We don’t normally comment on publishers’ publicity materials, preferring instead to focus on the works they’re publishing, but we got a letter today that deserves comment, if only for the sheer gall of it.
First, a little background, for those not completely in the business. One form of publicity, perhaps the oldest and most respected, is the review copy. Publishers will send out either early copies of their books, or pre-publication versions (bound galleys or advanced reading copies), and today, sometimes, electronic galleys. The goals of these special editions (galleys are usually printed in vastly smaller quantities than the finished book, since they cost money) are usually sent to outlets that review books (such as SFScope) in the hopes of garnering a good review that should see publication about the same time the actual book is published, thus driving more potential readers to buy the book.
In the trade, these galleys are sent out “not for sale”. If they’re a different edition, they’re produced usually without cover art, without the bar code on the back cover, with some commentary on the cover that this is not the final book, and not for sale, etc. If the books sent out are the finished books, publishers will sometimes sticker or stamp them saying “not for resale”. And the largest publishers, sending out final books, frequently don’t even bother, expecting that the reviewers will at least be discreet if they turn around and try to sell the book. Amazon.com has gotten hip to this sub-industry, and won’t allow listings of used books before the book’s official publication date, and won’t allow, at any time, the sale of galleys or other promotional versions of the book.
Okay, that’s a long-winded introduction to the reason for this article. Today, LJS&S Publishing (which appears to be a self-publishing company, since their only two books are by the same author under two different bylines), sent us a letter warning us not to dispose of the advance reader copy of The Immune by Doc Lucky Meisenheimer (which is scheduled to be published 13 May). Why shouldn’t we toss the book? According to the letter, “know that the galley copy may be actually very valuable! We are not exactly sure why, but an advance copy of The Immune has actually sold on e-bay for $79.00!”
The letter goes on to theorize that it could be due to the authors “eclecticism” and being “well-known in many circles,” or positing that it might be “the original 100 trillion dollar note from Zimbabwe (that Doc Lucky placed on 198 on all of the ARCs [sic] to make a point about the line above its insertion) has captured people’s attention. All that we do know, is that you may be sitting on a future collectible.”
We did indeed receive our copy here (it’s hand-numbered 346/1000; again, not something normally done with galleys), and it’s sitting in the pile of “to be read for reviews” (though admittedly, the pile is far bigger than the number of books we can get to [and a closely related side-bar is that we’re looking for reviewers]). This news of the galley’s potential value and collectability won’t move the book any closer to the top of the pile, but it is a nice attempt to turn a negative into a positive. We applaud the gall.