Janney and Henry launch indie press specialising in 'reflective' titles
Author Diana Janney and her husband Alistair Henry are launching an independent press focusing on novels and non-fiction books that make readers "think and reflect".
Cogito Publishing, which takes its name from the Latin for "I think, I reflect", will be ready for action in the spring. It will publish four to six titles a year, kicking off with literary fiction authors Lauro Martines and Matthew Yorke, plus a new book from Janney herself. The press will also publish poetry collections.
The indie has assembled a team of well-known industry names for its launch, with cover designs by award-winning Luke Bird, who was shortlisted at the British Book Awards 2021; printing by Clays; typesetting and copy-editing by Palimpsest; Ruth Killick handling publicity; Signature for sales; and Central Books for distribution.
Janney will be c.e.o. and is responsible for acquiring and editing all titles, design, marketing and production, while Henry focuses on sales, rights and accounts. The press will be based in Bloomsbury, London.
“We noticed that there appeared to be a growing market for reflective novels and non-fiction books of ideas," Henry said. "Our name, Cogito, Latin for ‘I think, I reflect’, as in Descartes’ famous words ‘Cogito Ergo Sum’, reflects our ethos: to produce books that make people think, reflect. I am extremely excited and proud to be playing a part in bringing thought-provoking, original voices to the reading public. The quality of our books, from the writing to the final product, is of the highest standard. I am very proud of our launch list of titles, each of which is fascinating in its own individual way.”
Janney’s previous novel, The Infinite Wisdom of Harriet Rose, was published by Headline in 2007. Foreign rights were acquired by Blanvalet in Germany, Maeva in Spain, De Boekerij in the Netherlands and Babel in Portugal. The BBC produced the novel as an audiobook, having acquired rights at auction. Janney has also sold the film rights
Her new book, A Man of Understanding, to be published by Cogito on 7th April 2022, is a novel of ideas set principally in Mallorca. It is the story of an intergenerational relationship between a bereaved young man and the enigmatic poet-philosopher grandfather he had never met.
Martines’ first novel, Loredana: A Venetian Tale (Jonathan Cape), won him the Society of Authors’ Sagittarius prize. His second book, Chronicle of a Good-Looking Family, will be published on 9th June 2022. Moving between Florence and Chicago, it is a multi-generational story of family loyalties and tensions. Martines is the author of 12 non-fiction books and is a leading international expert on the Italian Renaissance.
Yorke’s first novel, The March Fence (Penguin), won the John Rhys Llewellyn Prize. Fish Tale, his fourth novel, publishing on 12th May 2022, is an "unusual fairytale for adults" with a modern twist that moves between the royal residences, the Amazon rainforest and the meeting rooms of Gamblers Anonymous.
