Random House Australia’s new children’s imprint, Woolshed Press, was launched on 9 April 2008 in North Sydney by Linsay Knight, Head of Children’s Books.
The new imprint’s publisher, Leonie Tyle, will acquire ground-breaking books with a strong sense of story. Tyle says, ‘It is a list which is courageous, risky and passionate. Woolshed Press will bring together inspirational new voices alongside some of our favourite published authors to build a list that will put the edge back into Australian children’s publishing.’
The launch of Woolshed Press does not mark the first time the Random House Group has embraced independent imprints. The Random House Group has pioneered this publishing model, most recently with David Fickling Books (The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time) and Tamarind Books, a publisher of multicultural books for young readers.
The imprint name represents a continuation of the pioneering Australian spirit of producing world-class products drawn from the local cultural landscape. The logo also links this uniquely Australian imprint to the globally recognised Random House brand.
The first titles to be signed to Woolshed Press include: a sweet, magical narrative from award-winning Catherine Bateson; a gripping new young adult novel from Bill Condon; a searing young adult novel from acclaimed author James Roy; a gorgeous fable from Celeste Walters, illustrated by Anne Spudvilas; an hilarious and compelling drama from Brian Caswell; a wartime tale from first-time author Victoria Bowen; and a gothic horror masterpiece from Anthony Eaton. All these titles will be published this year, with the exception of Walters’ novel which is scheduled for May 2009. The authors who have been previously published have enjoyed excellent sales in the past in both the trade and educational markets.
Linsay Knight, Head of Children’s Books at Random House Australia, is thrilled to welcome these award-winning authors to the Random House family and looks forward to publishing the first six books from Woolshed Press this year.
‘Woolshed Press will complement Random House Australia Children’s Books and together the two lists will have the depth and vision needed to provide something special for all young readers. Leonie is keen to find world-class literary titles that are both commercial and have potential in the educational market, while the Random House Australia list will continue to specialise in quality fiction and non-fiction, bestselling series, story collections and popular buy-in titles originated in other markets,’ Knight says.
Woolshed Press will publish six titles in 2008 and twelve per year thereafter, concentrating on one-off titles to showcase the best of Australian storytelling for children and young people of all ages.
For further information, please contact publicist Yae Morton on ymorton@randomhouse.com.au or (02) 8923 9803.
