Re: Publishing date etc for 'The Well of Shadows', my memoirs of the London Underground

eddie Fri Dec 07, 2012 6:21 pm

blue moon wrote:um...how do I go about accessing it when it's available (stone-age, remember).

I'm told by the boffins that you download a free Kindle reader onto your pc.

eddie Fri Dec 07, 2012 6:22 pm

blue moon wrote:I'm still in the stone age about online books and publishing.

Ha ha. You and me both, but recently I've been dragged kicking and screaming into the Bronze Age.

eddie Fri Dec 07, 2012 10:37 pm

Here's the illustration for the front cover of 'The Well of Shadows' (imagine this in b/w):

Pieter Bruegel the Elder 'Tower of Babel'. (detail from right side of tower).

Nah Ville Sky Chick Sun Dec 09, 2012 6:47 am

Eddie, I have only just seen this, what great news. I can't wait to read it, well done you. Publishing date etc for 'The Well of Shadows', my memoirs of the London Underground - Page 2 1247806006

Publishing date etc for 'The Well of Shadows', my memoirs of the London Underground - Page 2 1247806006

I haven't been here much lately either, I have been studying John Ruskin, just for pleasure Publishing date etc for 'The Well of Shadows', my memoirs of the London Underground - Page 2 4242516590

Publishing date etc for 'The Well of Shadows', my memoirs of the London Underground - Page 2 4242516590

eddie Sun Dec 09, 2012 9:35 am

Hi, Nash. Long time....

One day I'll have to look into Ruskin. Right now, he's simply one of those names that swims into your 'ken' every once in a while.

I'll be glad when this book's finally out. More time for other things.

eddie Tue Dec 11, 2012 2:11 am

J.K. Rowling- or, rather, her agents- just agreed to the inclusion of this quote in 'The Well of Shadows':

He stopped a passing guard, but didn’t dare mention platform nine and three-quarters. The guard had never heard of Hogwarts and when Harry couldn’t even tell him what part of the country it was in, he started to get annoyed, as though Harry was being stupid on purpose. Getting desperate, Harry asked for the train that left at eleven o’clock, but the guard said there wasn’t one. In the end the guard strode away, muttering about time-wasters.
(Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. Copyright J.K. Rowling 1997.)

What a nice woman! Only about another 30 'permissions' to get!

eddie Fri Dec 14, 2012 9:43 am

The late Samuel Beckett's agents said, 'Yes', and passed my request on, with their basic endorsement- subject to contract- to his publishers, Faber. So far, so good. But Faber takes about 8 weeks to process such requests, it seems, so this is cutting things a bit fine. Still, it's better than a 'No'.

eddie Fri Dec 28, 2012 4:04 pm

The department for near Eastern Antiquities at the Louvre said 'Yes' to my use of an illustration of a winged sphinx. A Madrid museum wanted money to reproduce Goya's 'Witches' Sabbath', so I've cut that illustration.

The major edits are done. There'll be a few more cuts as I receive more extortionate demands for money and/or copyright refusals, I expect.

The plan is that I make a trip to Wales in January to get some help on the IT stuff from my friend, if it ever stops raining and train services westbound from Paddington ever start running again.

Constance Sat Dec 29, 2012 2:10 am

eddie wrote:The department for near Eastern Antiquities at the Louvre said 'Yes' to my use of an illustration of a winged sphinx. A Madrid museum wanted money to reproduce Goya's 'Witches' Sabbath', so I've cut that illustration.

The major edits are done. There'll be a few more cuts as I receive more extortionate demands for money and/or copyright refusals, I expect.

The plan is that I make a trip to Wales in January to get some help on the IT stuff from my friend, if it ever stops raining and train services westbound from Paddington ever start running again.

Eddie, so much work for the permissions! You are doing a great job.

My sister sent me a Kindle for my birthday. I read Amy Tan's new essay Rules for Virgins on it and am reading a cute book called Loving the Sensitive Dog written by a friend of my sister. I'm not so sure about the Kindle. As you know I'm addicted to the library and the books are free. I won't be able to get used to paying for books. I looked up the price of the new bio of Keats and his brother George in Kentucky and it was over $15. I was even able to get Tempest from the library without too long a wait.

To bad about the rain. We had sleet the other day and it has left a slippery mess. We are expecting a couple of inches of snow tomorrow.

eddie Sat Dec 29, 2012 5:42 am

Constance wrote:I'm not so sure about the Kindle.

You and me both, Constance. I've always regarded this Kindle lark as a necessary evil- a half-way house towards generating enough interest in the book from 'traditional' publishers to eventually arrive at a 'hard copy' of the kind that our generation would recognise as a 'proper' book. But it's always possible that this is the future. I rather hope not.

More importantly, Happy New Year to you, Tom & the kids. I haven't forgotten your encouragement in the early stages of this project.

eddie Wed Jan 02, 2013 7:42 pm

With the New Year hangover comes the reluctant decision to limit the 14th Feb 2013 Kindle publication of 'The Well of Shadows' (first edition) to UK readers only. Potential punters in Europe, the US and Australia, disappointingly, will have to await the second edition.

This decision has been dictated by the cost of obtaining the necessary copyright permissions & licences, which rises according to the number of countries covered. In some cases, where I've been granted permisssion to use material gratis, this has been accompanied by a rider limiting the readership to the UK. The upshot of this is that I'm going to have to set a limit to expenditure on this aspect of publication and recoup some of my already quite considerable outgoings before I can consider worldwide publication.

Sincere apologies to friends outside these shores, but you'll get to read the book eventually. A pleasure deferred is a pleasure magnified. Kiss kiss.

Ed x.

blue moon Wed Jan 02, 2013 10:03 pm

eddie wrote:...punters in Europe, the US and Australia, disappointingly, will have to await the second edition.

Publishing date etc for 'The Well of Shadows', my memoirs of the London Underground - Page 2 Cry_baby

eddie Wed Jan 02, 2013 11:26 pm

You're breaking my heart, moony. PM me with your postal address, if you want an early photocopy. That goes for you too, Pinz. I'd value your opinion. I'm afraid all other non-UK residents will have to wait a bit. Apologies. x

blue moon Thu Jan 03, 2013 10:12 pm

O thank you. Cool

I'll investigate how/when I can arrange an international postal-order (or equivalent) for the purchase price of "Well", then we can swap details and we're in business. cheers

I wouldn't dream of accepting a free copy, eddie.
You are a struggling author, you know!
...do you want to go back to the underground?

eddie Fri Jan 04, 2013 3:30 am

Payment won't be necessary, moony. All you'll be getting, at this stage, is a tatty, dog-eared photocopy of the ms. You're more than welcome to spend money on the real thing when it gets a worldwide publication. If you're interested, PM your postal address. x

blue moon Fri Jan 04, 2013 1:42 pm

eddie wrote: If you're interested, PM your postal address. x

Thank you eddie.

blue moon Fri Jan 04, 2013 1:50 pm

pinhedz wrote:... would you accept a compilation CD of Svetlana's best bootlegs?

...fancy a crocodile-claw back-scratcher? Very Happy

eddie Fri Jan 04, 2013 5:30 pm

pinhedz wrote:would you accept a compilation CD of Svetlana's best bootlegs?

That would be fascinating, Pinz. I've long been intrigued by the hold this woman has over you, the precise nature of which I blush to contemplate. I'll leave my postal address in your PM inbox. If you could do the same, we're rolling.

eddie Fri Jan 04, 2013 5:31 pm

blue moon wrote:
pinhedz wrote:... would you accept a compilation CD of Svetlana's best bootlegs?
...fancy a crocodile-claw back-scratcher?

^

blue moon Sat Jan 19, 2013 8:28 pm

eddie wrote:Payment won't be necessary, moony. All you'll be getting, at this stage, is a tatty, dog-eared photocopy of the ms. You're more than welcome to spend money on the real thing when it gets a worldwide publication. If you're interested, PM your postal address. x

eddie...I checked my postal box after work today and there was a blue slip in it notifying me there's a package to pick up...I think it must be from you Shocked

I have to wait now until the P.O. opens on Monday to collect it from the counter.

Excellent timing. I'm about to go to PNG again...I'm going to restrain from opening and reading until I'm at sea with plenty of time and my attention intact and undivided. (Please god let me be strong enough to wait.)

I'm so excited.

eddie Sat Jan 19, 2013 9:39 pm

cyber contact wrote:I'm so excited.

Good to know that the global postal service is still functioning. Pinz & Tigerlily received their copies, too.

Bear in mind, though, that you won't be reading the final draft, but a photocopy of an intermediate phase of composition. I think there's enough there to give you a general idea.

blue moon Sat Jan 19, 2013 9:46 pm

eddie wrote:
cyber contact wrote:I'm so excited.
I think there's enough there to give you a general idea.

I'll let you know, eddie. Thanks so much for this. It's made my week.

Publishing date etc for 'The Well of Shadows', my memoirs of the London Underground - Page 2 Bowing-Man

Publishing date etc for 'The Well of Shadows', my memoirs of the London Underground - Page 2 Bowing-Man

eddie Mon Jan 21, 2013 8:36 am

^

Thanks for posting the vid, Pinz.

The description of the vapour & ash of the early steam days reminded me that back then LU- in its own inimitable manner, unchanged in 150 years- turned the situation to its advantage by promoting a journey on the Tube as a surefire remedy for asthma and other chest ailments! Today's ad-men are babes in arms compared to the Victorian entrepreneurs.

On a similar theme, I'd sent some pre-publicity for the book to the London's mayor's office, suggesting that working on the London Underground network was hell on earth- and ever since I've been bombarded with emails telling me what a great job they're doing with the Tube. Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose.

eddie Mon Jan 21, 2013 5:49 pm

pinhedz wrote:I was just thinking that--particularly in this jubilee year--the best kind of publicity would be righteous indignation and angry rebuttals from LU officials, if only you could get them to respond in the media, instead of by email.

The best thing that could happen is that they attempt to sue me, or otherwise halt publication. First, I'm not worth sueing. Second, as you suggest, the David vs Goliath scenario would do wonders for sales.

eddie Mon Jan 21, 2013 5:56 pm

pinhedz wrote:I think the topic of "station ambience" is a very interesting one, and I would add that no metro system has done it better than Moscow's

Yes, indeed. Shame about the slave labour.

Mind you, working conditions for an English Victorian-era bricklayer weren't much better. Several men died in the course of the construction of the Brunels' Wapping-Rotherhithe Thames tunnel. I think there's a mention in the book of my close encounter with the unquiet spirits of dead brickies on the 'dead early' shift at Wapping.

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