MAIN NEWS HEADLINES
January 11 – 18, 2007 Edition
Dorchester Launches
New Manga-Like
Romance Imprint
NEW YORK, NY/1/11/07—Dorchester Publishing will launch Shomi, a new line of speculative romance novels in July 2007. The new line, targeted toward a younger, hipper readership, will be packaged with edgy, manga-inspired covers.
While the content may be of any subgenre—paranormal, futuristic or fantasy, each Shomi book will contain two unifying elements: a noir-like narrative voice and a heroine caught between realms. (Think The Matrix, if Neo were female and Trinity male.)
In essence, the books under the Shomi umbrella will combine all that is best from the suspense, sci-fi, fantasy, paranormal and chick-lit subgenres.
Imagine a story with a strong, almost noir-like narrative voice, a story in which a young woman is stolen from her normal life and thrust into an alternate universe that challenges everything she thought she knew. Nothing is certain, and one of the few things keeping her sane—aside from her wit and tenacity—is her enigmatic but alluring guide to this new world…
The July 2007 launch title for Shomi will be titled Wired by Liz Maverick. Other books in the line include: Moon Gazer by Marianne Mancusi, August 2007, and Driven by Eve Kenin, September 2007. Driven is described as a post-apocalyptic trucker romance.
Dorchester is actively acquiring for this line, which will be edited by Senior Editor Chris Keeslar. He describes the new imprint this way:
“Picture yourself in realities unlike any you’ve ever known. You woke up this morning with a slinky black dress you’ve never seen…and a gun. You work for a corporation of strangers who know you. And then you remember Mason Merrick, the man you fantasized about in college, who last night stepped out of the shadows and saved you from a fate worse than death. But what does he want? . . .
“Intrigued? These are the worlds of Shomi. Some might call the books speculative fiction. I call them Romance at its best. These titlespackaged with Anime/Manga covers to catch the eyeare for the readers who keep fiction relevant: the progressive and voracious,” said Keeslar. “They love Jane Austen as much as The Matrix, Bridget Jones’s Diary as much as their iPod or Xbox. They’re readers who are having trouble finding books that speak to them. They want something newer, fresher…something beyond vampires and werewolves. With stories as diverse and singular as the stars in the sky, Shomi has what readers want.”
In addition to the new romance line, Dorchester has also been licensed to distribute well known sci-fi and fantasy titles by Wildside Press beginning in 2007. In the future, the company may consider releasing original books in these genres under the Cosmos imprint, depending on how well the titles are received.
New York-based Dorchester is the oldest independent mass market publisher in America, and widely known for its romance, horror and Western titles.
