SOHO Press

Summary

Soho Press is an independent book publisher founded in 1987 by Laura and Alan Hruska with the help of editor Juris Jurjevics. The company was passed down to the Hruska's daughter, Bronwen Hruska, after Laura Hruska died of cancer. Soho has remained independent throughout its publishing lifetime and plans to remain "fiercely independent" in the words of Bronwen Hruska, nor has it made any acquisitions of its own. It has four imprints (Soho Press, Soho Crime, Soho Teen, and their new horror imprint, Hell's Hundred) and specializes in literary fiction and crime. Soho, while being a small indie press, has a notable standing in the publishing and literary world and its authors are frequently featured in awards and recognitions. Recently, author Jaqueline Winspear won the GP Putnam's Sons Sue Grafton Memorial Award for her novel The Comfort of Ghosts.

History and Mission

As mentioned in the summary, Soho began as a small, almost purely family-based publishing house. It is still small with under twenty full-time employees, but the company has grown since its inception. Even now the publisher remains dedicated to elevating risk-taking literature that blends genre and literary fiction, which are traditionally held as separate entities. As Bronwen Hruska put it, "Big Five corporate publishing wasn’t giving new voices a chance, Soho filled a much-needed void." Soho works with lots of debut authors and focuses on the quality and meaning of the work rather than its marketability as a purely commercial product.

Structure and Publishing Program

Soho is a very active press that has a strong standing in the indie press market. Just last August they were featured in the "Big Indie Books of 2025" Entry of Publisher's Weekly, which highlighted the work of author Ned Beauman, The Captive, another new entry to their Hell's Hundred Horror imprint. They publish approximately a hundred books each year and specialize in mysteries, thrillers, and literary fiction. However, their newer imprints Soho Teen and Hell's Hundred are gaining traction with each new release. They appear frequently at Writers Conferences and other pitching/workshop events in order to acquire new titles and authors (see a section below for a personal anecdote about my meeting with a Soho editor).

Being a small indie press, they operate on a smaller scale. This allows for more communication between the printing staff, the author, and even amongst themselves, which is important for making the book work as a coherent, fully formed project. They work with Penguin Random House Publisher Services (PRHPS) to distribute their books. Bronwen Hruska made it clear that they are still a fully independent press, and they primarily do their own marketing, but they distribute their books through PRHPS in order to reach a wider market and to make their books more accessible to the public.

Their target audience varies significantly, but most of their sales are made under the Soho Press (literary) and Soho Crime imprints. A good portion of their clientele is likely derived from people who like to purchase indie books and are familiar with the indie publishing market.

Book Highlights

Cover design for youthjuice by E.K. Sathue and released in 2024.

youthjuice

"A 29-year-old copywriter realizes that beauty is possible—at a terrible cost—in this surreal, satirical send-up of NYC It-girl culture."

A young woman working for the Storytelling team at HEBE, a leading cosmetics brand known for their thick, fatty lotion called youthjuice, spirals deeper into the dark, enticing realm of the company as she learns more about its dark secrets.

This was E.K. Sathue's second novel, but the first one that she published through Soho. I think this novel demonstrates the overarching vision of Soho's book selection. They feature and promote new or lesser-known authors and search for literature and genre fiction that extends beyond conventionality in a meaningful, unique way. Also, I am personally attached to this novel (even though I have not read it), because it was about to be released when I spoke with one of the editors from Soho (see below).

Her One Regret

"From the author of the book club favorite The Nine Lives of Rose Napolitano comes a riveting feminist thriller that tackles an unspeakable taboo: regretting motherhood."

A successful Rhode Island real estate agent tries to fake the abduction of her own daughter. She confides in a close friend and now both are implicated in this dynamic, complex situation.

Cover design for Wobble to Death by Peter Lovesey, released in 2020.

Wobble to Death

"London, 1879. Crowds have gathered at Islington’s chilly Agricultural Hall to place their bets on who will become the next world champion in a six-day, 500-mile speedwalking race, the 'wobble.' When one of the highly favored contenders dies under suspicious circumstances, Sergeant Cribb also has a race on his hands—to pursue a ruthless murderer."

A recent article by the Washington Post released in April of 2025 memorializes and celebrates author Peter Lovesey for his unique contribution to the realm of historical crime fiction that "took special pleasure in creating scenes that exposed the hypocrisies and social facades of the Victorian upper crust." Peter Lovesey was a teacher and writer with strong standing in research and nonfiction writing along with a longstanding relationship with Soho press.

Editorial Staff

Bronwen Hruska (Publisher): Daughter of founders Laura and Alan Hruska. Worked as a journalist and screenwriter for two decades before learning the publishing trade from her mother in 2008. In 2010 Laura died and Bronwen inherited the company, determined to keep Soho's values and reputation intact while expanding its reach and scope in the modern publishing world.

Juliet Grames (Associate Publisher): Graduate of Columbia College with a degree in History. Pursued a career in book publishing and has worked at Soho since 2010 as an associate publisher and editorial director. She is an international bestselling author. Her two notable works include The Seven or Eight Deaths of Stella Fortuna and The Lost Boy of Santa Chionia. In 2022 she received the Mystery Writers of America Ellery Queen Award for her editorial work in crime fiction.

Janine Argo (Production and Art Director): Graphic designer who has worked at Soho for over fourteen years.

Mark Doten (Executive Editor): A novelist and short story writer who was named one of Granta's 2017 Best Young American Writers. Two of his notable works, Trump Sky Alpha and the short story collection Whites were published through Graywolf Press. He has also taught at Princeton University and Columbia University.

Paul Oliver (Director of Publicity): He is also the founder of Syndicate Press, an imprint associated with Soho that brings forgotten noir writers back into print. He is also a Dolphins fan.

Steven Tran (Sales Director): Achieved undergraduate degree in English Language and Literature at San Francisco State University and worked as an Advertising Manager at Ashley's Homestore and as a Freelance Publicity Assistant. He has worked at Soho for almost a decade.

Shameless Plug

Image of Taz Urnov featured on the Soho Press website. I tried to search through the Atlanta Writers' Conference Website for the awkward picture they have of me accepting the award, but alas, I could not find it.

I met one of Soho's editors at the 2024 Atlanta Writers Conference. I pitched my novel to Taz Urnov, who still works at Soho managing their new horror imprint, Hell's Hundred. At the time, it was brand new. As in, they were just about to release their first book, youthjuice. They were very friendly and personable, and they seemed genuinely interested in my novel and its significance as art rather than something to be marketed and sold for profit. I mention this because it really demonstrated to me the difference between big publishers and small, independent presses like Soho. They were less focused on marketability and more focused on the piece itself and how they could help promote it as a potential project. I might also add that Taz Urnov recognized me as the best pitch they received during the conference. Although I did not ultimately submit to Soho (primarily because my novel needed and still needs more work), I still considered this a win.