Random House is launching Random House Worlds, an imprint dedicated to licensed book publishing. It will be the home for major pop culture brands to be published within the Random House division, including Star Wars, Minecraft, Stranger Things, Garfield, Magic: The Gathering, Lore Olympus, Critical Role and others. Keith Clayton, v-p, deputy publisher of Del Rey, will also lead the Random House Worlds imprint as publishing director.
The premier licensed brands that have been published by Del Rey and other imprints under the Random House division will now migrate their frontlist and backlist titles to the Random House Worlds imprint starting in 2023. The company said that "under this streamlined structure, Random House Worlds will offer a single home for partners to bring their prime pop culture brands--any genre and any format, from novels to cookbooks to coloring books and beyond. Books published under the Random House Worlds imprint will enrich and expand partners' worlds beyond their original source material, helping to grow a popular brand into a multimedia universe and offering fans a deeply immersive experience into their favorite worlds." The new imprint's team will also work with Clarkson Potter's gift and design team to develop licensed gift and paper products to be published under the Potter imprint.
Clayton said: "With a unified publication strategy encompassing multiple formats and genres, the Random House Worlds approach will enable us to have one conversation with readers, retailers, and partners, delivering best-in-class service to licensors and the highest-quality content to passionate fandoms,"
Joining Clayton on the publishing team of Random House Worlds will be Kristin Conte, business director, licensing & brands; Sarah Malarkey, editorial director, nonfiction & illustrated; Elizabeth Schaefer, editorial director, fiction; and Alex Larned, senior publishing manager, Del Rey & Random House Worlds.
