Why anyone would spend over $700 on a beautifully bound, letterpress printed book (using HORNS as an example)- and then keep it hermetically sealed until they're dead- I'll never understand. You are not going to ruin it by reading it. At all. The joy of a Fine Press book is in the holding and reading. Otherwise, you're just an "investor".
Aye, for me the feel and smell of a high quality book is what adds to the experience
Exactly.
With the letterpress printing you can even feel the impression. Feeling that thick paper. Coming across the pertinent artwork. Smelling the leather. Tripping on the hand-marbled end papers.
It's an experience.
Can you imagine collecting rare cars and not driving them?
Yeah I agree with all of that. My books never stay sealed (see unboxing videos) and I always handle them and flip through them. I see the art and feel the textures. I take them down from time to time to appreciate them. If I did all my reading at a chair near my bookshelves then absolutely I'd read the Suntup numbereds there. But my reading opportunities mean I have to travel with the book and lug it around in my backpack. At a certain price point that becomes too risky. I just finished the PS edition of THE TOMMYKNOCKERS (fantastic art and production!) and now I have SST's HEAD FULL OF GHOSTS for company on the Metra. But a $700 book on the train? I just can't do it. I like your idea of having the best edition available for reading in the house in one place and a reading copy for commuting. Just switching between the two.
I do want the best experience which is why I tried reading my HILL HOUSE on the train. But it wasn't a great experience.
I am in the middle of reading a saga. So I want to finish that. Then I will start on the Suntup part of my collection. And yes, I will read the Suntup book itself.
Um, Mike. You're forgetting something
I mean this seriously Brian, and not in a bad way. What am I forgetting? I see the smiley face so I know it's not bad. You can PM me if you don't want to make it public.
The count down to sellout, buddy
You don't know my kind.....You don't my mind.....Dark necessities are part of my design.....
I just opened and sat with my gift edition of HORNS, and, man- this is a really impressive edition. The cover cloth is rich, the stamping is killer, absolutely gorgeous end papers. Love the drop caps (appropriate to the "religious" theme), and- signed and limited (to 1000 copies, but that counts!). Just beautiful. Nice, Paul!
I just opened and sat with my gift edition of HORNS, and, man- this is a really impressive edition. The cover cloth is rich, the stamping is killer, absolutely gorgeous end papers. Love the drop caps (appropriate to the "religious" theme), and- signed and limited (to 1000 copies, but that counts!). Just beautiful. Nice, Paul!
I’ve seen pics in other places and this really is a stunning edition.
I'm a new collector of Suntup, The Road is my first limited edition, unfortunately I was late, but I do have all the gift editions. I realize that if a book has the Suntup treatment it means that it will get a hundred buyers in hardcovers, paperbacks, audios in all its variants. It will even improve the rating of the book in Goodreads. It is like the result of the honor of winning a literary prize. I congratulate Paul for his great vision, and following a dream we all share and love. I hope to see some science fiction story with the Suntup emblem soon. Hiperyon maybe? I can't imagine.
Welcome to the board, and thank you for what you wrote. Really, thanks so much. I do have some science fiction books under contract currently.
Originally Posted by swintek
I just opened and sat with my gift edition of HORNS, and, man- this is a really impressive edition. The cover cloth is rich, the stamping is killer, absolutely gorgeous end papers. Love the drop caps (appropriate to the "religious" theme), and- signed and limited (to 1000 copies, but that counts!). Just beautiful. Nice, Paul!
OH. There are 261 copies left. So plenty. I only wasn't doing the count down because I though I read that people should not do that because it really adds it somehow to a spot where if someone wanted to get one they could not. But it takes like 2 sec to do so if allowed, I will continue to be the countdown guy. And there are 9 Horns AGE left. I would order another one so I have a better shot at the prize, but even $85 is money taken from other places is a lot for me. I know it adds another chance to win that special Horns book, but I would not win anyway and since I already have a numbered, I wanted to leave the GE to people who could only get that version.
OH. There are 261 copies left. So plenty. I only wasn't doing the count down because I though I read that people should not do that because it really adds it somehow to a spot where if someone wanted to get one they could not. But it takes like 2 sec to do so if allowed, I will continue to be the countdown guy. And there are 9 Horns AGE left. I would order another one so I have a better shot at the prize, but even $85 is money taken from other places is a lot for me. I know it adds another chance to win that special Horns book, but I would not win anyway and since I already have a numbered, I wanted to leave the GE to people who could only get that version.
I think you might be mistaken, Mike. It's buying the numbered edition of BROTHER that gets you a chance at the RED HORNS. I've actually considered getting another BROTHER.
OH. There are 261 copies left. So plenty. I only wasn't doing the count down because I though I read that people should not do that because it really adds it somehow to a spot where if someone wanted to get one they could not. But it takes like 2 sec to do so if allowed, I will continue to be the countdown guy. And there are 9 Horns AGE left. I would order another one so I have a better shot at the prize, but even $85 is money taken from other places is a lot for me. I know it adds another chance to win that special Horns book, but I would not win anyway and since I already have a numbered, I wanted to leave the GE to people who could only get that version.
I think you might be mistaken, Mike. It's buying the numbered edition of BROTHER that gets you a chance at the RED HORNS. I've actually considered getting another BROTHER.
OH snap. Your right. Sorry everybody. Then for sure I am not going to get one. I need that money for other stuff.
OH. There are 261 copies left. So plenty. I only wasn't doing the count down because I though I read that people should not do that because it really adds it somehow to a spot where if someone wanted to get one they could not. But it takes like 2 sec to do so if allowed, I will continue to be the countdown guy. And there are 9 Horns AGE left. I would order another one so I have a better shot at the prize, but even $85 is money taken from other places is a lot for me. I know it adds another chance to win that special Horns book, but I would not win anyway and since I already have a numbered, I wanted to leave the GE to people who could only get that version.
I think you might be mistaken, Mike. It's buying the numbered edition of BROTHER that gets you a chance at the RED HORNS. I've actually considered getting another BROTHER.
OH snap. Your right. Sorry everybody. Then for sure I am not going to get one. I need that money for other stuff.
No sorry necessary! And good luck beating Ari for the RED HORNS!
I am also not ordering another one because I don't want to take away someone else's chance of getting this book because I bought two of them. Since there are 500 that leaves the door open for some people to get their first S\L Suntup book. But that's just me.
I am also not ordering another one because I don't want to take away someone else's chance of getting this book because I bought two of them. Since there are 500 that leaves the door open for some people to get their first S\L Suntup book. But that's just me.
You’re a good man, Mike.
I also just wanted to say that I think the artwork in BROTHER is spectacular. I hadn’t seen anyone comment on that yet. But each of those pieces are beautiful.
Add that to the gorgeous paper cover treatment and I just get more and more excited for this release.
I tend not to respond to comments like this unless it is posed as a question, in which case I will answer it. I wanted to respond to this one though.
Someone brought this to my attention the other day. It was posted in a Facebook group, of which I am not a member so I couldn't respond there. I feel it's appropriate to do so here though, as I have seen similar comments once or twice before by members here.
This is the post:
Spoiler:
In the past, I have ignored comments like this. However, let's say it was posed to me as a question, for example:
"Hey Paul, I was just curious, what does Jordan Peele have to do with Rosemary's Baby?"
Then I would have provided an answer, and there would be no need for these ignorant statements that have no factual basis. I should add that we did provide a brief explanation of the connection between the two on the original announcement page.
Here is my response to the post above, and in turn, my response to this comment in general, so perhaps we can put this to rest now:
We do not choose intro authors at random based solely on their fame or popularity, in the hope that it will help sell the book. Having someone write an introduction to a book they have absolutely no connection with is silly.
Jordan Peele was initially chosen for some very specific reasons. Foremost of which is that his Oscar winning movie Get Out was largely inspired by Rosemary's Baby. In several interviews he had given about it, he credited Ira Levin, specifically Rosemary's Baby and The Stepford Wives as his main influences. Being his touchstone work in the genre the movie occupies (horror with a social sideline), it was an obvious choice.
Although it did not end up working out with Peele, we are delighted to have Chuck Palahniuk on board. And so too does Chuck have a connection to Ira Levin and Rosemary's Baby, often citing the author as one of his greatest influences. His novel Adjustment Day was specifically inspired by the work of Ira Levin. In an interview he spoke of his love for the author and how his own writing was inspired by him.
Lastly, it should also be noted that the “4K” price for the Lettered edition (technically, it was $3950) has absolutely nothing to do with having a famous celebrity or author sign the book. We do not use that as a tactic to inflate prices. In fact, the signature has zero impact on the price we set. The retail price is based entirely on production costs. These books can take up to 12 months to produce. The labor, materials, and costly letterpress printing all contribute to the price.
Nice explanation Paul. And that lettered ed of RB is just incredible. It would have never crossed my mind to make a bassinet for a case. But, I guess that's why I am on this side of the keyboard . I am anxiously waiting for my numbered version and I positive it will be worth every penny.
Paul, thanks for the post. I think mostly this is bullshit jealously. Why ANYONE would not support a new press and be positive is beyond me. I mean... I think you have proved yourself. Everytime a book lands from you.. it goes up in value so allow me to already get excited for my 4K book
I tend not to respond to comments like this unless it is posed as a question, in which case I will answer it. I wanted to respond to this one though.
Someone brought this to my attention the other day. It was posted in a Facebook group, of which I am not a member so I couldn't respond there. I feel it's appropriate to do so here though, as I have seen similar comments once or twice before by members here.
This is the post:
Spoiler:
In the past, I have ignored comments like this. However, let's say it was posed to me as a question, for example:
"Hey Paul, I was just curious, what does Jordan Peele have to do with Rosemary's Baby?"
Then I would have provided an answer, and there would be no need for these ignorant statements that have no factual basis. I should add that we did provide a brief explanation of the connection between the two on the original announcement page.
Here is my response to the post above, and in turn, my response to this comment in general, so perhaps we can put this to rest now:
We do not choose intro authors at random based solely on their fame or popularity, in the hope that it will help sell the book. Having someone write an introduction to a book they have absolutely no connection with is silly.
Jordan Peele was initially chosen for some very specific reasons. Foremost of which is that his Oscar winning movie Get Out was largely inspired by Rosemary's Baby. In several interviews he had given about it, he credited Ira Levin, specifically Rosemary's Baby and The Stepford Wives as his main influences. Being his touchstone work in the genre the movie occupies (horror with a social sideline), it was an obvious choice.
Although it did not end up working out with Peele, we are delighted to have Chuck Palahniuk on board. And so too does Chuck have a connection to Ira Levin and Rosemary's Baby, often citing the author as one of his greatest influences. His novel Adjustment Day was specifically inspired by the work of Ira Levin. In an interview he spoke of his love for the author and how his own writing was inspired by him.
Lastly, it should also be noted that the “4K” price for the Lettered edition (technically, it was $3950) has absolutely nothing to do with having a famous celebrity or author sign the book. We do not use that as a tactic to inflate prices. In fact, the signature has zero impact on the price we set. The retail price is based entirely on production costs. These books can take up to 12 months to produce. The labor, materials, and costly letterpress printing all contribute to the price.
Were you able to see the entire thread? I am the middle blurry guy there in your spoiler and I explained to top blurry guy pretty much what you said. Maybe not as forcefully as you did but it seemed pointless to try to convince him. He didn’t seem to care all that much and I peaced out.
But I don’t think you need to defend yourself here. Or there. You’ve explained the decision and people can either buy it or pass. I thought Peele was a cool person to get being someone who seems to be at the forefront of a horror movement. I saw a lot of reasons he’d fit. I just happen to love Chucks work so that signature appeals more.
Anyway, I love what you do and look forward to everything ahead.
But I don’t think you need to defend yourself here. Or there. You’ve explained the decision and people can either buy it or pass.
Thanks Jeff. That's part of the reason I don't respond to comments like this. It can come across as defensive, which it isn't. I feel no need to defend myself in this case, and that isn't what I was doing. I was just providing further information on the connection between the two.
Personally, I think communication like this is really helpful. A casual observer probably isn't going to know the connection between Peele and Levin. They will notice the high price tag for "a book in a box" signed by a celebrity, and not realize that everything about the book is carefully and thoughtfully designed, and hand crafted from the finest materials. Nothing is mass produced.
Your posts like this help educate the casual observer, and communicate a clarity of purpose for the Press. A casual observer still might not be prepared to pay such prices for a book, but at least they will get where you're coming from, and might support you with a Gift or Numbered purchase in the future if the right title comes up.
HBJ
“If you don't know what you want," the doorman said, "you end up with a lot you don't.”
― Chuck Palahniuk, Fight Club
Looking for SubPress Lettered::
Angel's Game and Prisoner of Heaven (Zafon)
Ilium (Simmons)
It always strikes me as odd when someone skips "I wonder what Peele's (or anyone else's) connection is" and immediately goes directly to "Peele has no connection to RB!"
I agree Paul has nothing to defend, but I understand the desire to squash rumors that could cast Suntup in a bad light (word of mouth can be a tricky thing).
Eastasia has always taught college students to feel pride or shame according to their race.
On a totally topic not related to this, I love the new layout of the website. But I have to ask. It looks like every book has the lettered version as the image for the book except for The Road. Any reason for that? Did you just want to show the emotion of a father and son walking. Either way, is fine with me of course. I was just curious.
And back to the above topic, I agree with what everyone else is saying. You are doing great work. As I said before, the care you put into your books is clearly evident. So please keep on doing what you are doing.
Looks like a really nice book. The story sounds interesting based on what people have said (the 'Devil's Rejects' comparison got my attention) so I ordered a copy from the library and will see how I feel afterwards.
In regards to "do you read your limiteds", I generally don't unless it's exclusive material like the NOS4A2 novella. I do occasionally look at them in terms of art but I would probably be too anxious to actually have it in my hands for an extended period of time. That and a lot of the limiteds are oversized and reading something as big as CD's IT would be kind of a pain for me as opposed to a paperback or my kindle.
A hound will die for you, but never lie to you. And he'll look you straight in the face.
It always strikes me as odd when someone skips "I wonder what Peele's (or anyone else's) connection is" and immediately goes directly to "Peele has no connection to RB!"
I agree Paul has nothing to defend, but I understand the desire to squash rumors that could cast Suntup in a bad light (word of mouth can be a tricky thing).
What else I love about Suntup is that Paul does little add on items, that I am sure cost him a little (maybe more than a little) to do and yet does not change the price of the book. The progress of the book is something I really like watching.
But I don’t think you need to defend yourself here. Or there. You’ve explained the decision and people can either buy it or pass.
Thanks Jeff. That's part of the reason I don't respond to comments like this. It can come across as defensive, which it isn't. I feel no need to defend myself in this case, and that isn't what I was doing. I was just providing further information on the connection between the two.
Point taken.
I learned a long time ago as a creative marketing consultant that, to clients, explaining can sound like defending which can feel like arguing. So I've always limited the amount of explanation I offer at times to highly skeptical clients.
Originally Posted by Br!an
Exactly.
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