In a monumental revelation, Macmillan is poised to release the memoir of the iconic Lisa Marie Presley, a work posthumously brought to life through collaboration with her accomplished daughter, the multi-talented actress and singer Riley Keough. This exciting development follows the acquisition of UK and Commonwealth rights by Pan Macmillan publishing director Sara Cywinski, negotiated with Harriet Poland at Creative Artists Agency (CAA).
Scheduled for release on October 15, 2024, the memoir holds the potential to deliver an unfiltered and captivating narrative, unveiling the layers of one of America’s most legendary families. Alongside the release of the memoir, an audiobook is also set to be published with Keough narrating alongside never-before-heard recollections in Presley’s own voice; published by Pan Macmillan.
Born to an American myth and raised in the wilds of Graceland, Lisa Marie Presley was never truly understood…until now. Before her death in 2023, she’d been working on a raw, riveting, one-of-a-kind memoir for years, recording countless hours of breathtakingly vulnerable tape, which has finally been put on the page by her daughter, Riley Keough.
Book’s Sypnosis on Pan Macmillan Website
Talking about the release, Macmillan said, “This raw, riveting, one-of-a-kind memoir will lift the veil on one of America’s most storied families, sharing intimate memories of Lisa Marie [Presley]’s remarkable, tumultuous life while offering a poignant exploration of the bonds between a mother and daughter.”
Before her untimely passing in 2023, Presley had entrusted Keough with the task of completing her long-gestating memoir. Initially hesitant, Keough felt there would be a right time for them to collaborate on the project, in the future. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case, and Keough held guilt for not helping Presley to complete her memoir After the unexpected passing of Presley, Keough was deeply moved by a sense of duty, compelling her to open a window into the warmth, joy, and care that defined her mother’s character for the world to witness and appreciate.
“Like most of us do with asks from our parents, Riley pushed off the project, feeling that there would be a right time for them to sit down together and finish it,” Macmillan said. “But, after Lisa Marie’s unexpected death last year, Riley carried a guilt that the world would never know the loving, joyful and caring woman that she knew and grieved.”
Continuing, the publisher said, “After listening to the countless hours of tape her mother had recorded for the book, Riley knew that it was time for Lisa Marie’s voice to be heard. She listened as Lisa Marie told story after story about the unconditional love she felt from her father, about being upstairs at Graceland, just the two of them, a sanctuary from the chaos of her life. About growing up with the clicking cameras perpetually at the door. About her own wild love stories, and her marriages to Michael Jackson and Nicolas Cage. About motherhood and the shattering loss of her son, Riley’s brother Benjamin Keough, to suicide.”
Keough said, “Few people had the opportunity to know who my mom really was, other than being Elvis’ daughter. I was lucky to have had that opportunity and working on preparing her autobiography for publication has been a privilege, albeit a bittersweet one. I’m so excited to share my mom now, at her most vulnerable and most honest, and in doing so, I do hope that readers come to love my mom as much as I did.”
The publishing director, Cywinski added, “It’s a great privilege that Riley has entrusted us with publishing her mother’s life story to fulfil her wish of giving a voice to Lisa Marie in a way that mostly eluded her when she was alive. I was deeply moved by both of their eloquent words and powerful storytelling, and I’m very glad that there is an opportunity for the world to see Lisa Maria as Riley, and those closest to her, saw her. And, too, for the generations to come to understand the complexity of being a Presley. It’s an honour for us to publish this very special book.”
The memoir is available to pre-order across stores right now, in anticipation of the October 15, 2024, release. It will be available in hardback, ebook, and audiobook. See the Macmillan website for more details on the stores you can pre-order the memoir from.
The US rights for the memoir were sold to Ben Greenberg at Random House by Cait Hoyt of CAA, with translation rights being sold worldwide to Penguin (Germany), JC Lattes (France), Het Spectrum (The Netherlands), Penguin Random House (Spain), Rocco (Brazil), Johnny Kniga (Finland), Marginesy (Poland), and Tanapaev (Estonia), by Sarah Harvey, Daisy Meyrick and Devon Lee at CAA..
The global anticipation for Lisa Marie Presley’s memoir is palpable, promising readers a unique and unprecedented glimpse into the complexity of being a Presley.