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PS Newsletter, July 2008
Posted by Peter Crowther on July 10th, 2008 at 8:00
Hi everyone!
I’m writing this on a fairly blustery but sunny afternoon on Hornsea seafront, about 500 yards from the PS offices (and, more importantly, from the telephones!). I hope the weather and the world is treating you just as kindly wherever you call home.
Out-of-office alert - 6th to 28th July
First off, I’m going to be away for three weeks starting Sunday 6 July. There’ll be someone in the office acknowledging website orders but no books will be sent out until week commencing 28 July. There’ll probably (from my mouth to God’s ear!) be a bit of a build-up of orders but rest assured that they’ll be dealt with in the strict sequence they were placed. I’m expecting us to be caught up by the start of the following week.
Stock arrivals
Just yesterday, Robert Jeschonek’s Mad Scientist Meets Cannibal, the third Showcase volume, arrived at the PS warehouse — along with Jack Dann’s The Economy of Light. We’ll be sending orders out as soon as we get back from the US.
Feel free to place orders in our absence, though! Mad Scientist Meets Cannibal is available in regular hardcover (£10 / $20) or jacketed hardcover (£25 / $50); The Economy of Light comes in unjacketed (£10 / $20) and jacketed hardcover (£25 / $50) flavours, too.
Crimson Guard proofreading problem
The dust has pretty much settled on the Crimson Guard proofing debacle, with free books going out to all who’d ordered a copy of Cam’s wonderful novel. My thanks to everyone for their understanding and their generous comments on the way in which we dealt with the problem. Further proof — if any were needed — that we truly have the best customers in the business. If anyone is still missing their free book then please do drop us a line to service@pspublishing.co.uk (In fact, please make sure that, in future, all order queries, enquiries and inquiries are sent to that address and not to me personally, or any other address. Huge thanks for that.)
Postscripts #15 - the all-SF issue
All systems are go for the trade copies of the big blustering bug-eyed monster that is our special all-SF 15th edition of Postscripts magazine to be at WorldCon in Denver for when the Con begins on 6 August. We were hoping that we’d also have the special signed editions there as well but, alas, the signing sheets — five of the blighters! — are still going the rounds and so won’t be ready in time. You’ll have to order your copy either direct from us or from your usual high quality outlet of superior literature.
To order directly from us, follow these links: it’s available in super-special signed and slipcased hardcover (£75 / $150), signed hardcover (£30 / $60) and regular hardcover (£15 / $30).
FantasyCon novella launches
James Barclay - VAULT OF DEEDS
Talking of superior literature (though what else would we be talking about?!), James Barclay has handed in his new novella, Vault of Deeds . . . and it’s a total blast. We’re aiming to get the whole thing edited (correctly, this time!), proofed up and printed so that we can launch it at FantasyCon in September — James is one of the Guests of Honour. We’ll be doing 300 signed jacketed hardcover copies (£25 / $50) and 500 unsigned unjacketed hardcover copies (£10 / $20). (Of course, if you’re at the Con then you’ll be able to buy one of the £10 copies and get James to sign it. Just one of a myriad great reasons to be at the Convention.)
Stephen Erikson - REVOLVO
Another reason to attend FantasyCon this year is Steve Erikson’s new novella, Revolvo. We’re launching that there, too. Again, there’ll be 300 signed jacketed hardcover copies (£25 / $50) and 500 unsigned unjacketed hardcovers (£10 / $20). Steve and his wife and son have been staying with us here at PS Towers while Steve built up his strength for the signing tour Transworld organised for Toll The Hounds, the eighth volume in the truly epic Malazan Book of the Fallen series… and just to give him a little practice, we presented him the sheets for Revolvo.
Both of these are remarkable novellas and we recommend you place your order as soon as you’re able, particularly for the jacketed hardcover editions. Don’t say we didn’t warn you!
Mark Samuels - GLYPHOTECH
Also launching at FantasyCon will be Mark Samuels’s Glyphotech, the fourth in our increasingly popular Showcase series of short story volumes. Jason Van Hollander will be providing cover art and Ramsey Campbell is handling the introduction duties. For this title there’ll be 200 jacketed hardcover copies (signed by Mark and Ramsey) (£25 / $50) and 300 unjacketed hardcovers (signed by just Mark) (£10 / $20)… and both Mark and Ramsey will be at the Con, so a nice crisp £10 note will secure a fully-signed copy of the cheaper edition.
Ray Bradbury - THE DAY IT RAINED FOREVER
We’re in the final stages of designing our edition of Ray Bradbury’s The Day It Rained Forever. We had a little hold-up because we were trying to secure something extra-special for the deluxe edition … and we’ve done it. The top set of 100 copies will include a special PS edition of the author’s A Medicine for Melancholy. As I’m sure you’ll already know, Medicine and Rained were essentially the same book re-titled for the split between UK and US audiences… but with four stories different in each title (ie. there are four in Rained that are not in Medicine and vice versa). This has been on the stocks for a long time, so a hearty Bravo! to all those who pre-ordered when we first announced it. So, in addition to the two editions we’d already advertised — an unsigned unjacketed hardcover (£20 / $40) and a 200-copy jacketed and slipcased hardcover signed by Ray (£50 / $100) — there’ll be a 100-copy special two-book set signed by Ray and Caitlin Kiernan, who wrote the intro — the price will be £250 / $500.
Ray Bradbury - SOMETHING WICKED THIS WAY COMES, THE HALLOWE’EN TREE & THE OCTOBER COUNTRY
And finally, at least for this note, we’ve secured a real gem of a three-book set that we’re aiming to bring out just in time for Christmas. Something Wicked This Way Comes, The Hallowe’en Tree and The October Country . . . all three of them in one slipcase, only 300 copies — 26 lettered (£375 / $750) signed by Ray Bradbury himself (and possibly others involved) and 274 unsigned sets (£100 / $200). And that’s the lot — just 300 copies and then they’re gone. There’ll be some extras included but we can’t say what they’ll be at this stage. For the record, this project came about because Ray called to say how much he liked what we’d done with Dandelion Wine and he wondered if we’d like to do the same with Wicked, Hallowe’en and October. Well, need I say more?!
And that’s about it. There are other things I could mention but we’ll leave those for another time. Suffice to say that both Nick Gevers and I are pursuing some exciting new projects and, of course, we’ve been making great progress on some we’ve announced previously. But it’s always nice to have something to tell you all about another day.
Enjoy your summer, make sure you wear your sun cream and if you’re aiming to be at this year’s NeCon then be sure to say Hi. Until we chat again, look after each other . . . and happy reading!
Pete