Hi Mech Fiends,
Yes, I said fiends. Because I’m in a sassy mood today.
It’s been a while since I’ve written a blog post. I figure I should update you with what is going on in Life Speakman.
First, Grim Oak had a major announcement yesterday. We are partnering with #1 New York Times bestselling author Patrick Rothfuss to form a new imprint under Grim Oak. It is called Underthing Press. It will allow Pat to bring some books he loves back into print. It will allow Pat to produce some beautiful limited/lettered editions of books he loves. And it will allow Pat to produce some of his very own projects set in Temerant. For instance, Underthing Press will bring Digger by Ursula Vernon back into print. And Underthing Press will be producing a new graphic novel adaptation of The Boy That Loved the Moon, illustrated by Nate Taylor. To read more about all of this, click HERE.
Needless to say, creating Underthing Press has been a long road these last few months as we put all pieces of the puzzle together. Now that it is announced, I can get back to writing. After yesterday’s announcement, I wrote 750 words on The Everwinter Wraith. When this blog is done, I’ll be writing on the book again. I’m really going to push through to complete this in early 2022. You can follow me on Facebook and Twitter and see my writing updates daily.
Meanwhile, artist Don Maitz is painting new cover art for The Dark Thorn… oooh, have I not mentioned that before? Oops!
Yes, I tease. Because it’s fun. I love what Don is doing. The Dark Thorn was professionally edited last year by former Del Rey Books editor in chief Betsy Mitchell. The best version of the book will publish in 2022 in a new hardcover as well as a trade paperback. More details on that in the New Year.
And did I tell you I’m writing a new novella for a major Hollywood studio? No? Well, I am. I’ll be working on The Everwinter Wraith in the morning and then spending a few minutes every night working on the novella. More news on that front in 2022 when I can talk about it.
For now though, I’d be remiss not to talk about my newest published books. The trade hardcover of The Tempered Steel of Antiquity Grey has finally been stickered with a barcode by Ingram Distributors due to the printing error, and those books should be making their way to Amazon, B&N, and bookstores. If you’ve already pre-ordered it, you should be getting it soon. If you haven’t ordered your copy, now is a really good time to do so. I only sent 2000 copies to bookstores. When gone, they are gone.
I held 500 back for The Signed Page though. I’ve been waiting on the trade hardcover of The Undone Life of Jak Dreadth to post them up for sale so people can order both books — or all three books if you include Fell Hammer — at once to save on shipping. The copies on The Signed Page can be signed and/or personalized. Here are some links:
My new assistant Sydney will be shipping out the Kickstarter pledges first once we receive Jak Dreadth into the warehouse. Then she’ll start shipping The Signed Page pre-orders for these books. And by the way, I doubt any of these will arrive in time for gift giving. We are too late into December to guarantee it. Sorry!
The limited, lettered, and rare editions of the Kickstarter books should arrive sometime in January. Just a small update there. Then more Kickstarter pledges will ship! I just hope they were printed and bound correctly. Fingers and toes crossed here!
One more thing. I’m editing stories for Unbound II right now. It’s going to be a great anthology and a perfect way of honoring my dad who passed away in 2018. I can’t wait to share the line-up and more about it! I mean, any book that has stories by Kevin Hearne and Tamora Pierce has to be good, right? Stay tuned.
Okay, back to work. I can’t believe this is my life. It’s filled with magic and love and geek fun. All because you guys have made it possible. I hope you’ll continue to follow me on this journey. It’s going to get wild real quick. In the meantime, I hope your holiday season is a great one and filled with all the love and books and cookies you can handle!
Best Holiday Wishes,
Shawn