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Thursday, May 03, 2007
By now I think that everyone has heard about the new mass market line of books coming from Borderlands Press. But I wonder if everyone has considered every angle of it.
First, in case that anyone has missed out on the announcement, here is the list of upcoming trade paperback publications from Borderlands:
VIRGIN by F.Paul Wilson
followed every other month by:
SERPENTINE - Thomas F. Monteleone
NEVERLAND - Douglas Clegg
A KNOCK AT THE DOOR - Ed Gorman
LOST PRINCE - Chelsea Quinn Yarbro
EVENINGS WITH DEMONS - Whitley Strieber
PIRATE RADIO - Rex Miller and John Maclay
As we all know, Borderlands has always been committed to bringing the finest horror and dark fantasy to readers in well made books. Up until now the majority of the books they've brought out have been deluxe editions. Pricey, beautifully made hardcovers aimed at the serious collector. And that's cool; God love the collectors. Without them, there would be no small press as we know it.
But there are a lot of readers out there that only desire to read the books. I've spoken to dozens of them over the years. People under tight budgets that want to buy a book, and they may not really even care that it is one that will last a lifetime. And these are the people that I know from the rather tiny world of the online horror fiction community. But what of the unspoken readers out there? The random fandom, as Fredric Brown used to call them. Or what of Joe or Joanna Average, who just want to find a well-written, spooky book to while a few hours away with? The deluxe collector's editions can never reach a writer's potential audience.
Look over that list of books that Borderlands has committed to bringing out again. This is the cream of the crop of talent that the genre has to offer, and if they succeed, it is only the tip of the iceberg.
If they succeed. In today's marginally literate society, that can be a mighty big if. Tom and Elizabeth need our help. We need to support them as much as we possibly can. These titles will be available from Amazon and other large (and small) booksellers. And we can save a few bucks by buying them there.
Tom and Elizabeth Monteleone are taking a hell of a risk with this venture. It's one that I say we cannot afford to sit back and hope for the best. Buying direct from Borderlands will be of immeasurable help to ensure that great titles like the ones listed above continue to be announced. The list of excellent lost and nearly forgotten genre books is long and they deserve to be discovered by new readers.
The first publication from this new line of books is now available. It's Virgin, by the incomparable F. Paul Wilson. For my book-buying dollar, Paul is one of the finest, if not THE finest popular writer working today. And Virgin is one of his best novels. It's a gripping, vastly entertaining religious thriller that perhaps is more timely today than it was when it was written back in the early 1990's.
Remember, buying a book is like voting for a politician's success and we need to cast our support to Borderlands.
http://www.borderlandspress.com/
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