Interesting things for interesting people
Nick Owen Publishing exists to entertain, provoke, question and occasionally misbehave.
We publish books that refuse to sit quietly in their allotted categories. Some are comic. Some are satirical. Some are strange, tender, unruly or unashamedly eccentric. Others bear witness to moments when truth itself becomes fragile, dangerous or urgently necessary.
What connects them is curiosity: about people, memory, identity, creativity and the stories through which we try to make sense of our lives.
Books are beginnings
For NOP, publication is not the end of the process. It is the moment when a story begins to find its readers—and when other possibilities can start to emerge.
A book might become an audiobook, podcast, performance, exhibition, conversation, journey, learning resource or unexpected collaboration. It might bring writers, artists, schools, communities and audiences together in ways that were not visible when the first words were written.
Our story
NOP was established by writer, publisher and creative troublemaker Dr Nick Owen MBE.
It began as a small independent publishing enterprise: a home for unusual books, overlooked stories and ideas that were unlikely to behave themselves in more conventional surroundings.
Ten years later, NOP is entering a new chapter. Publishing remains at its heart, but books now sit within a wider creative ecology encompassing audio, events, live experiences, community participation, learning and commissioned work.
We remain not just whether a book can be published, but where its ideas might travel next—and who might join the journey.
What matters to us
Curiosity
We are interested in unexpected people, neglected histories, awkward questions and ideas that do not arrive with all their edges neatly trimmed.
Optimism
We believe creativity can still open doors, start conversations and change what people imagine to be possible. Life is not over. The interesting bit may only just be getting started.
Independence
NOP remains small enough to make its own decisions, follow its instincts and support work because it matters—not because an algorithm has already approved it.
Mischief
Serious ideas do not always require solemn treatment. Humour, playfulness and the occasional refusal to behave are part of how NOP sees the world.
More than a publishing list
NOP’s work now travels through several connected routes:
- Books that entertain, provoke and bear witness;
- Stories and Audio that allow the work to be heard in different ways;
- Experiences that bring books, music, people and places together;
- Work With Us, offering manuscript development for writers, evaluation and learning for organisations, and creative partnerships with communities.
Each route is different, but all begin with the same question:
Authors, artists and other miscreants
NOP is shaped by the writers, editors, illustrators, performers, photographers, designers, readers and collaborators who contribute to its work.
Some relationships last for a single project. Others stretch across years, books and increasingly improbable conversations. Together, they ensure that NOP remains less a conventional publishing machine and more a gathering place for people with something distinctive to say or make.
Meet the authors, artists and other miscreants →
Meet Nick
Dr Nick Owen MBE is a writer, publisher, researcher and cultural leader with more than thirty years’ experience across creativity, education, social enterprise, youth services and community development.
His work moves between storytelling, publishing, performance, evaluation and the creation of partnerships. He is particularly interested in what happens when ideas escape their original containers and begin connecting people, disciplines and places.
More about Nick →
Our mission
Our mission explains why NOP exists, what we value and the contribution we hope our books, stories and experiences can make.
Explore the NOP Mission →
Our next chapter
The 2027–2032 Ambition sets out where NOP hopes to travel next: connecting its catalogue more deliberately, developing new experiences and income streams, supporting collaborators and turning more readers into participants.
It is an invitation rather than a finished proclamation. The next chapter will be created with readers, writers, artists, bookshops, venues, communities and partners.
Explore our 2027–2032 Ambition →
NOP at ten
Ten years of books, experiments, collaborations, false starts, improbable achievements and persistent creative optimism deserve both celebration and reflection.
Our tenth-anniversary story looks back at where NOP came from—and forward to what might happen next.