Claire Messud, author of books including The Emperor’s Children and The Woman Upstairs, has moved to W. W. Norton & Company in a two-book deal.
The agreement—which includes U.S., Canadian, open market, and audio rights—was made by Norton v-p and executive editor Jill Bialosky with agent Sarah Chalfant of The Wylie Agency.
“Norton could not be more thrilled to welcome Claire Messud, one of our finest novelists," Bialosky said in a statement. "She is a master of the form, as accomplished at weaving an utterly convincing, compelling fictional world as she is at teasing out the big questions
The first of the two forthcoming novels, The Burning Girl, tells a story of two young friends growing up in a small Massachusetts town, and is slated for publication in fall of 2017. The second novel has yet to be announced. Norton will also re-release Messud’s first novel, When the World was Steady.
