For over four decades, Robert Rankin – the father of Far-Fetched Fiction and Far-Fetched Books, the author of 40 books and a teller of tall-tales – has been a luminary in fantastical fiction. His best-selling and critically acclaimed Brentford and Armageddon trilogies topping bestseller lists worldwide. Celebrated by his peers, including the late Terry Pratchett, Rankin has also garnered acclaim from prestigious publications such as The Times, The Independent, The Observer, SFX Magazine, and Time Out.
Despite his popularity however, Robert’s digital releases haven’t enjoyed the same success as his print novels.
This July marks a significant shift, as Robert Rankin’s publishing imprint, Far-Fetched Books, collaborates with the digital-first, Amazon-exclusive publisher Hooded Man Media to re-release all of Rankin’s classic novels in a revised and reformatted electronic format on Amazon.
“I’ve been a fan of Robert Rankin since I was twenty-one,” explained Hooded Man Media founder and #1 New York Times Bestseller Tony Lee. “After a serious accident, I was in the hospital for several weeks and discovered Armageddon: The Musical on the bed next to mine. Reading it introduced me to Rankin’s incredible style and profoundly influenced my writing.
“Over the years, I’ve had the privilege of meeting Robert many times, and when I learned at the London Comic Con this spring that his digital books weren’t getting the attention they deserved, I knew we had to do something about it.”
“After discussing it with Robert and his partner Raygun, we decided to update the books with new covers matching the original novels and launch a fresh advertising campaign.
“It’s astonishing that a whole generation of readers, familiar with authors like Jasper Fforde, Terry Pratchett and Tom Holt, hasn’t experienced the unique brilliance of Robert Rankin.”
Robert Rankin added, “When I signed the original book deals, electronic books weren’t even a concept! But as the technology became accessible in 2012, my oldest son, Robert suggested we could prepare and release our own editions on Amazon. So, with his expertise on the technical side and Raygun, the lovely wife helping with editing and art direction, we created a little cottage business called Far Fetched Books. We are very proud of what we achieved, and not only did we release my first twenty-three novels previously published by Pan, Corgi and Transworld but we also published eBook editions of new books including a Final Brentford Trilogy and my autobiography I, Robert.
“However, we are thrilled to be taking our catalogue to the next level in collaboration with Tony and Hooded Man Media with these fantastic new editions. He and his team have worked their magic on my texts to create books that we hope can stand alongside the best-selling ePubs available today.”
Hooded Man Media is beginning with two key series: the twelve-book Brentford Trilogy, four trilogies of the fantastical adventures of Brentford locals Omally and Pooley, and the Armageddon Trilogy, which features a time-travelling Elvis Presley and a time-sprout named Barry.
“The Brentford Trilogy and the Armageddon Trilogy were the first series I read, and it’s fitting that these should be the books new readers discover first,” Tony said. “We’ve already reformatted and revised the first four books of the Brentford series and the first two of the Armageddon series, with brand new covers. These will be available in July, and we plan to continue this process throughout the year, aiming to have every single Robert Rankin book revised and reformatted by year’s end.”
This partnership promises to bring Robert Rankin’s fantastical worlds to a new generation of digital readers, ensuring his legacy continues to thrive in the modern age.
• Check out Robert Rankin’s books on AmazonUK
• Robert Rankin will be appearing at London Film and Comic Con next month
• Follow Robert Rankin on Facebook
• Robert Rankin Book Series in Order
• Hooded Man Media is at hoodedmanmedia.com
The founder of downthetubes, which he established in 1998. John works as a comics and magazine editor, writer, and on promotional work for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He is currently editor of Star Trek Explorer, published by Titan – his third tour of duty on the title originally titled Star Trek Magazine.
Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine, Babylon 5 Magazine, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics. He has also edited several comic collections, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”.
He’s the writer of “Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies” for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs” with Dave Hailwood.
Categories: Books, downthetubes News, Other Worlds
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