The Lucky Penny Program

The Lucky Penny ProgramThe Lucky Penny ProgramThe Lucky Penny Program

The Lucky Penny Program

The Lucky Penny ProgramThe Lucky Penny ProgramThe Lucky Penny Program
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A unique path to traditional publishing.

A unique path to traditional publishing.A unique path to traditional publishing.A unique path to traditional publishing.

A unique path to traditional publishing.

A unique path to traditional publishing.A unique path to traditional publishing.A unique path to traditional publishing.

See a penny, pick it up, all day long you'll have good luck.

The Ultimate KidLit Mentorship Experience

The Lucky Penny Program is an invitation-only, high-touch mentorship designed for children’s book creators whose manuscripts demonstrate strong publishing potential but require expert guidance to reach a fully publishable level. 

This exclusive program provides individualized development, professional editing, and a traditional publishing contract with The Little Press, an award-winning independent children’s book publisher based in New Jersey.  The Little Press publishes multiple acclaimed titles and has earned recognition from Kirkus Reviews, School Library Journal, Foreword Reviews, and Midwest Book Review. Authors selected for the Lucky Penny Mentorship Program receive a traditional publishing contract and enjoy the same professional production, distribution, and marketing support as all of our titles.

About The Lucky Penny Program

What the Lucky Penny Mentorship Program Includes

What the Lucky Penny Mentorship Program Includes

What the Lucky Penny Mentorship Program Includes

 Participants receive a comprehensive, start-to-finish  mentorship that ends with a traditional publishing experience, including:

  • 1:1 manuscript coaching and development
  • Professional editing (developmental and line-level as needed)
  • Professional illustration
  • Book design and production
  • Hardcover print edition and eBook edition
  • Trim size determine

 Participants receive a comprehensive, start-to-finish  mentorship that ends with a traditional publishing experience, including:

  • 1:1 manuscript coaching and development
  • Professional editing (developmental and line-level as needed)
  • Professional illustration
  • Book design and production
  • Hardcover print edition and eBook edition
  • Trim size determined collaboratively and based on the needs of the story
  • High-quality professional printing
  • Traditional distribution through Independent Publishers Group (IPG)
  • Full marketing and promotional support from The Little Press staff
  • 40 author copies
  • Enhanced royalty rate: 50% of net receipts.

    Lucky Penny Program authors become part of The Little Press family with a traditional book contract, benefiting from the same credibility, industry access, and long-term support afforded to all of our acquired projects.

Investment

What the Lucky Penny Mentorship Program Includes

What the Lucky Penny Mentorship Program Includes

 Author/illustrator mentorship- total program cost $3,000 

Author only mentorship- total program cost $4,500 

  • One-on-one manuscript development and coaching
  • Professional editing
  • Free access to all The Little Press sponsored craft conferences including Girl Power Hour and JollyCon
  • Access to proprietary resources to grow your platform
  • Full art di

 Author/illustrator mentorship- total program cost $3,000 

Author only mentorship- total program cost $4,500 

  • One-on-one manuscript development and coaching
  • Professional editing
  • Free access to all The Little Press sponsored craft conferences including Girl Power Hour and JollyCon
  • Access to proprietary resources to grow your platform
  • Full art direction and illustration design oversight by The Little Press
  • Illustration, book design, and production
  • Negotiation and contracting of a professional illustrator (author only)
  • Hardcover and eBook formats
  • Professional printing of a minimum of 1,000 hardcover copies
  • Full marketing and promotional package, aligned with support provided to traditionally acquired titles
  • Ongoing marketing and promotional guidance from The Little Press team
  • Full traditional distribution


There are no additional fees beyond the mentorship cost.

Program Timeline (24- 36 Months to Publication)

Program Timeline (24- 36 Months to Publication)

Program Timeline (24- 36 Months to Publication)

The Lucky Penny Program follows an industry-standard timeline that prioritizes quality, collaboration, and market readiness:

(Below based upon 36 month timeline)

Months 1–12 (Mentorship)

  • Intensive manuscript development
  • 1x1 editorial coaching and revision
  • Free access to TLP sponsored craft conferences including Girl Power Hour & JollyCon.
  • Autho

The Lucky Penny Program follows an industry-standard timeline that prioritizes quality, collaboration, and market readiness:

(Below based upon 36 month timeline)

Months 1–12 (Mentorship)

  • Intensive manuscript development
  • 1x1 editorial coaching and revision
  • Free access to TLP sponsored craft conferences including Girl Power Hour & JollyCon.
  • Author platform guidance including access to proprietary resources and TLP community designed to support your creative journey and ultimate success. 

Months 12–24

  • Illustrator search and selection
  • Illustrator contracted (author only mentorships)
  • Full illustration process 

Months 24–26

  • Final editorial review
  • Book design and layout
  • Full metadata development (BISAC codes, keywords, comparable titles, pricing, and market positioning)
  • Sales discussion and pitch preparation with the distribution sales team
  • Pre-release marketing strategy development

Months 26–36

  • Advance marketing and promotion
  • Distribution setup and catalog placement
  • Official hardcover and eBook release at Month 36

The Outcome

Program Timeline (24- 36 Months to Publication)

Program Timeline (24- 36 Months to Publication)

At the conclusion of the one-year mentorship and following project development, participants emerge as traditionally published authors with a professionally edited, illustrated, designed, printed, marketed, and distributed children’s book in both hardcover and eBook formats. The Lucky Penny Program is more than a mentorship—it is a guided

At the conclusion of the one-year mentorship and following project development, participants emerge as traditionally published authors with a professionally edited, illustrated, designed, printed, marketed, and distributed children’s book in both hardcover and eBook formats. The Lucky Penny Program is more than a mentorship—it is a guided, transparent path into professional children’s publishing, created for creators with promising stories who are ready to invest in their work and their future.


By invitation only. Limited placements available.

How Manuscripts Are Invited into the Program

The Lucky Penny Program is by Invitation -Only

Manuscripts considered for the program are selected from work already submitted to The Little Press through our established submission and pitch channels. Each year, The Little Press participates in a number of curated submission opportunities and industry events, including:

  • Girl Power Hour Conference (held annually on October 11)
  • JollyCon (held annually in December)
  • Additional submission calls, pitch opportunities, and conference-based initiatives throughout the year

Through these channels, we receive a high volume of manuscripts. From this pool, we may invite select creators into the Lucky Penny Program when a manuscript demonstrates clear publishing potential but would benefit from additional development prior to publication.

At this time, the Lucky Penny Program is not accepting open submissions. This does not preclude the possibility of open submissions in the future; rather, our current approach allows us to thoughtfully curate invitations from manuscripts already under review.

Disclaimer: Participation in any submission event, pitch opportunity, or review process does not guarantee an invitation to the Lucky Penny Program or a publishing contract, and all invitations are extended solely at the discretion of The Little Press.

Why We Offer the Lucky Penny Program

At The Little Press, we are deeply committed to discovering and nurturing new talent and new voices in children’s literature. As an independent publisher, we work intentionally and thoughtfully to bring as many worthy stories to market as possible—but like many small presses, our financial and production resources are finite.

Picture books, in particular, are among the most resource-intensive formats to publish. Beyond the creative investment, they require significant financial commitment for professional illustration, design, and offset printing, as well as a substantial time investment over multiple years. Because of these realities, we often encounter manuscripts that truly deserve to be published but that we are unable to acquire through our traditional list alone.


The Lucky Penny Program allows us to bridge that gap.

This program enables The Little Press to offer its professional expertise, editorial guidance, production oversight, and distribution infrastructure to exceptional manuscripts that may not fit within our financial capacity—while still maintaining the quality, standards, and integrity of a traditional publishing experience.


Through the Lucky Penny Program, we can:

  • Support more creators with strong, publishable work
     
  • Bring deserving stories to readers that might otherwise remain unpublished
     
  • Maintain professional publishing standards without compromising our core list
     

The Lucky Penny Program is mission-driven, selective, and intentionally limited. It exists to expand opportunity, not shortcuts—providing a thoughtful, transparent path to publication for creators who are ready to invest in their work and partner closely with a professional publishing team.

Frequently Asked Questions

The Little Press is dedicated to discovering and supporting new talent and new voices in children’s literature. As a small, independent publisher, we work hard to bring as many deserving stories to market as possible—but our financial and production resources are limited.

Picture books, in particular, require significant investment in editing, illustration, design, and offset printing, as well as a multi-year production timeline. We regularly encounter manuscripts with strong publishing potential that we simply do not have the capacity to acquire through our ordinary channels.  The Lucky Penny Program allows us to extend our editorial expertise, production oversight, and distribution infrastructure to these exceptional projects while maintaining professional publishing standards.

Yes. Authors in the Lucky Penny Program receive a traditional publishing contract including professional production, traditional distribution through IPG, and marketing support.

The difference is that authors participating in the program invest in the mentorship to develop  their story. This allows The Little Press to take on projects that have publishing potential that we otherwise could not acquire and develop due to financial constraints. 

The Lucky Penny Program is invitation-only and highly selective. Manuscripts are chosen because they demonstrate clear commercial and artistic publishing potential, not because an author is willing to pay.

Unlike vanity models:

  • Authors do not choose vendors or manage production
  • All editing, illustration, design, printing, distribution, and marketing are publisher-led
  • Books are published under The Little Press imprint
  • Titles are distributed traditionally and supported alongside the publisher’s core list. 

The program exists to expand opportunity—not to bypass professional publishing standards.

Picture books are the most expensive children’s format to produce. They require:

  • Professional illustration
     
  • Extensive art direction and design
     
  • High-quality offset printing
     
  • Long production timelines
     

For small presses, this limits the number of picture books that can be acquired each year, regardless of manuscript quality. The Lucky Penny Program helps offset these constraints while preserving quality and care.

The program is designed for creators who:

  • Have a manuscript with strong publishing potential
  • Are open to professional editorial development
  • Understand the realities of small-press publishing
  • Are ready to invest in their work and partner closely with a publishing team

Participation is by invitation only.

No. Lucky Penny titles receive the same level of professional care, production standards, distribution, and marketing support as all other books published by The Little Press.

The Lucky Penny Program is designed to remain high-touch and mission-driven. Limiting participation ensures that each project receives the time, attention, and resources needed to deliver a high quality mentorship as well as meet professional publishing standards to succeed in the marketplace.

The Lucky Penny Program is invitation-only and is not currently open for direct submissions. Manuscripts considered for the program are selected from work previously submitted to The Little Press through our conference-based submission opportunities and other special events held throughout the year.

Invitations are extended only when we believe a manuscript is a strong fit for the Lucky Penny Program and complements our existing publishing list. Participation in any submission event does not guarantee an invitation or a publishing offer.

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