Have you ever thought about
publishing a children’s book?
Here’s
why you
should
Create a Modern Village
Publishing a book turns your knowledge into a home that fills the village-sized gap so many families feel today.
Share a Lasting Resource
A book lets your work live on, reaching more families with a lasting, accessible resource.
Become a Thought Leader
You’ve got knowledge that can make a difference. Don’t let it sit on the shelf—share it & make the biggest impact.
We’re not a traditional publisher. We’re not a hybrid press. We’re not a vanity press. (more about that here)
We’re author-owned, honest, and deeply invested in your dream. We offer what we wished we had as first-time authors: empathy, expertise, high standards, and budget-conscious support. We also listen. Depending on your package, we can either guide you, or do it all for you.
We NEVER take royalties or copyright.
Your book. Your rights. Your profits.
Royalties
Nada = profit is all yours
Creative control
You keep all of it
Copyright
It’s all yours, too
It’s YOUR book
We just help make your vision a reality
Faster process
No bureaucratic red tape means efficiency, Woo!
our unique approach
We don’t just publish books. What we do here is a deeply personal & collaborative experience. We help experts & soon-to-be authors translate professional expertise into meaningful books that resonate with children, parents, and educators. Your book will always be an extension of you, not us. We’re here to help make your dream a reality.
Which Publishing Path Fits Your Needs?
All three packages help you create and share a beautiful children’s book. Choose based on how much time + budget you have available to invest, and how hands-on you’d like to be. We believe in price transparency. All packages include milestone-based payments — you review and approve each phase before the next payment is due. We never take royalties or copyright. Your book, your rights, your profits.
Read this blog post to learn more about our publishing model.
$3,995
🌱 Seed Package:
Guidance
A guided path with built-in accountability. Perfect if you want expert tools and feedback, but prefer to stay fully hands-on and in the driver’s seat.
What’s Included:
Best for: Authors who want professional editorial guidance and a clear roadmap, but are comfortable managing coordination and communication re: illustration, printing, and marketing themselves or with minimal hand-holding.
$7,995
🌼 Bloom Package:
Collaboration
We work on every detail of your book together, offering full support across editing, design, printing and publishing so you’re never doing it alone.
What’s included:
Everything in the Seed Package, plus:
Best for: Authors who want a true publishing partner — someone to collaborate with on every decision, from manuscript to marketing plan, while still staying involved in the creative process.
$14,995
🌳 Thrive Package:
Concierge
Full-service, done-for-you publishing. Designed for busy professionals who want an exceptional book and need our help to manage the process.
What’s included:
Everything in the Bloom Package, plus:
Note: Awards and trade review submissions may incur additional fees
Best for: Professionals with full practices and limited time who want to hand over the entire process — from idea to printed books in hand — and feel confident that every detail will be handled with care.
What Every Package Includes
Every Garden Wolf author receives:
100% copyright ownership — your book, your intellectual property, always
100% of royalties — we never take a cut of your sales
Milestone-based payments — you approve each phase before the next payment is due
No hidden fees — your package price covers everything listed; any additional costs
(printing, third-party submissions) are discussed and approved by you in advance
A real partnership — not just a transaction
How Our Milestone Payments Work
You pay in four phases, tied to real deliverables, not arbitrary dates.
Each instalment is invoiced only after you’ve reviewed and approved the completed work for that stage.
Phase 1 (30%) — Project kickoff. Deposit to begin.
Phase 2 (30%) — After you approve the completed manuscript, storyboard, and illustrator selection.
Phase 3 (30%) — After you approve the final illustrations.
Phase 4 (10%) — After you approve the final book, ready for print and purchase.
You’re never paying for work you haven’t seen. That’s by design.
* Vendor fees such as printer and illustrator costs are not included in the package price unless specifically indicated.
* We’re currently shifting away from à la carte services to focus on scalable, full-support publishing options. If you’re interested in editing-only support, reach out to see if we have capacity.
* While all packages are eligible for a Garden Wolf logo, Thrive Package books typically qualify due to the innate commitment to quality. That said, eligibility always hinges on whether the final manuscript and design meet our editorial and production standards.
“I’m interested… What’s next?”
is what we imagine you’re thinking
your first step:
Initial Consultation: FREE
30-minute session to discuss your vision and our process
Discuss where you’re at in the process and timelines
Learn about different publishing pathways (not just what we offer)
Explore your goals (and how to make them happen)
Discuss which package is right for you
This is Marlee, our founder.
You’ll be chatting with her!
Who we work with
If your work helps families, supports kids, or teaches something worth sharing, we can help you turn it into a story.
Don’t see your industry listed here and not sure if you fit?
Psychologists, psychiatrists and mental health experts
Educational leaders and organizations
Pediatric or family medical professionals
Entrepreneurs who have a specialized skill
Organizations like non-profits, schools, hospitals and libraries
Financial planners and banks who work with families
from idea to bookshelf
Our 6-Step Process
You’ll go from idea → polished manuscript → illustrated book → printed copies in your hands
with a partner guiding you at every step.
01
Initial Consultation
We start by learning about your goals, budget, and vision—from story style to illustrations to sales strategy.
02
Project Development
We love efficient processes over here, so we always start with a clear project roadmap. We’ll ask you questions you didn’t know you had to think about.
03
Concept Refinement
Whether you’ve got a draft or need ghostwriting, we shape your story with expert editing and deep collaboration.
04
Illustration & Design
We match you with illustrators and designers based on your budget and style. You choose your involvement level—we handle the rest.
05
Production
We prep files, finalize design, coordinate with vendors, and get everything ready for print and order samples (yes, you get to hold the book in your hands at this point).
06
Launch & Post Production
Your book goes to print! While it ships, we help prep your launch plan: Amazon setup, advanced reviews, ads, book launch and more.
YOU ARE READING THIS FOR A REASON
Ready to make a difference?
Your expertise is already changing children’s lives.
Turning your vision into a book will multiply your impact.
Frequently Asked Questions
Curious about how it works? Let’s demystify it.
What even is Garden Wolf Publishing House?
We’re not traditional. We’re not a vanity press. We’re not quite hybrid either. (More about that here).
We’re a publishing house built by authors, for authors—offering high-quality, full-service, concierge-style support, while also letting you keep full ownership and creative control.
We help purpose-driven professionals like you publish beautiful, impactful books that educate and serve as a unique marketing tool for your business, without sacrificing your voice or values.
Will Garden Wolf Publishing be my book’s official publisher? Can I put your logo on my book?
Only books that meet our editorial and design standards are eligible to be published with the Garden Wolf Publishing House logo.
Our top-tier Thrive package typically meets this level of quality because the process is built around full trust in our expertise. That said, we are truly author-first, meaning we always respect an author’s choice to ultimately take or leave our advice. Choosing to forego our professional expertise may impact logo eligibility.
Our Seed and Bloom packages are equally eligible. It all hinges on quality standards of the final product. Logo use is always at our discretion.
If the stamp of credibility that comes with a publisher’s logo is important to you, let us know early—we’ll provide check-ins so you’re always clear on where things stand.
Who owns the rights to my book?
You retain full rights and royalties. We’re your publishing partner, not a traditional publisher.
One thing that sets us apart from all traditional publishers and many other types of publishing models is that we NEVER take royalties. All earnings from the sale of your books are 100% yours to keep.
You will need to discuss an agreement with your illustrator regarding art rights. We can facilitate this discussion and offer suggestions. There are industry standards that are win-win for everyone.
Do you publish any book?
No—and that’s intentional.
We don’t gatekeep like traditional publishers, but we also don’t slap our logo on any book just because someone wants to pay us to help with the process.
If you’re on board with thoughtful editing, high design standards, and collaborative decision-making, we’re likely a great fit.
If you’re also passionate and mission-driven, we’re a match made in heaven and should probably schedule a call to chat.
Who is this for?
Our authors are psychologists, educators, parent coaches, creative professionals, pediatric medical professionals like dentists and doctors, financial planners, and thought leaders with something meaningful to share with children and families.
If you’re mission-driven and care about quality, you’re our kind of author.
What if I don’t have social-emotional expertise but I have a book idea. Will you work with me?
Have a great idea? Click here to reach out, let’s chat! There are a few ways we can work together.
Do I need to be a professional writer?
Not at all! In fact, the majority of our authors are NOT professional writers.
We specialize in helping subject matter experts transform their knowledge into compelling children’s books. We have decades of writing and editing expertise, that’s what we’re here for.
We are there for you every step of the way by:
→ Helping translate your professional knowledge into child-friendly language
→ Maintaining the integrity of your expert insights and personal voice
→ Working with you collaboratively to bring out the very best creativity and ideas that already live inside you
→ Supporting you through every step of the writing process
What if I don’t have a manuscript yet, just an idea?
That’s totally fine. We offer concept development and ghostwriting services as part of our Thrive package.
If you’re still at the idea stage, we’ll help shape it into a strong manuscript before moving into production.
Can you help me market my book?
Yes! Depending on which package you choose, we support you with thoughtful planning, Amazon optimization, launch advice, and guidance to get reviews.
We don’t make promises we can’t keep, such as overnight success or bestseller status. We are smart and strategic, but sadly, we are not magicians (we wish!)
We equip you with a strong foundation, but ultimately, marketing works best when it’s a team effort.
Do you take royalties?
Never.
Once you’ve paid for your package, the book is fully yours. You keep 100% of your rights, royalties, and profits. Always.
Will I become a bestselling author?
No.
And we’re probably the only publisher that will flat out tell you that.
If you dream of being a New York Times bestselling author, we’re not the right publisher for you.
It doesn’t mean your book won’t be bestseller-worthy (it will be), but book sales are simply not our priority. Plus, being bestseller-worthy has little-to-no impact on whether your book actually becomes a bestseller. There isn’t enough room to explain here, but we’re always happy to chat about it and explain the method to our madness.
We do have a marketing campaign that will successfully get you to #1 Amazon bestseller status if that title is important to you, but it won’t be because you sold a ton of books and became rich. Thousands of people will read your book, but it’s important to understand the purpose of this campaign is marketing, which is useful in its own right (ask us about it anytime, we’re clearly radically honest).
Our overall strategy focuses on how to leverage your expertise to create a fantastic, top-quality, high-value resource for kids and families. It will reflect the work you do every day, or your personal life experience, or your biggest passion—or all three (triple threat!)
This is not to say that you cannot earn back your investment. You most certainly can, it just won’t be from book sales.
Your book is far more useful as a tool and platform than as a product to sell (many of our authors even give their books away for free or donate proceeds to charity).
We will show you all the ways your book can open lucrative doors in your career, from speaking engagements to workshops and more. We never make any promises we can’t keep. But we do promise to be honest, keep your best interest at heart, and help you as best we can—every step of the way.
Can I hire you for just editing or formatting?
We’re shifting away from à la carte services to focus on scalable, full-support publishing packages.
That said, if you’re seeking editorial-only support and have a strong mission-aligned manuscript, feel free to reach out—we may still be able to help or refer you to a trusted partner.
Why are professional publishing services so expensive?
Our pricing reflects the specialized editorial and content development expertise required to transform complex concepts into child-friendly content, as well as navigate the numerous steps involved in the publishing process from beginning to end.
A small sample of the value we provide:
→ Professional editing that creates engaging, clear, and child-friendly narratives, while ensuring the book is free from typos, grammatical errors and confusing sentence structure. For rhyming books, we conduct intensive rhyme and meter edits to ensure the book is ready for seamless read-aloud sessions.
→ Illustrator suggestions based on industry connection, as well as coordination and collaboration that ensures you find a top-calibre artist to meet your vision and budget.
→ Industry knowledge and years of publishing experience means less bumps in the road, fewer mistakes, less wasted funds due to said mistakes, and higher efficiency. We know the right questions to ask, the correct order to proceed in the process, which information we need to know and when to execute.
→ Marketing support to ensure your book reaches the right audience, reaches the necessary distribution channels and secures reviews from the right people at the right time.
→ Peace of mind knowing that everything is taken care of by an industry expert. You don’t need to worry about whether you forgot a step—we’ve got you. This ensures the experience is not only efficient, but also fun!
→ Comprehensive publishing production management that saves you 100+ hours of independent work.
Are there funding options?
We do not offer grant application services, but we can guide you in the right direction or help you find someone who can.
It’s worth exploring grants for educational resources, particularly for books addressing mental health and child development.
Here are some examples of funding avenues:
→ Canadian federal arts and literature grants
→ Provincial funding for cultural projects
→ Mental health organization grants
→ Professional association development funds
→ Institutional research dissemination grants
→ Crowd-funding platforms specialized in educational resources
Can I recoup my publishing investment?
Our authors generate revenue through:
→ Speaking engagements (being a published author opens up new opportunities)
→ Workshops based on the book
→ Consulting opportunities
→ Continuing education resource creation
→ Book sales (you keep 100% of the profit, we don’t take any royalties). You may be surprised to learn that book sales are the least lucrative part of book publishing, so every cent matters to authors.
How long does the process take?
Typically, the publishing process can take 6-12 months from the time we hit the ground running, to the moment you’re holding your book in your hands.
Factors affecting timeline include:
→ Manuscript readiness
→ Complexity of concepts
→ Illustration development
→ Illustrator’s industry experience
→ Review and editing cycles
→ Decisiveness of the author
→ Unforeseen circumstances out of our control, such as shipping delays
What publishing formats will my book be available in?
We provide:
→ Print-on-demand paperback (various options including Amazon, Ingram Spark, Lulu etc.)
→ Hardcover options (we have great relationships with printers in China)
→ Digital e-book formats
→ We offer ISBN registration for all formats
Will you get me on bestseller lists?
Maybe. We don’t believe in overpromising. We do believe in proper planning and strategy to set you up for success.
Here’s what this looks like:
→ Smart launch strategy
→ Targeted Amazon optimization
→ Professional-quality production
→ A book you’re proud to promote
We’ve helped our authors get their books to #1 on Amazon, featured in the media, and reviewed by customers as well as trade publications.
Our focus is always on long-term impact, not short-term shiny wins that look cool, but don’t have any impact. Every step of our strategy is intentional.
Unlike most publishers, our business model focuses on creating a book as a tool and platform to elevate your existing business or open new career pathways.
Book sales are secondary, and we can talk your ear off to explain why this is important to us.
Can I work with my own illustrator or designer?
Yes. We’re happy to collaborate with trusted creatives you already love.
That said, if having the Garden Wolf Publishing logo on your book is important to you, let us know and we will tell you whether your vendor of choice meets our editorial standards.
We always recommend vetted professionals based on your budget.
Will you help me sell my book to schools, libraries or bookstores?
We can guide you on how to approach local schools and libraries, and we’ll ensure your book meets the technical specs for institutional sales. We help you position your book for visibility and success.
Though, as previously stated, our business models leans into the reality of the industry—it’s really hard to make money selling books.
There are more lucrative ways to spend your time once you have a children’s book, and we’ll guide you in the right direction.
Do you publish adult books?
We may agree to publish a non-fiction book of an existing client that aligns with our niche mission, but as a general rule the answer is no.
If you are interesting in writing a non-fiction book and are curious about either self-publishing or traditional publishing routes, we recommend our trusted partner Trivium Writing.
Have another question?
We’d love to chat! ↓
Wait… is this our meet-cute?!
We’re so excited to connect, but like in a cool & calm way.