Natasha Bell’s ‘metafictional tour de force’ goes to Renard Press

Renard Press has acquired Natasha Bell’s Maybe the World Will End So We Won’t Have To, a “brilliantly original and beautifully crafted tale of queer love and self-value”.

UK and Commonwealth English rights were acquired by publisher Will Dady from Marilia Savvides of The Plot Agency, with publication scheduled for September 2026.

Described as a “metafictional tour de force" and “literary autofiction about identity, sexuality and the work that goes into writing a novel”, Maybe the World Will End So We Won’t Have To follows author Harry: divorced, depressed, out of contract and unsure what she wants to do with the rest of her life. When she invents a character, Natalie, a braver, bolder version of herself, she begins channelling her in small ways in her own life.

Dady said of the acquisition: “I’m delighted that Natasha Bell’s beautifully crafted, compelling tale of queer love and self-value can find a home with Renard. Publishing is so often called out for its treatment of authors, and brilliant books like Yellowface have shone a spotlight on some of the shadiest practices in the industry. But what about when things go as they’re designed to – when it’s the machine running smoothly in itself that steamrolls the creatives that underpin it?

“To call a book important, a wise soul once said, is to kill it off – but the profound runs below everything in this carefully woven tale, which makes it all the more joyful to read. Kept light by keen observation and gentle humour, there’s so much in this book – beyond writerly craft, on love and queer relationships that echo with truth, on identity changing over the years and, ultimately, a resounding question mark over our ability to accept who we are, and the author’s power of self-reinvention.”

Natasha Bell’s previous books, published by Penguin, include This Nowhere Place (2021) and His Perfect Wife (2018). She teaches novel-writing for Faber Academy, City Lit and Jericho Writers.

She said: “I’m thrilled to join Renard Press and to work with Will, whose enthusiasm and care for this strange, Russian doll-like book has made me feel very at home. Having stumbled into the quicksand between fiction and non-fiction after the publication of my first novel, it felt vital for me to examine the essence, ethics and stakes of being an author in the 21st century. But writing from life is an exposing exercise – even when you make half of it up – so finding a publisher who cares this deeply about writers, as well as the world, is a true privilege.”