I’ve spent the latter part of this week giving the page proofs of Stardust a final going over. The signed inlay sheets for the special signed edition went back to PS yesterday, and I’m happy and excited to report that the book should soon be at the printer’s. I’ll be posting the fantastic cover design by Ben Baldwin and Mike Smith here as soon as PS release it officially. Suffice it to say I’m delighted, both with the dustjacket and the look of the book generally. It was strange reading it through. When I did the copyedit a couple of months back I was so focussed on the technical side of things that as so often happens with me I came away without a clear impression of what the book was like. This final read-through was different. I was trying as far as possible to put myself in the position of reader as opposed to writer, and I was surprised by how often I was surprised by what I read. It was a good experience. I’m very much looking forward to publication day.
To consolidate this clearing-of-the-decks, I’ve also been updating my website. You’ll find a greatly expanded Free Fiction page, as well as individual pages for each of my books, with new reviews, comments or images to be added as they appear and to include a complete bibliography of my short fiction in the nearish future. The About and Articles pages have also been revised. Some of these tasks have been long overdue and I’m pleased to have things properly up to date.