In the latest for SFF publishing acquisitions, Kensington Publishing recently acquired fellow independent publisher Erewhon Books.
Erewhon—established in 2018, which boasts a lineup of authors including C. L. Polk, E. Lily Yu, Benjamin Rosenbaum, and Cassandra Khaw—is now an imprint of Kensington. The acquisition includes Erewhon’s backlist as well as their titles coming out through 2024. Editorial oversight will continue under Erewhon Publisher Sarah Guan, with the rest of the Erewhon team also joining Kensington. Starting in 2023, Penguin Random House Publisher Services will begin distributing all of their books.
“The diverse, high-quality list Erewhon has built and the level of support they’ve been able to offer their authors as a small, but effective and passionate team is impressive,” Steven Zacharius, the President and CEO of Kensington Books said in a press release. “It also very much aligns with Kensington’s own ethos as an independent company driven by reader interest with a focus on developing and building authors’ careers. We are excited to amplify Erewhon’s considerable strengths while advancing their vision for thoughtful, effortlessly strange literary speculative fiction.”
Some of Kensington’s other imprints include Citadel Press, which focuses on non-fiction; Lyrical Press, which focuses on romance, thrillers, and mysteries; and Zebra, which focuses on women’s fiction and romance. Adding Erewhon to their roster will give Kensington their first significant foray into SFF.
“From its inception, Erewhon Books has published thought-provoking work that examines a wide array of experiences of the world,” Guan said in a statement. “With Kensington’s robust reputation in the industry behind us and with the powerhouse of their distribution through Penguin Random House, Erewhon now has the opportunity to give our authors and team a greater platform than ever before. We are looking forward to building the next phase of Erewhon’s growth, as our future has never been brighter!”
