My darlingest dearest Paul Cornell asked me to write a post about one of the twelve days of Christmas for his blog, and because he has a newborn son and thus gets to ask me for free content without being looked at sadly, I wrote a post about the hidden blackbirds that come on the fourth day. Four colly birds for all of you!

Jennifer Brozek had a lovely dream and I was in it and it was wonderful, and now you can see it in illustrated, murderous form. Happiness and joy.

This Etsy store has the best handmade catnip eyeballs in the world. There is no joy like watching a cat gleefully maul a giant human eye. NO JOY IN THIS WORLD. Plus we've sold out their stock like, twice since I discovered them. Let's do it again.

I have a Tumblr now. Tumblrs are cool. And while this won't be true for long, if you go there right now, you'll actually get a lovely graphic illustration of how many fucks I have left to give. Hint: not many.

In limited edition news, A Fantasy Medley 2 and When Will You Rise remain available from Subterranean Press, and Velveteen vs. The Junior Super Patriots remains available from ISFIC Press. Velveteen is available in hardcover and ebook formats, the others are hardcover only.

Now, this is important: all three of the books listed above are limited edition, and the print runs are really small. So while they're available now, they won't be available forever. Please keep that in mind, because I will just look sad and shake my head if asked in six months whether I have any for sale. Also, you can get When Will You Rise and Velveteen vs. The Junior Super Patriots signed and personalized for the holidays by contacting Borderlands Books.

And that's the news.

I have just received confirmation that both When Will You Rise and Velveteen vs. The Junior Super Patriots are now shipping! These books represent my first solo hardcovers, one under each of my names, and like so many good things, they are here for a limit time.

When Will You Rise: Stories to End the World is published by Subterranean Press, and is limited to 1,000 signed and numbered copies. This gorgeously illustrated collection contains "Countdown" and "Apocalypse Scenario #683: The Box." If you place an order within the next few days, it should reach you in time for the holidays. Oh, and did I mention that we got a starred review from Publishers Weekly? Because yeah. We totally did.

Velveteen vs. The Junior Super Patriots is published by ISFIC Press, and is also limited to 1,000 copies. You can obtain signed copies directly from the publisher, or by contacting Borderlands Books. If you place an order within the next few days, it should reach you in time for the holidays. This volume contains the Velveteen stories through "Velveteen vs. The Blind Date," along with all-new supplemental material, an introduction by Jim Hines, and a valediction by Carrie Vaughn. I'm really happy with it.

So those are my new hardcovers, and they're beautiful, and I'm totally excited about them. Glee!

You may or may not remember that I've got a story appearing in A Fantasy Medley 2 from Subterranean Press, due out this November. This is a spectacularly lovely limited-edition book, featuring stories from me, Tanya Huff, Amanda Downum, and Jasper Kent. And when I say "limited," I mean it: the print run is restricted to 224 numbered copies signed by the authors and editor, and 1,500 fully cloth bound hardcover copies. That's it. No more copies will be made.

But! That's not all! We just got a starred review from Publishers Weekly! You can read the full review right here, and here's what they had to say about my story, "Rat-Catcher":

"Seanan McGuire's "Rat-Catcher," set hundreds of years before her October Daye books, is both charming and gut-wrenching."

Yay!

So anyway, I'm just gonna leave the link to the ordering page over here, for those who might be interested. It really is a beautiful book, and if you want to read Tybalt's origin story, this is the way to do it.

(Note: "Rat-Catcher" happens hundreds of years before the main series, and doesn't impact anything. It's just background. I really love it, but it is not essential to read and enjoy the books. I promise.)

Squee!

You guys.

You guys, you guys.

I am absolutely stupid with delight that I get to announce this now. STUPID WITH DELIGHT. Guess what I'm announcing. Go on, guess.

Have you guessed yet?

On November 9th, 2012, ISFiC Press will be publishing Velveteen vs. The Junior Super Patriots, volume one in the ongoing adventures of Velma "Velveteen" Martinez.

That's right. A print edition.

ARE YOU EXCITED YET?!

The book will be printed as a limited hardcover edition of 1,000 copies, with cover art by the incomparable Dave Dorman. If you're coming to WindyCon, you'll be able to pick up your copy on the spot. If not, you can order through their website above. The anticipated cover price is $25.00, although we won't know for sure until we get the quote back from the printer.

For those of you who don't do physical books anymore, there will also be an eBook edition, priced at $9.99.

(Please don't complain to me about the eBook price. All the stories remain freely available for your reading pleasure. Buying the eBook just means you're helping to feed my cats, and for that, I thank you.)

According to my contact at ISFiC, the book will be...

"Available through the ISFiC Press website for both hardcover and e-book. Also available through Amazon.com for hardcover, but their ordering and shipping arrangements are Byzantine for small publishers, so you will get it cheaper from them and faster from ISFiC Press.

"E-book edition should be available also from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Apple iBookStore, Reader Store, Kobo, Copia, Gardners, Baker & Taylor, and eBookPie."

This volume collects "Velveteen vs. The Isley Crawfish Festival" through "Velveteen vs. The Blind Date," with all new supplemental files on Vel and her allies, an introduction by Jim "Captain Escher" Hines, and an afterward by Carrie "Goblin Shark" Vaughn. All the stories have been revised and rewritten to bring them into full alignment.

I am, like, super-excited about this book, and I'm probably going to wind up buying like ten copies just for myself. So you should totally get yours before they're all up, up, and away.

Velveteen in print.

Eeeeeeeeeeee.

For the last several months, a story titled "Rat-Catcher" has appeared on my inchworm girl lists, always under the "publication date unknown" header. Rumors have flown. Well. Rumors have sort of limped around and then napped under the table, because we're all pretty tired, so it's hard to get too excited over things that I keep promising to discuss later.

Later is here.

I am flat-out ecstatic to announce that "Rat-Catcher" will be appearing in A Fantasy Medley 2, to be published by Subterranean Press on November 30th, 2012. It's one of four stories in the book, joining original pieces by Tanya Huff, Amanda Downum, and Jasper Kent. A Fantasy Medley 2 will be available both as a signed hardcover, and as a trade edition. Both editions are extremely limited. Seriously. Order early.

Learn more about A Fantasy Medley 2, and place your orders here!

"Rat-Catcher" is the first story set in Toby's world but not featuring Toby at all. Instead, it focuses on Tybalt before he was Tybalt, back when he was Rand, a Prince of Cats living in the city of London. Meet his family, see him take the first steps toward becoming the man we know and love today, and see how the world looks through someone else's eyes!

I am so excited. Like, seriously, seriously excited. The cover is gorgeous, the authors involved in the project are top-notch, and I can't wait for you to read this story.

November!