Conference noted::sf

    THE DARK TOWER: THE GUNSLINGER is nearly impossible to find
    at any reasonable price. It was published in a relatively
    limited edition of 10,000 copies (compare to an average
    first printing of any of his best-sellers of about 500,000)
    by a small-press publisher in 1982. There was also a 500-
    copy signed/numbered/slipcased edition. About a year or two
    later, a second edition, also of 10,000, was published. It
    is *extremely* doubtful that there will ever be another
    edition (but then, no one thought there'd be a second
    edition, either). The reasons are too complex to go into.
    	Current prices for a signed/numbered copy are about
    $400-500, for a first edition regular copy about $200-300,
    and for a second edition copy about $150.
    
    The book is actually a collection of five connected novelettes,
    all previously published in THE MAGAZINE OF FANTASY AND SCIENCE
    FICTION. It's even getting hard to find those particular issues
    of the magazine, but not as hard, or as expensive, as getting
    the book. If your persistant enough, you may be able to find
    the issues in a used-bookstore or two. The stories and issues
    are as follows:
    
    	"The Gunslinger"			Oct 78
    	"The Way Station"			Apr 80
    	"The Oracle and the Mountains"		Feb 81
    	"The Slow Mutants"			Jul 81
    	"The Gunslinger and the Dark Man"	Nov 81
    
    The same publisher (Donald M. Grant) is publishing the next
    in the series, THE DARK TOWER: THE DRAWING OF THE THREE in
    March (at least that's the scheduled time), probably in an
    edition of 20,000 to match the combined total for the first
    book. Further details are not known by me at this time, but
    I'm on Grant's mailing list, so I can supply details when
    the book is announced as available.
    
    Be warned that these stories are *very* unlike what you'd
    be used to from King.
    
    As for THE DRAWING OF THE DARK, yes, it's by Tim Powers.
    It, too, is not an easy book to find, though there isn't
    really any reason why it shouldn't be. It came out from
    Ballantine/Del Rey in the late 70's. Even trickier is
    finding his first two books, which came out in 1976 from
    Laser Books: EPITAPH IN RUST and THE SKIES DISCROWNED.
    
    --- jerry

    Re .1:
    
>    	Current prices for a signed/numbered copy are about
>    $400-500, for a first edition regular copy about $200-300,
>    and for a second edition copy about $150.
    
    Oh my Gaaawd!  I guess theres not much hope I'll find this in paperback
    huh?  Do you have time to explain why this is?!?  (I yam truly
    crushed.)
    
    Yes I know its not standard King (which I rarely read), I was first
    attracted too it when I read one of those stories in F&SF years
    ago (I think that it was "The Way Station").  I have been keeping
    an eye out for it ever since.  Clearly I should have been doing
    quite a bit more than that.

    By the way, have you read this?  Could you give us your impressions?
    
    As for the DRAWING OF THE DARK, the problem is that its been out
    of print for years (else I would have ordered it), and they didn't
    publish very many when it was.  I have however heard that it has
    recently been in print in Great Britain, which is one reason I asked
    here.
    
    Oh yes, although I've never even heard of EPITAPH IN RUST, THE SKIES
    DISCROWNED was recently re-released as FORSAKE THE SKY.  I have
    a copy which I'll gladly loan you in exchange for the loan of a
    copy of DARK TOWER.  B^)
    
    
    --  Barry

    Powers first. Well, I do have them all, so I'm not looking.
    Actually, now that I think of it, I may not have picked up
    a copy of FORSAKE THE SKY (thanks for the memory jog), though
    I do have the previous version.
    
    It really pays to be a collector of random sf books. You find
    that often you have something that your don't realize till
    much later that you want. This frame of mind netted me the
    two sf novels by "Richard Bachman" long before anyone knew
    he was Stephen King.
    
    As for DARK TOWER, yes, I've read it and I like it. It's hard
    to give a real impression of what it's all about, since the
    book only covers a small part of what King plans as a
    looooooonnnnnnnggggg story cycle. Maybe I'll have a better idea
    after reading THE DRAWING OF THE THREE. It seems to me that the
    five extant stories pose more questions than they answer. We're
    are given glimpses into the "origins" (to use comic book term-
    inology) of Roland the Gunslinger and his companion, but there's
    still no hint of who the Dark Man is, why Roland is chasing him,
    or what the Dark Tower has got to do with any of it.
    
    I'm sure that only King has a clear understanding of why the
    book will never see a mass-market edition. One reason that he's
    mentioned is that he doesn't (or at least didn't) think that it
    would fly in the mass market, that they have come to expect a
    certain type of book from him and wouldn't want something
    radically different. I'm not convinced that this is true, but
    THE DARK TOWER is a hell of a lot different from his usual
    work, moreso than some of his "mainstream different" work,
    such as, say, "Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption" in
    DIFFERENT SEASONS, so King may not be far off. A second reason
    he's given is a little stranger. Unlike most best-seller auth-
    ors who wander into the sf/fantasy field, King's roots are
    solidly in the field and he has a soft spot in his heart for
    fandom in general. He also is very supportive of the sf/fantasy
    small presses (limited editions of his books tend to be spread
    around to a number of different small presses). He saw THE DARK
    TOWER as a book done "by fans for fans", a sort of special item
    that the fans could have that the rank and file of readers
    wouldn't have. Of course, this is distressing to those of his
    loyal readers who don't happen to be sf/fantasy fans in general,
    but I guess you can't have everything (even *I* can't, drat it!).
    	These two reasons, probably combined with others that I
    haven't even heard, resulted in a book that won't be published
    in any mass-market edition. But one shouldn't completely lose
    hope. The same was supposed to hold for CYCLE OF THE WEREWOLF,
    and yet it eventually saw a mass-market edition, though that
    was almost totally due to its having been made into a movie,
    and King's paperback publisher wanting to have a tie-in book.
    Still, King may someday change his mind.
    
    --- jerry

    re .1
    Ding!  This is the 2nd time you've discussed the gunslinger (in
    the King file, too) and it sounded familiar.  I believe I have the
    F&SF issues.  
    
    Anyway, I picked up a bunch of old IFs, WORLDS OF TOMORROWs,
    F&SFs, ANALOGS, and a WORLDS OF FANTASY (there were only 4 issues--
    not counting the British publication in the 50's, Jerry--so I felt
    especially lucky that day) in the Fall.  A flea market south of
    Keene, N.H., on the left as you go north, a large newish wooden
    building near the road.  There were 4 big boxes of the above. like
    25 years of someone's collection.  It may be worth a shot, as there's
    not much travel through there in the winter (except skiers).
    
    				Don ICEMAN::Rudman

	    I just got the official announcement yesterday for
	    THE DARK TOWER: THE DRAWING OF THE THREE. The date
	    of publication is set for 31 March, and it will be
	    in an edition of 30,000 (as opposed to 500K-1M for
	    one of King's regular books). It will have 10 color
	    plates plus numerous black-and-white illustrations
	    by Phil Hale. The cost is $35.00 per copy, postpaid.

	    You can order from:	Donald M. Grant, Publisher
				West Kingston, RI  02892

	    There is also a deluxe edition of 800 copies, signed
	    and numbered by King and Hale and in a slipcase. The
	    price on that is $100.00, but unless you're already
	    on the publisher's mailing list, you're not likely
	    to be able to get one (that is if you're not already
	    put off by the price).

	    --- jerry

    I, too, am looking for certain books.  Can anyone tell me where
    I could get:
    
    	Past Master, by R. A. Lafferty
    
    	The Orphan, by Robert Stallman
    
    Earl Wajenberg

Here's a few from my Want List:

CAMPBELL,J.               THE BLACK STAR PASSES
CAMPBELL,J.               INVADERS OF INFINITY
FINNEY,J.                 I LOVE GALESBURG IN THE SPRINGTIME
FINNEY,J.                 THE WOODROW WILSON DIME
JONES,N.R.                PLANET OF THE DOUBLE SUN (PROF. JAMESON # 1)
MUNDY,T.                  FULL MOON (AKA THERE WAS A DOOR)
MUNDY,T.                  BLACKLIGHT
MUNDY,T.                  THE MYSTERY OF KORFU'S TOMB
MUNDY,T.                  THE THUNDER DRAGON GATE
MUNDY,T.                  OLD UGLY FACE
ROBESON,K.                #101/102 THE PHAROAH'S GHOST/TIME TERROR
SMITH,E.E.                THE GALAXY PRIMES

OLD ACE DOUBLES           ($2.00 or under, some Booksellers think 
                          they're made of gold.)

    If you run across any of them, and they are reasonably priced....
    Or, if not (I figure Mundy prices will be high), please let me know
    where you've seen them.  I live in Central Mass.

     							Don

        .7: That's "Invaders From the Infinite", I believe, not "Invaders
        of Infinity".  Which reminds me of a John Campbell book *I'd*
        like to find: the third Arcot, Wade & Morey book (the title
        of which I can't recall)... I've already got The Black Star
        Passes and Invaders From the Infinite, but I'm quite certain I
        remember reading a third at one time. 
        
        By the way, a good place to look for old books (especially
        things that were in paperback) is SF convention huckster rooms;
        last year at Boskone I finally found the top book on my WANTED
        list, which I've been looking for for many years. 
        
        	/dave

    re:.8
    
    The other Arcot, Wade, & Morey book is ISLANDS OF SPACE.
    
    --- jerry

        .9: Ah... thanks.
        
        	/dave

    Too bad.  I just sold ISLAND OF SPACE.
    
    Anyway, INVADERS was listed that way on a book list page.  Not the
    first time a title was messed up.
    
    							Don

It's two years later and I suppose anyone really looking would know by now, but,
just in case, "The Gunslinger" is out in paperback now. Also, "The Drawing of 
the Three" is out in the large paperback format.

Also, if you're into that kind of thing, I 'read' "The Gunslinger" about a year 
ago on audio tape. It's read by the author. I got this at the Hudson, Ma. 
library. The place where I saw the books also had both stories on audio tape, 
but, for the price they were asking...I guess I'm not really a fan. :^)

Pete

    I got'em.
    
    And in a suprising coincidence, "The Drawing of the Dark" was
    re-released this past year and I read it also.

    
    Well, this is just poo-pee.  I mean, I just read the Gunslinger and the
    Drawing of the Three, so I go to find the third book, the Waste Lands,
    and one store says it's out of print and another says it's being
    re-released hardcover soon to the tune of $40.00, speculates that
    paperback may be out in 2 years and these are books that were written
    several years ago?
    
    I ask you, is this any way for an author to trea readers from an genre
    in which he has never published before?  I think this is much worse
    than Dan Simmons cutting Hyperion were he did.  Someone set me
    straight.  It's bad enough when politicians do this to you, but I hate
    to take this from a writer! 
    
    Helen

    re:.14
    
    Those stores don't know *what* they are talking about.
    
    Fact #1: THE WASTE LANDS has never been published, so it's not "out
    of print" nor will it be "re-released". It's being published for the
    first time this month.
    
    Fact #2: I can't confirm this, but I've seen one source that says that
    the paperback will be out in January 1992.
    
    Fact #3: This book was *not* written "several years ago". The first
    draft was finished about one year ago.
    
    The only thing that's true is that it's being published in hardcover
    "to the tune of $40". That's because it's a limited edition (I don't
    recall what the press run is, but it's on the order of 20-30,000
    copies, as opposed to a million or so for his regular trade hardcovers)
    from a small press publisher. There's also a signed and numbered
    deluxe edition.
    
    Now, as far as "is this any way to treat his readers" goes...
    
    When King first approached Don Grant (the aforementioned small press
    publisher) to publish THE GUNSLINGER, he intended that it have one and
    only one edition of 10,500 copies (500 of them signed and numbered),
    and that it would never ever have another edition. There were two
    reasons for this. First, it was sufficiently different from his
    "normal" stuff that he didn't think it would appeal to his general
    readership. Secondly, he wanted to produce a "special" book for his
    hardcore fans that the general readership would not have.
    
    So THE GUNSLINGER was published, eventually sold out its press run,
    and that was that. Until one of his later books included it in the
    list of his works. Suddenly bookstores, his publishers, and he himself
    were besieged with questions about and requests for it. He then OK'd
    Don Grant to print a second edition of 10,000 copies. When it became
    obvious that his general readership *was* interested in it, he OK'd
    a paperback edition. And by that time, he'd finished THE DRAWING OF
    THE THREE. Like the first book, it was first published in a limited
    edition by Don Grant, and later issued in paperback.
    
    And now, the third one is ready for publication, and it too is being
    first published in a limited edition, and later in paperback. The
    limited edition is done to continue the idea of doing something
    special for the people who bought the limited editions of the first
    two. He's doing it as a reward for one group of people, not as a
    punishment for another.
    
    I'll tell you this much. Don Grant publishes *beautiful* books. They
    aren't just stories slapped between two pieces of cardboard. The books
    themselves are works of art, and are worth every penny of their price.
    
    --- jerry

    If you want more information about THE WASTE LANDS, check out Note
    #154 in the Stephen King conference DNEAST::CASTLE_ROCK.
    
    --- jerry

    
    Thank you, Jerry.  I feel much better now as I know that you are much
    more of an authority than the clerk at B Dalton.  
    
    I borrowed the Drawing of the Three so I don't have it to refer to, but
    in the back of the book it stated that the Waste Lands and one other
    book, I don't recall the name, were both out in paperback.  And of
    course, looking at the date of this book and it says 1987, well you can
    see how I could get upset.  Perhaps I misread what it said but I didn't
    think I did.
    
    I'll sleep much better tonight knowing that it wasn't a gimmick and I
    can read it in 1992!
    
    Helen       

    
    	I called Don Grant publishing and without even naming the book or
     author they knew I called to ask about "The Waste Lands". The signed
     editions are sold out (1200). They do have regular hardcovers
     available. I called Borders books and ordered one and the price
     Borders quoted me was $38.00. Don Grant Publishing told me the book
     should be released next month.
    
    					Jim

For those people (like me) out in the hinterlands, who do not have access
to the excellent bookstores, you can call the publishers directly.  I just
ordered my copy of "The Wastelands" direct from Don Grant.  The price is
$38.00 plus $3.00 postage and handling.  I sent in a money order, and I
was told that the book has gone to the printers, and will ship in "late July".  

The address is:

	Donald M Grant Publishers Inc
	P.O. Box 187
	Hampton Falls NH 03844

	Phone 603.778.7191

I have no connection with Don Grant, other than being a satisfied customer.

-- Ken Moreau

    	I just received my copy yesterday.


    			Jim