Afton House Books

Jack Vance passed away Sunday. He was 96. You may read and leave comments at:

foreverness.jackvance.com

The world of letters, and the world of good folk, is poorer now.

Well, response has been far more typical of Vance fans than I had expected. I am very encouraged by your response. I am still hunting funding, but there have been a few very good suggestions.

Someone mentioned Kickstarter… if you haven’t heard of this, have a look at their site. It is a distinct possibility. It will take two months, but would do the trick.

One thing: don’t send money right now. If I can continue, then I’ll ask once more, but at the moment, sending me money means more I may have to return.

Thanks again…

That’s still alive. I have no problems there, just the major issue.

Someone has offered a suggestion for funding, I’m talking today with him.

Folks, there’s a problem and it’s past time to let you know about it.

Here’s the issue: in the past, I have first asked for small deposits, to get a count of serious buyers. After a time, I would go to the printer with the count, get a current price, and then set the selling price. Based on past experience, however, I had already set the price for your copies.

Following that, I would ask for a substantial amount of money, to cover my costs. I cannot afford to just buy 100 sets, for example, so the buyers, through their first payment of $600 to $900, get the ball rolling. One of the reasons I have done it this way is that although I don’t have to print the entire set at once, I do have to buy all of the material so that covers and pages match in texture and color. As a result, there’s a hefty up front charge, hence the large first payment.

The strangest thing has happened. Few people have answered the call for the first large payment. I have begun to send out individual reminders, but some are unanswered, others ask for a bit of delay. I have never seen this happen before.

Now I am in the position of time going on, holding a lot of deposit for a long time, and unable to proceed. I have come to the conclusion that if I cannot find someone to front the printing costs (to the printer, not me!), I must cancel the second printing, and return everyone’s deposit. This I can do, but I have struggled trying to find a solution. I’m not coming up with one.

I’m am sorry to be so blunt about this, but there it is. Deposits are secure: they can all be returned. I have two or three other possible individuals to approach for funding, but it’s looking like a slim chance.

If you have questions, post them or e-mail me. If you’d just like your money back now, let me know that and I’ll take care of it. I don’t hold out a lot of hope of finding a backer, so returning your money is fine with me.

Two or three people, who first paid either in full or a large deposit, will get sets from my personal stock. I will also have a few damaged sets that I will offer to people in the order of their deposits. The damaged sets are readable, but have cover or water damage.

I’m very sorry about this mess.