When Pacific Northwest entrepreneur Patrick Carman began to publish a children’s fantasy trilogy, The Land of Elyon by himself, he was such an effective promoter, doing readings at schools and stressing kids’ literacy, that he had soon sold 10,000 copies of the first volume. Word came back of his success, from a Scholastic sales rep, to the ear of editorial director Craig Walker, who promptly sought out agent Peter Rubie and asked to see the book. Rubie suggested that Walker should talk to Carman and, when he did, he said he was “excited to find that [Carman] was very much on Scholastic’s wavelength, stressing school appearances and the importance of literacy. So I decided we have to have him and the books.” He made a six-figure preemptive offer for world rights, and Scholastic will publish the first book, Dark Hills Divide, next month. It’s about a girl trying to save a fantasy world. Scholastic is pushing the boat out next spring with an unusually extensive promotion that will send Carman, accompanied by his two young daughters, on a bus tour to 22 cities from coast to coast, doing readings all the way.

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