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| Orson Scott Card. Photo: Bob Henderson, Henderson Photography. |
Simon Pulse senior editor Anica Rissi has acquired world English rights to the first three books in a new fantasy series by Orson Scott Card written specifically for a YA audience; Barbara Bova of the Barbara Bova Literary Agency made the sale. Bova submitted the proposal for the series to a number of different houses, but Pulse made a “very good” offer, she said, to beat out the competitors. The books will follow a teenage protagonist, Ligg, on a quest to save his world from destruction and uncover the truth behind the Tender’s prophecy. The series will also have a strong steampunk element, Rissi said.
Like other authors whose books are widely read by both adults and younger readers (see: James Patterson), Card has taken note of the burgeoning YA marketplace, and saw an opportunity to market his work directly to this audience for the first time, according to Rissi. When Card’s iconic Ender’s Game came out in 1985, she said, “the teen market didn’t exist” to the extent it does now. Card also has a daughter who is “about the right age,” Bova said, “which may have inspired him” to go in this direction.
The first of the three books, all of which are still untitled, is due to appear in hardcover in 2011, with the others to come out in 2012 and 2013, respectively, one month after the paperback of the previous book in the series. Pulse, previously known as a paperback imprint, has more recently shifted to hard/soft in the wake of hardcover successes like Scott Westerfeld’s Uglies series and Lisa McMann’s Wake and Fade. The imprint will be able to cross-promote across S&S in order to reach out to Card’s fans of all ages. As Card said to Bookshelf, “If I do my job right, adults are as likely to enjoy the story as kids are.”
Card’s recent adult titles have been published by Tor.
