Breaking News…Joshua has given me the schedule for the first three Necroscope(R) audio books. 1. August. 2. October. 3. December. This is how it stands right now.

I am totally excited about this! Hope you all are too.

You can keep up to date at brianlumley.com  but you can always go to: http://brianlumley.net/Services.htmlfor fresh of the press information.

I only update when there is sufficient information to add and right now there seems to be morning going on.

Phew, long time since I have been here. I've posted on FB and just to play safe I'm posting here too.

Hero of Dreams is now available in audio.

http://brianlumley.net/Services.html

I've been extra, very busy these past few days. I now own and maintain http://www.necroscope.org

Couldn't get .com (it's on auction for more than I'm willing to pay) or .co.uk so I've settled for .org. I need to have at least one of these despite the fact that this is the only dot domain that isn't copyright/trademark infringement ... but there you go ... with all the folks using the word Necroscope® without them realizing it's illegal ... you can't contact everybody...

Anyway, it's live now and there are still pages under construction which will take me a while to do. I want to get all the UK and US book art up there, along with the art prints and other media like comics, graphic, sculptures...

Just keeping you informed...

Please don't contact the webmaster with all your posts or myself ... as stated above, as soon as I know anything I'll post it in this forum, I promise...

I can see that people are getting excited, and you all are getting me exited as well when I've gone and looked at some of the links about this on Google ... so let's just keep our fingers crossed...

Earlier this year they did a restructuring which is going to be dire for any buyer or seller no matter what or where they are selling. This has caused me an extreme amount of extra work as I’ve had to go back into all my scheduled listings and change the pricing.

I feel I need to apologize for the rates but I can’t because it’s not my fault.

IN UK: Despite the fact that earlier this year they did a whopping raise from 46p to 60p for first class postings one major thing didn’t change.. Normally compensation cover for loss or damage was the price of the postage stamp, i.e., 46p stamp = £46.00 coverage included in postage. Now that the stamp is 60p they have still kept the coverage at £46.00 and not raised it to £60.00 as it should be.

To add insult to injury, standard parcels used to be the cheapest way to send heavier and valuable items rather than special delivery … and although you were covered up to £46.00 you could still buy additional compensation for the higher valued or heavier items. So I could send i.e. a parcel that weighted 3 kilos with a value of £200.00 for a reasonable price. Ha, thank you Royal Mail. They have changed this now so that no standard parcel gets over £46.00 compensation. What they are doing is forcing people to go with Special Delivery. The standard parcel in the past 3 kilos and a $200.00 value would have cost £10.00 now will cost £25.00 because it has to go special delivery. And the post office says they aren’t making money????

Outside UK: Now, sending to USA, etc. always was expensive but this time even more. Airmail rates are outrageous as it is but because after the problems I had last year … I have to charge anywhere from £5.00 to £8.00 extra depending on value so the item can be tracked. This is unavoidable because with ebay the buyer is protected, the seller is not. I lost out last year by just sending regular airmail. Which meant the buyer got it all and I got nothing. I contacted PayPal and Ebay and was told that because I didn’t send the parcel Airsure or International Signed for (which naturally costs more) I, as the seller, had to take the loss. Well, I can’t do that. At least now if anything goes wrong the buyer doesn’t get it all, which is fair, in a problem I’m fair and say 50/50 but no, seller loses all. So, that’s why the postage is so high.

HOWEVER: Due to all of the above, many items will be excessive in postage charges. But as it states on the listing I will refund to the buyer any excess in postage over £1.00 to their registered ebay PayPal account.

So, there you go…

Lots of emails coming in for what's available for your e-readers. Here are three links which should help you out on what's available ... that's legal!

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Ddigital-text&field-keywords=brian+lumley&x=0&y=0

http://ebookstore.sony.com/search?keyword=brian+lumley&page=2&perpage=10&sortDirection=0

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/brian-lumley?store=ebook

I've spoken to BT and their offer is looking pretty good to me. I'm with Orange right now with their minimum package and that's all I need. BT has offered me the same kind of package and it will cost me less.

But savings aside, how is their service...

1. Do you lose connection very often?

2. When you call with a problem do you have to wait forever to get someone to take care of it? I like the idea that I could now call BT direct rather than being messed about by Orange until they finally call BT. (I have a BT phone line.)

To this point I've only had one major problem with Orange, they messed up my service when they fixed someone else's on the same pole.

All those years ago I started out with Freeserve, very little any spam. Then Freeserve went to Wanadoo but again very little spam. But within a month after Orange took over my email address must have been given to thousands ... the spam never stops. But some time ago I joined up with Yahoo mail. I love the idea of throw away email addresses. I no longer need to go check mail anymore at that site because I only use it for connection service.

With BT I also like the idea of a wireless router, no messing with a modem anymore. And I'll be able to use my little notebook around the house.

So you input on this would be much appreciated.

Don't know much on how to do this or search for anyone. If you want to give me your @name I'll check you out ... but I won't be spending a lot of time there. Just wanted to see what all the buzz was about...

http://killercon.com/

KillerCon Horror Convention

August 26-29, 2010

Palace Station Hotel

Las Vegas, NV

Attendees from our crowd that we know of:

Dave and Amber McDougle

Andy Rixon

Allen and Chris Koszowski

Dave Willoughby

Who is definitely coming. Don't be shy ... if you are attending specifically to see Brian and join us in the festivities ... do let us know.

As stated in this month's update ... Programming will be developing in July. Brian will probably be doing two readings, possibly a Q&A session and naturally a mass autograph session. When I know definite what's set I'll inform you all as normal.

Posted this link in the Monthly Update ... http://killercon.com/

Brian is one of the Guests of Honor.

KillerCon Horror Convention

August 26-29, 2010

Palace Station Hotel

Las Vegas, NV

Yee, haw ... I know Allen & Chris Koszowski will be there and I'm pretty sure that Dave & Amber will somehow manage to get there ... right Dave?

Anyway, it will be a great four days ... it will be wonderful if any of you folks can make it ... especially those way out west.

Who Can Make It?

I thought I would start a thread about the WHC coming to the UK early next year. How that came about so quickly I don't know.

Anyway, I thought I'd start something in here for those of you that will be going, so you know where people are staying and when to meet etc.

Either way, we should all meet up sometime in the new year for a couple of brewskis.

Tops

From Horror Writers Association website release:

The Horror Writers Association has chosen two long-time icons of the genre to receive the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award this year. The award, given for an author’s overall body of work, will go to Brian Lumley and to William F. Nolan.

 

Brian Lumley's first short story collection, The Caller of the Black, was published by Arkham House in 1971. Lumley went on to garner followers around the world for his series of Necroscope novels, which began in 1986. He has published dozens of short stories, including many in the Cthulhu Mythos begun by H. P. Lovecraft, and he is also the author of the popular "Titus Crow" and "Psychomech" stories. His books have been published in both mass market and small press limited editions, and his early titles command high prices in the collector's market. He is the subject of 2002's The Brian Lumley Companion (co-written with Stanley Wiater), and his most recent release is Harry and the Pirates: And Other Tales from the Lost Years (Tor, 2009). Lumley is a former President of the Horror Writers Association.

 

The Lifetime Achievement Award is the most prestigious of the Bram Stoker Awards, given by the HWA in acknowledgment of superior achievement not just in a single work but over an entire career. Past Lifetime Achievement Award winners include such noted authors as Stephen King, Anne Rice, Joyce Carol Oates, Ray Bradbury, F. Paul Wilson, Chelsea Quinn Yarbro, and Peter Straub. Winners must have exhibited a profound, positive impact on the fields of horror and dark fantasy, and be at least sixty years of age or have been published for a minimum of thirty-five years.

 

The LAAs will be presented on March 27, 2010 in conjunction with the World Horror Convention in Brighton, U.K. The convention will take place from March 25-28 at Brighton's historic Royal Albion Hotel. For more information on the World Horror Convention, please visit their website at www.whc2010.org.

 

The Horror Writers Association is a worldwide organization promoting dark literature and its creators. Started in 1985, it has over 500 members who are writing professionally in fiction, nonfiction, videogames, films, comics, and other media.

Brian has priced all these items and he believes them to be fair prices ... even the ones that are priced high.

There's paperbacks, trade paperbacks, leather bound, slipcased, numbered, lettered ... just about everything.

I've got the letter "A" of all the Ganley's that are going on auction. There'll be the Crow books (7), Hero Series (4) and Khash (2). I'll also try to get on the standard hardcovers as a cheaper option but I've also got a numbered slipcase edition as well. The Ganleys will be available to UK bidders only.

If I can I'll get some listed to start on Saturday Oct. 31 and finish on Sat. & Sun. Nov. 7 & 8. If I can't get this in then I'll set them to go off on Sat. & Sun Nov. 14 & 15.

Just keeping everyone informed as always.

I've been very busy of late but I just thought I would let you all know that my father passed away on August 11. I made an emergency trip to Mom's on August 13 and stayed there for 10 days. I'll be going back over next month for a visit.

In January Dad found out, by accident I may add, that he had lung cancer. In March he started chemo and from there on it was all down hill. Between chemo, diabetes and high blood pressure his body started shutting down.

From March to August he was in hospital more than he was out. Come end of July his legs wouldn't operate anymore ... they weren't in good order anyway from the diabetes.

For the last time it was a couple days in the hospital and then they shifted him to the hospice because my mother wouldn't be able to care for him at home. Two days in the hospice and he was still aware of what was going on but he knew he'd no longer be going home. After two days there he needed to start being rather heavily sedated. On the third day he refused food and drink ... six days later he was gone.

I am glad for this because he is no longer in pain and he didn't linger. It has really taken a heavy toll on Mom. Dad hasn't had really good quality of life since he started the chemo back in March ... in hospital more than out. He was in the hosp on Father's Day and also on their 61st Wedding Anniversary on July 10.

I'm glad I got over there as quickly as I did because Mom would have never been able to handle all the paperwork that needed to be done. I filled out so many forms and we did so much running around we were totally knackered by the time I left for home.

I am happy to report that Mom is taking this all very well, although I know she misses my father it has been a big weight off her shoulders from all the agony my father was going through and all the extra stress she had upon her.

We'll be having her over for a month next summer and I know she'll enjoy that.

Well, 'nuff said. Just keeping you informed as always.

I've put a new addition into the current September Update. It's the first entry.