Folio Society editorial head talks horror titles and IT

 The Folio Society has become known to book collectors and genre fans alike for the beautifully produced, illustrated hardback books they produce. Titles now include a just-available version of Stephen King’s It, Shirley Jackson’s We Have Always Lived in the Castle and seminal titles including Dracula and Frankenstein, and James Bond and other favorites have received.

“Proudly independent for its 75-year history,” the London-based firm continues to blaze new territory, and it is now an Employee Ownership Trust, which means employees hold 100 percent ownership of the company.

Other notable publications include Frank Herbert’s Dune, Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale, Andrew Chaikin’s A Man on the Moon and Alice Walker’s The Color Purple.  Many other contemporary and classic titles are also available, including a publishing partnership with Marvel Comics that allows luxury editions of super hero favorites.

Because of the exciting developments such as It, illustrated by Hugo-winner Jim Burns, Wicked Horror tossed a few questions to James Rose. He’s Folio’s head of editorial who manages other Folio editors and oversees the Limited Editions program.

Check out Wicked Horror’s Interview with Jim Burns on illustrating Stephen King’s IT

WH: The Folio Society is well known for its classic editions with beautiful illustrations. Many readers and collectors may not be aware of your horror tributary which includes seminal works such as Dracula and Frankenstein but also a grown number of 20^th Century titles. What’s the selection process like? How do you define a title that you’re going to pursue for The Folio Treatment?

James Rose: We have a rigorous selection process that works on a number of levels. There are of course those established ‘classics’ (like Dracula and Frankenstein) that defined the genre, and then there are those that have become modern fan favourites. Titles that we wish to honour with a special edition, often for an anniversary but sometimes simply because they are titles that will resonate with our audience. We listen a lot to our customers and their desires often filter into the list.

WH: Once a title is selected, how do you go about choosing an artist for it?

James Rose: Each editor has a list of artists that we want to work with, but we also scout about for artists that haven’t previously been on our radar. Some of that includes visiting art exhibitions and trade fairs, and Jim Burns we had the pleasure of meeting in person at Worldcon in Glasgow in 2024. Once we have a proposed artist we submit this to the wider publishing team as well as to the author of course. Getting Stephen King’s blessing to commission Jim Burns was incredibly important for us.

WH: How much communication is there with an artist about details such as the number of illustrations, what’s going to be black and white, what’s going to be color?

James Rose: We try to make this as much of a collaboration as possible. When an artist is commissioned we always set up an initial meeting, whether in person or over the internet, where we discuss the project as a whole and our intentions for it. After that the number and style of the art is a constant discussion between the editor and artist.

WH: What about choosing those you approach for introductions and essays?

James Rose: We try to think who would best fit the work and would have something interesting to say about it – either about the work directly or perhaps the influence of the work on their own lives and careers. Choosing Guillermo del Toro [who introduces It] was genuinely a no-brainer. He has worked with Folio in the past and the influence of Stephen King’s work on his own extraordinary output is obvious.

WH: You have some really fabulous horror pieces in the mix. What stands out about the cornerstones such as Dracula and Frankenstein? The slightly more recent The Turn of the Screw?

James Rose: These are exactly that, cornerstones of the genre. They are the foundations and building blocks upon which so much of the modern horror genre rests – whether an author chooses to follow in their mould or purposefully break from it. To deny them a place would be improper and they remain to this day incredibly popular because they resonate on a deeper level. All horror is based not on the monster or protagonist, but upon our own human fears and these remain timeless.

WH: And what about your edition featuring stories from Sheridan La Fanu, H.P. Lovecraft, M.R. James, Arthur Machen and Karl Edward Wagner? You offer up an interesting blend of tales with illustrations that really strike the right mood. What went into the creation of that volume?

James Rose: We’ve known and collaborated with Michael Dirda for many years now and it was over a drink or two that the idea was formed. Michael is utterly knowledgeable about all things ‘weird’ and ‘horror’ and pulled together a fantastic selection that gives readers new to the genre some of the established stories but also modernizes it with some more recent curveballs. All masterpieces of the genre.

WH: Was there any key “get” that really excited you?

James Rose: I was really very pleased to see so many women writers make the list, from the incomparable Shirley Jackson to Mary Wilkins Freeman.

WH: A Folio Society Library could really have an entire shelf devoted to Stephen King. How did your development of his work take shape?

James Rose: Around five or ten years ago we began opening Folio up to publishing more genre fiction (including horror) and started publishing Frank Herbert’s Dune series and G.R.R. Martin alongside more established ‘classics’ like Dracula. Within the horror genre Stephen King was the obvious next step so we began a series with The Shining, and have since gone on to publish Pet Sematary and Misery, as well as this special edition of It.

WH: We have to touch on a few others before we wrap up. You’ve done Ray Bradbury’s Something Wicked This Way Comes, Richard Matheson’s I Am Legend and Shirley Jackson’s We Have Always Lived in the Castle. Those form a significant mid-20^th Century shelf. Can you discuss your development of titles from that 1950s to early 1960s era?

James Rose: The modern horror genre really boomed in the 1950s and 1960s, particularly in the US, and so it was important for us that we cover this era so thoroughly. We’ve worked our way through some of the better-known titles but there still plenty more to do!

WH: You have so many great titles in this line, it’s hard not to leave something out. Anything else that you’d like to note.

James Rose: Folio hasn’t been covering the horror genre for all that long but this is a growing and important part of the business and we are sure to find more brilliant titles to satisfy the legions of fans around the world.