Major publishing house
Chicken House
Children's, Fantasy and Sci-Fi, Fiction
Published Updated Reviewed every month · next review November 2026
About Chicken House
Chicken House reads general submissions only through literary agents. Unagented, unpublished writers can enter its yearly Times/Chicken House Children's Fiction Competition, which closed for 2026 on 1 June.
Chicken House was founded in 2000 in Frome, Somerset, and became part of Scholastic in 2005. It is a small children’s fiction publisher focused on new voices, for readers aged about 7 to 18. Its authors include Cornelia Funke and James Dashner.
Chicken House publishing takes ordinary submissions through literary agents. Its main door for new writers is the yearly competition with The Times, open to unagented writers worldwide who have not published a full-length children’s novel. The winner gets a publishing contract and an advance.
What Chicken House is looking for
- Middle grade and young adult fiction
- Full-length novels for readers aged 7 to 18
- YA science fiction and fantasy through the Broken Binding Prize
Publishes
- Children's
- Fantasy and Sci-Fi
- Fiction
- Middle grade
- Young adult
Readers
- Middle grade
- Young adult
How to submit to Chicken House
From its own guidelines- If you have an agent, your agent submits to Chicken House.
- If you do not, watch for the next Times/Chicken House competition, which opened in early January in 2026.
- Enter your complete novel as one document through the competition portal. The competition charges an entry fee.
- Only longlisted writers are contacted.
Is Chicken House right for your book?
A good fit if
You have a finished children's or teen novel and an agent, or you are unagented and unpublished and can enter the next competition.
Look elsewhere if
- Picture books and short stories
- Unagented manuscripts sent outside the competition
Questions about Chicken House
Does Chicken House accept unsolicited manuscripts?
Not outside its competition. Chicken House takes general submissions through literary agents. Unagented writers who have not published a full-length children's novel can enter the yearly Times/Chicken House Children's Fiction Competition, which closed for 2026 on 1 June. Watch for the 2027 competition early next year.
What is the Times/Chicken House Children's Fiction Competition?
It is a yearly competition for unagented, unpublished writers worldwide with a complete novel for readers aged 7 to 18. The winner receives a worldwide publishing contract and an advance. A separate Broken Binding Prize covers YA science fiction and fantasy. Entry carries a fee.
Is Chicken House publishing part of Scholastic?
Yes. Chicken House publishing was founded in 2000 in Frome, Somerset, and became part of Scholastic in 2005. It describes itself as a small children's publisher focused on new fiction, and it looks for new voices through its yearly competition.
Listing history
- Checked on the publisher's own site
