New York has long been considered the epicenter of book publishing, but these San Francisco indie publishers have been releasing innovative titles in every genre imaginable for years, in some cases, for decades.
From feminist lit to science fiction to works in translation, here’s a by no means complete guide to local presses.
Aunt Lute Books
Aunt Lute started in Iowa City, but has operated in SF since 1986. Dedicated to cultivating and promoting intersectional, feminist voices, its every title is a palate cleanse from our manosphere-dominated timeline. Titles include Gloria Anzaldúa’s Borderlands/La Frontera (1987) a staple of critical gender theory courses. Aunt Lute’s latest is Gwendolyn Paradice's The Divining Season, a novel about indigenous women and girls in Larissa, Texas.
City Lights Publishing
What would San Francisco be without the house that Lawrence Ferlinghetti built? What began as the Pocket Poet Series with Ferlinghetti’s own book Pictures of the Gone World (1955) and Howl by Allen Ginsberg (1956), City Lights has published over 400 titles in many genres. Their latest release is Gaza: The Poem Said Its Piece, by Palestinian poet Nasser Rabah.
Last Gasp
Since 1970, Last Gasp has been the first name in underground comix and counterculture arts titles, publishing anthologies of R. Crumb’s Weirdo and Zap Comix and Dave Sims’s Cerebus the Aardvark. Last Gasp is preparing a five-part English language edition of Keiji Nakazawa’s manga series Barefoot Gen.
Tachyon Publications
SF or SF? How about both? Last year, Tachyon Publications celebrated 30 years of speculative fiction including works from Peter S. Beagle, Jane Yolen and Brandon Sanderson. Tachyon’s about to release Rabbit Test and Other Stories, a collection from Samantha Mills that includes Hugo-nominated short story.
Third State Books
Launched in 2023, Third State Books is dedicated to publishing works by Asian American and Pacific Islander authors for readers of all age groups. Buzzworthy books include The Vale (2025) by Abigail Hing Wen and Jonnie Park’s memoir Spit: A Life in Battles (2026).
Two Lines Press
Two Lines Press has been publishing some of the most compelling translated works since 2013. You could throw a dart blindfolded and land on an engrossing book in their lush catalogue, but if you aren’t one for taking chances, check out White Nights by Urszula Honek, long-listed for the 2022 International Booker Prize.
A version of this story first ran in Gazetteer San Francisco issue 3.
