Baker's Dozen: Karp Signs for Twelve at Warner

by Steven Zeitchik, PW Daily -- Publishers Weekly, 7/21/2005

Rumors that Jon Karp, who sources say has been hitting the lunch circuit hard this last month, would land somewhere soon had reached fever pitch last night. By this morning, Warner sent the official word: the former Random young gun would be handling his own imprint, as many speculated he would, and it would be at Warner.

Warner Twelve will do no more (but not at least) one book per month (which means that the line some years could be Warner Nine or Ten). Karp is tapped as publisher and editor-in-chief, though it's an editor-in-chief without too many Indians: The marketing and sales all comes from Warner, and no full-fledged editorial hires are immediately on the horizon. Instead, Karp will personally acquire and edit each book. Karp reports to Warner Books publisher Jamie Raab; he'll launch the list in spring '07.

Raab says the operation is the first new hardcover imprint that she believes Warner has ever done and one that fills an important niche. "I would say we're extremely successful with blockbuster fiction, and I think Jon's going to bring in a certain kind of nonfiction," adding that he would publish select fiction. As for policies on advances, Raab says, "Nobody anywhere has an open pocketbook but he's going to be buying aggressively, and we fully expect that." The mission statement, unlike most mission statements, is actually pretty good. (You can see it here.)

There's also a Tina Brown-like synergy thrown in: Karp "will work to develop book projects with the corporation's magazine group and entertainment divisions." But from the first the big watch will be on for his authors, especially Matthew Pearl, Laura Hillenbrand, Po Bronson. All of them are big Karp finds--and all are under contract still with Random. Look for Donald Trump as an early Karp signing.