Titan Books revamps web site - interviews, background features added

Titan Books has re-launched titanbooks.com, expanding coverage of their published and upcoming illustrated books, fiction and graphic novels.

The revamped site has launched with exclusive video interviews with Kick-Ass’s Mark Millar and comics legend Joe Simon.

Also added is a new blog, run by Titan’s Bookseller Awards short-listed marketing team, plus guest blogs which will be compiled by authors and experts in the entertainment world such as spoken word artist Scroobius Pip and Zodiac author Robert Graysmith.

There's the now-expected features of book publisher web sites, too - sample chapters from new titles, exclusive sneak previews, video clips of games and films, quizzes and behind-the-scenes news from the Titan staff.

Look out for competitions to win stuff later in the year, too - for 30 days from 2nd August there will be a new competition featured on the site daily. Prizes include an XBox 360, original artwork, props from hit TV shows such as CSI and Firefly, as well as a plethora of signed books, DVDs and CDs.

Timed to coincide with San Diego Comic Con, the revamp comes as part of Titan Books’ over-arching digital strategy, which has included the launch of iPhone and iPad apps earlier this year. The aim is to offer up-to-the-minute news on much-loved brands published by Titan, including The Simpsons, Supernatural, Batman, Star Wars and Mark Millar’s Kick-Ass.

The website will also collaborate with related sites and use social media to communicate with the comics and entertainment community. A weekly newsletter is offered to keep regular site users up-dated with developments on Titan’s titles.

• Visit the new site at: www.titanbooks.com

Titan Celebrates Golden Age Comics Legends

Titan Books have announced the acquisition of the rights to a series of books celebrating the life and work of US Golden Age creator Joe Simon and his collaborations with comics legend Jack Kirby.

The first volume in the set, scheduled for Spring 2009 release, is an illustrated autobiography, Joe Simon, The Man Behind the Comics, followed by The Best of Simon & Kirby, a deluxe hardcover collecting Joe Simon and Jack Kirby’s work in a variety of genres including superhero, crime, detective, and western comics as well as the first romance comic books.

These will be followed by The Simon and Kirby Superheroes, which will feature such costumed heroes as Blue Bolt, Fighting American, Stuntman, and the Fly. These volumes will be compiled with unprecedented access to rare archival material plus exclusive contributions from Joe Simon - and most importantly, these will be the only editions authorized by both Joe Simon and the estate of Jack Kirby.