Best-Selling Macomber Leaves Harlequin for Ballantine Bantam Dell

(Press Release) New York, October 4, 2010—Debbie Macomber, a No. 1 best-selling author of women's fiction, with more than 130 million copies of her novels in print worldwide, will join the Random House Publishing Group in 2012, to be published by its Ballantine Bantam Dell division's Ballantine imprint. Gina Centrello, President and Publisher, Random House Publishing Group, announced the acquisition from the author's agent, Theresa Park of the Park Literary Group, of worldwide hardcover, paperback, audio, and e-book publication rights for six Macomber novels. Terms were not disclosed.

Debbie Macomber is the beloved author of more than 100 novels to date, which include her hugely popular Cedar Cove and Blossom Street book series. Four of her titles have debuted at #1 on the New York Times bestseller list. World publication rights for the forthcoming Macomber novels were acquired by Libby McGuire, Publisher, and Jennifer Hershey, Editor-in-Chief, of Ballantine Bantam Dell. Ballantine will publish three of her books a year beginning in 2012, including a new series set in the author's hometown of Port Orchard, Washington. Hershey will co-edit the Macomber novels with Ballantine Bantam Dell Senior Editor Shauna Summers.
The values of family, community and service are integral elements of Debbie Macomber's storytelling, which are cherished by her readers and admired by her peers. This past July, the Romance Writers of America presented her with their prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award. She also has been honored with a Quill Award for her novel 44 Cranberry Point, a RITA and RT Book Reviews Awards. An accomplished knitter and yarn-store owner, Macomber has parlayed her passion for the craft into her Blossom Street series and also into philanthropy for those in need. All profits from sales of her signature knitting merchandise lines are donated to knitting charities and to World Vision, an organization dedicated to working with children, families, and their communities worldwide. Ballantine Bantam Dell is honoring Macomber's longstanding commitment to assisting the needy with a donation to World Vision in her name.