I did it!

Big sigh of relief here. I did it.

What did I do? I did two challenging things. Three if you count waking up without coffee.

First, I finished bookbinding all of my three books into their own very individual Relic. This was a hard task to pull off. Each of my books is quite a bit different from the others. What should the cover look like? Color choices from a colorblind person? Types of material? I have to buy what now? A lot of planning, time and investment went into the decision to go forward with binding my own books—and to turn them into what I call Relic Editions. And now, officially, they are not only on my website, but I’ve made a small video showing a bit of the process and showing off all three of my books in their Relic’d form. I am beyond ecstatic with how they all turned out, each of them. My first attempt was Tiger Island, and I really wanted something that looked like it could have come out of a treasure chest buried on an island. I frickn’ LOVE how it came out. Pictures don’t do it justice. But all of them, The Animal In Us and Space Cheese, just hit when you are looking at them, holding them in your hand, and feeling the texture of the linen. The Animal In Us is just brutally black and sparse with mottled red lettering, like it was literally found out in Desolation among the wreckage. And Space Cheese just pops right off the cover with the spray painted block of yellow cheese.

These Relic Editions are all handbound by me, one of a kind, limited run things. Each piece is a work of art, and not one of them will be identical. From custom endpapers to custom paint jobs, to the raised titles being a little bit different each and every time, a big part of me goes into creating these. As my video aptly put it, they are “a book reborn… as a Relic”. If you want one of these Relics, please head on over to my shop and purchase one. I will be taking them to the upcoming Sac Comic Con this next weekend and hopefully sell the three copies of each that I’ve made so far. But you can special order one just for you. Custom ordered, and custom made… for you.

And now for the second thing. All of my books are now wide. Yes, this morning, Space Cheese finally flipped as published to one of the big retailers on Draft2Digital, and I immediately broadcast that to all of my social media. I’ve already said what I think about the industry and Amazon KDP and KU, and all future books will get placed in KU first before they themselves go wide, but as of right now, I am a free man with my books wherever you, the reader, want to purchase them from.

Going wide is a me thing. Having my books available to you right now direct is a me thing. Providing you with a one-of-a-kind Relic is a me thing. I want as little separation from you, the reader, as possible. And I want you to own a Relic that was made just for you. I believe in ownership, in fewer middlemen, and bringing my stories straight to you.

I feel a bit like Frodo on that mountain right now. “It is done.” Sure, only for now, but this is a journey and one I fully intend to be on my terms as much as possible. I hope you join me on this journey. And I hope you enjoy your Relics.