Sue Grimshaw was our guest at the Orange County Chapter's RWA meeting two weeks ago, and she said there was a big announcement coming soon. Here it is!

RANDOM HOUSE BRINGS BACK ICONIC ROMANCE LINE
LOVESWEPT AS TRANSATLANTIC DIGITAL-EXCLUSIVE IMPRINT AND A NEW ROMANCE SITE ROMANCEATRANDOM.COM

(June 21, 2011)—The Random House Publishing Group, part of Random House Inc., announced today that it is reviving its former Bantam Books-originated Loveswept imprint, a groundbreaking romance publishing line of the eighties and nineties, which helped launch the careers of such bestselling authors as Sandra Brown, Suzanne Brockmann, Janet Evanovich, Tami Hoag, Iris Johansen, and Kay Hooper. The 2011 Loveswept publishing program will be a digital-exclusive imprint, comprised of original, newly written e-books, as well as beloved Ballantine Bantam Dell romances and classic Loveswept titles. The program launches with eight titles in August, and continues withone new e-only release monthly in the fall.

The new Loveswept imprint incarnation will now be a Random House transatlantic publishing collaboration between the U.S. and their sister company, Random House Group U.K.’s Transworld Publishers division.  The e-books will be released simultaneously in North America, the U.K., and the British Commonwealth.

In the U.S., each title will include bonus content, and the classic titles will be reintroduced with new packaging.  An aggressive marketing campaign will bring back the original Loveswept tagline: “Love stories you’ll never forget by authors you’ll always remember.” Additionally, Random House will support the program with retailer promotions at major e-book accounts, national print advertising, digital and social network advertising, and extensive online marketing. Digital review copies will be made available.

“Our Loveswept e-only imprint will be an ideal vehicle for us to continue to connect with some of our most loyal and dedicated readers with an international editorial perspective, and to explore a wealth of new digital opportunities,” said Gina Centrello, President and Publisher of The Random House Publishing Group.

“Ballantine Bantam Dell has a treasure trove of romance classics we want to share with a new generation of readers,” says Scott Shannon, Senior Vice President, Publisher, Digital Content, Random House Publishing Group.  “We are excited about rediscovering the many long-unavailable editorial riches of Loveswept and also introducing new storytelling talents, rooted in the genre’s finest traditions, to our devoted readers through the immersive opportunities of the Random House Publishing Group’s enormous digital publishing capabilities.”

The Loveswept U.S. publishing effort will be overseen by Gina Wachtel, Vice President, Associate Publisher, Mass Market, Del Rey/Spectra and Digital, along with the Ballantine Bantam Dell editorial team and Sue Grimshaw, Category Specialist and Editor-at-Large.

The initial program will launch in August with #1 New York Times bestselling author Iris Johansen’s This Fierce Splendor, and will also include Remember The Time by Annette Reynolds, Dream Lover by Adrienne Staff, The Vow by Julianna Garnett, The Baron by Sally Goldenbaum, Lighting That Lingers by Sharon and Tom Curtis, Talk, Dark and Lonesome by Debra Dixon, and Legends by Deb Smith.

In addition to Loveswept, Random House will launch a new website RomanceAtRandom.com, hosted by Sue Grimshaw.  The objective of the site is to provide a place where authors, agents, editors, bloggers, book clubs, and readers can gather to discuss all things romance, including books published by  Random House, other publishers, and self-published authors. The site will go live on June 23rd and will actively promote Loveswept and Ballantine Bantam Dell titles.

The Random House Publishing Group is a division of Random House Inc., the world's largest trade-book publisher, whose parent company is Bertelsmann AG.