All posts by Editor-in-Chief

Yvonne Low

Yvonne Low
Yvonne Low
Yvonne Low is a writer, illustrator and award-winning fine artist, creating picture books, poetry and junior fiction. While nature is her main inspiration, through her background in the performing arts as a dancer and choreographer, theatre, film, music and foreign cultures also feed her imagination. Her work is whimsical and often has a dash of humour and wordplay. Continue reading Yvonne Low

Windy Washing Day

Windy Washing Day cover
Windy Washing Day cover
Written by Yvonne Low and
illustrated by Kate Talbot

HB 32 | 210 x 210 | ISBN: 9781922858672 | $29.99
Picture Book | MidnightSun Publishing | September 2025
Distributed by NewSouth Books

How an ordinary day becomes extraordinary…

It’s a dry, sunny day and perfect for hanging out the laundry. But what happens when an unexpected wind pulls the washing off the line and carries it next door — to the Zoo! Will the animals give up their new-found clothes and can all the washing be returned safely? Continue reading Windy Washing Day

The Giant

The Giant cover
The Giant cover
Written by Sophie Masson and
illustrated by Lorena Carrington

HB 32 | 220 x 290 | ISBN: 9781922858658 | $29.99
Picture Book | MidnightSun Publishing | August 2025
Distributed by NewSouth Books

On the day the giant wakes from a long sleep, he’s filled with joy at the thought of seeing his friends in the town again. But he’s slept so long that nobody remembers him, everyone hides from him, and his joy turns to a sadness that might engulf the whole town —

Until he hears the voices, calling to him…

A beautiful, touching story of memory, inclusion and friendship, by the award-winning creative duo of writer Sophie Masson and illustrator Lorena Carrington, whose previous Continue reading The Giant

Nicky Johnston

Nicky Johnston
Nicky Johnston
Nicky Johnston is an educator, speaker, and author/illustrator of children’s books. She enjoys every aspect of creating books for kids, especially illustration. Nicky’s illustration style is often described as whimsical, emotive, soft, and expressive. Her love of teaching sees her busy with school visits and Continue reading Nicky Johnston

Where Shall We Travel Today?

Where Shall We Travel Today? cover
Where Shall We Travel Today? cover
Written by Kristin Martin and
illustrated by Nicky Johnston

HB 32 | 216 x 256 | ISBN: 9781922858542 | $29.99
Picture Book | MidnightSun Publishing | 1 July 2025
Distributed by NewSouth Books

A group of neighbourhood friends search for adventure. They climb mountains, sail through waterfalls and snorkel the reef. At night, they marvel at the sky above and wonder where to go next.

Where Shall We Travel Today? is a delightful story about the power of the imagination, of stories and of Continue reading Where Shall We Travel Today?

When Dark Waters Burn

When Dark Waters Burn cover
When Dark Waters Burn cover
by Zena Shapter

PB 400 | 198 x 129 | ISBN: 9781922858627 | $21.99
Young Adult | Also available as ebook
MidnightSun Publishing | 1 June 2025
Distributed by NewSouth Books

Stay out of sight. Stay hidden under the lake. Giant water-ants scout the surface and deadly trees slop their hungry roots along the shoreline. Unrest surges in the swamps, getting closer and closer… Sala will only be safe for as long as Continue reading When Dark Waters Burn

Pause in Submissions

PLEASE NOTE: Due to an overwhelming number of submissions, we are taking a break. Submissions are now closed from the 7th of May 2025 until the 1st of December 2025. Any submissions sent before the 1st of December 2025 will not be considered and will not be replied to. If you made a submission before the 7th of May, please rest assured that we will review your work and endeavour to respond to you as soon as we can. When we reopen, please follow the guidelines.

overwhelmed editor

Gisela Ervin-Ward

Gisela Ervin-Ward
Gisela Ervin-Ward
Gisela Ervin-Ward writes stuff for kids to read and teaches them how to read it. She grew up on a farm in Western Victoria and moved to South-East Asia to be an aid worker for many years before returning to Australia with her family to live in the Macedon Ranges. She’s now a writer of children’s tales and specialist literacy teacher, teaching neurodivergent children how to read. Continue reading Gisela Ervin-Ward

True South

True South cover
True South cover
by Gisela Ervin-Ward

PB 192 | 198 x 129
ISBN: 9781922858597 | $19.99
Middle Grade | Also available as ebook
MidnightSun Publishing | 25 May 2025
Distributed by NewSouth Books

When twelve-year-old Nell crashes her sailboat into a submerged house in the lake, she stumbles into a treasure hunt that plunges her into a generations-old family feud.

Things begin to take a sinister turn as the adults get involved, and Nell has no choice but to team up with her neighbour and family rival, Charlie. As friendships begin to morph and stretch, can these two unlikely allies end the feud and work out the treasure’s secrets, or will their rivalry lead to one last epic Continue reading True South

When Dark Waters Burn

When Dark Waters Burn cover
When Dark Waters Burn cover
by Zena Shapter

PB 400 | 198 x 129 | ISBN: 9781922858627 | $21.99
Young Adult | Also available as ebook
MidnightSun Publishing | 1 May 2025
Distributed by NewSouth Books

Stay out of sight. Stay hidden under the lake. Even as giant water-ants scout the surface, and deadly trees slop their hungry roots along the shoreline. For unrest surges in the swamps, getting closer and closer… Sala will only be safe for as long as their ship’s location remains a secret. But when a horrifying threat ignites close to home, and the lakeside hillfarms are forced to reveal a desperate Continue reading When Dark Waters Burn

Shift

Shift cover
Shift cover
by Irma Gold

PB | 234 x 153
ISBN: 9781922858566 | $34.99
Adult fiction | Also available as ebook
MidnightSun Publishing | March 2025
Distributed by NewSouth Books

In the year of the 70th anniversary of the Freedom Charter — which outlined the principles of democracy and freedom in South Africa — comes a novel set in the township where it was signed. Shift asks us to examine both the world around us… and ourselves. Continue reading Shift