BronyCon Bookstore and Without a Hive · 10:27pm Apr 16th, 2019
This makes me so ridiculously happy:
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I've had a lot of fun writing these stories. I love this site, where I can put up these stories for others to see, and get feedback from everyone who reads it. Yet there's something amazing about having a physical copy of it in my hands. I keep looking over at it and just grinning.
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It's so cool being able to open a book and see all the words I've written, like I'm a "real" author. My story, formatted and printed all professional-like. I know it's maybe a little silly. I'm a big fan of digital formats, but seeing my own story in a physical, printed form, it's such a happy feeling. And that cover!
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The dust jacket is a full wrap-around image I commissioned from viwrastupr, who has produced some truly amazing artwork (Such as this spectacular piece). When I started setting out on making this print copy a reality, I knew I wanted to commission a new version of the cover. The same idea, but better, fit for printing, and oh boy, did viwrastupr deliver. I just can't get over how wonderful the cover is. A cellphone picture taken with my limited photography and lighting skills really don't do it justice:
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I'd also like to give thanks again to Nytus for helping with editing, and for the encouragement that led to this happening.
Now, I'm happy enough having a copy of this for myself, but there's another reason for it: the BronyCon Bookstore project. While I won't be going to the con, I'm planning to send copies of the book, probably around ten, to be sold (at cost) in the store. I don't know if they'll all sell, or if any of them will sell, but I love the idea of the project, and I'm happy to support it in any way I can. So if you're going to BronyCon, you might just see some copies of Without a Hive out there. 
First Dead Tree now this! Wow there's a few books I want to buy now
Holy heck, that art and the book to boot, Congrats!
Congratulations! Hopefully I'll be able to pick up a copy.
Any chance of there being online orders for us in far away lands? I want this sooo bad now.
I am happy to have lit the fire under you to get this project off the ground. I can't wait to put my hands on one!
Are you planning to sign and number the first run? I bet there is going to be a lot more interest than you think. A second run isn't unthinkable, so those first editions might end up collectibles.
I am getting #2, right?
Congratulations! It's always nice to see someone from our fandom succeed.
Whoa! Congratulations! That is super amazing and awesome!
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One nice thing about this setup is that it'll be easy to run off additional copies! The first batch will be going to BronyCon, but after that's done, I'll be happy to sell any that are left (Or print out more!) for anyone who wants to get a copy. So... probably in August.
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Hmm... I dunno about numbering and signing all of them. I'm not sure if everyone would want that.
But I'll definitely number yours, and apply my messy scribble that vaguely resembles a signature.
Nice!
I want one
Oooh if I can get to bronycon I hope I get to pick a copy up. Any chances of Fallout: Equestria - The Chrysalis getting a physical printing
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That would be harder... 180,000 words took us a couple of months to comb through. Half a million words would take... longer. Not to mention the page count limit on most publishers. They don't like going over 800 pages, so it may have to be broken into a few books.
If the page count remained close to the last version I worked on, Without a Hive should be around 617 pages. I am just guessing here, but I'd think the page count for his FOE beast would be about 1400.
That said, if Phoenix asked me to do so, I'd start in on The Chrysalis tomorrow. Though I would imagine the logical choice would be to finish off the rest of the trilogy, and print Fragments and A New Way first.
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I'm glad to hear that there's probably going to be more for sale. I don't know if I'll be able to make bronycon and this is one of the only stories I'd actually want a print of.
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Fair enough, I'd volunteer to help though I don't really know what the process is.
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I'll put that as a solid "Maaaaybe?"
That story is larger than all three of my other stories combined, so it's quite the project. It certainly wouldn't be a single book. I'd have to go to some specialty publisher to get something that big printed. Instead, I'd likely split it into three books (And I think I actually have pretty good breakpoints for that, too). On the plus side, that means I'd have three new covers commissioned, and if they turn out even half as good as the one for Without a Hive, that'd be pretty awesome all on its own
Right now, I'm thinking of doing the other stories that went along with Without a Hive. In fact... I've already started going through Fragments again. And now that I've gotten the basic formatting down from this book, it'll be much easier to get new books all set up.
But after that... maybe.
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Yeah, pretty much all this!
Incidentally, once I did the final formatting for Lulu, it actually ended up shorter. 488 pages, including the "An Old Life" bonus chapter. I also just got Tiamat's Wrath, which gave me something convenient to compare it to. They have similar cover dimensions, with mine slightly thinner, and the text is almost exactly the same in size, but mine has slightly smaller margins leading to a couple more lines per page. And I got a hell of a kick out of being able to compare my own story on equal ground with a professionally published book.
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Please do! I would love a copy!
Dang it! The number of books I need to save luggage space for continues to increase.
So, how are we deciding who gets these ten copies? Some kind of Thunderdome-type arrangement?
Seriously, Without a Hive is one of my absolute favorite stories on the site, and I doubt I'm the only one who feels that way. You might be underestimating the demand for these tomes.
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Three whole books?
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That's a nice maybe!
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I might have to bump the number up a little
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If you print them, they will sell.
Yeah, I have at least three of them pre-sold for ya, Phoenix.
Hey that's neat!
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Out of innocent, unrelated curiosity, what would those three breakpoints be?
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Purely innocent, I'm sure
(Spoilered since this post is tagged to a different story)
I'm thinking the most likely breakpoints would be when Whisper leaves the ruins of her hive, and when she finds the surviving eggs. It seems like it divides the story into three sub-stories: the first with her adapting to the new world she finds herself in and the discovery of the fate of her hive; the second being the quest to find any survivors so that she can rebuild her hive; and the third being the climactic conflict to secure a safe future for her hive and everyone else. It's not quite as neat as if I'd written the story to be divided at those points, but I think it still works pretty well.
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Ah, I see...
*starts typing furiously*
So, did Bronycon already happen? If there's any way for me to get a book I'd love to know.
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BronyCon is at the beginning of August, so there's a little bit to go, still. Once it's over and any remaining books are returned, I'll start working on offering sales online.
Thanks for the quick reply :). I have quite a library of mlp fanfiction already, and without a hive is one of my favourites. I just finished reading the trilogy again, I lost count of how many times I've read them now. I would really love to add one of those stories to my collection.