Books for people that lead.
Thistle Dew Pressworks is an independent boutique publishing house with a focus on forward thinking.
Surrounded
by Fire
Surrounded by Fire
A leadership book for people who were handed the responsibility before they were handed the confidence. Drawing on decades spent running operations where the stakes were real and the room was rarely calm, it lays out a working model for leading with intent, reading people accurately, and building the kind of trust that holds under pressure.
Structured across six parts, thirty chapters, and two appendices, it moves from first principles to field-tested practice — built to be used, not just read.
What we publish, and why
Thistle Dew Pressworks was founded on a simple belief: writing worth publishing is writing worth sitting with. We look for work that is mindful in its attention, thoughtful in its reasoning, and insightful in what it leaves the reader with — books built to be read closely, not skimmed.
We are small by design. Rather than a wide list of quick releases, we take on a short number of titles each season and give each one the editorial attention it needs to hold up on a second and third reading. A book that earns a place on our list is one a reader will still be underlining a year later.
The name comes from the thistle: unglamorous, difficult to uproot, and native to the kind of ground most publishers walk past.
Mindful over hurried
We favor writing that has been sat with and revised, not rushed to print to fill a season.
Insight over impression
A book earns its place on our list by saying something true, clearly, and with intention.
A short, deliberate list
We would rather publish one book we believe in completely than five we don't.
How manuscripts reach us
Thistle Dew Pressworks considers a small number of nonfiction manuscripts each season — introspective writing grounded in real thinking rather than trend or theory.
- 01We are not currently open to unsolicited manuscripts. Queries by referral are reviewed as capacity allows.
- 02We publish a short list each season and read every submission personally — which means response times are slow.
- 03If your work fits the list, a referral from an existing author or industry contact is the fastest path to a read.
Get in touch
Thistle Dew Pressworks
For rights, media, or general inquiries, reach the office directly. For manuscript queries, see Submissions.