After quite a while resting on my more or less laurels (past listings) it's time to get a move on and put up some more listings. My goal is five books every day from now on. This should be achievable, but not according to my past performance.

These books get listed in three places: on Amazon, Biblio, and Half. Books without ISBNs (older books) generally will not be listed on half. My prices might vary between these three places. Amazon and Half tell me competing prices, so I peg mine on them. Thus, if the lowest price for Deadly Percheron is $98 on Amazon, I might peg mine at $95. If it weren't my only copy maybe I'd be more reasonable. In fact, I think my Biblio listing is more reasonable.

Going forward (and possibly backward), links to titles of books will send you to the main Amazon listing. My listing will be somewhere amidst the other maybe 237 listings. This is where my photo of the book can be seen, which will probably be a better one than the one Amazon features. Half doesn't let me attach my own photo—at least I don't think it does. Photos are also at biblio. Lots of older listings still don't have photos. Nor updated prices.

I've been lousy at selling direct via email. Sorry about that, if you've tried me. Listing through the major portals keeps me honest—also prompt and reliable.

Wednesday, August 27, 2003

08/27/03 WED:
---Mainly processed orders today, but I did get a weblog entry for 8/19/03 put up (not so many things to check over or links to set up).

---Heard from Chaosium:
Hi Chris,
We've moved since I got this last email from you. We have released at least
DISCIPLES OF CTHULHU II, THE WHITE PEOPLE (Machen) is at the printer, we'll
have a restock on NAMELESS CULTS on Wednesday. We no longer use Wizard's
Attic for fulfillment. We would be interested in resuming relations with
you. If interested, please feel free to contact me either phone or email.
Please also note our new address and phone numbers.
---I know I ordered these things before, but I will do so again now, because I know I have a few people who want them. I think I still have NAMELESS CULTS already in stock.

---Discologue:
- J.S. Bach TRIO SONATAS
- Szigeti/Schnabel MOZART/BEETHOVEN SONATAS

08/26/03 TUE:
---Here now:
Blackwood, Algernon THE LOST VALLEY and Other Stories, Stark House, 7/03, (visionary horror; Simon Clark intro), new 17.95
---Still can’t find a web presence for Stark House, so no link.

Burroughs, Edgar Rice THE ETERNAL SAVAGE: Nu of the Neocene, Bison Frontiers of the Imagination '03, (Tom Deitz intro), new 11.95

Copper, Basil THE HOUSE OF THE WOLF, Sarob Press, 7/03, (orig; Arkham House, 1983; adds intro by author and afterwod by Stephen Jones who also provides interior illos), new in dj 42.50

Evenson, Brian THE BROTHERHOOD OF MUTILATION, Earthling Publications, 8/03, 1st, one of 315 SIGNED copies, (Paul Di Filippo intro), 48-page booklet, new 10.00

Lasley, Roger UNPAINTED, UNFINISHED, UNSTAINED, '03, (even more guitar solos & duets ), CD, new 15.00
---Good stuff.

---Back in stock:
CONJUNCTIONS: 39 (The New Wave Fabulists), Bard, 2nd, (Straub [guest editor]), new 15.00
---Conjunctions link leads to Issue #40 (which looks good) at the moment (9/03). Click on Archives and then issue #39 to get to the contents of this issue. The URL is the same all the way.

Dowling, Terry BLUE TYSON, Aphelion '92, 1st, (intro by Jack Vance), new 10.00
---AN INTIMATE KNOWLEDGE OF THE NIGHT, Aphelion '95, 1st, (stories), new $10
---TWILIGHT BEACH, Aphelion '93, 1st, (stories; Australian SF cosmology), new $10

McNamara, Peter & Margaret Winch (eds) ALIEN SHORES, Aphelion '94, (A Landmark Collection of Australian SF; Damien Broderick intro; 603 pgs), new $15

---Discologue:
- Sarah Vaughan KEN BURNS JAZZ
- John Coltrane KEN BURNS JAZZ
- Blur THE BEST OF BLUR (2CD) - bonus live disc (Xgau: A Minus)

---Rec’d this email from Belgium:
Dear Chris
I hope your still alive?? :-)

---My reply:
"I think I am still alive, but I guess that depends on which parallel universe this is. I sometimes wonder."


Monday, August 25, 2003

08/25/03 MON:
---Now that school is back in session I am hoping that the summer doldrumms that seem to have overwhelmed me (or at least slowed me down to a feeble pace) will give way to a period of renewed vigor. High in priority is the catching up on this weblog space.
---Not such a good start this morning, however, when I went down to the cellar to find I had left the dehumidifier basket slightly ajar, causing its auto-shutoff feature to malfunction. A goodly amount of overflow onto the floor made me to have to move quite a few boxes around, with not much around to be found. Fortunately I only put boxes of old magazines on the bottoms of stacks, so if they got wet it is no great catastrophe. Evenso, it looks like the magazines did not even get damp. Three bottom boxes soaked up a bit of moisture, but they will still be usable when they dry out, as they are doing now with certain alacrity on our back porch, where the sun is blistering again today. These are those boughten Store-Away boxes that stack well and provide good insulation for their contents.

08/24/03 SUN:
---Text to follow?
08/23/03 SAT:
---Text to follow?
08/22/03 FRI:
---Text to follow?
08/21/03 THU:
---Text to follow?
08/20/03 WED:
---From Golden Gryphon:
Kelly, James Patrick THINK LIKE A DINOSAUR and Other Stories, Golden Gryphon '03, (first major retrospective; Kessel forword), {hc in dj still avail. @ 22.95}, new 15.95
---But I wonder how many more of those hcs I might have. This was Golden Gryphon book #1 back in 1997, now out of print in hardcover.

---Back in stock:
Bishop, Michael BRIGHTEN TO INCANDESCENCE, Golden Gryphon '03, 1st edn, new in dj 24.95

---Disc Log:
- The Fabulous Thunderbirds T-BIRD RHYTHM (Xgau: B Plus)
- Panjabi MC BEWARE (Xgau: A Minus)
- Ella Fitzgerald KEN BURNS JAZZ (Xgau: A Plus)

08/19/03 TUE:
---Catalogued today:
Costello, Mark BIG IF, Norton '02, 1st edn, (governmental novel), new in dj 24.95

Geyh, Paula, Fred G. Leebron & Andrew Levy (eds) POSTMODERN AMERICAN FICTION: A Norton Anthology, 5th, (stimulating, capacious), new 25.95

---Back in stock:
Kelly, Walt POGO: Volume Nine, Fantagraphics, 6/98, (cartoon collections), new 9.95
---POGO: Volume Eleven, Fantagraphics, 6/00, (comic strips), vg+ (actually “as new but back cover creased”) 7.50

---Discologue:
- Wide Right WIDE RIGHT (Xgau: A Minus)
- Sonic Youth TEXAS, 1986: Live at the Continental Club
- MC5 TEEN AGE LUST
- RAGGA RAGGA RAGGA! 2003 (Xgau: A Minus)

Monday, August 18, 2003

08/18/03 MON:
---This back in stock:
Chesbro, George C. THE KEEPER, Apache Beach, 3/01, (fantasy with incredible action), new / dj 26.95

---Here today:
Hartwell, David G. & Kathryn Cramer (eds) YEAR'S BEST FANTASY 2, SFBC ('02), new in dj 10.99

Jepson, Edgar THE GARDEN AT 19, Midnight House ('02), (orig; 1910), new in dj $40

---Disc Log:
- Jimmie Rodgers RCA COUNTRY LEGENDS (Xgau: A)
- Charles Mingus THE CLOWN
- Count Basie KEN BURNS JAZZ

08/17/03 SUN:
---Text to follow?

08/16/03 SAT:
---Text to follow?

08/15/03 FRI:
---Here today:
Effinger, George Alec BUDAYEEN NIGHTS, Golden Gryphon '03, 1st edn, (foreword and story intros by Barbara Hambly; near-future cyberpunk), new in dj 24.95

---Catalogued today, these new ones from Apache Beach:
Chesbro, George C. LONE WOLVES: Short Fiction, Apache Beach, 6/03, new 16.99
---PRISM: A Memoir As Fiction, Volume 1: The Dark Engine, Apache Beach, 6/03, (plumbs the shadowy depths of a writer's badly bruised heart), new 16.99 (formerly available in hc)

---These back in stock from Apache Beach:
Chesbro, George C. AN AFFAIR OF SORCERERS, Apache Beach, 11/99, SIGNED (as are the others listed below), (1979 Mongo mystery; #3 in series), new 16.99
---THE BEASTS OF VALHALLA, Apache Beach, 11/99, (Mongo #4; mys), new 16.99
---BLEEDING IN THE EYE OF A BRAINSTORM, Apache Beach, 1/02, new 16.99
---CITY OF WHISPERING STONE, Apache Beach, 11/99, (Mongo #2; mys), new 16.99
---DREAM OF A FALLING EAGLE, Apache Beach, 1/02, (Mongo #14; mystery), new 16.99
---SHADOW OF A BROKEN MAN, Apache Beach, 11/99, (Mongo #1; mys), new 16.99
---TWO SONGS THIS ARCHANGEL SINGS, Apache Beach, 11/99, (Mongo #5; mys), new 16.99
---all these are signed by the author, thanks to the offer.

---Disc Log:
- Art Pepper NO LIMIT
- Youssou N’Dour & Le Super Etoile REWMI (Xgau: A Minus)
- Roger Lasley WHAT CHEER ROAD - guitar picking at its best, available from me ($15), as are all the Roger CDs; this one was his first issue

08/14/03 THU:
---Text to follow?

Wednesday, August 13, 2003

08/13/03 WED:
---These here today:
Eskridge, Kelley SOLITAIRE, Eos, 9/02, 1st edn, (debut novel), new in dj 24.95

Le Guin, Ursula K. THE DISPOSSESSED, Perennial Classics '03, 1st thus, new 13.95
---THE LATHE OF HEAVEN, Perennial Classics '03, 1st thus, new 12.95

PURPLE PROSE #17, 7/03, (Terrill Tales: Reign of the Rajah by Will Murray, about influential pulp editor at Popular Publications, Rogers Terrill; more), new 5.00

Tapply, William G. THE SNAKE EATER/THE SEVENTH ENEMY/CLOSE TO THE BONE: A Brady Coyne Omnibus, St. Martin’s Minotaur, 10/00, new 17.95

Wangerin, Walter, Jr. THE BOOK OF THE DUN COW: Special 25th Anniversary Edition, HarperSanFrancisco '03, 1st thus, (adds new afterword), new 13.95

---Music played:
- Son Seals LIVE AND BURNING (Xgau: A Minus)
- Badly Drawn Boy HAVE YOU FED THE FISH? (Xgau: A Minus)
- 40 YEARS AND ONE: Philip Corner Plays the Piano (an XI Records promotional freebie)

08/12/03 TUE:
---Got a slow start owing to reshelving books. Five-mile run too.

---Here today:
Boyle, T. Coraghessan DROP CITY, Viking '03, 1st, (1970 hippies), new in dj 25.95

De Lint, Charles WAIFS AND STRAYS, Viking '02, 1st, (stories; Windling preface), new in dj 17.99
---(writer) & Charles Vess (illus) A CIRCLE OF CATS, Viking '03, 1st, new in dj 16.99

Lee, Tanith A BED OF EARTH, Overlook '02, 1st edn, (Secret Books of Venus #3), new in dj 25.95
---WOLF QUEEN, Dutton, 4th, (Claidi Journals #3), new in dj 16.99

Yorke, Malcolm MERVYN PEAKE: My Eyes Mint Gold, A Life, Overlook '02, 1st edn, (incisive and immensely readable biography; 368 pages), new in dj 37.50

---Discologue:
- THE KINGS OF HIGHLIFE (Xgau: A Minus)
- THE COMPLETE STAX/VOLT SOUL SINGLES Volume 3: 1972-1975 (Disc 9)

Monday, August 11, 2003

08/11/03 MON:
---This weblog should be the place, even if all other evidences fail, where if someone is interested, they can find out if I am still alive. But lately even this has not been the case. I have fallen way behind in getting these posts put up. I won’t recite what excuses I might or might not have. Some of the reasons might become implicit in the content of intervening entries. Suffice it to say that I want to get caught up so I can keep these posts more contemporaneous. Instead of try to play catch-up by putting up the oldest entries and trying to work my way to the present, I will set up blank entries for the missing days, to be filled in as time and volition allow. I hope I can henceforth put up more recent entries on a more current-time basis. That way things will be in their proper order when they do appear, and I can still write things like this here and have them apply to the day they were posted.

08/10/03 SUN:
---Text to follow?

08/09/03 SAT:
---Text to follow?

08/08/03 FRI:
---Text to follow?

08/07/03 THU:
---Text to follow?

08/06/03 WED:
---Text to follow?

08/05/03 TUES:
---Shipments from HarperCollins, PGW, Penguin Putnam and VHPS have come in:
Anderson, Poul GOING FOR INFINITY, Tor, 5/05 (sic), (stories; 416 pages), new 14.95

Asaro, Catherine THE MOON'S SHADOW, Tor, 2nd, (Skolian Empire novel), new in dj 25.95

Bear, Greg THE COLLECTED STORIES OF…, Orb, 3/03, (adds intros to stories & reminiscences; 653 pages), {1st edn hc in dj still avail. @ 29.95}, new 17.95

Blaylock, James P. THIRTEEN PHANTASMS and Other Stories, Ace, 4/03, new 14.00

Chiang, Ted STORIES OF YOUR LIFE and Others, Orb, 7/03, (essential SF; multiple-award winning stories), {hc in dj still available @ 24.95}, new 14.95

Dann, Jack JUBILEE, Tor, 1/03, 1st US edn, (stories; 442 pages), new in dj 27.95

Datlow, Ellen & Terri Windling (eds) THE YEAR'S BEST FANTASY AND HORROR: 16th Annual Collection, St. Martin’s Griffin, 8/03, 1st edn, (over 250,000 words of the finest; broadly literate), {hc in dj available @ $35}, new 19.95

De Lint, Charles FORESTS OF THE HEART, Tor, 3rd, (spellbinding novel of magic in two worlds), {1st edn hc in dj still available @ 25.95}, new 14.95

Dozois, Gardner (ed) THE YEAR'S BEST SCIENCE FICTION: Twentieth Annual Collection, St. Martin’s Griffin, 2nd, {1st edn hc in dj avail. @ $35}, new 19.95

Jones, Jeffrey THE ART OF…, Underwood '02, (Cathy & Arnie Fenner [eds]), new in dj 35.00
---one copy came with a razor cut in the front dj. I am pricing it at $18.

Gaiman, Neil CORALINE, HarperCollins, 13th, (frightening novel for all ages), new in dj 15.99

Gorman, Ed EVERYBODY'S SOMEBODY'S FOOL, Carroll & Graf '02, 1st, (A Sam McCain Mystery; set in Iowa), new in dj 24.00

Jones, Diana Wynne THE MERLIN CONSPIRACY, Greenwillow, 3rd, (fantasy), new in dj 16.99

Lethem, Jonathan (ed) DA CAPO BEST MUSIC WRITING 2002: The Year's Finest Writing on Rock, Pop, Jazz, Country, & More, Da Capo, 2nd('03), new 15.00

Pratchett, Terry THE LAST HERO: A Discworld Fable, Eos, 1st (US) thus, new 19.95

Simmons, Dan ILIUM, Eos '03, 1st edn, (first part of epic; 576 pages), new in dj 25.95

Van Gelder, Gordon (ed) ONE LAMP: Alternate History Stories from The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, Four Walls Eight Windows, 9/03, 1st, new 15.95

Wilhelm, Kate SKELETONS, Minotaur, 8/02, 1st edn, (a novel of suspense), new in dj 24.95

Wright, John C. THE PHOENIX EXULTANT, Tor, 5/03, 1st edn, (Golden Age #2), new in dj 24.95

---For information about their books and authors, Tor’s website suggests:
“If you want information on the authors, titles, series, dates, etc., of works that have already been published, try:
The SF Site
The Library of Congress
and a couple other links that didn’t look too useful or did not work. They also suggest: “The larger online booksellers' sites are also a good source of information.” That leaves me out, but it is advice I follow myself.
---I also like Locus Online, but it is impossible not to get sent off on a tangent by their links to things going on.

---Also, to get more Carroll & Graf title information, go their title search. Links to individual books all have the same URL.

---Back in stock:
Ashley, Mike ALGERNON BLACKWOOD: An Extraordinary Life, Carroll & Graf '01, 1st US edn, (full biography; notes, bibliography, index), new in dj 28.00

Datlow, Ellen & Terri Windling (eds) THE YEAR'S BEST FANTASY AND HORROR: 15th Annual Collection, St. Martin’s Griffin, 8/02, 1st edn, new 19.95

Dozois, Gardner (ed) WORLDMAKERS: SF Adventures in Terraforming, St. Martin’s Griffin, 2nd, (Baxter, Benford, Clarke, Haldeman, Sterling, Zelazny, etc.), new 17.95

Fenner, Cathy & Arnie Fenner (eds) SPECTRUM 8, Underwood '01, 1st, {hc in dj available @ $35}, new 27.00
--- & ---(eds) SPECTRUM 9, Underwood '02, 1st, {hc in dj available @ $35}, new 27.00

Harrison, Harry 50 IN 50, Tor, 6/01, 1st edn, (fifty stories), {trade pb avail. @18.95}, new in dj 29.95

Leary, Timothy THE DELICIOUS GRACE OF MOVING ONE'S HAND: The Collected Sex Writings, Thunder's Mouth('99),1st edn, (will delight & enlighten everyone), new 13.95

Lewis, Matthew G. THE MONK, Grove, 29th('03), (classic horror novel), new 13.50

Lumley, Brian BENEATH THE MOORS, Tor, 2/02, 1st edn, (collection), new / dj 24.95
--- & Stanley Wiater (eds) THE BRIAN Lumley COMPANION, Tor, 11/02, 1st edn, (inclues 8 pages of art and photographs; bibliography; etc.), new in dj 26.95

MacLeod, Ken COSMONAUT KEEP, Tor, 5/01, 1st edn, (#1 in saga), new in dj 25.95

Rucker, Rudy GNARL!, Four Walls Eight Windows, 4/00, 1st, (stories), new 20.00
---SAUCER WISDOM, Forge, 7/99, 1st edn, {trade pb avail. @ 14.95}, new in dj 23.95
---WHITE LIGHT, Axoplasm/Four Walls Eight Windows, 4/01, (Shirley intro), new 13.95

Saberhagen, Fred A COLDNESS IN THE BLOOD, Tor, 10/02, 1st edn, (Dracula #8), new in dj 25.95

Stephenson, Neal IN THE BEGINNING…WAS THE COMMAND LINE, Perennial, 5th('03), (nf), new $10

Van Vogt, A.E. THE WORLD OF NULL-A, Orb, 10/02, (coming race of supermen), new 14.95

Wolfe, Gene CASTLE OF DAYS, Orb, 4/95, (collects GW's Book of Days & The Castle of the Otter; 447 pp), {hc in dj still avail. @ 22.95}, new 14.95
Wolfe, Gene THE FIFTH HEAD OF CERBERUS, Orb, 4/94, (3 novellas), new 12.95
---FREE LIVE FREE, Orb, 2/99, (character-driven SF at its best), new 15.95
---THE ISLAND OF DOCTOR DEATH And Other Stories, Orb, 8/97, new 14.95
---STRANGE TRAVELERS: New Selected Stories, Orb, 1/01, new 14.95

---Music played:
- AWESOME 80s (eMusic compilation)
- Alan Jackson DRIVE (Xgau: HM***)
- Dizzy Gillespie KEN BURNS JAZZ

08/04/03 MON:
---A new one from Ash-Tree:
Le Fanu, Sheridan THE HAUNTED BARONET and Others: Ghost Stories 1861-70, Ash-Tree '03, 1st thus, (Jim Rockhill [ed & intro]), new in dj 45.00

---And another:
Gaiman, Neil (words) & Dave McKean (pictures) THE WOLVES IN THE WALLS, HarperCollins '03, 1st, (delightfully scary, strange & hilarious children’s book), new / dj 16.99

---A couple used ones picked up at the library sale on the way to the post office a few days ago, I thought I might go ahead and catalog:
King, Stephen (as Richard Bachman) THE REGULATORS, Dutton, 10/96, 1st trade, vg in dj 10.00
---Actually a bit better than vg, but I already had a copy so graded (at $15), so I just lowered the price and kept the description the same.

Koontz, Dean R. THREE COMPLETE NOVELS: Shattered/Whispers/Watchers, Wings, 2nd, (author's second volume of three complete novels; 691 pages), vg in dj 6.50

---Disc Log:
- The Flaming Lips YOSHIMI BATTLES THE PINK ROBOTS (Xgau: HM***)
- Sonny Rollins NUCLEUS (as in fusion - another download from eMusic that Neil got for me from his highspeed connection in his dorm at The Fighting Illini.)
- Sue Foley WHERE THE ACTION IS (Xgau: HM**)
- TOTALLY HITS 2002: MORE PLATINUM HITS
- Daniel Lentz VOICES
08/03/03 SUN:
---Text to follow?

08/02/03 SAT:
---Text to follow?

08/01/03 FRI:
---Here today from the Univ of Nebr Press’ Bison imprint:
Arnold, Edwin L. GULLIVAR OF MARS, '03, (Hoppenstand intro), new 15.95

Burroughs, Edgar Rice UNDER THE MOONS OF MARS, Bison '03, (3-in-1; James P. Hogan intro), new 16.95

Smith, E.E. "Doc" SKYLARK THREE, Bison '03, (Jack Williamson introduction), new 12.00

Twain, Mark TALES OF WONDER, Bison '03, (Ketterer intro & notes), new 16.95

---Back in stock:

Burroughs, Edgar Rice AT THE EARTH'S CORE, '00, (Benford intro), new 12.95
---THE LAND THAT TIME FORGOT, 2nd, (3-in-1 edn; Resnick intro), new 14.95
---THE MOON MAID: Complete and Restored, '02, (Bisson intro), new 18.95

Flammarion, Camille OMEGA: The Last Days of the World, '99, (epic history of our future by well-known French astronomer; Silverberg intro), new 14.95

Lane, Mary E. MIZORA: A World of Women, '99, (Joan Saberhagen intro), new 9.95

Smith, E.E. "Doc" THE SKYLARK OF SPACE, '01, (Vernor Vinge intro), new 10.00

Verne, Jules THE CHASE OF THE GOLDEN METEOR, '98, (unabridged edition offset from the original 1909 Grant Richards edn; Benford intro), new 13.00

Wells, H.G. THE LAST WAR, '01, (atomic war novel; Greg Bear intro), new 13.95

---And this from Dalkey Archives (distributed by Univ of Nebr Press, but short discount):
Loewinsohn, Ron MAGNETIC FIELD(S), Dalkey Archives '02, new 13.50

---From PS Publishing in the UK:
Brooke, Keith & Nick Gevers (eds) INFINITY PLUS TWO, PS, 5/03, 1st edn, (Clute intro), new in dj 65.00

Campbell, Ramsey TOLD BY THE DEAD, PS, 6/03, 1st edn, one of 700 SIGNED copies, (stories; Brite intro), new in dj 50.00

Di Filippo, Paul FUZZY DICE, PS, 6/03, 1st edn, (Rucker intro), new in dj 50.00

---Music played today:
- compilation from Sweden (fun mixture of Swedish and US music)
- John Zorn THE STRING QUARTETS

07/31/03 THU:
---Text to follow?

07/30/03 WED:
---Text to follow?

07/29/03 TUE:
---Text to follow?

07/28/03 MON:
---Text to follow?

07/27/03 SUN:
---Text to follow?

07/26/03 SAT:
---Text to follow?

07/25/03 FRI:
---Text to follow?

07/24/03 THU:
---Text to follow?

07/23/03 WED:
---Text to follow?

07/22/03 TUE:
---Text to follow?

07/21/03 MON:
---Text to follow?

07/20/03 SUN:
---Text to follow?

07/19/03 SAT:
---Text to follow?

07/18/03 FRI:
---Text to follow?

07/17/03 THU:
---Text to follow?

07/16/03 WED:
---Text to follow?

07/15/03 TUE:
---Text to follow?

07/14/03 MON:
---Text to follow?

07/13/03 SUN:
---Text to follow?

07/12/03 SAT:
---Text to follow?

07/11/03 FRI:
---Text to follow?

07/10/03 THU:
---Text to follow?

07/09/03 WED:
---Here now:
Braunbeck, Gary A. GRAVEYARD PEOPLE: The Collected Cedar Hill Stories, Vol. 1, Earthling, 6/03, 1st edn, one of 776 SIGNED copies, (the first of several projected volumes), new in dj 40.00

---From Meisha Merlin, this email word:
“Dear GRRM customers,

Here’s the latest in the world of GRRM titles from Meisha Merlin:

Tuf Voyaging
Tuf Voyaging is now at the printer! After going over the page proofs, I
must tell you that Janet Aulisio’s artwork looks spectacular! As you’ll
recall, the book includes the 8 original illustrations she did for the
stories in the early ’80’s, as well as over 20 new ones that she’s done for
this edition, most of them half- or full-page (there are a couple that are
2-page-ers). They really make this excellent book special. Both the
hardback and the softcover trade editions will debut at World Con this year
in Toronto, and the limited editions will be available shortly after that.

Thank you to all who weighed in on the “size vs. cost” question regarding
the Tuf limited editions. It was running neck-and-neck for a while, but
when everything was counted those preferring lower cost outnumbered those
preferring same size as the Song of Ice and Fire limiteds. What that means
is that McNaughton and Gunn is printing the limiteds at the same time
they’re printing the hard and soft covers, which reduces our cost on the
limiteds greatly. It will still take about 4 months for the limiteds to be
done (they have to be sent elsewhere to be bound, have the slipcase made,
have the frontispiece and the autograph page laid in, etc.).

In keeping with our revised policy in the wake of what happened with the
delays on A Clash of Kings, now that the Tuf limited editions are at the
printer, we will begin taking orders for them. They will be on our website
for order very soon, but you will have first option at purchase. Priority
goes to those who want to have the same number or letter as their copies of
SoIaF. After that, those of you who might want to upgrade (maybe from a
numbered edition to a lettered) get second pick. After you’ve all had a
chance to order Tuf, it will then be made available to the public.

The price of the edition should be:

Lettered: $150
Numbered: $125

This could change slightly, as we’re awaiting the final price quote on the
slipcases, but this should be very close to ‘right.’

A Clash of Kings
At long last, A Clash of Kings will be going to the printer middle of next
week. George has finished with all his corrections, and Stephe has gotten
them all entered into the body of the book. As you know, it will take about
4 months from this point, unless we have a hang-up like we had with the
gilding on the first book.

A couple of you have asked about the possible inclusion of the large colour
painting of Red Keep as a fold out insert. When the book goes to the
printer, they will then give us a price quote on this, and we’ll see if we
can pull it off.

The slipcase will be a russet red, the colour George chose as representative
of autumn.

Concerning the sale of the John Howe artwork: this has been made a little
more difficult this time around by the way that John delivered the artwork,
with many small illustrations on a single board, arranged in a way that
would make it impossible to cut. Which means that some of the work bid on
will be full boards of small illustrations. We will provide more details as
we get closer to the date this will happen.

Thank you all! Hope you’re doing well. Look for more updates very soon!

Alan Siler
Meisha Merlin Publishing, Inc.
www.meishamerlin.com

Available in July:
Sime~Gen: The Unity Trilogy (Jacqueline Lichtenberg and Jean Lorrah)
The Kedrigern Chronicles vol. II (John Morressy)
Alan@MeishaMerlin.com”

---And then this email, which I will see what I can do with in terms of answering:
“...if you have the time, and the inclination, I was hoping you could answer a few
questions...

1. What does one have to do to publish a chapbook of Lafferty's book? The reason I ask is
because a friend and I are interested in getting some of Lafferty's hard-to-find stuff back in
print in chapbook form. Both he and I have published chapbooks and zines so we know how to
physically put them together. We are also both enormous fans of Lafferty's work and would love
to help make his lesser-known works available. What I would like to know is what are the legal
steps to take? Did Lafferty leave an estate that handles these arrangements? For what it is
worth, neither my friend nor I wish to make one penny of profit. The chapbooks would be priced
only to cover materials. It would purely a labor of love. If you could share any knowledge or
information with me, I would appreciate it greatly. I can send you a few chapbooks I've done as
an example of their quality.

I would also like to create a Lafferty website, which I hope would serve as a repository of
essays, reviews, and general insights into Lafferty's work. If we were to put out a Lafferty
chapbook it would make sense to make it available through the site. My own website is
http://www.postcardfrominsomnia.com. My friend, who would probably do the art on the Lafferty project, is the one who designed the image of the city at the top.

2. I know at one point in the past you put out a book of Lafferty's called "Four Stories". By
any chance is a copy of that still available? If not, do you know where I could acquire one?

3. Please put me on your email update list.

I hope my questions are not too much of an inconvenience.

Thank you again, Chris, and take care”

---My reply:
“As to your questions:
I don't know if I can give much good advice about how to go about publishing Lafferty now. When I did it I had nary a clue myself, but Ray was alive then and willing to send me a bunch of stories he deemed still publishable even if established editors had not yet concurred. Although I did not have dealings with his literary agent, I believe Virginia Kidd (since deceased as well, but here Agency lives on, I believe) might have something in their files. Ironically I had an interesting conversation on the telephone yesterday with the husband of Lafferty's literary executor, who wants to find a buyer for the rights to his published works. It seems Lafferty left 151 beneficiaries to his estate, who get to divide some $5000 a year in royalties. Or at least the executor gets to do the dividing. They are interested in having the money go into a foundation instead, perhaps endowing a short story award or something that would be a boon to Ray's ongoing literary reputation. They are in the process of trying to figure out what to do. Anyone interested or with ideas could contact:
Ned Kennington
1415 Pennsylvania Ave
Durham, NC 27705
919-286-9519
nkennington@juno.com
Ned was also kind enough to forward to me a listing of the Lafferty holdings at the University of Tulsa. I have not yet tried to unzip the document, but I was glad to hear his papers and MSS have found a safe harbor.
I am glad you have Lafferty enthusiasms. I encourage you to pursue it and see if you can find something worth doing.
FOUR STORIES I sold out of many years ago, thanks to the A.J. Budrys review in F&SF that also gave my mailing list a major boost. I still have the reduced electric-typewriter original layouts in my files I could run off more copies. I will try to go ahead and do that, if my copier holds out. Lately it has been showing signs of going down for the count. Tell you what: if you add $2 to your remittance I will make it a point to get you a copy. See how it turns out. I could always send you a refund if it doesn't work out.

Yours,
Chris”

---Music played:
- Bill Evans THE COMPLETE RIVERSIDE RECORDINGS: Discs 3 & 4
- CD COMP #3 (six months further on this pops up in my second-listen pile -- anyone wanting one of the few extras I burned, they are free for the asking with any book shipment; CD Comps 4, 5 & 6 are also available now too)

07/08/03 TUES:
---Books from Greenwood Press here:
McCarthy, Patrick A., Charles Elkins & Martin Harry Greenberg (eds) THE LEGACY OF OLAF STAPLEDON: Critical Essays and An Unpublished Manuscript, Greenwood '89, 1st, new no dj as issued 54.95

Roberson, William H. & Robert L. Battenfeld WALTER M. MILLER, Jr.: A Bio-Bibliography, Greenwood '92, 1st, (glossaries), new no dj as issued 54.95

Smith, Clark Ashton STRANGE SHADOWS: The Uncollected Fiction and Essays of…, Greenwood, 3rd, (stories, fragments, synopses, etc.; Bloch intro), new no dj as issued 74.95

---All are back-in-stock items. The couple new titles I tried to get seem to be NYP, so I guess maybe next time for those.

---The drawer I keep my reference copies of LOCUS in will not accomodate any additions, so I am listing for sale:
LOCUS #478, 11/00, (Bova, Natata) • ---#479, 12/00, (Martin, Pullman), vg-f each, 2.00
---2001 issues, all twelve • ---2002 issues, all twelve, vg-f, as a set each, 20.00

---Speaking of LOCUS, I read in the latest about the Cheap Street publishing-couple the O’Nales committing suicide. Not much older than me, and one of my first experiences when I became interested in specialty publishers more than twenty years ago was with Cheap Street. They, along with Carcosa from Karl Edward Wagner, had ads in Grant Thiessen’s book catalog. The Carcosas really bit me with the bug, but I had to try to convince myself that the Cheap Street chapbooks were a good deal--ultimately failing when I couldn’t figure out their allocation system. But I did build up quite a correspondence folder, with their fancy paper extending to what they used for letters. My own booklet publications were a conscious antithesis to the Cheap Street productions. I even bound my booklets (and first catalog for a while) with thread before I bought a saddle stapler, emulating their ribbon or yarn chapbook binding. I never used the word chapbbook for my booklets. I had not even heard the term used for something produced contemporarily before I saw it used by Cheap Street. I thought it was an archaic term for something peddled by drummers back in the olden days the O’Nales probably would have preferred. Certainly if Cheap Street’s extravagent productions were affected to be chapbooks, then mine had to be called something more prosaic, like booklets or pamphlets.
---I do wonder about the circumstances that caused these people to end it all. Very strange.

---Music played:
- Drive-By Truckers DECORATION DAY (Xgau: A Minus)
- Johan Lindell VED (gift of Swedish music)


07/07/03 MON:
---Text to follow?

07/06/03 SUN:
---Text to follow?

07/05/03 SAT:
---Received this in mail from Author Services Inc. and am listing it in catalog:
Hubbard, L. Ron "Unlucky Pistols" in ASI Magazine, Vol. 5, No. 1 (2003), (previously unpublished story in promotional L. Ron Hubbard-devoted catalogzine; produced by Galaxy Press, publisher of the fiction works of L. Ron Hubbard), oversize, as new 3.50

---Another warm and fuzzy one. T-storm overnight woke me up and had me wondering where the water might be forcing its way into the house. I think we survived it, as we always have so far--not without out plenty of watches and warnings, however.

---Music played:
- Gen Ken Montgomery PONDFLOORSAMPLE (2CD)
- Xenakis PERSEPOLIS

07/04/03 FRI:
---Neil is working at the Howard Dean headquarters in Des Moines. He got started in their Internet campaign at Champaign-Urbana during his second semester. No doubt a better way to spend his time than working for me on my book business. Things I do are so idiosyncratic, I don’t know if I could ever get anyone else to be productive on my behalf. But I do know that I am not up to the task of dealing with everything that needs to be dealt with.

---Music played:
- The New Pornographers ELECTRIC VERSION (Xgau: B Plus)
- THE COMPLETE STAX/VOLT SOUL SINGLES Volume 3: 1972-1975 (Disc 6)

07/03/03 THU:
---Text to follow?

07/02/03 WED:
---Here today:
CEMETERY DANCE #44, '03, (Bonansinga, Ketchum, Kiernan, Lebbon, Reaves), new 5.00

---Music played:
- SIENESE SPLENDOR: Music of the Italian Renaissance
- COMPLETE ORGAN WORKS OF NICOLAUS BRUHNS AND JOHANN NICOLAUS HANFF

07/01/03 TUES:
---I got my order in to Greenwood Press just under the wire yesterday. The sales rep says she will be running these promotions periodically, so if you missed the deadline, feel free to help me start my stockpile for another order some time, who knows when.

---Email rec’d from England:
“Hi Chris,
I'm really sorry to hear that you have had problems with Subterranean
Press.
While Subterranean do direct sales through their web site they do not
have any kind of constant discount to customers on their e-mailing list,
just intermittent special offers and competitions.
And then there is the added cost for international pre-orders of paying
postage in advance separately on each book. So you provide a much better
value service.
Please could you phone [(810) 232-1489 -- 10am-10pm E.S.T. (Mon.-Sat.)]
or email [subpress@earthlink.net or Publisher@Subterraneanpress.com]
William K. Schafer and see if you can sort out the problems.
By the way does this mean that you will not be able to supply:
Waldrop THE SEARCH FOR TOM PERDUE (Subterranean) -- now called HEART OF
WHITENESSE
Simmons ILIUM (Subterranean)
de Lint A HANDFUL OF COPPERS (Subterranean)
Lansdale MAD DOG SUMMER (Subterranean, deluxe )
Lansdale DUCK-FOOTED (Subterranean)

I'll e-mail William K. Schafer myself but I'm not sure if it will
help any.”

---My reply:
“I appreciate your response regarding Subterranean. I hope I do hear from them again some time. Maybe it is a case of their being pre-occupied. I could understand that quite easily. Until then, however, I would say that it does not look like I will be getting their books any more. Indeed, their latest emailing gives a 30% discount to direct customers--something I can't compete with; not when I don't get a better discount than that myself. (Cemetery Dance just came through with a 50% discount offer for direct customers--far better than what I was getting when I carried their books.) Of course, I still carry their extant books--the ones I still have in stock.”

---Music played:
- IT’S A WEIRD WORLD AFTER ALL (EMusic compilation)
- Mamani Keita & Marc Minelli ELECTRO BARNAKO (Xgau: A Minus) - speaking of cultural synthesis

Blog Archive

Chris Drumm Books notes

Locus Online Blinks

Used books, out-of-print books, rare books at Biblio