The Montreal publishing house Héliotrope, to which we owe in particular Roberval Quarrel (2018) by Kevin Lambert, Thelma, Louise and me (2018) by Martine Delvaux and Bay City Sky (2008) by Catherine Mavrikakis, will expand its activities in France, Belgium and Switzerland from January 2024.
Like other independent publishers, the two founders of the house, Florence Noyer and Olga Duhamel-Noyer, have noted in recent years the growing interest in Quebec literature across the Atlantic. “Over the years, we have made several transfers of rights,” underlines Florence Noyer. Even if our authors have already obtained positive reception, we enter this complex market with caution and humility. »
This announcement coincides with the selection of the novel May our joy remain (2022), by Kevin Lambert, on the preliminary lists of the prestigious Goncourt and Médicis prizes in France. Although the novelist is published by Nouvel Attila in France, the great media attention generated by his nominations offers great opportunities for Héliotrope in the territory.
As several of the house’s writers are already published in France, Florence Noyer indicates that the choice of European publisher for their future publications will be made on a case-by-case basis. “Our goal is to serve our authors well, and to allow them to obtain the best possible visibility. This decision also gives us the chance to support a wider selection of our books internationally. »
Héliotrope has chosen to entrust Harmonia Mundi Livre with assisting it in the diffusion-distribution of a portion of its catalog, which today includes nearly 150 titles, in French-speaking Europe.
During 2024, the house will launch a program of eight titles centered around novels and thrillers, with leading writers such as Catherine Mavrikakis, Marie-Pier Lafontaine, Vincent Brault and André Marois. In addition to some new releases, the program will include some books already published in Quebec, and having been little or not distributed in France.