The first three books om Roxane Gay’s imprt have been announced. ‹ Lerary Hub

Contents:

• ROXANE GAY’S IMPRT OPENS DOORS
• THE FIRST THREE BOOKS OM ROXANE GAY’S IMPRT HAVE BEEN ANNOUNCED.
• ROXANE GAY BOOKSAN IMPRT OF GROVE ATLANTIC
• ROXANE GAY IS STARTG A NEW IMPRT AT GROVE ATLANTIC.

ROXANE GAY’S IMPRT OPENS DOORS

In the past lerary polymath Roxane Gay has penned two story llectns, the say llectn Bad Femist, Hunger: A Memoir of (My) Body, and the novel An Untamed State, all to acclaim. Now to this résumé she adds acquirg edor for a publishg hoe, as she brgs her acumen to helm Roxane Gay Books, a new imprt of Grove Atlantic announced and edor Roxane Gay announced news of her imprt May 2021. (Cred: Reggie Cunngham)Roxane Gay Books will put out three tl a year, at least to start, wh the athetilly omnivoro Gay stg a wi terms of the submissns she’s seekg—story and say llectns, novels a variety of genr, as well as nonfictn and memoirs.

THE FIRST THREE BOOKS OM ROXANE GAY’S IMPRT HAVE BEEN ANNOUNCED.

) What Gay is not necsarily lookg for is prr publishg experience, blurbs, a social media platform, an agent, an MFA, or a llege gree. In dispensg wh the requirements, Gay tends to ve submissns om wrers tradnally locked out of publishg opportuni: namely, people wh the talent and disciple to wre a powerful work of art but not the nnectns or opportuni that e wh beg llege ted, whe, upper middle class, or loted New York Cy, the dtry’s seat.

While the imprt’s submissns procs is liberately clive, Gay plans on brgg a clear and tentnal edorial pot-of-view to the mancripts she selects. ”“I’m gog to publish books that I love, ” Gay said a recent ll over Zoom, “and that I feel as an edor I n brg somethg valuable to. ”In addn to workg wh thors on eds and revisns, Gay will help them navigate their book lnch and beyond.

ROXANE GAY BOOKSAN IMPRT OF GROVE ATLANTIC

She herself was grateful to receive guidance early on her reer om novelist Tayari Jon, who, Gay rells fondly, actually lled her on the phone to share dtry advice. ”This imprt is not the only way Gay is disptg typil dtry practic.

ROXANE GAY IS STARTG A NEW IMPRT AT GROVE ATLANTIC.

A fellow will help her sift through submissns and will spl their time workg for Roxane Gay Books and rotatg through the edorial, publicy, marketg, and rights divisns at Grove Atlantic.

“They won’t jt be puttg together mailgs, ” says Amy Hundley, a vice print of Grove Atlantic, Gay’s own edor at the publisher, and Gay’s llaborator for the imprt.

Hundley says that, over the years, she and Gay have often talked about the lack of diversy publishg, which is signifint part an enomic issue. ”Taken together, Roxane Gay Books and the Grove Atlantic fellowship is a small but important enavor to bat the chokehold of whe and upper-middle-class hegemony not jt the lerary marketplace, but behd the scen at the publishg-hoe level. But as Gay herself is the first to adm, this imprt, along wh a few others led by Black women, are not enough; on the Audacy she wrote we won’t see real change “until the dtry mak this kd of iative the le rather than the exceptn.