smith
African Small Publishers’ Catalogue 2021
First published by Modjaji Books in 2021
www.modjajibooks.co.za
[email protected]
Individual listings and adverts © the contributors.
All other text © Modjaji Books.
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including
photocopying and recording, or any other information storage or retrieval system, without written permission from the
publisher.
Editors: Colleen Higgs & Aimee-Claire Smith
Cover design & tyepsetting: Monique Cleghorn
Cover photograph of colourful bracelets © iStockphoto/intek1
ISBN (Print): 978-1-928433-27-9
ISBN (ebook): 978-1-928433-30-9
The printing of this catalogue kindly sponsored by:
CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
EDITORS
LISTINGS A-Z:
Aerial publishing
African Sun Press
AkooBooks Ltd
AmaBooks
Amalion Publishing
Atypical Books
Ayebia
Aztar Press
Basler Afrika Bibliographien Publishing House
Bhiyoza Publishers
BK Publishing
Blackbird Books
Blue Weaver
Bookcraft
Bookstorm
Book Dash
Books Direct
Book Lingo
Breeze Publishing
Bright Light Books
Brize Publications
Burnet Media
Catalyst Press
Chimurenga
Clockwork Books
CookieReads
David Philip Publishers trading as New Africa Books
Deep South
DigiThis
Dryad Press
Éditions Graines de Pensées
Editora Trinta Zero Nove
EN TOUTES LETTRES
FEMRITE – Uganda Women Writers Association
Fundza Literacy Trust
Hands-on Books
Huza Press
impepho press
iwalewebooks
Jacana Media
Junkets Publisher
Kachifo
Khazola Books
Logos Open Culture
Marketfiftyfour.com
Modjaji Books
Palace of Knowledge
Parresia Publishers Ltd
Pelmo Book Publishers
Poetree Publications
Profounder Publishers
Protea Boekhuis / Protea Book House
Reamsworth Publishing
Samnko Books
SEDIA
Sefsasa Culture & Publishing
Shama
Story Press Africa
Theart Press
University of Namibia Press
Weaver Press
Yiz House Publishing
Zazi Books
CLASSIFIEDS
ARTICLES:
Publishing in the pandemic
What is Book Dash?
Some of the mistakes that publishers can make
DigiThis – Meeting the Demands of Digital Becoming the
New Normal
The Africa Publishing Innovation Fund: an accelerant for
African ingenuity
Read. Write. African.
INTRODUCTION
This is the fifth edition of the African Small Publishers’ Catalogue. Once again we have many
more publishers and some of the publishers we featured last time have either left the scene, or
their circumstances have changed such that they don’t want to be included in the catalogue.
We are also aware of how challenging the COVID-19 pandemic has been for publishers in
Africa.
The catalogue is a showcase of the variety and extent of independent and small publishing
in Africa. It is still weighted with many more South African publishers, but each time we have
brought out a new edition, there are more publishers from a wider spread of African
publishers. This year we have a publisher from Malawi for the first time. We have listings
from 21 countries
The catalogue aims to uncover and highlight the work and existence of small publishers
in Africa. We hope that librarians, booksellers, books page editors, educators, readers, writers
and bigger publishers will be enriched by having access to these publishers and that the
publishers themselves will find new customers, access to funds and technologies that will
enable them to thrive.
It is thrilling to see all the writers and publishers who are toiling away, doing
extraordinary creative cultural work.
EDITORS
Colleen Higgs is a publisher and writer, who lives in Cape Town. She started Modjaji Books
in 2007, and still works there as the publisher. Her most recent book is a memoir, my mother,
my madness (deep south) which came out in 2020. Higgs is a publishing activist, and this
catalogue is one of the ways she contributes to book development and raising the profile of
independent publishing in Africa.
Aimee-Claire Smith lives in Cape Town, where they are studying English Literature and
Anthropology. They work in publishing and media. Their writing has been published in New
Contrast, Living While Feminist (Kwela, 2020) and Supernova.
LISTINGS
