Lanternfish Press, founded in Philadelphia in 2013, publishes literature of the rare and strange: fiction that crosses the boundary between literary and speculative; real or imagined tales of characters at the margins of history; essays rooted in a strong sense of place; a cabinet of curious Victorian reprints. We seek the grotesque, the alien made familiar, the “I don’t know what this is—but I love it.”
Lanternfish aims to make books and publication accessible to readers and writers who fall outside the literary mainstream, whether in race, sexuality, gender, situation, or pure individual oddity. We're a home for books that defy pigeonholes—and for the readers who love them.
In the years we’ve been publishing so far, our catalog has expanded to include the beautiful illustrated Clockwork Editions series, and our books have been selected for everything from the Foreword INDIES Award to the Michigan Notable Book list.