( ENSPIRE News ) Amazon Teams Up with Keke Palmer to Publish New Short Story Series Based on Her Original Characters
ENSPIRE Contributor: Octavia Johnson
Amazon Original Stories, an imprint of Amazon Publishing, announced today that it will publish multi-hyphenate entertainer Keke Palmer’s forthcoming series of short stories, based on her popular original Instagram characters and sketch comedy videos, which have amassed over 100 million views. Readers and listeners can download the collection as a Kindle eBook or as an Audible audiobook, performed by Keke herself. Amazon Original Stories will publish the short story series in late Fall 2021.
At the age of 27, Keke is a prolific and formidable content creator, entertainer, businesswoman, and passionate voice for her generation. Keke first had the idea for her viral characters just over five years ago, when she wanted to experiment with new types of comedy in the digital universe. She created characters on her Instagram account that tackled issues of class, race, femininity, and culture, with her signature brand of humor. Incorporating feedback from her fans and community on social media in real-time, she refined each character to be reflective of her audience and the world around her.
Keke’s most popular character, Lady Miss Jacqueline—who has gained over 60 million views on Instagram alone—is the star of the stories in the upcoming Amazon Original Stories collection. Featuring illustrations throughout, the short, binge-able stories will take readers and listeners into the hilarious and fully realized world of her beloved characters, expanding on their backstories and building a plot that answers the most asked questions from her fans. The Audible audiobook will feature Keke playing each of the characters that she has created.
“What started out as an Instagram sketch, led me to one of my most beloved characters, Lady Miss Jacqueline. She’s always been larger than life—and a huge symbol of the moment when I realized I wanted to create worlds for my audience to get lost in. In effect, she was the beginning of my producing journey. The opportunity to share what makes her not only funny but important is exciting,” Keke said. “The team at Amazon Original Stories and I have a shared vision and what they have already been able to accomplish pushes me to bring my best and then some. I can’t wait to together share a new side of Lady Miss, her truth, and comedy with the world.”
“We are thrilled to team up with Keke to help expand her unique vision and unforgettable cast of characters into a broader literary universe,” said Julia Sommerfeld, publisher of Amazon Original Stories. “We like to think of Amazon Original Stories as serving as a playground for an innovator like Keke, to bring her groundbreaking characters to life in new ways and to push the boundaries of storytelling.”
Like all Amazon Original Stories, Keke’s new collection will be available to read and listen free to Prime members, as well as Kindle Unlimited subscribers. Readers can download each story individually to their Kindle or Kindle app, or get the whole collection with just one click. Stories are also available for non-members for $1.99, with the option to add digital audio for free.
