Quote:
Originally Posted by ZodWallop
Point is the Del Rey titles were common in UK bookshops, you just didn't know it since they were picked up by local publishers over there.
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Publishing in different geo-restricted regions often doesn't work like that, especially English language UK vs USA. Often an author or an agent would do separate deals in separate region, especially in the past when there were many USA publishers unable to distribute in UK and vice-versa. It was a consequence of certain publishers from Victorian era till 1960s ignoring copyrights of works published elsewhere.
They are only a Del Rey title when they are published by Del Rey. There may or may not have been any contractual arrangement with Del Rey by British publishers, or they may have had a separate deal with the author(s).
Edit
First book in Thomas Covenant series (Lord Foul's Bane):
1st published in USA by Holt Rinehart and Winston 1977
First published in UK by Fontana Books 1978
22nd impression 1987 (Fontana Books, printed by William Collins)
Copyright © 1977 by Stephen R. Donaldson.
So likely Donaldson did a deal with Collins (Fontana was their imprint).
What ever titles Del Ray published doesn't make them Del Ray titles when someone else publishes them in a different country, even if Del Ray published them first.
I've read short stories in magazines by Lester Del Ray, but as a publishing house Del Ray seems to have little to do with UK or Ireland.