Anna Kaufman at Vintage bought North American rights, at auction, to Views from the Overlook, by screenwriter Jamie Flanagan (pictured l.), from Lane Heymont at the Tobias Literary Agency. The horror anthology features new stories set at the infamous hotel from Stephen King’s The Shining, prior to the events of the novel, featuring such writers as Chelsea Cain, Johnny Compton, Justina Ireland, Ai Jiang, Alma Katsu, Brian Keene, Daniel Kraus, Silvia Moreno-Garcia, Chuck Palahniuk, and others. Ellie Pritchett will edit. Publication is planned for fall 2027.

(Photo: Jamie Flanagan)

Ann Godoff at Penguin Press took world English rights to Ron Chernow’s biography of 19th-century American painter James Abbott McNeill Whistler from Melanie Jackson, who has an eponymous agency. No pub date has been announced.

Tricia Narwani at Del Rey landed North American rights to China Miéville’s The Rouse from Mic Cheetham, who has an eponymous agency. The “decade- and continent-spanning epic,” Miéville’s first solo-authored novel for an adult audience since 2011, follows an ordinary woman who “stumbles on dark conspiracies and provokes the attention of uncanny forces” while investigating “a devastating personal tragedy,” per the publisher. Publication is planned for September 2026.

Jenny Xu at Washington Square preempted North American English rights to Amanda Montell’s Where to Put Your Tongue from Rachel Vogel at Dunow, Carlson, & Lerner. The debut novel sees a young dialect coach to the stars form “an unexpected and risky, word-filled flirtation with a cult-followed film director,” per the publisher. A spring 2028 publication is set.

Mark Siegel at 23rd Street landed world rights to Ink & Blood: Poetry and Power in the Lives of Emperor Li Yu and Chairman Mao, written by Chun Yu and illustrated by Sungyoon Choi. The deal was handled by Jill Marsal at Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency, representing Yu, and Judy Hansen at Hansen Literary, representing Choi. The graphic novel tells the tale of the 10th-century Chinese emperor, whose dynasty collapsed due to his love of poetry, and the 20th-century Communist leader, who also wrote poetry. Sierra Hahn and Shawna Gore will also edit. A 2027 release is set.

Jennifer Gunnels at Tor Nightfire took North American rights, at auction, to Mathilda Zeller’s It Looks Like You in the Dark and another untitled horror novel from Laura Cameron and Amanda Orozco at Transatlantic Agency. The former centers on the Kushtuka, a creature who takes the form of a loved one, and a young woman whose sister goes missing from her remote Alaskan town; the latter is about predatory Inupiaq mermaids, or qalupalik, and the people addicted to their flesh. The first book is set for October 2026.

In Brief

  • Callie Garnett at Bloomsbury picked up U.S. rights to an untitled novel by Miriam Toews, which sees a woman unpack the events leading up to her friend’s mysterious death in a religious town, from Sarah Chalfant at the Wylie Agency, for a fall 2027 publication.
  • Pamela Dorman, who has an eponymous imprint at Viking, won U.S., Canada, and open market rights, including nonexclusive European rights, at auction, to Burst into Song by Claire Gibson, about the lasting impact of one adoption on three generations of women, from Margaret Riley King at WME, for a 2027 publication.
  • Meredith Clark at Park Row acquired North American rights to Natalie Kikić’s debut novel The Haunting of Lavender House, a gothic tale about a young woman and a healer from centuries earlier, inspired by Croatian folklore, from Elizabeth Pratt at Trellis, for a fall 2026 release.
  • Mark Irwin and Mike Marts at Mad Cave netted world rights to author Timothy Schaffert, artist José Villarrubia, and comics creator Jean Frédéric Koné’s graphic novel collaboration Easy to Love, a fictionalized portrait of pioneering queer Black cartoonist Matt Baker, from Alice Tasman at the Jean V. Naggar Agency, for a February 2027 release.