Guest Post: A Letter from Amy Einhorn

When you add a book to your wish list or bookshelf, do you ever think about the editor or imprint? Some readers do, and that was the inspiration for the Amy Einhorn Books Perpetual Challenge (click for information and to join).

Some avid readers may not realize that imprints are created to showcase a particular type of book, genre, or viewpoint. An underlying philosophy or mission statement guides the editor as she decides which manuscripts will be printed under her name or logo.

One of the characteristics about Amy Einhorn Books (AEB) that intrigues me is that it is an eclectic collection of fiction and nonfiction, light-hearted and serious.

I am absolutely thrilled to post an open letter from Amy Einhorn in which she talks about some of her goals for the AEB imprint and what kinds of manuscripts get her attention.

A Letter from Amy Einhorn

Dear reader/bloggers:

I am incredibly flattered and honored that you’ve chosen Amy Einhorn Books as your challenge.

I started Amy Einhorn Books with the goal of hitting that sweet-spot between literary and commercial. Over my 20+ year publishing career, I’ve worked in very literary houses and very commercial houses—but what I found is that I enjoy a mix of both—smart, intelligent writing coupled with a page-turning story. And I think many others find this to be true as well. My first book I published at my new imprint was The Help by Kathryn Stockett and to me this epitomizes what I am aiming to do at AEB.

In terms of the types of books I publish, or how I pick what I publish, well I’m afraid it’s all rather unscientific. When I started the imprint, I realized that if I was going to put my name on these books, they had to be ones I loved. Basically, if a book speaks to me and I find myself responding to it, I follow that gut feeling and hope it will speak to others as well. As you’ll see from my the books I’m publishing, this means my list is rather broad in range—from literary/commercial women’s fiction (The Postmistress) to quirky (The House of Tomorrow—a fan of this said “this book is for anyone who loved the movie Juno,” and I think that’s a great description) to memoir/narrative nonfiction (This Is Not the Story You Think It Is by Laura Munson). What I like to think unites all of these books is that they are smart, not in a pretentious esoteric way but rather that they are all intelligent and well done.

I’ll be very curious to hear what you think of the list. This is a wonderful opportunity for me to hear from real readers so I’ll anxiously be awaiting your feedback!

With best wishes,
Amy Einhorn

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Thank you so much, Amy, for telling us a bit about the imprint that bears your name. From my own experience and from the reviews I've read, you are batting 1.000.

This is the first in what I hope will be a series of guest posts and interviews from the authors of Amy Einhorn Books. These posts will appear here and on the blogs of the other participants in the challenge.

For a full list of AEB books and to join the challenge visit the announcement post or click on the "AE Challenge" tab at the top of this page.

Have you read any Amy Einhorn books? Do you ever think about the imprint? If so, do you have a favorite? Have you ever thought about reading through an imprint?