Kensington Publishing Corp. has signed a six-book deal with Hallmark Entertainment under which Kensington will publish books based on six miniseries produced by Hallmark. The first book released under the agreement coincided with the September 14 broadcast of Journey to the Center of the Earth, which aired on the USA Network. To date, Kensington has printed 55,000 copies of the mass market paperback of Journey as well as 15,000 hardcovers. The books are being sold under the new Hallmark Entertainment Books imprint.
Kensington has already printed 100,000 mass market copies of the next book in the series, Leprechauns, the teleplay of a four-hour NBC miniseries starting on November 7. The third book will complement the broadcast of The 10th Kingdom, a 10-hour miniseries in February also airing on NBC.
Kate Duffy, Kensington editorial director, who is overseeing the editorial side of the joint venture, told PW that in addition to selling the titles through retail channels, the books are being marketed through a toll-free number that appears after the broadcast of each episode.
The three remaining titles due out in 2000 are Arabian Nights (May, ABC), Jason and the Argonauts (May, NBC) and The Monkey King (Nov., NBC).
