Abandoned Bookshop

Canelo to partner with Scott Pack and Katherine Stephen on new imprint, Abandoned Bookshop

Abandoned Bookshop is a new imprint from Scott Pack, Katherine Stephen and Canelo which will uncover the best books we’ve forgotten about, lost sight of, or never even knew existed in the first place. It will be surprising and wide ranging, crossing popular with literary, famous names with undiscovered gems, old classics with cutting-edge new works. Published digitally, the books will be a mixture of out of copyright works, re-issues and originals from across the spectrum of genres.

Works signed to date include Rudyard Kipling’s account of his travels in Brazil, a novel by the Nobel Prize-winning Italian author Grazia Deledda, a 16th century novella that inspired Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, a quintet of forgotten 1930s crime novels, as well as a soon-to-be-announced project to publish a series of previously undiscovered books by a major 20th century American author.

Abandoned Bookshop is also teaming up with a number of translators to publish a range of classics from around the world that have never before appeared in English.

Scott, currently also working with Unbound, and Katherine will work on commissioning and editing, while Canelo will work on producing and publishing the titles. Abandoned Bookshop will be an imprint like no other.

Katherine Stephen said ‘Scott and I have been talking about a project like this for a while, and it’s fantastic to be able to make it a reality with Canelo, one of the most forward-thinking publishers out there. I’m thrilled about bringing some forgotten marvels – along with exciting new work – to publication, and can’t wait to hear what readers think.’

Scott Pack said ‘Anyone who knows me will be aware that seeking out lost classics is a real passion of mine and that’s pretty much what Abandoned Bookshop is all about. Kat and I are currently having great fun trawling through old libraries and collections, both online and in the real world, to find some literary gems. But we also welcome recommendations from fellow readers.’

Michael Bhaskar, Publishing Director of Canelo said ‘Scott and Kat are just the kind of extraordinary editors we always hoped to work with at Canelo: imaginative, eclectic, willing to go off the beaten path and think differently, all with incredible passion, energy and skill. Abandoned Bookshop is going to be a great reading adventure.’

About Scott Pack and Katherine Stephen Scott Pack was Buying Manager at Waterstones from 2000 to 2006 before joining the Friday Project and then HarperCollins as Publisher. Since 2015 he has been Associate Editor at Unbound, the world’s first crowdfunding platform for books, a role he will continue with alongside Abandoned Bookshop. He tweets at @meandmybigmouth.

Katherine Stephen has been a freelance proofreader and copy editor since 2012, after stints in hospitality and the Merchant Navy, and is based in Manchester. You can find her at www.katproof.com, on Twitter at @katobell, or in a bookshop with a coffee.

Scott and Katherine can be reached at [email protected]