First Look At BOHEMIANS OF SESQUA VALLEY by W. H. Pugmire

Here is a sneak peek at BOHEMIANS OF SESQUA VALLEY by W. H. Pugmire (Signed Limited Edition Hardcover)

If you haven’t reserved your copy just click on any of the photos below for ordering information.

 

 

The haunted Sesqua Valley lies hidden in the Northwest, surrounded by forested hills.  A region of dream and madness, it seduces the lunatic soul with the dangerous and captivating marvels of the Outside.  Linked to the woodland of this valley is the shadowed forest of the Dreamlands, from which Nyarlathotep and his night-gaunts seep into the world of wakefulness so as to tempt and corrupt humankind.

With this collection of new original fiction, Wilum Hopfrog Pugmire investigates his Lovecraftian locality as never before, with new novelettes that take the reader deep into the mysteries of an eldritch land.  Chief among they who haunt Sesqua Valley is its first-born beast, Simon Gregory Williams, who in this book is revealed as a creature of secret feelings and dark alchemy. BOHEMIANS OF SESQUA VALLEY is a showcase of Pugmire’s continual obsession with the fiction of H. P. Lovecraft, to whom this book pay homage.

 

 

 

A collection of six novelettes of over 50,000 words

Contents:

• Introduction by Jessica Amanda Salmonson
• In Memoriam: Robert Nelson
• One Card Unturned
• An Ecstasy of Fear
• Unhallowed Places
• This Splendor of the Goat
• A Quest of Dream
• The Strange Dark One

 

 

 

First appearances and their importance in book collecting

I have been asked by many of our readers to write more blog posts on book collecting and book scouting. As time allows I will be adding more in this book collecting series in the near future.

Book collectors have a high regard for the sequence of a book’s publication.  Collectors will search for first editions, first printings, first issues etc in order to get the book that is closest to the authors own hand.  This is so much the case that if a collectors were to collect nothing but second editions even though they may in fact be rarer or of a higher quality would over time find their collection to be near worthless or in the very least find that their collection is only worth a fraction of what the first appearance of the book is. 

Now this brings us to the difference in First Editions and First Printings.  These are two very large distinctions.  The First Edition of a book is the first initial release to the public and by its very nature should be the First Printing as well.  However if a book sells out at the publisher and they issue a second release in my still be the First Edition but a Second Printing which to the collector is worth far less. Those who collect literature rather than non-fiction often place the greatest emphasis on priority. They search not only for first editions, but usually want first printings of the edition and the earliest issues or states when priority has been established.

In order to help you distinguish the differences  between the terms I’ve given some definitions below.  Remember that in book collecting there are always exceptions but these are the generally accepted standard.

• Edition — the copies of a book or other printed material which originate from the same plates or setting of type. If 500 copies of a book are printed on Oct. 5 and 300 copies are printed from the same substantially unchanged plates on Dec. 10, all 800 copies are part of the same edition.
• Printing — the copies of a book or other printed material which originate from the same press run or from the same plates or setting of type at one time. In the example given for “Edition” above, the 500 copies would be the first printing and the 300 copies comprise the second printing. In the 19th century some publishers labeled later printings as if they were later editions, i.e. a second printing would be called a “second edition” on the copyright page.
• First Edition — All of the copies printed from the first setting of type; can include multiple printings if all are from the same setting of type. Every printed book has a first edition, many never have later editions. A later edition would have substantial changes in the printing plates or type such as the addition of a new preface or new chapter or major changes throughout the text and often is printed from a complete resetting of the type. When book collectors use the term first edition, they are usually referring to the first printing and if there are different states or issues, the earliest of those.
• Issue — Anytime the printer makes a change “on purpose” to the book it is noted as an Issue.  If the book is deliberately by the printer or publisher in a distinct form differing from the rest of the printing relative to paper, binding, format, etc. The distinction between “issue” and “state” is that the former relates to changes done on purpose by the publisher or printer and intentionally treated as a separate unit, i.e. a different paper, different illustration, different endpapers etc.
• State — a portion of a printing with changes such as minor alterations to the text either intentional or accidental; insertion of cancels, advertisements or other insertions.
• Variants — usually refers to differences in bindings or endpapers ( paper located just inside the front and rear covers, one half of which is glued to the cover). One variant may have a title stamped on the front cover in black and another may be stamped in red.
• First Books — this is an author’s first book published.  First Book normally refers to the author’s first book that is entirely his writing and not an anthology.
• First Appearances — is a tough one and can refer to several different perceptions and is often debated among bibliophiles: The first time an author’s story appears in print.  This could be a magazine, newspaper, chapbook etc.  Wherever the printed story first appeared in print.

I state here printed due to our new digital age of website publications.  For example what if you’re reading a story by a new author on a website and you print off the story on your home printer is it now the true “First Edition” is it the true “First Printing”?    For our intense and purposes we are going to say no.  You can call me a purist if you like but as far as this collector is concerned if it wasn’t published in book form by a publisher then it doesn’t count as a first edition.

Larry Roberts

 

S. T. Joshi Visits Wilum Pugmire

S. T. Joshi talks about the Lovecraft film festival in Seattle and many of his upcoming projects…including those with yours truly here at Arcane Wisdom.

Hunter and Gatherer

There are two kinds of book lovers and they are as different as night and day, polar opposite as north and south.  If you were to mix them in a bowl they would separate like oil and water.

On the one side we have what I would call the consumer booklovers, they are the carnivores in the book jungle.  They gather for no other reason than to consume.  They don’t care what edition they purchase, whether it’s a hardback or paperback, if it’s a first edition or the 100^th printing. All they require to fill their book loving bellies is a copy, any copy.  You will often see these folks using their paperback for a drink coaster when not being read, or bending over the pages to mark their spot.  They will feel no remorse and no tick of pain when they pull back the hardcover boards until they snap and crack like an old man’s muscles doing his morning stretch.  To these booklovers books are meant to be devoured, in whole and in parts if necessary.  They will leave their books in cars, in an inflatable raft floating in the pool, or even as a doorstop.

I once remember seeing a women reading on a park bench who was tearing each page out of the book after finishing it.  When I asked her why she was tearing out the pages her reply was simply, “I don’t have a bookmark”.

Now don’t get me wrong these aren’t bad folks, many of these people are our neighbors, our family and our friends.  They see books as entertainment or educational and nothing more.  Once the volumes have been read, and the entertainment or knowledge absorbed, there is little use for them; their purpose has been served.

On the opposite end of the spectrum we have the collector who sees books as all the things the consumer booklover sees but also sees them as works of art.  To these bibliophiles books are a storehouse of knowledge and memories, they are history, and in some way, even before they open the cover, something to be admired for more than mere words.   They want the closest thing that they can find to the author who created the work and in most cases that is the true first edition.  For them, the true value lies with the first impression of the book produced for the public.

The collector booklover believes that books have an aesthetic quality not only to the eyes but also to the touch that, not unlike the lover of paintings, the collector feels merely from  being in the presence of a great book. The experience enhances their quality of life.

These collectors tend to care for their books like they would anything else of value, with care and diligence.   The books in the collector’s library are often seen as extensions of their heritage, beliefs, interests and passions.  They are a reflection of themselves.  A time capsule of sorts showing where they’ve been, what they’ve experienced what they believe and how they’ve come to those beliefs.

Now it’s not to hard to understand why then, to a collector, the condition of a book is so important, because quite simply it is a symbol of what they’ve come to treasure in life.  To break it down to its core, the collector has moved from just hunter to the hunter and gatherer.  The collectors want to ensure that they can enjoy the feast of reading the books  in their collection more than once and even seeing those volumes on the shelf brings back the reminder of the pleasure had upon its first reading.

The purpose of the small press horror collector is a significant one.  These written works will one day be seen as treasures by the masses rather than the few.  And we, as collectors, are simply the caretakers of these treasures.

For example, society is just now starting to see the real influence that H.P. Lovecraft’s fiction had on American literature, film and art, a half century after his death.   August Derleth’s passion for this genre took shape when he published some of the best dark fantasy in the world, with his Arkham House imprint.  Yet even as the rest of the world is starting to realize the importance of “Weird Fiction” its influence has yet to be fully recognized.

I believe that the small press horror collector’s role in our world history will prove to be a significant one.  We line our walls from floor to ceiling with these dark works of fiction because they teach us about the significance of life, its frailty and the ease with which it can be taken away.  They afford us the opportunity to look at life as something very precious and worthy of our reverence. Without the collectors, most books  would likely only be collected as rubbish by our local sanitation department and buried with yesterday’s dinner.  Without these libraries we would likely lose some of our folklore, mores and folkways that are now written in between the pages of today’s small press horror literature.  I believe that the importance of this genre hasn’t yet realized its influence on our “life ways,” but will, in retrospect, prove to be the reflection of the dark side of our nature through no less than five wars, concentration camps, occult suicides and school yard playground rampages to mention only a few.  These works reflect our history and our lives over the past few centuries.  Our genre reflects the darkness of our past and shines a light of promise and interpretation upon its future.

Episode 70 – The Mound – Part 1

Another great H. P. Lovecraft Literary Podcast with Chad Fifer & Chris Lackey.

THE MOUND by H. P. Lovecraft & Zealia Bishop

Here is a link where you can read THE MOUND for free. 
http://bit.ly/giwh0k

IF you want to see some pictures of real mounds click the picture below.

Remembering Gerry de la Ree

Here at Miskatonic books we love new, cutting edge horror. However, it feels that there is such a disconnect between readers today and the antiquarian thread that leads back through history to great professionals and fans of yesteryear. We try to remind the seasoned seniors of good memories and new fans of what they missed and may want to check out.

In the mid-1950′s, Gerry de la Ree was a stalwart of horror and science fiction conventions and ran a mail order operation from his New Jersey home. [1] Perhaps his most notable contributions to fandom was his small run indie press in the 1970′s featuring Lovecraft, Poe, and a series of Virgil Finlay’s work.

In those days when long distance phone bills were as pricey as your teenager’s texting invoice, people used – shock! – snail mail. Yes, the good old (then reliable) U.S.P.S. If you wanted something, you clipped an ad from a comic book, a pulp, or some other magazine and sent a SASE (stamped self-addressed stamped envelope) for more information, or a return reply.

Circulation through distributors was spotty even in big cities, so it was common to miss an issue of your favorite issue. Therefore, folks like de la Ree provided a service to young fans. He also looked for talent, and when he spotted it, he supported it through recommendations or small spot jobs as he could afford it.

For a time in the 1950′s Gerry de la Ree worked for the Bergen/Hackensack “The Record” working with sports editor Al Del Greco, with Gerry de la Ree doing the layout. Robert Weinberg tells stories of visiting him (and Sam Moskowitz, another NJ stalwart) and how when Virgil Finlay got cancer, he helped sell art to pay some bills.

Sadly he passed too soon at the age of 68 in Saddle River, NJ. Back in January 1993. Featured is perhaps the first news story of young de la Ree’s career from 1953.

S. T. Joshi Announces MODERN MYTHOS LIBRARY On His Blog

From S. T. Joshi’s blog:

January 29, 2011

I’m excited to announce that Larry Roberts of Bloodletting Press and I are teaming up to launch a new series, the Modern Mythos Library, to be issued by one of Larry’s sub-imprints, Arcane Wisdom. This series will publish vital and significant contemporary works of Cthulhu Mythos fiction by leading authors. Our first two selections have been chosen: Rick Dakan’s splendid novel The Cult of Cthulhu and Jonathan Thomas’s novel The Color over Occam. The latter is a loose sequel to “The Colour out of Space” and is one of the finest supernatural novels I have read in many years. I don’t know the schedule of publication for these titles, but I hope they can appear this year.

My work on the Modern Mythos Library coincides with my withdrawal from the New Millennium Mythos published by Perilous Press. I hope that Perilous continues this worthy series.

You can read the full blog post by clicking here.  
http://www.stjoshi.org/news.html