Bloomsbury Children's announced the December launch of Bloomsbury Spark, its new e-book-first imprint. The line will kick off with the simultaneous release of seven titles, and the program will continue with two new titles each month.
“The majority of today’s digital imprints are genre-focused and narrow in scope, but teen and new adult readers have diverse interests and tastes,” says Cindy Loh, U.S. publishing director for Bloomsbury Children’s Books. “We have designed Bloomsbury Spark specifically with the reader in mind. It’s a place where science fiction sits alongside dystopian, mystery, contemporary romance, and more. It offers exciting, new books every month for every kind of reader.”
The digital line is one of the initiatives involved in Bloomsbury's ongoing restructuring. In the spring, Loh hired Meredith Rich as a dedicated e-book editor, and she will focus on signing young adult and new adult talent across all genres.
“I have two main goals for Bloomsbury Spark: creating exciting and timely e-books for our current market, and ensuring that our Spark authors have a great publishing experience," said Rich. Bloomsbury Spark is actively acquiring novels from debut, self-published, and established authors.
“Our editorial structure at Bloomsbury means that Bloomsbury Spark offers authors the chance to be published globally and marketed locally," said Emma Hopkin, managing director of Bloomsbury Children's and Educational Publishing Worldwide. "We are acquiring books from all territories and marketing them locally to our readers around the globe.”
The seven e-books included on Spark's launch list are Pride’s Run by Cat Kalen; The Secret of Isobel Key by Jen McConnel; The Sound of Us by Ashley Poston; The Art of Falling by Jenny Kaczorowski; Beyond Our Stars by Marie Langager; Until We End by Frankie Brown; and Positively Mine by Christine Duval.
