Seanan McGuire (seanan_mcguire) wrote,
Seanan McGuire
seanan_mcguire

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The signing of books is a difficult matter; it isn't just one of your holiday games...

Shamelessly, I have stolen a very clever idea from John Scalzi at the Whatever, who has posted an excellent, and quite thorough, guide to obtaining signed books from him for the holidays. He has some really spiffy books available right now. You should check them out.

Anyway, I, too, have been receiving emails for about the last month, asking where people can get signed copies of my various books. Since I already have a bajillion shirts to mail (still mailing), "from me" isn't a viable answer. So...

Want a signed book? Signed by me, I mean, and not by that guy who always looks at you sort of funny on the bus? Borderlands Books is here to help. They're located in San Francisco, on Valencia Street, and they see me a lot. Like, a lot. Anyway, they'd be totally happy to take your order, and I would be totally happy to sign and/or personalize those orders. Here's what you have to do:

1. Contact Borderlands. You can send an email via their website (link above), or call their toll-free 888 number, at 1-888-893-4008.

2. Tell them what you want, and how you want the book signed. I will do inscriptions, but they need to be short, as those title pages don't leave me a lot of room to work with.

3. While you're at it, you might want to consider picking up a few books other people have written, since you're already paying for postage, and isn't getting a big box of books always better than getting a small box of books? I'll be posting my holiday recommendations soon, none of which have a damn thing to do with the holidays, but in the meanwhile, there are lots of books out there looking for a home.

3b. I won't sign those books. Unless you really, really want me to.

4. Give them your mailing address and billing information. You must be prepared to pay for inscribed books when you place your order. It's a logic thing. Once I write your name in it, they can't sell it to anybody else.

5. Your books will magically appear at your home! It's amazing!

If you want your books in time for Christmas, I seriously suggest ordering by December 12th. The mail will be insane by that point, so sooner is probably better. I'll visit the store for the last time this holiday season on December 19th (Alice's third birthday!), but I'm leaving for Orlando after that, so any orders placed beyond that point definitely won't reach you before 2012.

Borderlands can ship internationally, but postage will be spendy, and you need to work it out with the bookstore.

In case you need a recap on what's currently available:

TOBY BOOKS (in order): Rosemary and Rue, A Local Habitation, An Artificial Night, Late Eclipses, One Salt Sea.

MIRA GRANT TITLES (in order): Feed, Deadline.

ANTHOLOGIES I AM IN: Home Improvement: Undead Edition (hardcover, Toby story), Tales From the Ur-Bar, Zombiesque, The Living Dead 2 (as Mira Grant, Newsflesh story), Grants Pass, Human Tales.

ESSAYS AND NON-FICTION: Chicks Dig Time Lords, Whedonistas.

If you have questions, let me know...and if you do decide to order, thank you so, so much for helping to support both my endless quest to feed the cats and my beloved local independent bookstore. You are awesome.
Tags: a few facts, book promotion, common questions, shopping, support local bookstores
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  • 25 comments
At least the books don't tend to live up to the signatures you give them in surprising & occasionally disturbing ways.
True!
Somehow I missed Monster Tales. :)

It's fun!
I am still not finding it... strangely. Did you mean Human Tales? Or did my google-fu and ability to search websites (yours) fail me utterly?
Whoops, fixed.
You may think, of course, that I'm mad as a hatter
When I say that each author has three different names
Now first is the name that the author use daily,
When handling chores and such everyday aims,
Such as Lucy or Jim, such as Stephen or Catherynne,
All of them sensible, everyday names.
But I tell you, an author needs a name that's particular,
A name that's peculiar and more dignified,
Else how can she keep her pen perpendicular,
or spread out her pages, or cherish her pride?
Just a possibly mad suggestion - signed bookplates. I bought books by a couple of US based friends and we all agreed it was stupid to spend so much on postage so I was happy to get signed bookplates from them - cheap both to buy and in terms of postage and the design is up to the author - and got the books from a UK bookshop. So you could (for next Christmas, I suppose, at this point)find or design bookplates and just charge a small amount that will cover letter post for your overseas fans!
Neat idea!
anghara has distributed signed bookplates for books that hadn't quite hit the shelves yet, as of the time of the request/panel/meeting. I think I got one from her for The Secrets of Jin-Shei.

3b I won't sign those books. Unless you really, really want me to.

I am one of these weird freaks who would be curbing herself deeply to resist the temptation to ask that.

There was a time when I REALLY wanted to ask Charles de Lint to sign my copy of Good Omens for reasons that involved inside jokes with the friend who really wanted to buy him a banana daiquiri. I didn't, largely because much as I enjoy his books I don't think CDL has a sense of humour at all, and him being insulted by the "weird" request would have made it less fun.

On the other hand, my biography of Queen that was signed by Neil Gaiman at Anticipation (and signed well!) is one of my current most prized possessions. I floated around the con for a good long while after the signing showing the book to all my friends and cackling with glee.

I also have one or two books that were inscribed to someone other than me - books that I bought of the shelf from the bookstore because of course I had to at that point.

I always feel a little sad when I see a book that's been inscribed, not just signed, sitting on a used bookstore shelf.
my biography of Queen that was signed by Neil Gaiman

Oh, oh, oh, you have given me a wonderful grin for the day. That is so incredibly awesome and funny. Thank you!
This is seriously seriously seriously awesome. *waits for rec list* when you write that up you could make a list of yr own (masterlist) and like, say a few words about how you came up with the idea to write them? I've got the biggest balls of them all! Just a suggestion though. You don't have to do it.
Nope. :) But your balls are impressive!

Seriously, though, I talk about my process all the time. If you follow the tags for a specific work, you can find way more background material than anyone really needs. So I don't like to repeat myself.
Thanks I work on it. I always say, el que no grita no mama, He who stays quiet doesn't get the tit, so I always ask for what I want and even when the person says no they usually offer some alternative. ;D

aubade_saudade

November 16 2011, 20:55:29 UTC 5 years ago Edited:  November 16 2011, 20:57:06 UTC

Oh, and I already bought the living dead anthologies and they are FABULOUS.
Someday, I hope to get the chance to meet you. (sadly, my time could be limited.)

And I will bring my silver paint pen, and get you to sign the back of my kindle. Will be the kindle ever once is signed by you.
What state are you located in, again? (I forget my own half the time.)
I am in the Potomac Highlands area of West Virginia. Bout three nours from DC. I am right on the border of West Va, Maryland and PA. I forget how far PA is,but when I could walk I could be in MD in five minutes. That's using a walker.LOL

I am about a half hour drive from Cumberland, Maryland. In the movie Night of the Living Dead, you can hear someone on the television saying 'if you can get to Cumberland, you should be ok!'. There is nothing else cool about where I live. heh
I'm a big fan of West Virginia, especially during blueberry season. Mmmmmm, blueberries.

If I make it out that way, I will make absolutely sure you know.
Recently I've discovered I have a couple of signed books that I never knew were signed. There was nothing to indicate that the author had signed them, but hey presto when I opened the book there the signature was!
Woo!