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Ian Fleming Publications have revealed that a new
James Bond continuation author is set to be announced
with a new novel due for 2008...
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New James Bond Author & Novel For 2008
29th August 2005
A new original James Bond literary adventure is being planned
for release in 2008 to coincide with the centenary of 007 novelist
Ian Fleming's birth. Rights holders Ian Fleming Publication are
said to be lining up for a big name author to take on the task.
"To celebrate the centenary of Ian Fleming's birth in 2008
we are looking at a wide range of different activities and one
of those is a new adult Bond novel", said Zoe Watkins of
Ian Fleming Publications in a recent Scotsman
interview. "We are still in the planning stages, but at the
moment the idea would be to have it done by an established author
- potentially a big name."
MI6
first revealed back in March that a new series of continuation
novels was likely to be in the pipeline following comments from
Young Bond author
Charlie Higson in an exclusive interview.
The newspaper report speculated big name favorites to be approached
could include British thriller writer Lee Child, spy novelist
John le Carré and The Day of the Jackal author Frederick
Forsyth.
Ian Fleming
published a total of 14 novels (two of which were short
story collections), starting with "Casino
Royale" in 1953 and ending with "Octopussy
and The Living Daylights" published posthumously in
1966.
Following Fleming
Continuation novels of Fleming's series have fluctuated
since his death in 1964. Established author Kingsley Amis
wrote the first continuation adventure "Colonel Sun"
under the pen name of Robert Markham in 1968. Screenwriter
Christopher Wood then produced literary adventures based
on his movie productions of "James Bond, the Spy Who
Loved Me" in 1977 and "James Bond and Moonraker"
in 1979 - both well up to par.
A long break then ensued until mystery writer John
Gardner took up the official job in 1981 with "Licence
Renewed" and produced an astonishing 14 novels
and 2 movie novelisations in a 15 year period.
James Bond fan turned writer Raymond
Benson was the last continuation author, publishing
his first 007 novel "Zero
Minus Ten" in 1997, and went on to produce a further
5 novels and 3 movie novelisations up until 2002.
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Above: First edition artwork for "Casino
Royale" in 1953. |
Back In Control
The controlling share of Fleming's estate was bought back by his
family in 1997 from Glidrose, 33 years after the author sold 51%
to the Booker Group. This allowed the group to move forwards with
new projects and maximize the the brand.
The last official continuation novel "The Man With The Red
Tattoo" written by Raymond Benson was published in 2002.
Benson announced he
was moving on to other projects after handing in his licence
to thrill in February 2003. Weeks passed without official comment
until a press release
from IFP in May 2003 - which although intended to read well
to Bond fans - actually came off as a childish and patronizing
statement, saying that future projects were being explored.
Nothing but silence was heard from the literary domain until
5th April 2004 when Charlie
Higson was announced as the new writer - but not for an adult
continuation series. Instead, IFP launched a new series of children's
books exploring the character's teenage years.
Original Bond
Commentators over the years have said that many fans of the movies
who have yet to read a Fleming adventure would not recognize the
original literary hero. As with many of the recent IFP projects,
they remain committed to maintaining the conceptual integrity
of Fleming's creation wherever possible.
Watkins said: "The literary Bond is something we want to
focus on and any work would have to be in keeping with the literary
aspects of the books. If it was successful there could be scope
for further novels."
Literary History By The Numbers
| James Bond Authors |
First Published |
Last Published |
Novels |
Novelisations |
| Ian Fleming |
1953 |
1966 |
14 |
0 |
| Kingsley Amis |
1968 |
1968 |
1 |
0 |
| Christopher Wood |
1977 |
1979 |
0 |
2 |
| John Gardner |
1981 |
1995 |
14 |
3 |
| Raymond Benson |
1997 |
2002 |
6 |
3 |
