Random House Publishing Group associate design director Virginia Norey, who created the enduring interior house styles for such authors as Diana Gabaldon and George R.R. Martin, died on March 28 after a brief battle with gastric cancer. She was 68.
Norey’s publishing career began at Penguin Books in 1997, where her redesign of The Complete Pelican Shakespeare won her the first of five New York Book Show awards. She moved on to Dell, then became the design manager of the newly joined Bantam Dell, rising to associate design director shortly before the 2009 merger of Bantam Dell and Random House.
During her tenure, Norey developed mass market design standards for an array of RHPG titles and created house styles for books by such authors as Gabaldon, Martin, Lee Child, and Danielle Steel. In addition to her work as a book designer, she was a sought-after illustrator and mapmaker, working on a number of RHPG titles in that capacity. Her interest in the Polish art of paper-cutting, for instance, was evident in the family sigils in the Game of Thrones series.
“I’ll be forever grateful to Virginia for welcoming me with open arms when I joined Random House from Crown, and I know many of us will always remember her generosity, sage advice, practical wisdom, and loving friendship,” said Elizabeth Rendfleisch, VP and director of design at RHPG.
In a March 28 Facebook post, Gabaldon paid tribute to Norey, who “was responsible for the beautiful interior designs of my novels (as well as many other PRH writers).” Gabaldon continued: “I never had the pleasure of meeting her in person, but have been honored to acknowledge her designs in every book. Everything from the fonts and line-spacing to the title pages and illustrations were Virginia’s work.... All of us will miss her.”
