David Levithan, a New York Times bestselling author and Scholastic editorial director, has landed a deal with Dutton Children’s Books, an imprint of Penguin Young Readers Group.
Levithan plans to pen a musical novel entitled Hold Me Closer: The Tiny Cooper Story. Fans will recall that this musical was featured in the collaborative novel written by Levithan and The Fault in Our Stars author John Green, Will Grayson, Will Grayson. For this project, he plans to share the full script.
Publisher Julie Strauss-Gabel negotiated the deal with William Morris Endeavor literary agent Bill Clegg. She will edit the manuscript herself. A release date has been set for March 2015 to honor the fifth anniversary of the publication of Will Grayson, Will Grayson.
Levithan had this statement in the press release: “From the moment John read me Tiny’s opening lines in Will Grayson, Will Grayson, I was literarily smitten. And the musical numbers that John and I wrote for that book always made me want to write the whole musical. I’m thrilled that after four years of working on it, I’m able to help Tiny make the leap to his own big production.” (Photo Credit: Jake Hamilton)