Alloy Online, which acquired the book packager 17th Street Productions in January (News, Jan. 17), has used its new division as the vehicle for reaching a publishing agreement with Penguin Putnam Books for Young Readers for a new teenage imprint, AlloyBooks.
Topics for the imprint's titles will be drawn from the most popular areas of the Alloy Web site, www.alloy.com, which is geared to teens between the ages of 14 and 19. "The teen market is exploding, but book publishing is lagging behind in exploiting the opportunity," Matt Diamond, CEO of Alloy, told PW. The initial list will feature titles on p try, dream analysis and beauty and will include works submitted by Alloy users. Its first p try title, Slam, will include original submissions by teens along with p ms from notable p ts. "Much of the content will be user-generated," Diamond said.
Tracy Tang, president and publisher of Penguin's Puffin Books, will head the new imprint, while Leslie Morgenstein, head of 17th Street, will oversee Alloy's part of the operation. First books in the imprint are set to be released in August and will likely include an electronic publishing element. The Alloy site will also be used to sell the books; Penguin will handle sales to the traditional book outlets.
While the initial list will be limited to 12 books, Doug Whitman, president of Penguin Putnam Books for Young Readers, said he is "hopeful that AlloyBooks can become a significant imprint for us," with as many as 50 books per year published under the imprint. Forthcoming titles will include fiction and nonfiction on such topics as teen sexuality and spirituality.
