Fables: Legends in Exile
Eisner Award–Winning Creator to Publish Epic Sword & Sorcery Novel Trilogy With Raconteur Press
IOWA PARK, TX, UNITED STATES, April 27, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — Raconteur Press today announced a publishing agreement with Bill Willingham, the Eisner Award–winning creator and writer of the ELEMENTALS and FABLE comic book series. Willingham will be working with the Press to produce his OUTRIDER series, a new trilogy of epic fantasy novels.
The first novel, THE GIANT, THE WITCH, AND THE WARLORD, will be published by Raconteur Press in January 2027. This will be followed by THE SORCEROR and THE KING OF THE WEST later in the year. All three manuscripts are complete and in production. Readers will not have to wonder when the series will be finished — it’s already done!
The OUTRIDER series is epic fantasy in the classic tradition of sword and sorcery. The story features morally complex characters, heroes who behave heroically, and centers on an oath kept at any cost. It is Willingham’s first extended prose sword and sorcery work, and a deliberate return to the genre he loved before he ever worked in comics.
“I approached Raconteur Press because of their reputation for treating authors honestly,” said Willingham. “Their contracts are public. Their terms are clear. In an industry that often makes authors feel like afterthoughts, that matters.”
“When Bill reached out to us, the answer was not a difficult one,” said Ian McMurtrie, founder of Raconteur Press. “He is one of the most accomplished storytellers working in genre fiction. We are honored to publish these books, and we intend to do right by them.”
Raconteur Press has worked with more than 400 authors across its three book lines since 2022, publishing over 100 books including dozens of anthologies, story-first genre novels, and award-winning Boys’ Adventure titles.
A cover reveal is planned for June 2026. Pre-orders open August 1, 2026.
Available for Media: Review copy, press kit, author bio, cover image, and interview scheduling available on request. Contact pr@raconteurpress.com.
About Bill Willingham: Bill Willingham is a writer and artist best known as the creator of Elementals and Fables, the long-running DC/Vertigo comic series that earned fourteen Eisner Awards shared with collaborators, with Willingham personally winning Best New Series (2003), Best Serialized Story (2003), Best Short Story (2007), and Best Writer (2009). He has also received the Inkpot Award (2008) and the Adamson Award (2011), and received four Hugo Award nominations in the Graphic Story category. With the Outrider trilogy, Willingham returns to his roots of epic fantasy in the classic tradition of sword and sorcery — the genre he has always loved.
About Raconteur Press: Raconteur Press is a Texas-based independent publisher founded in 2022. The Press publishes genre fiction anthologies, story-first genre novels, and a Boys’ Adventure line, with all books unapologetically designed to entertain. Raconteur operates on a philosophy of radical transparency, publishing sample contracts publicly and sharing its operational playbook openly with the indie publishing community. More at raconteurpress.com.
Samuel Robb
Raconteur Press
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