TRANSHUMAN AND SUBHUMAN
The essays are brilliant and thought-provoking. They inspire, they inform, they educate, they entertain, and they will more than likely enrage a few readers. They provide fascinating insight into the mind and methods of one of science fiction's greatest living masters. From beginning to end, Mr. Wright shows himself to be as able an essayist as he is a novelist.
Following an introduction by science fiction author Michael Flynn, Mr. Wright addresses everything from technological transhumanity to theological Gnosticism. He examines SF authors from H.G. Wells to Ted Chiang, and explains why it is A.E. van Vogt, and not Arthur C. Clarke or Ray Bradbury, who is the third of the Big Three of science fiction. And he explains why science fiction is fundamentally more important to humanity than what presently passes itself off as mainstream literature.
In "Science Fiction: What is it Good For?" Wright writes:
"Stories serve several quotidian purposes. I listed them above: they are fables to instruct the young and epics to preserve the memory of the great, and ghost stories to tell about campfires to give us all a sense of proportion and remind us (like the charioteers of Caesars during their triumphs and ovations) that all men are mortal. But there is something more that they serve, a purpose which is utterly unworldly, and utterly inexplicable to the Morlocks, who have no imagination, and need none.
"We sons of Adam are exiles here on this world. It does not suit us. We are not comfortable here, and those who say they are comfortable in this world of injustice and disease and death are not more sane and more well adapted to the environment than we who dream; they are merely inert in their souls, too dull to hear the horns of Elfland softly blowing."
To read TRANSHUMAN AND SUBHUMAN is to not only hear the horns of Elfland blowing, but to understand why they must be blown.
In the company with TRANSHUMAN AND SUBHUMAN, we are also announcing the publication of a second ebook by Mr. Wright. AWAKE IN THE NIGHT is the first novella that is contained in the anthology-novel AWAKE IN THE NIGHT LAND. We are publishing it separately in order to be able to periodically give it away via Kindle Select and thereby introduce unsuspecting individuals to the epic horrors and forlorn hopes of the Night Land. It is also an attempt to address the surprising price elasticity of ebooks, as we have noticed that more than a few people prefer to take a chance on a $2.99 ebook that they will not take on a much longer $4.99 ebook. Since we are but humble servants of the market, we are happy to accommodate those economic preferences.Labels: Castalia House
71 Comments:
You know what this means. Launch party!
Yay! I have been waiting for this one! :)
Curious what you mentioned about the ebook prices. I am one of those that won't pay more than $7.00 for an ebook, by anybody. I simply refuse.
The new Dresden Files book is out at the end of May. Went to Amazon to see the exact day it would be out and they list $11.99 for the Kindle edition. Are they INSANE? Not a chance. I'll wait a year or two if necessary or simple get it at the library in the dead tree version. And my husband gives me a relatively large monthly book allowance. It's not like I am a penny pincher. I just can't justify that price for an ebook novel.
So that digression was merely to note that anything you sell that is $7.00 or less, I'll buy....
How does one price an ebook?
...explains why it is A.E. van Vogt, and not Arthur C. Clarke or Ray Bradbury, who is the third of the Big Three of science fiction.
I like it already.
Mr. Wright's writing may be the reason I finally break down and buy a Kindle. I still like paper books. Just what I've read here - his conversion story, the paragraph starting with the sons of Adam being in exile - touch me in much the same way as Tolkien and Lewis. It's like music that brings tears, but I can't explain why. Maybe it's because it's in harmony with the horns of Elfland that I hear...
I still read van Vogt. I haven't read Clarke in 20 years. Clarke may have been more current with the science in his lifetime, but that really doesn't mean anything for the long haul. After all, the entire evolutionary premise at the core of the 2001 books is entirely scientifically obsolete now. He may as well have based the books on Theobald's cybernation theories. Of course, it isn't the failure of science that takes the zip out of Clarke: his most emotional work occurred in a handful of short works. The longer his books, the less human they became.
Van Vogt on the other hand has humans in action almost (but not quite) to a fault. Love his stuff.
When can we look forward to dead tree versions of these and other Castalia House titles?
I regularly see people contemplating getting a Kindle, but are reluctant to give up their paper books. I’d say that first it isn’t binary, as in you can own a Kindle yet still buy regular books when you desire, and second I’ve only met one person who used a Kindle and after a few days didn’t like it and went back to paper books. This person did not read for pleasure often and part of the rejection was that she did not think it was worth the money since she read so little.
Considering the generous return policies on Kindles, and the cheapest being a mere $69 or even less if bought used, I believe that a regular reader is truly missing out by not adding one to their library by purposely avoiding them. (You aren’t losing your paper book collection by owning one!) I’ve found that the elderly really like them once they get used to them as they can adjust the font size larger and even read without glasses or at least much more easily.
How does one price an ebook?
I think this is an interesting question.
Will we ever see a sort of general standardization? The publishing industry is largely still in a state of flux with some publishers, like Castalia House, proactively trying to adjust to the inevitable new model more than others. Another year or two out to sort things out a bit.
Another year or two ought to sort things out a bit.
Shutterbug, you can, alternatively, turn your Android or iOS device into a Kindle-reader with their app.
OT: Rabbits are still trying to take over gaming.
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=813295
> ...and the cheapest being a mere $69 or even less if bought used
The local Best Buy had Kindles for $49 when we were there this weekend. The Paperwhite was $99. These are the ad supported versions, of course. But I understand you can remove the ads at anytime by paying Amazon $15. They didn't seem to have any Nooks there, but the SimpleTouch is listed as $49 on their site, and the GlowLight is $99 for Mother's Day on the B&N website.
I picked up my SimpleTouch for $20 shipped from a computer resale place. I've been happy with it so far, though I doubt B&N has, as I haven't purchased a single book from them.
> Shutterbug, you can, alternatively, turn your Android or iOS device into a Kindle-reader with their app.
Or your PC. The Kindle for PC app is pretty good. I use it for downloading their free books on occasion.
In either case, of course (Kindle or Nook), I'd advise reading up on DRM removal. What you buy should be yours.
Somebody really blew it. That title could've been "Science Fiction: (Huh! Good god, y'all!) What is it Good For?"
I was reluctant at first when I received my kindle as a gift. I still enjoy pap power books, but I've found I am able to read far more books with the kindle. It's easier to pick up where I've left off when I'm distracted, which is almost constant with young kids around.
Order has been placed and now it's in que with others from your house. Lots of good reading on the horizon.
I'm not anti-ebook/e-reader at all. I just prefer books.
I also find that after spending eight+ hours a day staring at two LCDs for work, a book is rather cathartic and calming.
@ JartStar
Concur with your thoughts above. I love my paperwhite. I just wish Amason would, and I know why they don't, allow the Kindle to read epub like most everything else in the known, civilized universe.
Been lacking in reading time lately as I've been educating myself on how to make ebooks and have made serveral and put them into my Kindle under .mobi. It can be a bit steep curve at times. Calibre is your friend, however.
Oh yes. Per your recco of some time past I have and have started How to read a book. Don't laugh Ilk, till you dig in that one and find out just what reading comprehension means. Thanks Jartstar.
ebook definately has its place. IngramSpark looks interesting, especially if one also might want paper. It adds a layer between the writer and Amazon or the iStore, but it may be worth it. It's still not a publisher though.
> I just wish Amason would, and I know why they don't, allow the Kindle to read epub like most everything else in the known, civilized universe.
Well, first, Calibre does a fairly nice job of converting epub to mobi, which the Kindle can read. Second, Markku noted in a recent thread that the upcoming Kindle standard would be epub based.
Add to what Jartstar is saying: some brilliant (and handsome) authors have figured out that Amazon allows folks to bundle the print edition and the digital edition. Buy the paperback, get the ebook for free...
The nice thing with that? For folks who prefer their paperbacks, the kindle just serves as a more portable version. Leave the pback at home and take the kindle with you.
> Buy the paperback, get the ebook for free...
Solely at the discretion of the publisher, unfortunately. So check before you buy.
While I understand the contextual implication, can anyone with the book translate this for me?
"Peter u bagronk sha pushdug Jackson-glob bubhosh skai!"
Finally a non-sexist, non-racist, non-homophobic label for the not Sons of Adam:
Morlocks.
Thank you, Mr. Wright.
Forget it, I found it. "to the dung pit with stinking jackson-filth, pig-guts, gah!"
Sounds very good, I will pick this up soon.
Solely at the discretion of the publisher, unfortunately. So check before you buy.
I tried to make that clear by indicating the author/publishers who do this are both brilliant and handsome, like me.
Look for Kindle Matchbook books. Anything with that tag means that when you get the paperback, you get the kindle version at a discount or (as in my case) free. For me, when you buy my book, you buy my ideas and stories, not the packaging that contains them. I now sell more of my books outside of Amazon than within it, but their exclusive bundling thing is a real differentiator. Anything that can make book buying friendlier is good...publishers just need to get more comfortable with matchbook. I can't see any downside (after all, if I've ever had a reader who shelled out separate money for the same book in two formats, I'd be stunned.)
jack,
It's gratifying to see that you are enjoying Adler.
My primary reasons for owning a Kindle (and I speak as the owner of well over 3,000 books) are that I can carry scores of books in the palm of my hand and that I can read books which will never be published in hardcover/paperback form.
> I tried to make that clear by indicating the author/publishers who do this are both brilliant and handsome...
Oh, I figured that, Daniel. :) I just wasn't sure the general case was clear, so I wanted to warn people.
> ...and I speak as the owner of well over 3,000 books...
Piker. :)
Purchased the latest Wright stuff today. Looking forward to it.
Second, Markku noted in a recent thread that the upcoming Kindle standard would be epub based.
This is most interesting, indeed. If Amazon does this I will almost certainly buy the new version, long as it is a version that includes paperwhite. Surely they would not be so stupid as to not.....
I expect it will be a firmware upgrade, Jack, and as such should work with current readers.
Ah, more details, though I note they carefully don't mention epub in the article: http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?docId=1000729511
And more info is available at http://wiki.mobileread.com/wiki/KF8, which states "KF8 (also called AZW3) is basically a compiled ePub that has been compiled using a Palm database and Amazon's DRM scheme".
When can we look forward to dead tree versions of these and other Castalia House titles?
Probably 2-3 months. The first two available in hardcover will be AWAKE IN THE NIGHT LAND and TRANSHUMAN AND SUBHUMAN.
"Finally a non-sexist, non-racist, non-homophobic label for the not Sons of Adam:
Morlocks. Thank you, Mr. Wright."
Alas, my brother, the Morlocks are as much Sons of Adam as are we. They merely follow in the footsteps of Grendel.
(If you are a fan of Beowulf you catch my reference: Grendel the monster is identified as the offspring of Cain after the High God exiled Cain from civilization, and damned him to wander the earth forever.)
I eagerly await both books in hardcover! I you are not handing it over to a one copy at a time print on demand printer. I'm willing to put up money in advance to avoid that.
that is...I hope you are not.
It is most likely Cain truly repented, look at what he named his children.
I have been slowly converted to e-versions of books. I still like being able to flip a paper books more quickly, but carrying many books at once is a great advantage as noted above.
I would personally not buy a Kindle proper though, I currently prefer my Samsung Note Pro 12.2 inch as it has the proper size to read even PDF files at a decent size. The screen doesn't both me as much.
I read John Wright's golden trilogy on my Kindle Fire, IIRC, prior to getting my current preferred device.
I can also carry or access the books on my phone (Samsung Note 3) as well, so that is a double advantage. I doubt I will buy print fiction much anymore. A tech book has more merit in print, but the convenience is swaying me even there.
aviendha, I bet you'd be surprised at the books you own that are print on demand. If the printer is quality, it doesn't matter if the printshop did it one at a time or in bulk. Where the reader runs into POD problems is when the company doing it isn't quality...but that same risk applies to bulk printers. Now, if you are a publisher, there are different issues, but there have been as many notorious bad bulk runs in print as there have in POD, and the damage is more widespread.
Purchased just now, via Amazon!
I've had a lot of quality problems with print on demand. Hardcovers that fell apart after 2-3 openings of the front cover and poor quality paper/etc. I even bought a special "hardcover" kids book from BN.com where what was shipped was not hardcover, it was a print on demand. BN refused to refund or take it back even when they acknowledge the "hardcover" was an error on their site because it was print on demand.
Reading the comments it sounds like I'm in a minority. I'll gladly pay extra to get good or better quality regardless of printing method (I stand corrected :).
thanks
James Dixon May 05, 2014 3:28 PM
And more info is available at http://wiki.mobileread.com/wiki/KF8, which states "KF8 (also called AZW3) is basically a compiled ePub that has been compiled using a Palm database and Amazon's DRM scheme".
Now, there is a crap sandwich. Cancel what I said about buying a epub Kindle. Leave it to amazon [I refuse to capitalise them any further] to do something like this. You know, their silly butt insistence on their precious drm is going to sink that ship yet. Though, an independent computer guy told me, when I mentioned Denninger's warnings about the amazon profit margins, that they make much gold renting out infrastructure to some big names. I'm Castalia has gone to epub offerings.
I suppose it would not be a major challenge to crack amazon's drm but I like to be honest. At least some of the people in this country have to be honest. Don't they?
Thanks for the comments about various e-readers. My main concern about e-readers is that they are software-based and software is constantly updating. Are books ever lost to system crashes and are those who own e-readers needing to do frequent software or system updates to keep the books they have or risk losing them? Please, when you answer keep in mind I don't even own a smart phone. I check the news and various blogs on my laptop in the morning and then I'm pretty much done with the internet and the computer for the day. :-)
Jeanne May 05, 2014 9:57 AM
"Curious what you mentioned about the ebook prices. I am one of those that won't pay more than $7.00 for an ebook, by anybody. I simply refuse."
Now and then everyone appreciates something for nothing however we should keep in mind that not all authors are backed by gov't grants...
When considering entertainment $ per hour then $2 delta (2.99 vs 4.99) seems trivial, just enough to overcome that purchaser inertia.
"We sons of Adam are exiles here on this world. It does not suit us. We are not comfortable here, and those who say they are comfortable in this world of injustice and disease and death are not more sane and more well adapted to the environment than we who dream; they are merely inert in their souls, too dull to hear the horns of Elfland softly blowing."
I enjoy reading the blog and comments and have never posted before, but I cried when I read that. Truly profound.
S.H.
I just finished 'Whistle while you work', and I'm very comfortable asserting that Mr. Wright is the new Chesterton.
His phrasing and use of paradox are at once refreshing but so familiar.
Shutterbug, here it is in what I hope is plain language:
1) some of the ebooks you might buy will be disposable, esp. at $2.99. So, they aren't going to junk up your house, you'll get the reading you want, and if you really want to, you can delete them when you are done but you don't have to.
2) if you purchase ebooks in EPUB format, you really aren't going to have to worry about software updates. EPUB has been around as long as .DOC files, and can (and will) easily port to the newest devices, but also can be read on the oldest ones.
3) If you really insist on keeping paper back-ups (as opposed to electronic back-ups) you can print your EPUB documents out, front-to-back. You'll want a good stapler and a decent filing system, but the format will allow you to store far more physical books in a smaller space than the traditional print book. Now, that may be a little ridiculous, but I have, in fact, printed out about a half-dozen of my epubs so I could share them with someone who didn't have an ereader (or a smartphone). The nice thing was I could print them out in large print, because the person I gave them too prefers that setting.
4) You will find that you won't give up printed books: you'll simply reserve your buying of the more expensive print editions for a narrower, but more welcome, range of fine books.
"You know, their silly butt insistence on their precious drm is going to sink that ship yet."
Amazon doesn't insist on anything. The publisher chooses whether to apply DRM or not, and a growing number of Kindle publishers don't.
I'd say that this ends up being a good thing for epub. Now that it essentially has absolute monopoly for the underlying format, it's going to be developed further more aggressively. Right now, for complex formatting (such as mathematical formulas), PDF is still the king of the hill.
and second I’ve only met one person who used a Kindle and after a few days didn’t like it and went back to paper books
Count me among that number nominally. I own a Kindle, and have read The Stars Came Back and Awake in the Night Land (among a couple of other titles that didn't have dead tree versions). But I far, far prefer dead tree versions. I am looking to purchase SE (and the accompanying shorts) in the dead tree version now, having just finished ATOB. Of course I am kicking myself that I didn't purchase said version when I had the chance.
I cannot easily read most 'dead tree' print any longer as it is too small and 'dim' to my eyes.
Can't remember if I posted this or not. Apologies if I did. Vox Day / Castalia and John C. Wright. "Louie, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship."
> I suppose it would not be a major challenge to crack amazon's drm but I like to be honest.
There's nothing dishonest about owning what you pay for. Google "Calibre DRM removal".
That said, there's a reason (well, besides being cheap) that I went with the Nook.
> Amazon doesn't insist on anything. The publisher chooses whether to apply DRM or not, and a growing number of Kindle publishers don't.
True. The publisher calls the shots on DRM, not Amazon.
> My main concern about e-readers is that they are software-based and software is constantly updating. Are books ever lost to system crashes and are those who own e-readers needing to do frequent software or system updates to keep the books they have or risk losing them?
OK, I can't speak for B&N's system, but I can comment on Amazon's.
Constantly updating is an exaggeration. These are Linux based devices with a very minimal embedded OS. They probably update twice a year or so.
If your update bricks your device, then you'll lose that device, but not any books you've purchased from Amazon. They keep copies of your books in the cloud, and you can keep those copies on up to five devices (Kindle, Kindle for PC, Kindle for Android, etc.). My wife has two Kindle's, and all of her Amazon purchases are available on both, as well as her PC. Books you purchase from outside sources will be lost if they're not backed up.
You won't lose any already purchased books if you don't update, but you may eventually get locked out of new purchases.
"Alas, my brother, the Morlocks are as much Sons of Adam as are we. They merely follow in the footsteps of Grendel."
Thank you again.
VD, a question. You directly linked to Amazon in this post, but there is not a readily available direct link on Castalia House. Well, I did find it under Store, but it's not under Science Fiction or Non-Fiction. Is that an external restriction?
rho: Vox seems to have fixed this by now. At least I see it under both categories.
I see it listed as text, but there's no direct link on the castaliahouse.com domain. That's why I asked if it was disallowed.
Ah, right. We primarily try to direct people to Amazon, because sales rankings and reviews are more important than the extra couple dozen percent more that we make off direct sales.
Yes, I understand, but see here:
http://www.castaliahouse.com/non-fiction/
It links to nothing, and seems to indicate that TH&SH will arrive in the future.
Get your shit together, guys.
I see. Vox has forgotten to write that page. It isn't actually part of the store, but a DESCRIPTION of our non-fiction publications. The actual download category is the non-fiction submenu item under the store-tab. Direct link:
http://www.castaliahouse.com/downloads/category/non-fiction/
Yes, I can get there from here. That's not the point.
Now and then everyone appreciates something for nothing however we should keep in mind that not all authors are backed by gov't grants...
I agree! Authors should be paid. I believe Castalia pays a better royalty rate than most traditional publishers do. And certainly, my $7.00 limit per ebook applies only to singular novels. If I was buying the Encyclopedia of Wars for example or a trilogy or any other type of bundled series, I would certainly expect to and be willing to pay more.
Yes, I can get there from here. That's not the point.
Rho, we appreciate suggestions and corrections. We are rather less appreciative of being told to "get our shit together". While there is always room for improvement, that we are successfully releasing books to very positive reviews would tend to indicate that our shit is, at a minimum, not entirely dispersed.
We have a very small team and while we hope to turn the CH site into a destination eventually, it is not our foremost priority. For example, getting the AWAKE promotion prepared for today, updating the TRANSHUMAN file to correct some typos, and adding a new story to the next forthcoming publication all took priority.
Especially since we were doing this while on the road.
Thanks, Daniel and James Dixon. I see a Kindle in my future.
rho: It would appear that you are an asshole.
Just an observation.
My apologies. I appreciate what you're doing and the efforts involved, but I also appreciate completeness. I humbly suggest that updating the Web site should not be such an ordeal that it can't be completed four days later.
Perhaps I am an asshole. I'm not wrong, though.
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