We have long admired Flame Tree Publishing here at LoveReading. They stand out in a crowded marketplace by creating books, objects and art that are beautiful and practical, that enrich the lives of the people who own them.

Inspired by Pablo Picasso's quote "The purpose... is washing the dust of daily life off our souls”, they’ve been ‘washing the dust of daily life’ for over thirty years.

Throughout their list, powerful and eloquent artists such as Angela Harding and Alphonse Mucha are complemented by extensive licenses in their award-winning calendar line, with Bodleian Library, The British Library, The Ashmolean, Tate, V&A, RSC, The Royal Academy and many other valued partners whose work they publish.

We recently reviewed Black Friday by Cheryl S. Ntumy, and were impressed: "inventive and thought-provoking, this page-turning short story collection packs notable punch on the speculative fiction front."

Flame Tree is a very special publisher, so come along with us, and find out more about them.

Please tell us all about Flame Tree Publishing and what you stand for.

Independent, inclusive, and diverse Flame Tree publishes a wide range of fiction books, gift items and art calendars. We bring the beautiful, practical and collectable to the art of fine gifts, and the fine art of reading.

We enjoy a partnership with our wide community of readers, artists and authors, offering inspiration, and delight in the classic and the modern, the familiar and the new. We work with museums and gallery collections such as the Bodleian Library, Tate and the Royal Academy, while always introducing new illustrators and fresh perspectives.

Storytelling is at the heart of our publishing, from early mythology and folklore through medieval tales to modern stories and observable scientific discoveries, from renaissance art to the spirited Impressionists, the Arts and Crafts movement, and the expressive printmakers of today.

We actively encourage new writers, and artists, alongside the established. Recent highlights include Black Sci-Fi Short Stories, First Peoples Shared Stories, Immigrant Sci-fi and Adventures in Space, a collaboration between Chinese and English language writers. We work with academics, editors and writers from different communities to mediate our publications on and we constantly seek new mentors, editors and authors to help us extend our reach for submissions beyond the standard publishing routines.

The Flame Tree programme reflects an ever-growing journey from living tradition to science fiction, from the supernatural to the speculative, covering the entire range of storytelling from the distant past to the far future, expressed through literature and art.

Describe Flame Tree in three words. 

Beautiful books, timeless storytelling, new perspectives…

What’s your editorial ethos?

Always seeking to introduce fresh perspectives and encourage communities to engage, foster the understanding of the many traditions and cultures across the world, and promote respect for knowledge and compassion through storytelling, in visual and written forms.

Why is independent publishing so important?

Because it allows many voices to be heard, brings the authentic rather than the commercial, the instinctive rather than just the financial to be respected.

Some of the titles we’re excited about in 2025

The Open Heart, Black Friday, Requiem, A Sword of Gold and Ruin, Fever Dreams, This Way Lies Madness, Latin American Shared Stories, Afrofuturism

Which titles from your backlist have been your absolute favourites, or bestsellers?

The Wise Friend (Ramsey Campbell), Medusa (Myths Gods and Immortals), Folk Horror Short Stories, Polynesian Myths and Legends, Berthe Morisot Masterpieces of Art, Classical Music Encyclopedia

And you don’t just sell books do you? Tell us more…

Well, when the internet hit our art book publishing we turned our love of art into beautiful notebooks, journals, pens, bookmarks and jigsaw puzzles. We work with the V&A Library, Ashmolean and many wonderful new artists such as Angela Harding and Nina Pace so we express our visual heritage in a completely different way now, but as always we adapt our inspiration for art, music and storytelling and allow it to shift its medium of expression over the years.

Who would you invite to your dream literary party?

Mary Shelley, William Blake, Eleanor of Aquitaine, W.E.B duBois and Mahatma Ghandi, Germaine Greer and Tom Holland (author!)

Tell us a secret about books…

Good books never die, they live on in the memory and are passed down through behavour, reimagination and retellings, from generation to generation. And they can be dangerous because they can spark the fire of revolution and speak the truth to power. And, of course you can live in many other worlds without worrying about that passport to Mars or ancient Babylon.

Stay up to date with Flame Tree 

Fuind out more about Flame Tree at flametreepublishing.com and @flametreepress across social media platforms - Facebook, X, Instagram - and coming soon, the Flame Tree Myth and Fiction Podcast.