Science fiction and fantasy is a literary genre that has often been relegated to independent publishers, such as Tor. This company houses some of the biggest named authors such as John Scalzi, Brandon Sanderson and Jim Butcher. These authors sell a copious amount of books and have all been signed to lucrative long-term contracts. Orbit Books, is an imprint of Hachette and the company has just announced that starting in 2016 they are going to increase the number of titles printed per year by 50%. This will directly result in over 90 new books a year being released.
Tim Holman, Orbit Publisher and Hachette Book Group SVP, said: “There is a huge and diverse audience for SF and Fantasy out there, and it’s the perfect time to be expanding the list. Orbit is currently the fastest growing SF and Fantasy imprint in the U.S. with an increasing number of New York Times bestsellers – most recently Ann Leckie, whose debut ANCILLARY JUSTICE was also the first novel to win every major SF award. Since our launch in 2008, we have been committed to publishing the most exciting authors in the field and looking for creative ways to connect with new readers. We’re very much looking forward to building on the success we’ve had, expanding the publishing team, and welcoming more authors to the list.”
Editor Joel Cunningham of the Barnes and Noble SciFi & Fantasy blog, has gone as far as to say that right now we’re living in a new golden age. He might be right, because there are millions of new people getting turned onto books who have watched television shows such as Game of Thrones, the Walking Dead, Wayward Pines and Sense8.
The success of Orbit investing in new authors and books is certainly not assured. It will heavily depend on the quality of the books and how much they promote them.
Michael Kozlowski is the editor-in-chief at Good e-Reader and has written about audiobooks and e-readers for the past fifteen years. Newspapers and websites such as the CBC, CNET, Engadget, Huffington Post and the New York Times have picked up his articles. He Lives in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.