U.K. rapper Stormzy has announced #Merky Books, a book imprint formed in collaboration with Penguin Random House U.K. The company's debut release will be Stormzy's first-ever book, Rise Up: The #Merky Journey So Far. The book will include "hundreds of never-before-seen photographs, annotated lyrics and contributions from those closest to him." It's available for pre-order now, and will be released on November 1, 2018.
#Merky Books will publish fiction, non-fiction and poetry all curated by Stormzy. The imprint hopes to publish around "two or three books per year, and form a home for a new generation of voices," according to the site.
Stormzy expanded on his hopes for giving unheard authors a voice in a statement shared on Instagram. "I know too many talented writers that don’t always have an outlet or a means to get their work seen and hopefully #Merky Books can now be a reference point for them to say 'I can be an author' and for that to be a realistic and achievable goal."
Open submissions will be held in 2019, as well as a paid internship and school competitions.
Thumbnail photo by Carlota Guerrero for The FADER
