Pyr—the sf imprint of Prometheus Books which debuted in 2005—is moving into the YA market in November. Prometheus President Jonathan Kurtz said “Several titles in the Pyr catalog have had crossover appeal to the young adult reader—including The Greyfriar (Vampire Empire, Book 1), Sasha (A Trial of Blood and Steel, Book One), and The Falling Machine (The Society of Steam, Book One), so it was a natural progression for us to decide to publish books intended specifically for this market segment.”
Pyr Editorial Director Lou Anders said “We believe there is a real hunger in the growing YA readership for narratives that explore the full, imaginative breadth of what science fiction and fantasy has to offer. Of our first three Pyr titles for the YA reader, two are from authors who primarily write for the adult book market, an acquisitions approach we decided best served this need. Also, it’s long been said that ‘the Golden Age of science fiction is twelve,’ and while this is somewhat tongue-in-cheek, it speaks to the common interests of those who read speculative fiction, whether teen or adult. With many adult readers turning to Young Adult fiction to recapture the sense of wonder and fun that the best stories in any category have always embodied, it made sense for us to bring our expertise, and that of our authors, to this new arena.”
The first Pyr YA title, scheduled for November, will be Lightbringer by debut author K.D. McEntire. Lightbringer is “a YA urban fantasy/paranormal romance set in a world a breath away from our own. Similar in tone to Tithe by Holly Black and Unleashed by Kristopher Reisz, Lightbringer tiptoes down the line between love and horror with the tale of a young girl discovering love with a long-dead ghost.”
The second YA title will follow in December, as Ian McDonald makes his YA debut with the sci-fi adventure Planesrunner. The first part of the new Everness series, “Planesrunner stars a fourteen-year-old boy searching for his kidnapped father across the many parallel worlds of the multiverse.”
The third title on the list will appear in February 2012: Ari Marmell’s Thief’s Covenant (A Widdershins Adventure) “features a young, female orphan-turned-thief making her way in a dangerous city with help from Olgun, a foreign god who, having lost his followers, has taken up residence in her head.”
YA titles will be released in hardcover and in ebook formats, and will have their own section in the Pyr catalog. Pyr expects YA to eventually account for a third of their list.