Arc Manor, a Small Press, Takes on Industry Giants by Acquiring Lost Manuscripts, Launching Stars & Winning Major Awards

Arc Manor proves indie publishers can outmaneuver industry giants by securing lost manuscripts and launching global literary stars.

ROCKVILLE, MD, UNITED STATES, December 10, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ -- While the "Big Five" publishing houses dominate the headlines with mergers and consolidations, a small independent press in Rockville has quietly secured the rights to science fiction’s most valuable legacies. Arc Manor, led by former bond portfolio manager Shahid Mahmud, has cemented its status as a genre heavyweight by publishing books by major icons and surprising the publishing world by securing exclusive rights to "The Pursuit of the Pankera." Originally titled "Six-Six-Six," this project represents the last published novel by Grand Master Robert A. Heinlein, based on a rediscovered manuscript and author notes.

The publisher recently executed a strategic pivot, moving away from experimental ventures to focus strictly on high-value speculative fiction through its Caezik and Phoenix Pick imprints. The shift yielded immediate results. The company now manages a catalog that includes genre titans like Harry Turtledove, Mercedes Lackey, S. M. Stirling, Katharine Kerr, and Larry Niven , while simultaneously breaking ground with African speculative fiction that has garnered significant critical acclaim.

Industry insiders have noted Arc Manor’s ability to secure projects that usually go to major corporations. This includes the recent acquisition of the four books in the "Halfblood Chronicles," a beloved series created by two Grand Masters of Science Fiction, Andre Norton and Mercedes Lackey. The press is scheduled to release "Elvenbred," the highly anticipated final book in the series, in 2026.

"Big publishing houses move like ocean liners, but we move like speedboats," says Shahid Mahmud, Publisher of Arc Manor. "When we found out there was a completely different, unpublished ending to a Heinlein classic sitting in the archives, we didn't need three committees and a board meeting to decide it was worth printing. We just got to work."

The press has balanced this legacy curation with aggressive new acquisitions. Arc Manor published Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki, whose original work in their magazine, Galaxy’s Edge, won the Nebula Award. A later anthology edited by Ekpeki, "The Year's Best African Speculative Fiction," won the World Fantasy Award.

Recent accolades continue to mount. Michael Flynn’s "In the Belly of the Whale" won the Prometheus Award, and Ekpeki’s latest African anthology was nominated for the 2025 World Fantasy Award. Additionally, "Sleeping Worlds Have No Memory" by Yaroslav Barsukov was nominated for a Nebula Award for Best Novel. This nomination marks only the third time in the last decade that a book by a small press has competed for a Nebula in that category.

This dual strategy of monetizing the classics while identifying new talent has turned the Maryland company into a profitable anomaly in a difficult market. By combining a hybrid distribution model that uses both traditional retail channels via Consortium and direct-to-consumer print-on-demand networks, Arc Manor has eliminated the overhead that sinks traditional presses.

ABOUT ARC MANOR

Based in Rockville, Maryland, Arc Manor is an independent publisher specializing in science fiction and fantasy. Through its imprints Caezik and Phoenix Pick, the company publishes industry icons including Mercedes Lackey, Katharine Kerr, Robert A. Heinlein, and Larry Niven, as well as award-winning contemporary authors. The press is one of the very few small-to-mid-sized publishers to achieve wins across the Hugo, Nebula, World Fantasy, and Prometheus awards from multiple nominations.

Shahid Mahmud
Arc Manor
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