Songs of the Sisters: Acquiring Horizon words · 3:30pm Aug 8th, 2019
(Tagging Administrative Angel since its sequel is ONLY in the book until September!)
Bronycon is over, and the second edition of my MLP fanfic compilation Songs of the Sisters is ready for online ordering! If you missed the convention but you want a gorgeous fandom souvenir — or, if you'd like to both read my greatest hits AND jump the line on a fantastic new story — read on for details on how to get it!
These were some of the books I expected to bring home with me and sell online. That didn't happen.
A number of you said in the bookstore survey that you wanted a crack at Songs even though you wouldn't be able to make the convention. We listened! And I've got options for every budget level.
CHEAP AS FREE:
I can't afford to print and ship books for zero dollars, but the good news is that this is the age of the Internet. E-books are a thing.
RBDash47 of Ponyfeather Publishing has committed to releasing free e-book versions in the near future of all the PFP titles currently in print — including Songs. If you prefer to read your books on screen, or your budget doesn't allow for the senseless murder of trees and ink, hold out for a few weeks and I'll signal boost his e-book announcement when it's released.
In the meantime, every story in my collection except for Devil May Care is already published to FIMFiction! You can go check out some of the centerpiece stories (e.g. Time Enough For Love; Administrative Angel) to whet your appetite.
LOW-COST BOOKS:
If you want a physical copy but need to economize, your best bet is to order Songs direct from Ponyfeather Publishing. The links on that page go to Lulu, where you can get it direct from the printer at our printing cost. Factor in (U.S. domestic) shipping, and it'll be a little over $15 for the paperback and $25 for the hardcover.
If you're ordering before midnight tonight, you can even use Lulu's coupon code ONEFIVE as you're checking out to save 15% off your purchase price!
Neither I nor RBD ever see a penny of that. This is basically a labor of love to get stories out to as many people as cheaply as possible.
THE AWESOME WAY:
You'll notice that all of the options so far involve getting your book from not me. Do it on the cheap, and my chitinous pony appendages will never besmirch the gorgeous cover art.
* I have to add a disclaimer. International shipping is ruinous. If you live outside of the United States, TELL ME WHEN YOU ORDER. I will do my best to send a book at that price, but I'll probably have to give you an individual quote.
So, this is the option that gets you your book direct from horizon. For a flat rate* of $30 paperback or $40 hardcover, I'll autograph a book, handwrite in a little unique micro-story or couplet for you, and send it straight to your doorstep!
You'll notice there's a markup. Partially this is because I have to cover shipping the book twice. And whatever's left over goes to the Cover Art Fund.
"Cover Art Fund"?
Yeah. RBDash47 has sacrificed thousands of dollars and hundreds of man-hours to make this happen. I'm never seeing a penny for all my work. I wanted to make sure that someone in this process was fairly compensated. So when Nadnerb did the cover art, I told him to track his time spent and bill me an hourly rate substantially above minimum wage.**
** Above federal minimum wage, anyway. I'm realizing in hindsight that I didn't match his state's. :(
I don't regret that in the slightest. However, it means that I'm about $350 in the hole.
Nadnerb has been paid. The "Cover Art Fund" goes to me, to bring me as close to the break-even point as possible.
Please note: I AM NOT BROKE. I am NOT asking for donations, unless you have bought the book. If you throw money in this tip jar in order to feed a starving artist, I will have a big sad, because there are many actually starving artists on this site who need that money more. Basically, this is the "feed Horizon's ego by allowing him to brag that he sold books instead of gave them away" fund. I'm willing to trade autographs for pride. I'm not willing to beg for it.
HOW TO BE AWESOME
So! If you'd like to get autographed swag and throw money at me — or if you have bought the book and want to pitch in to the Cover Art Fund — speak up below or send me a PM. I will contact you privately with money transfer information (PayPal is usually easiest), get your shipping address, and arrange logistics.
Thank you all! I'm super hype about this. 
my copy is already on the way
Cover Art Fund status, as of this post:
• -$350 from art payments
• -$50 from gift books to my TEFL prereader and my foreword author
• -$20 on marketing [this paid review]
• +$135 from cash donations at the convention
• +[undetermined, probably around $100?] from the slight markup on at-con sales due to price rounding
I technically added new stuff! Not a new story per se, but every story in the book has an intro that talks about it and about me in general, as well as a general intro and a big epilogue to it all.
Not nearly as much as like, an entire new story though. Definitely buying this book as soon as I get all my BC budget sorted out. Apparently Administrative Angel's sequel is great, I've heard.
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OH FINE, JUST MAKE ME FIX MY POST TAGS.
And yes, I've heard good things from readers on Devil May Care! There's even an official review out by Present Perfect and he rated it "Recommended".
Was happy to provide for the art fund at the con, the cover art is gorgeous. I look forward to reading through more than just Administrative Angel over the coming months.
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I did too, in case you’re up for more editing. Kind of similar to Aragón: one as-yet unpublished story, as well as short author’s notes before each included piece.
(Actually, does my EFNW screenplay count as “new”? Because I guess there are two new things in there if it does.)
Strictly speaking, I put new stuff in my BC Bookstore book, too! There are two chapters of a new story that I’m looking forward to finishing off in the coming months. Just enough to leave it on a cliffhanger.
Regardless: it’s great seeing more books out there and available for purchase. Have other fandoms done something like this, or are we on the leading edge of crazy?
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Thank you!
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Alright, I'm pretty sure the tags have me covered now.
As far as the question of "Have other fandoms done this before?" -- Not in the Internet age that I'm particularly aware of! But if you look back a generation, larger SFF fandoms e.g. Trek used to have a lot of fanzines, in which fans traded around photocopied publications that were basically amateur self-published magazines filled with fan stories and art. In the age before the internet, it was a great way to directly interact with those with similar interests, and in the age before message boards, the letters column of your favorite fanzine was the lifeblood of fan interaction.
This seems like the appropriate thread to wonder: for those of us who have already bought our copies at the con but were too busy/shy/both to get them signed, could a mail-in/mail-back program be arranged? With postage and also possibly Cover Art Fund contributions included?
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Dang it, I wish I'd known your copy never got a signature. We crossed paths several times.
I am not averse to a mail-in signature thing. Alternatively, I can sign a bookplate you can paste in to the front, if that's easier than paying the post office a bunch of shipping fees and being without your book for a while. Ping me on Discord and we'll chat.
...I think I pitched in to the cover art fund when you signed my copy and we talked a second about how the alternate endings of The Last Dreams of Pony Island would be a logistical nightmare, but it's possible I'm remembering something else. If I didn't, I'd be happy to.
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I didn't keep notes, but I think you did, too. I do remember that conversation.
(And thank you!)
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If missing the final Bronycon was the first emotional blow to the young hobbyist author, missing the shipping date of his package by just a day that same month was the second. He knew his book would be waiting for him when he returned from college for break, but that didn't make the waiting any shorter or any easier. But he was used to waiting. Like he'd tried to save up and waited for Bronycon in '17. And in '18. And then again in '19.
He thought about his book often at college. When his gaze fell on the bright round moon in the east in the early evening or the waxing crescent racing the sun in the morning, he would think of the story about the lunar horse and the package waiting for him at home, and he longed for events to have worked out differently. But he had to wait. Then at last, the long-awaited day finally arrived.
When he arrived, he found the small brown box waiting for him on his desk, placed neatly beside a pair of books whose covers sported equines with vibrant colors and cartoonish proportions. He opened one end of the box and let the book slide out as much as it could before it caught on the side flap. When he saw the author's name, his face broke out into a giddy smile and he rushed to get the book the rest of the way out.
With book in hand, he sat down in his bed and flipped through to the table of contents, and from there to page seventy-five of the book. His eyes hung on every word, dancing from one line to the next as he hummed a simple tune to himself and read, There once was a story about a horse who moved the moon.
"She was a beautiful dark winged unicorn with a mane like the night, and she galloped across the sky with the sound of distant crickets."
The young author closed his moistening eyes and sighed as he held the book close to his chest. And "Chirrup, chirrup," he said aloud as he imagined his own Moon Horse reading along with him.
Thank you.