5 Australian Publishers for memoir accepting unagented submissions

If you’ve written a memoir manuscript and you’re now wanting to get it published, the great news is that there’s many traditional publishers who accept un-agented submissions. So, if you don’t want to get a literary agent before you start sending your work out there, you’re in luck!
Here’s five really good Australian Publishers I’ve either worked with directly or known memoir authors who have, who are accepting un-agented submissions for memoir. These are each reputable quality publishers, and traditional publishers too.
There’s hundreds of publishers across the world who accept unagented submissions, but I’ve kept this list to Australian publishers, for the Australian writers looking to get a memoir published.

Are you looking to get a book-length memoir or narrative nonfiction published?
The difference between a personal story that gets published and a historical document that will only be interesting to your family is often all about the story hook and the way you’ve structured the story. Whether you’ve completed your memoir manuscript or not, be sure to watch my masterclass on how to write a publication-standard memoir in months right here, to learn exactly what publishers are looking for in memoir that sells, and how to write and revise your memoir to publication standard. As a twice-published memoir author (one of my publishers is listed below!) I teach from my own experience.

And, because I get asked this a lot from readers and writers across the world: many of these Publishers only publish writers who reside in the territory. So, if you’re in Canada, check the submission guidelines before submitting to a large US Publisher, for example. Many Publishers only take submissions from residents of that particularly country where they are based.

TRADITIONAL PUBLISHERS ACCEPTING MEMOIR SUBMISSIONS WITHOUT AN AGENT

Each of the following traditional publishers are accepting submissions for memoir. Be sure to read the submission guidelines thoroughly, find examples of similar titles, and get your proposal and your manuscript in tip top shape before you start the process.

PUBLISHER: HACHETTE AUSTRALIA

Hachette Australia accepts unagented submissions for adult nonfiction including memoir.
Hachette is one of the top 5 publishers in the world, but in Australia, you no longer need an agent to submit to them!
You do, however, need to be an Australian or New Zealand resident.
Here’s where to find all the details of submitting your memoir manuscript to Hachette. You’ll be submitting according to their rules for Adult Nonfiction, because this is where memoir sits.

A memoir recently published by Hachette Australia: A Brilliant Life by Rachelle Unreich. I also wrote a blog post here where I analyse the hooks in this memoir / biography, too. You can read it via the links below this post.

PUBLISHER: PENGUIN AUSTRALIA

Penguin Australia is accepting unagented submissions including memoir and nonfiction, at certain times of the year. With offices across the world, Penguin is one of the Top 5 Publishers and in Australia, you don’t currently need a literary agent to submit your manuscript for consideration.
Here’s where to find all the details of submitting your memoir manuscript to Penguin.

A bestselling memoir published by Penguin Australia was FAKE by Stephanie Wood, now a major series for Paramount Plus.

PUBLISHER: SCRIBE PUBLISHERS

As an Australian Publisher, I highly recommend submitting to Scribe as they’re very international and participate actively in all the large book fairs with offices across the world. Scribe accepts unagented submissions of quality nonfiction including memoir, at certain periods throughout the year. With offices in the UK and the US as well as  in Melbourne, Australia, Scribe is an excellent independent publisher to choose for any kind of memoir or nonfiction and they’ve won many awards for cover design.
Scribe’s current submission periods are:
Scribe is currently open to manuscript submissions both agented and unagented from
1 April through to 21 April
1 September through to 21 September

All the details of how to submit to Scribe are listed here on their website. Be sure to read it thoroughly!

A bestselling memoir published by Scribe was A Letter From Paris by Louisa Deasey (moi), and I highly recommend them. They’ve also published many other quality memoirs and specialise in quality nonfiction.

PUBLISHER: AFFIRM PRESS

Recently acquired by Simon & Schuster, Affirm Press is a Melbourne-based publisher dedicated to great Australian stories and engaging local and international authors.

Here’s what they say about what they’re interested in on their website: For non-fiction, we are interested in most subjects that have a market as long as the manuscript is entertaining, engaging and likely to leave readers (and the world, even a teeny bit) better off for having existed.

All the details of how to submit your memoir manuscript to Affirm Press are here.

A memoir recently acquired by Affirm Press is Bloomer, forthcoming from Carol LeFevre, which you can read about here.
Fallen, a memoir by Rochelle Siemienowicz, was published by Affirm Press.

PUBLISHER: BLACK INC BOOKS

Black Inc Books is previously headed by Publisher Sophy Williams, publishes high quality nonfiction including memoir. They currently accept unagented submissions from Australian writers.  One of their recently published memoirs, Because I’m Not Myself, You See, by Ariane Beeston, has been shortlisted for multiple awards. I wrote about it, here.

Black Inc Books accepts submissions from Australian writers, for general, literary and commercial non-fiction – including history, current affairs, memoir and biography.
The next submission window for Black Inc Books is the first week of June 2025.
All the details of how to submit your memoir manuscript to Black Inc Books is listed here.

If you’ve written a memoir manuscript and you have questions about how to get it published, what gets published when you’re not a celebrity, and what literary agents and publishers want from a personal narrative, be sure to sign up for my free class on the Art of Memoir.

If you’d like to learn the entire process of how to take a true story idea from page one to finished draft, writing, revising and pitching your memoir manuscript  to publishers and agents, I walk you through the entire process  in my comprehensive programme, The Art of Memoir.