SST Publications

[RonClinton]

I completely agree. PARADISE SKY might have been the first SST book I purchased and it is still available. It boggles the mind. Same thing with Earthling's The Thicket.

I collect Lansdale, but don't have either book, so the reasons for my reluctance may be representative as to why both remain available (or not, maybe I'm just an outlier). Price is the only reason for Earthling's THE THICKET, and the words "Illustrated Edition" on the SST edition of PARADISE SKY is the reason I've avoided that volume. I know the latter reason seems ridiculous (especially since it's on the boards and not the dj, I believe), but for whatever reason it bothers me to no end and, in my eyes, cheapens the book though its amateurish proclamation. I'm also not a particular fan of glossy image boards, though I tolerate it from PS. This is with all due respect to Paul at SST, who I think (as I said just recently) now turns out the best bang for the buck among UK small presses, a Subterranean Press with an English accent, just a beautiful, professional product of which I'm proud to own a number of (and have several more on pre-order). But this early edition of PARADISE SKY just strikes me as in contrast to that.

So that's why. For some collectors, it's a central, obvious thing like price, for others it can be the most innocuous, silly reason imaginable, like a couple of words on a glossy board. But when you're dealing all the idiosyncrasies that go into our hobby, sometimes it's the small stuff that makes all the difference to someone.

[Dan Hocker]

Yeah it's pricier than most Earthling books, but I think it's worth it. It's leather bound with wonderful art.

That's not always enough. It's a combination of everything, price vs quality, perceived value, author's popularity, ease of purchase, the publisher's reach. It's all these things mixed together. We struggle with this too sometimes (with titles at a much lower price). Take Mystery Road for example. It's been reviewed fairly well, is reasonably priced, and CD has a fairly large reach for our industry. Yet we still have loads of copies left and probably will for quite awhile. No idea why it worked out that way, but it's some combination of all of those things, plus the economic situation of the world at the moment.


Specifically about Earthling (and I don't mean any offense), their site really needs a functionality update. Any point of "friction" you provide a potential customer is place to loose a sale. You want to make it as easy as possible for a customer to buy your products. I'm pretty tech savy and it took me a couple of minutes to find where to buy it at on their site. On top of that they've got a real google search results problem. If you search "the thicket by joe lansdale limited edition" Dark Regions page selling the book is the first result, but Earthling's page is no where to be found. I'm not really sure how best you solve this, but I would think a website / store overhaul would go a long way. Ideally Earthling would want anyone searching for "The Thicket by Joe Lansdale" to find their page on the first page of results, but that can be a bit harder with something that has other editions published by other publishers.

[jeffingoff]

The Thicket has that $150 price tag, which doesn't help. It's not as pricey as a Suntup Edition, but it's definitely higher than the normal signed edition.

Yeah it's pricier than most Earthling books, but I think it's worth it. It's leather bound with wonderful art.

[Splync]

I completely agree. PARADISE SKY might have been the first SST book I purchased and it is still available. It boggles the mind. Same thing with Earthling's The Thicket.

I can't speak for the story, but The Silence is a gorgeous book with Vaillancourt's stunning art. I can't wait to read it.

The Thicket has that $150 price tag, which doesn't help. It's not as pricey as a Suntup Edition, but it's definitely higher than the normal signed edition.

[jeffingoff]

I've been hemming and hawing about picking up THE SILENCE (I'll probably cave), but- I've been saying for quite awhile now that, as a huge long-time Lansdale fanatic and serious collector- SST's PARADISE SKY is absolutely one of the best Lansdale limiteds ever produced. It's just a gorgeous book- especially for the price! It's a real bargain, and I don't understand why it's still available. It's also Joe's self-proclaimed favorite novel of his, so- everyone should have one! Congrats- you're gonna love it!

I completely agree. PARADISE SKY might have been the first SST book I purchased and it is still available. It boggles the mind. Same thing with Earthling's The Thicket.

I can't speak for the story, but The Silence is a gorgeous book with Vaillancourt's stunning art. I can't wait to read it.

[swintek]

I received my shipping notice for GROWING THINGS and THE SILENCE and decided to celebrate by finally picking a copy of SST’s PARADISE SKY by Joe Lansdale. So now I have three new SST books on their way to add to my collection. Pretty excited to get all in hand.

I've been hemming and hawing about picking up THE SILENCE (I'll probably cave), but- I've been saying for quite awhile now that, as a huge long-time Lansdale fanatic and serious collector- SST's PARADISE SKY is absolutely one of the best Lansdale limiteds ever produced. It's just a gorgeous book- especially for the price! It's a real bargain, and I don't understand why it's still available. It's also Joe's self-proclaimed favorite novel of his, so- everyone should have one! Congrats- you're gonna love it!

[RonClinton]

I received my shipping notice for GROWING THINGS and THE SILENCE and decided to celebrate by finally picking a copy of SST’s PARADISE SKY by Joe Lansdale. So now I have three new SST books on their way to add to my collection. Pretty excited to get all in hand.

That’s going to be one heckuva exciting Book Mail day when that big box arrives!

[Sock Monkey]

I received my shipping notice for GROWING THINGS and THE SILENCE and decided to celebrate by finally picking a copy of SST’s PARADISE SKY by Joe Lansdale. So now I have three new SST books on their way to add to my collection. Pretty excited to get all in hand.

[Martin]

I'm excited for Westlake Soul as that's another book on my favorite books list. I was planning on a re-read of this one this year and couldn't pass up the opportunity to re-read it in a beautiful edition.

I have been interested in reading this for quite some time. When I receive this it will be my first reading.

[bookworm 1]

I have Westlake Soul on pre-order. I keep hearing good things about The Only Good Indians but the only other book I have read from this author was Mapping the Interior and I was less than impressed.

I'm excited for Westlake Soul as that's another book on my favorite books list. I was planning on a re-read of this one this year and couldn't pass up the opportunity to re-read it in a beautiful edition.

[bookworm 1]

No, I skipped that one as I have a signed UK tpb 1st of it. That said, I loved the book and have been giving a lot of thought to picking up the SST edition. Good to know it’s a similarly impressive volume.

The Silence is one of my favorite books and the SST edition is a perfect edition.I love it. It's a beautiful edition and if you love the book I'd jump on this edition while it's still available.

[Martin]

I just took the dive and preordered Westlake Soul and The Only Good Indians from Camelot. I've been well pleased with the Tremblay books and Paranoia Tango by Ray Garton, so I suspect I will not be disappointed.

I have Westlake Soul on pre-order. I keep hearing good things about The Only Good Indians but the only other book I have read from this author was Mapping the Interior and I was less than impressed.

[slayn666]

I just took the dive and preordered Westlake Soul and The Only Good Indians from Camelot. I've been well pleased with the Tremblay books and Paranoia Tango by Ray Garton, so I suspect I will not be disappointed.

[Splync]

That's now a $130, unsigned GIFT EDITION.

Technically they ARE signed, but just by the artist. I know it's not what you mean, but I just wanted to clarify.

Yeah, the prices of the Suntup gift editions have gone up significantly, but I personally think that the price can be seen in the productions. I was surprised that Paul was able to produce those editions so cheaply and apparently he was actually losing money on each AGE.

But to get myself back in topic, SST does phenomenal editions! I'm pretty sure I had ordered The Silence through CD (I really need to keep better track of my preorders), so I can't wait to finally add that title to my library.

[Sock Monkey]

Westlake Soul is a great read. Made me cry three different times.

I don't cry often. Maybe it was just something specific to me. IDK.

Not just you. That book made both me and my wife cry. It’s such an overlooked gem of a book. I can’t want for SST’s edition. I love it so much I wish they were doing a Suntup-style super-deluxe high end edition.