Volume 2
DESPERATE – the Everyman!
In development
Independent publishing house
Where literary arts
and visual arts fuse.
LAVA Guild publishes original illustrated fiction — stories born in words and finished in ink, beginning with our flagship series DESPERATE – the Everyman!
Flagship series
DESPERATE -the Everyman-
Desire knows no boundaries. Desperation knows no limits.
Our debut original series blends serialized prose with full-page chapter illustrations — a premium reading experience built for readers who want the words and the art to carry the story together.
PaperbackEbookAudiobook
The catalog
Current & upcoming releases
New property
Untitled original series
In development
And more to come
The guild's catalog is built to grow — new titles, new formats, new worlds.
About LAVA Guild
Literary Arts × Visual Arts
LAVA Guild is an independent publishing company built on a simple conviction: the written word and the drawn image are equals. We publish original fiction with a strong emphasis on illustrated storytelling — where a chapter can end in prose and begin in a full-page piece of art.
Influenced by light novels, manga, and other visually driven forms of storytelling, we treat every book as a designed object: the typography, the cover, the interior art, and the words are one work. Not a book with pictures — a story told in two languages at once.
Read our full storyThe guild
The people behind the pages
Great illustrated fiction takes a guild: the writer who builds the world, the illustrator who makes it visible, and the narrator who gives it a voice. We publish with our collaborators, not just about them.
Authors
Writers of original worlds
Original prose with a visual pulse — stories written to be illustrated from the first page.
Illustrators
Artists of the story
Cover artists and interior illustrators whose work carries as much narrative weight as the text.
Narrators
Voices of the guild
Voice talent bringing our audiobook editions to life with the same care as the page.
News & updates
From the guild hall
LAVA Guild opens its doors
Our new home on the web is live — a catalog built to grow with every volume, format, and property we publish.
Read moreDESPERATE – the Everyman! cover art in progress
First looks at the flagship series' illustrated cover treatment are taking shape in the studio.
Read moreOpen for writer & illustrator queries
We're meeting writers, illustrators, narrators, and creative professionals who want to build illustrated fiction with us.
Read morePublishing roadmap: what's next
An early look at how new volumes and formats will roll out across the catalog.
Read moreGot a story that burns?
We're reading queries from writers and illustrators who believe stories should be seen as well as read. Tell us about the world you want to build.