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Wattpad and Webtoon announce new graphic novel imprint

Wattpad is expanding further into print with a new graphic novel imprint.

Wattpad Webtoon Unscrolled will bring stories from online comics platform Webtoon to bookshelves. The imprint’s debut list of six graphic novels is expected for publication in the fall of 2022.

Bobbie Chase, former vice president of global publishing initiatives and digital strategy at DC Entertainment, has been named executive editor of the new imprint.

Wattpad Webtoon Studios’ senior vice president of publishing Ashleigh Gardner says the new imprint will harness new voices and genres with existing fanbases around the world. “With Webtoon Unscrolled we’re going to bring more Webtoon artists to bookshelves faster than ever,” Gardner said in a release. “Our creators are already famous around the world and I can’t wait to see them thrive on bookshelves.”

As with the YA-focused Wattpad Books and adult fiction imprint W by Wattpad Books, which launched this spring, Wattpad Webtoon Unscrolled will be distributed in Canada by Raincoast Books and by MacMillan in the U.S.

South Korea’s Naver, which owns Webtoon, acquired Wattpad earlier this year for $754 million. In June, Wattpad and Webtoon announced they were merging their studio divisions to create Wattpad Webtoon Studios. Wattpad and Webtoon have a combined digital audience of more than 166 million people.