Kevin Keller Gets a Novel — Will Diamond Carry It?
- Posted by Johanna on February 27, 2013 at 8:10 pm
- Category: Archie Comics
All the current Archie comic issues are carrying a full-page ad for Kevin, a novel written about Archie’s first gay character by Paul Kupperberg. It’s a hardcover telling the story of “Kevin’s early, awkward years and the struggles and joys of his inspirational road to self-discovery.” The book is due out April 18, but the interesting thing, to me, is how Archie hasn’t offered it to comic shops through the Previews catalog. They’re promoing it to a wide audience, as shown by this marketing text:
This sweet and funny coming-of-age story features a strong anti-bullying message and is a perfect gift for Archie fans, parents, and anyone who has — or is –struggling to find their place.
And clearly, by plugging it in all their comics, they want to get the word out. It’s being published by Grosset & Dunlap. Perhaps that explains the lack of direct market selling. Maybe they’re the ones who need to get a solicit to Diamond.
2 Responses to “Kevin Keller Gets a Novel — Will Diamond Carry It?”
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February 27, 2013 at 8:58 PM
Maybe I missed if you were being sarcastic, but guessing “book being carried on Amazon.com/in regular bookstores/etc. where the general public actually sees it” > “being carried in some out-of-the-way comic book shop whose main audience of superhero fans won’t buy it.”
Don’t recall my shop (though rather small) ever carrying the other Archie text novels, but they were sold at Barnes and Noble…
February 28, 2013 at 7:14 AM
No, I wasn’t being sarcastic, just curious. I think the format is determining this, that the book publisher doesn’t see the need to aim at the comic market.