Serena Williams has a two-book deal, starting with a memoir

NEW YORK

The tennis great Serena Williams has a two-book deal with the Random House Publishing Group, starting with an “intimate” memoir in which she will open up about everything from her childhood and early tennis training, dramatized in the 2021 film “King Richard,” to her extraordinary career and the obstacles and setbacks she endured along the way. The book is not yet titled and does not have a release date.

“For so long, all I was focused on was winning, and I never sat down to look back and reflect on my life and career," Williams said in a statement on Oct. 18.

"Over the last year I’ve really enjoyed taking the time with my growing family to celebrate my accomplishments and explore my other passions. I couldn’t be at a more perfect place to be able to take-on such a personal intimate project, and there’s no one I would rather do it with than the team at Random House.”

The second book, also untitled, will be an “inspirational” work, according to Random House, which announced that “Williams will offer rules for living that draw on her experiences as a philanthropist and advocate, her career as an investment unicorn with Serena Ventures, and someone who has long sought to lift a diverse and emergent generation of young women whose aspirations are not confined to the court.”

Williams, 42, announced her retirement – famously eschewing that term and saying instead she was “evolving” away from professional tennis - shortly before the 2022 U.S. Open.

Williams left the sport with 23 Grand Slam titles in singles, another 14 in doubles with her sister Venus, more than 300 weeks at No. 1 in the rankings and four Olympic gold medals. She also has been widely cited for breaking down racial barriers in tennis and racial and gender barriers in sports and beyond.