Ark of the Covenant, covenant of the ARC.

Hmmm - I like ARCs. I like to keep them and enjoy the fact that I have Something Really, Really Special. Even ARCs of genres I don't normally read.

When sordak worked for (Un-named National) Bookstore, he was the only employee who wanted the ARCs that came into the store. If he didn't snag them, they would be dumpstered. Sad fact of life for some books.

He did a few 'reviews', but doesn't know if they got to the correct persons as he had to go up the chain of command and give them to his boss to forward on.

So, in our combined book collection we have several ARCs, some of them quite rare as the Real Books never seemed to make it to the shelves. We did, however, give a couple to family members (years after the original publication) as presents simply because they were a genre that neither he or I could really stand having around (Romance) and the relative in question loved the genre and the particular author.

Sell ARCs? I would have to be terribly, terribly desperate to do so. Some bought books would go first.

I lurves me my ARCs. They make me feel Special. Like someone cares about what I think of their talent for stringing words together in entertaining and enjoyable ways.

All of the above is my long winded way of saying Thank You! for writing Cool Stories™.

I heart my ARC of A Game of Thrones that I picked up at Logos in Santa Cruz, complete with a letter addressed "Dear NON-Fantasy reader". And then I had to wait 6 months or so (felt like it) for it to come out in hardcover, with a cover that's not nearly as good.

Someday I hope to get it autographed. But, yeah, it's a fragile thing.

And it served its purpose. I already liked Martin, but I went nuts over this, and really wish I'd realized not just that it was an ARC, but how early in the release process I'd read it, when I picked it up...

HAving never gotten my little paws on an ARC, I didn't know how fragile it was. But what it tells me is that if I miraculously ever win an ARC before release, I will read it once, then buy a REAL copy for my re-reads. Because I can love a real book into pieces in about 8 reads if I'm not VERY careful.

SELL my ARC of ALH?? Never never never!!! But I'll give you a blurb! :D

"A brilliant addition to Toby Daye's world, Seanan McGuire continues to build a believable world where human and fae societies live closer than anyone realizes, and crime doesn't pay in either, though it demands a high price."

I have probably more ARCs in this apartment than most people have real books, but that's because I got insane quantities of ARCs in the years I was reviewing for Dragon and Amazing Stories. And indeed, one reason I have so many is that I never got into the business of selling the ARCs before the finished editions came out. (This was also long enough ago that I have, in addition to two and a half bookcases full of ARCs, I have several banker boxes and several tall untidy stacks of unbound galleys (which is to say, xoxed sheets of page proofs).

Now while I never sold yet-to-be-published ARCs, I did generally donate a box of ARCs a year to a charity auction at my local SF convention (specifically, the Sue Petrey Fund auction at OryCon, which benefits a fund providing scholarships to Clarion and Clarion West. This is the one case where I would count it more or less socially acceptable to sell an ARC prior to or on the heels of a book's publication date. In a handful of cases involving local authors -- or those visiting for author events -- either I or the Petrey Fund folks would try to arrange for the author to sign the ARC.

I should add here that I was almost always seeing ARCs from publishers rather than authors, and that just about everything I got was coming in at the publisher's initiative (that is, I almost never found myself asking for particular titles). In the rare cases where I did ask someone for an ARC, I did so with the specific commitment that I'd at least read it for review...and I don't now recall any situation where I asked for something and then didn't go on to review the book.

I've only ever gotten one ARC, when I worked for my college newspaper. I would love more ARCs, but my "writerly" blog doesn't have a huge amount of reviews, which themselves haven't been very formal. But I'd make more of an effort with a real ARC, given in hope of a proper review.

Besides that, can I interest you in some raspberry ice cream with chocolate bits?

My ARC has a signature from you with a nice note that warms the cockles of my heart.

My ARC was a lovely surprise. A three thousand mile spiritual hug.

I love my ARC.

I got my ARC of Local Habitation from the movie cast contest win yesterday. Thank you for signing it! Its sitting on the shelf next to the copy of Local Habitation that I bought and happily read last week. :) But now I get to be a dork and read the ARC to see if I can spot any minor differences between the two. Hurray!

So tell the Borderlands Books lady that I appreciate her being patient with my complete phone!fail when you see her, k?

I found an ARC of FEED in the used bookstore the other day for $5 (and very nearly had a hyperventilating fit on the spot) and brought it home (to keep it safe, precious, saaaaafe from people who will not love its zombie magnificence properly). I have not been able to put it down (read 350 pages yesterday and dreamt of moving bodies last night). I am so madly in love with this book, and I'm not normally a zombie fan! When I got to [MASSIVE SPOILER ON PAGE 368] I cried. I very nearly threw the book across the room. Instead, put the book down gently, declared that I didn't like it any more, and five minutes later I was reading it again. I will talk it up to anyone who will listen. I will ALSO buy a genuine copy as soon as it's available; I bought A Local Habitation yesterday to keep my copy of Rosemary and Rue company. I will probably buy copies for friends if they don't buy it for themselves. I almost don't want it to end because of the wait for the next one. This is an amazing book, and I want to thank you for introducing it to the world even if I wasn't supposed to have it yet.

My eyes have gone from blue to green with envy :)

i work at a bookstore. we did manage to get an arc of alh. it however got snagged by someone else, who i had suggested would like the book.i was very sad but she gets to recommand things to a lot more people. i make coffee, she is actually on the book floor

Field Report: We couldn't find Local Habitation at the small bookstore in Newark, or at the Borders in Union City. We'll be in Berkeley tomorrow, so hopefully Other Change will have it.

I've gotten 3 ARCs ever: one in a competition and two ex-review copies that got passed on to me. I do kind of view them as objects of ZOMG!, though, but partly because you can't (legally) buy them. And partly because the non-bookstore-working person doesn't see that many of them.

I need to go order in Rosemary and Rue. I had planned to get it the last time I ordered books in, but I chickened out at the last minute because it would definitely have to be shipped in from overseas.

Apparently you have some reach even up in the Great White North (tm). I was surprised (pleasantly) to find both R&R and ALH at a local Chapters... Spent yesterday night buying and reading ALH from cover to cover. A most excellent read, thank you very much for writing it!

It also exemplifies why I hate reading through book series before they're finished though... I want the third to be out already!

Somewhat off-topic - thank you for mentioning anton's work, I just plowed thru books 1 and 2 and I'm working on 3. He's almost as cool as you :)

Question: What if, for instance, I got an ARC, read and reviewed, and then loaned it to friend(s)? I would never sell it, that just pings as very very wrong to me, but I often share books I really really like. I don't imagine the people I loan books to would NOT buy the actual published copy, but I was just wondering if loaning was also considered skeevy.

On a similar note, I just finished ALH and LOVED it. I have recommended the series all over the place, though I haven't done a review yet; I'm waiting until I'm somewhat more coherent (and possibly having done another read-through).

If I were ever lucky enough to get my hands on an ARC, I'd definitely post reviews wherever it was acceptable, but there's no way I'd ever sell it. Heck, I have a hard enough time parting with my bought books.

ETA: I don't know if you've heard, but Amazon's taking preorders for An Artificial Night!

Not really on topic at all, but just recently discovered your work and you are awesome. Thought I'd share. Also, have a cookie.