I've contacted another Englishman in the antiquarian book world to see if he'll read A65 and let me know if it works. Can't get any response from the ones I've asked...not that I'm surprised. It's book fair season so I should have asked about this during the Christmas lull. This guy's more free-lance but has a strong background in both the retail and private library aspects of it.
I want to get the book done and out there. I've got my cover and now just need to make certain I don't need to do any major rewriting or changing of the number of pages before I settle in on the cover size...especially since I can already see moments where I'd like to make the sentence structure smoother.
I guess that means I'll be rewriting this thing until it's gone to the printers. And even then I may want to make changes. Mary Shelley rewrote Frankenstein in 1831 after first publishing it 13 years earlier. This is from Wikipedia --
Shelley completed her writing in April/May 1817, and Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus was published on 1 January 1818[24] by the small London publishing house Lackington, Hughes, Harding, Mavor, & Jones.[25][26] It was issued anonymously, with a preface written for Mary by Percy Bysshe Shelley and with a dedication to philosopher William Godwin, her father. It was published in an edition of just 500 copies in three volumes, the standard "triple-decker" format for 19th-century first editions.
The second edition of Frankenstein was published on 11 August 1822 in two volumes (by G. and W. B. Whittaker) following the success of the stage play Presumption; or, the Fate of Frankenstein by Richard Brinsley Peake.[27] This edition credited Mary Shelley as the book's author on its title page.
On 31 October 1831, the first "popular" edition in one-volume appeared, published by Henry Colburn & Richard Bentley.[28] This edition was heavily revised by Mary Shelley, partially to make the story less radical. It included a lengthy new preface by the author, presenting a somewhat embellished version of the genesis of the story. This edition is the one most widely published and read now, although a few editions follow the 1818 text.[29] Some scholars prefer the original version, arguing that it preserves the spirit of Mary Shelley's vision (see Anne K. Mellor's "Choosing a Text of Frankenstein to Teach" in the W. W. Norton Critical edition).
I want to get the book done and out there. I've got my cover and now just need to make certain I don't need to do any major rewriting or changing of the number of pages before I settle in on the cover size...especially since I can already see moments where I'd like to make the sentence structure smoother.
I guess that means I'll be rewriting this thing until it's gone to the printers. And even then I may want to make changes. Mary Shelley rewrote Frankenstein in 1831 after first publishing it 13 years earlier. This is from Wikipedia --
Shelley completed her writing in April/May 1817, and Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus was published on 1 January 1818[24] by the small London publishing house Lackington, Hughes, Harding, Mavor, & Jones.[25][26] It was issued anonymously, with a preface written for Mary by Percy Bysshe Shelley and with a dedication to philosopher William Godwin, her father. It was published in an edition of just 500 copies in three volumes, the standard "triple-decker" format for 19th-century first editions.
The second edition of Frankenstein was published on 11 August 1822 in two volumes (by G. and W. B. Whittaker) following the success of the stage play Presumption; or, the Fate of Frankenstein by Richard Brinsley Peake.[27] This edition credited Mary Shelley as the book's author on its title page.
On 31 October 1831, the first "popular" edition in one-volume appeared, published by Henry Colburn & Richard Bentley.[28] This edition was heavily revised by Mary Shelley, partially to make the story less radical. It included a lengthy new preface by the author, presenting a somewhat embellished version of the genesis of the story. This edition is the one most widely published and read now, although a few editions follow the 1818 text.[29] Some scholars prefer the original version, arguing that it preserves the spirit of Mary Shelley's vision (see Anne K. Mellor's "Choosing a Text of Frankenstein to Teach" in the W. W. Norton Critical edition).
John Fowles did it, too, with The Magus, if I remember right. So I'm following in hallowed footsteps, if I do. But reality is, it would be silly for me to do that. Once the book's published, it's done. I can go back through anything I've written and find ways to change it because I'm different now from who I was then. But I think...well, it's almost an insult to the story and characters, like you pushed them out into the world before they were really ready...and I'd hate to do that to Adam and Casey.
But that don't mean I won't.
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