Imprints: Dennis Lehane Books; Amazon's SF/F Imprint Called 47North

PublishersLunch

Recently Ecco announced its longtime author Anthony Bourdain (left-Getty Images) would acquire and edit a handful of titles each year under his own eponymous imprint. Now William Morrow has followed suit in working with Dennis Lehane, whom they have published since 1994, on an imprint of his own. Dennis Lehane Books will "help identify and acquire literary fiction with a dark urban edge." The announcement did not specify a launch title or a release date beyond saying Lehane would oversee publication of a "select number" of fiction titles annually and that he would work with his longtime editor Claire Wachtel. (Lehane's agent Ann Rittenberg negotiated the deal with Morrow.)

Lehane in a statement, "My goal is to call attention to worthy writers, who for some unknown reason aren’t as popular as they deserve to be. That's a reason to get out of bed every morning." William Morrow publisher Liate Stehlik added: "In a world where computer algorithms and screen placement often replace in-store recommendations, having a line of books with a talented and highly regarded writer like Dennis is a great way to help readers discover what to read next. The list will be made up of the kind of high-quality writing that Dennis most admires and that readers would associate with his name."

Amazon's long-expected science fiction, fantasy, and horror imprint has finally arrived, and in keeping with the company's tradition of incorporating geographic elements into imprints' names, this one is called 47North, (Seattle's latitude.) The imprint launches with 15 books, including the republication of Neal Stephenson & Greg Bear's Mongoliad series, the previously reported DEAD MAN series created by Lee Goldberg & Bill Rabkin, and other titles by Stephen Leather, B.V. Larson, and Chris Roberson. Trade print distribution is offered through Ingram and Baker & Taylor, just in case. Also notable is that Victoria Griffith's title is now publisher of Amazon Publishing, West Coast Group, presumably to distinguish her units from Larry Kirshbaum's New York-based division.
Release

Ed Victor's start-up publishing unit Bedford Square Books launched their first six reissues today, and confirmed that their first original publication will be Louise Fennell's debut novel, DEAD RICH, a contemporary black comedy that "cuts to the very heart of today's celebrity culture," publishing in the UK in February 2012.