Jeff VanderMeer’s Strange Architect lands seven-figure FSG deal
Farrar, Straus and Giroux has bought Jeff VanderMeer’s four-book Strange Architect series, with the first novel due in winter 2029.
By Poppy Nakagawa · Culture Writer
3 min read
Jeff VanderMeer’s Strange Architect is headed to Farrar, Straus and Giroux in a seven-figure deal, giving the bestselling author of “Annihilation” a new four-book series at the publisher, Variety reported.
The series will begin with “How to Be Free,” which is scheduled for winter 2029. Variety reported that the deal was negotiated by Joe Veltre, senior partner and co-head of the Gersh Agency’s New York office, and attorney Alex Kohner of Yorn Levine.
The project is VanderMeer’s first new book venture since his “Southern Reach” series, according to Variety. That earlier series has sold 1.5 million copies in the U.S. alone and includes “Annihilation,” the Nebula Award-winning novel later turned into Alex Garland’s film starring Natalie Portman and Oscar Isaac.
What is Jeff VanderMeer’s Strange Architect about?
According to FSG’s description reported by Variety, “The Strange Architect” centers on Arthur Bream, a man whose plan to create a utopian community collapses after his daughter disappears. The loss leaves him convinced that she exists as a ghost in a spirit realm.
Bream then spends the rest of his life constructing houses that feature a strange symbol on their staircases. He believes the symbol could one day return his daughter to the living world, setting up a story pitched around horror, mystery and the uncanny.
Mitzi Angel, president and publisher of FSG, said in a statement reported by Variety that the publisher is delighted to work with VanderMeer on the new series and described it as a journey into horror and the uncanny. She also said his work has mattered to both FSG’s staff and his readers.
VanderMeer said in his own statement that he is excited to be with FSG for the series and expects the books to offer readers an intense experience. He said he is taking on the uncanny in a new way for his work and has become fascinated by the characters emerging in the series.
Who is editing the series?
Jenna Johnson, FSG’s editor-in-chief, will edit “The Strange Architect,” Variety reported. In a statement, Johnson praised VanderMeer’s fiction for its imagination, complex characters, craft and layered mythologies, and said the new books mix mysteries, humor, horror and fast pacing.
The acquisition adds another major project to VanderMeer’s slate beyond the page. Variety reported that an adaptation of his short story “Constellations” is in development, with Natalie Portman and Sophie Mas’ company MountainA attached to produce.
“Constellations,” about four people who survive a crash on a remote planet, is set to appear in a forthcoming FSG short-story collection. Variety also reported that VanderMeer’s novel “Borne” has a television adaptation in development at AMC.
This story draws on original reporting from Variety.