In the half century since it was launched in 1952, Ballantine Books has adapted to the changing publishing scene. Acquired by Random House in 1973, the Ballantine Books Group now consists of the flagship imprint Ballantine, Ballantine Reader's Circle, Del Rey (and Del Rey/Lucas Books), Fawcett, Ivy, One World and, since its acquisition earlier this year, Presidio Press. The composition of Ballantine's imprints changed little following the purchase of Random by Bertelsmann in 1998, but the direction of the publishing program of those imprints has shifted since Gina Centrello became president and publisher in March 1999, succeeding Linda Grey.
Centrello has broadened Ballantine's publishing base to focus more on original publishing and lessened its dependence on reprints. Among the major authors now published by the group in hardcover and paperback are Tess Gerritsen, Linda Howard, Julie Garwood, Jonathan Kellerman and Richard North Patterson (whose new hardcover is due out next fall).
Centrello has also given the different imprints more specific identities. Fawcett focuses on mysteries, and Ivy Books is devoted solely to publishing mass market paperback romance titles. Presidio is now responsible for all of the group's military publishing efforts. Del Rey remains the leading science fiction/fantasy imprint, while One World is centered around multicultural titles. The flagship Ballantine imprint publishes an eclectic list that highlights commercial fiction, diet, biography and parenting as well as literary fiction. In addition to a wide range of subjects, the Ballantine Group publishes in all formats—hardcover, trade paperback and mass market paperback. "We're a vertical publisher that offers authors a total publishing program," Centrello said.
Ballantine publishes approximately 350 titles per year, a figure "that could go up or down depending on what's working," Centrello said. Ballantine has built up a backlist of more than 3,000 titles, and backlist is the company's financial backbone, accounting for 75% of profits. And while Ballantine publishes in all formats, Centrello keeps the company close to its mass market roots—mass market paperbacks account for 50% of the group's profits, while trade paperbacks generate 40% and hardcover publishing brings in 10%. Centrello said that the top titles still sell well in mass market, but added, "it's hard to make huge distribution gains with less well-known authors."
Mass market paperbacks are found in most of the group's imprints. Ballantine Books re-prints such bestselling authors as Sue Grafton, John Irving, Stephen King, Anne Rice and Amy Tan. Fawcett reprints novels by mystery writers including Anne Perry and William Diehl. While reprints are an important part of the mass market program, Centrello uses the format to develop new authors.
Among the areas Centrello would like to expand are women's fiction, child care and science fiction/fantasy. As well as Del Rey has done, Centrello believes there is room for more growth, and Del Rey editor-in-chief Betsy Mitchell agrees. Mitchell, who joined Del Rey in January, has several ideas on how to grow the imprint: publish more trade paperbacks for young adults and in literary fiction; develop more writers of color; and refurbish the imprint's classic backlist. More joint book publishing programs, such as Del Rey's agreement to publish titles based on Microsoft's Xbox, are also under consideration.
Mitchell acknowledges that she is building on the success of Del Rey founders Judy and Lester Del Rey and that she benefits from "a corporate attitude that believes in science fiction." Among the mainstays of the imprint are the J.R.R. Tolkien and Star Wars franchises. Del Rey has sold 60 million copies in mass market paperback of the various Tolkien books. Del Rey began publishing Star War novelizations in 1976 and has published numerous related fiction and nonfiction titles ever since. Total Star Wars copies in print top the five million mark. But Del Rey is more than just Tolkien and Star Wars. Its roster of authors reads like a who's who of sci-fi: Orson Scott Card, Arthur C. Clarke, Anne McCaffrey, China Mieville, R.A. Salvatore and Terry Brooks. Brooks is one of Del Rey's first authors, and his most recent book, The Voyage of the Jerle Shannara: Morgawr, is his first to crack the top five on both the PW and New York Times bestseller lists.
Del Rey is celebrating its 25th anniversary in 2002, while Ballantine's Reader's Circle program is marking its fifth anniversary. BRC repackages classic titles in a quality trade paperback that includes a discussion guide and a stamp on the cover that identifies the book as a BRC selection. "Booksellers love it," said Maureen O'Neal, BRC editorial director, noting that the program gives stores another chance to market a title. And Ballantine does what it can to merchandise BRC selections, including providing spinner racks to more than 300 bookstores. "We feel we've established the brand with booksellers. Now we're trying to establish the brand with consumers," O'Neal said.
BRC's early list featured only fiction, but the program has added nonfiction titles and in spring 2003 will publish its first paperback original, Beginner's Luck by Laura Pedersen. BRC publishes two titles per month and has released 128 titles to date.
In directing the various aspects of Ballantine, Centrello's philosophy is to "find the biggest community of readers" for a particular title. "If we're publishing Tess Gerritsen, we try to determine who likes her and how we can best reach that audience." Targeting the right audience has also kept Ballantine's return rate to what Centrello believes is among the lowest in the industry. And a low return rate has helped keep Ballantine profitable. According to Random House chairman Peter Olson, under Centrello's leadership, Ballantine is "consistently one of our most profitable publishing groups."
Centrello is quick to praise the other members of the Ballantine executive team, many of whom she recruited, for the group's success. Ballantine has an 85-person staff, excluding sales personnel. "We have great people and a great team," Centrello said.
