Two years after expanding the staff in its children’s and YA department, Tyndale House Publishers is adding Wander, an imprint for young adult titles, to the Tyndale Kids division.
Linda Howard, associate publisher for Tyndale Kids, is heading up the new imprint, which she said has been in the works for over a year.
“YA is one of the top selling genres in publishing today, but there is not a lot of Christian YA in the marketplace,” she told PW. “We want to publish books that tell great stories and have engaging, top quality writing paired with strong positive messages that address current issues.”
Additional staff at the imprint includes lead editor Sarah Rubio, who also works in other genres at Tyndale. The first two books under the imprint, The Delusion by Laura Gallier (2017) and The Crescent Stone by Matt Mikalatos (2018), were released before the Wander logo was finished. The titles have been nominated for a Christy Award and a Christianity Today award, respectively. Frontlist titles for Wander include The Prophecy (tentative title), a follow-up to The Delusion expected in fall 2019, and The Heartwood Crown, a follow-up to The Crescent Stone, slated for publication in summer 2019.
The publisher plans to release three to four titles a year under the Wander imprint in years to come.
“[Output] is contingent on the quality of proposals we receive and if they fit into our mission for the line,” Howard said. “If we are going to stand alongside the million-seller books and series that are out there, our content must be top notch.”
Tyndale is planning to launch a website for Wander that will feature its YA titles as well as a space for readers to engage with the themes and topics addressed in the books. It is part of a special focus on the Wander brand and consumers' experience with it, according to Kristi Gravemann, marketing manager, children and youth at Tyndale. "This experience starts with giving readers high-quality, relevant books they will enjoy," she said. "As the logo begins to appear on more and more of our books, readers can connect this positive experience with the Wander brand."
