About IVC Stories
Named for the Indus Valley Civilization — a home for authors exploring the myth and magic of one of history's oldest, least understood worlds.
IVC: the Indus Valley Civilization
IVC takes its initials from the Indus Valley Civilization — one of the world's first great urban civilizations, flourishing across what is now Pakistan and northwest India more than 4,000 years ago. Its cities were engineered with a precision that still surprises archaeologists; its script, carved into thousands of seals, has never been deciphered.
That combination — real, excavated, unmistakably advanced, and still fundamentally unknown — is exactly the space we exist to publish into. No one can say with certainty what its people believed, who they worshipped, or what stories they told each other in the dark. That silence isn't an obstacle for a storyteller. It's an invitation.
We're built for authors who want to work inside that invitation: fiction and nonfiction exploring the myth, magic, ritual, and daily life of this period — directly, or through the threads of belief and tradition that trace forward from it across the length of Indian history.
What makes this era so fertile for story
An Unread Script
Thousands of seals carry a script of more than 400 signs. No one has ever translated it. Every seal is a locked door — and every author is free to imagine what's behind it.
Cities Without Kings
Mohenjo-daro and Harappa show no palaces, no obvious temples, and little evidence of a ruling elite — a civilization whose power structures, and rituals, remain genuinely open questions.
Goddesses & Seals
Terracotta mother-goddess figures, a horned figure seated in meditation, a carved "unicorn" seen on seals nowhere else — fragments of a belief system we can only partly reconstruct.
A Civilization That Vanished
Its great cities were abandoned as its rivers shifted and dried, and how its traditions carried forward into later Indian belief and myth is still genuinely debated — leaving authors a real bridge between documented history and the mystical unknown.
Built around two books, by design
IVC Stories began as the publishing imprint behind Nitin Antoon's own debut, Meera of Karmana — a five-volume spiritual adventure series drawn from his travels across India, and from the same well of myth, ritual, and devotion that Indus Valley tradition fed into over thousands of years. Volume 1 has since appeared across six editions, including the IVC Stories/KDP paperback and ebook.
In 2025, IVC Stories took on rights for Nitin's second book, From Legacy to Innovation, co-authored with Jim Hamilton and Dr. Jaideep Motwani — proof the list isn't limited to one setting or genre, only to authors willing to dig past the surface of something legacy to find what's really there.
We remain small and direct by design. Every enquiry is read by someone who knows the book, not routed through a call centre. As the list grows, that won't change.
We are actively open to representing authors whose work explores the Indus Valley Civilization directly, or draws — however loosely — on the myth, ritual, and lived tradition it set in motion. See our submission guidelines.
So far
Meera of Karmana, Volume 1, published by Notion Press, with further editions following from IVC Stories/KDP, Edition1.1, and an independent hardcover.
From Legacy to Innovation published, co-authored with Jim Hamilton and Dr. Jaideep Motwani, and covered by AP News for its Reverse Greenfield approach.
IVC Stories opens its rights desk to publishers, producers, and other authors seeking representation.
What guides how we represent
Direct Representation
We negotiate directly with publishers and producers wherever possible, minimising intermediaries between an author and their reader.
Selective by Design
We would rather represent a small list well than a large one thinly — every title gets sustained attention.
Long-Term Partnership
We think in terms of an author's whole career, not a single deal.
Currently published in English, open worldwide
Both titles are currently published in English only. Translation, film & television, audio, and other rights are open in every territory and language — see Available Rights for specifics.
How we operate
Every rights enquiry receives a direct, personal response. Contracts, permissions, and territory records are tracked centrally so nothing is sold twice or left unanswered.
Who we work with, and how
For Authors
- Representation & career strategy
- Contract negotiation
- Rights strategy across formats
- Royalty oversight
For Publishers
- Rights representation
- International sales
- Catalogue management
- Co-agent coordination
For Producers
- Book & property discovery
- Option enquiries
- Permissions handling
- Adaptation negotiation
For International Partners
- Translation licences
- Territorial rights
- Material & sample requests
- Submission support
Rights, submissions, and press enquiries
Full contact details and department routing are on the Contact page.