The Book, the ‘Zine, the Net and their Authors

This article first appeared in FANG Vol. 1 in 2005.

There was once a time, just between the rise of the fast-food, fast-everything economy in the West in the seventies and the flourishing of the modern Internet in the ‘90s, when the distribution of one’s  art through amateur media was possible, although it wasn’t easy. The availability of small-press printing methods, not to mention photocopiers and stencil machines, made it possible for individuals to make magazines in moderate quantities – with the assumption, of course, that they’d fill this magazine with interesting material.

I am a social-networking SEX GOD.

Some of you may have noticed I've gone on a rather vicious social networking safari as part of my long-term plan to penetrate your tinfoil hats and control your minds. It has been brought to my attention that my guerrilla tactics are unbecoming a gentlemen.

So fine, have at me, you scoundrels.

Stalk me back. See how I like it.

Pry into my every private moment, scan my every intimate thought and hold it against me. It's only fair.

General
Facebook:   http://www.facebook.com/alexfvance
Twitter:    http://www.twitter.com/alexfvance (on Twitter every character counts, but I deserve an underscore, dammit!
LiveJournal:   http://alexfvance.livejournal.com (no shit!)
MySpace:   http://www.myspace.com/alexfuckingvance (I wonder how long until I get banned for that username)
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/alexvance (total pro)

Furry
VCL:    http://us.vclart.net/vcl/Artists/Osfer (I forgot I had this)
FurAffinity: http://www.furaffinity.net/user/osfer
Yiffstar:    http://www.yiffstar.com/index.php?action=authorsearch&authorsearch=alexfvance
MyFursona:    http://www.myfursona.com/user/Osfer (does anyone use this?)
Furry4Life:    http://furry4life.ning.com/profile/AlexVance

Heathen City
Facebook fan page for HC:    http://www.facebook.com/thealexvance#/pages/Heathen-city/61315365158
TVTropes entry for HC:    http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main.HeathenCity
HC on Wikipedia:    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heathen_City

Privacy is for pansies!

Peace.

Knotcast Presents: X (I'm on a podcast, yo!)

Couple weeks ago a bunch of the authors who worked on Sofawolf's upcoming anthology X (www.kyellgold.com/x) recorded a roundtable podcast to promote the book and to generally have a good time. And now it's been released on Knotcast!

Since then, Fuzzwolf has spent considerable time and effort engineering together the various sources, recorded across thousands of miles and far too many time-zones. It was a little after 3AM for me by the time we started, I had a leetle beet of bewze in me already.

It was a splendid experience to hobnob with some of the other authors, although not all could, alas, be in attendance. We had a great time, we made very little effort to stay on topic, but it was damn good fun.

Quite possibly the largest number of writers on a single furry podcast. Somebody call the Guinness people!

First to get free booze. Then to talk about the potential record.

You can check out the episode here: http://www.foxstuffers.com/News.html Or look up Knotcast on iTunes and grab the ep titled "Knotcast Presents X".

Peace out!

Nominated for Ursa Major Awards! Fuck yeah!

Ladies and gentlemen,

I'm surprisingly proud to announce that Heathen City has been nominated for the Ursa Major Awards, in the category Best Comic Book. While the Ursa Majors aren't in the same league as the Huga or Nebula in sci-fi or the Eisners and Angoulêmes for comics -- it's still pretty fucking cool.

Not to put too fine a point on it (and foregoing my usual and legendary modesty):

We fucking want it.

The artists worked their butts off, as did the FurPlanet printmonkeys who toiled tirelessly to produce enough to satisfy the punters way back at AC '08. And I helped too, y'know.

So here's what we need from you guys.

1. Check out the list of nominees (we're on there, look): http://www.ursamajorawards.org/Voting.htm
2. Get an enrollment key using the If you have not yet enrolled field here: http://www.ursamajorawards.org/nominations/
3. Ignore the e-mail they send you. It currently contains links for Nominations, which are already closed.
4. Copy and paste the contents of this page into a new e-mail: http://www.ursamajorawards.org/Ballot2008.txt
5. Make sure you fill in the items at the top:
   1. The registration key that was e-mailed to you
   2. Your name or pseudonym
   3. Your country of origin
6. Vote. You can cast up to three votes in each of the categories, with 1 being the highest vote, 2 being the second and 3 the third. Under Best Comic book, you'll find our pleasant little homespun.
7. Your fingers will at this point itch to give Heathen City a 1. While you should of course be honest in your voting, this instinct is probably one you'll want to go with.
8. Oh, you can vote in the other categories as well. Kevin Frane, Kyell Gold, K. M. Hirosaki and Blotch are getting my votes, FYI.
9. Make sure the subject is UMA 2008 official ballot, and send the whole shebang to UMA2008-ballot@ursamajorawards.org.
10. Profit.

Go on now, brave souls. You could make us very happy by casting a vote -- and happy creative people are productive creative people. You want HC #2, don't you? We'll work harder, faster and more exciting if you all chip in to get us a pretty, shiny award!

- Alex F. Vance McShillington

Can't stop the signal

So, you know how international distribution is this complex process of haggling and negotiation?

Apparently not when you're swinging a big juicy book like Heathen City around. I contacted United Publications in the UK to ask whether they'd be interested in distributing Heathen City on their isles, and what I expected to be a long-drawn-out period of negotiating, involving comp copies, numerous calls, and endless price negotiation boiled down to a 'yes please'.

I love working with professionals who know what they want.

Heathen City is now available for pre-order from the UK through United Publications, namely here:

http://www.up1.co.uk/Details/A0901

£16 for a fabulous full-color 46-page hardcore badass furry graphic novel. Pretty slick, huh?

Estimated shipping date is 'July'. Based on the quantity of early pre-orders we'll agree with United Publications on the exact quantity of their first shipment, which will be sent to them shortly after Anthrocon. FurPlanet are going to have to sweat into the wee small hours to fulfill all the pre-orders as well as that shipment, but they're a hardy bunch.

So if you're in the UK, and want to be sure you can get it as quickly as possible, be sure to pre-order quickly so your copy will be in the first batch!

Heathen City available for preorder

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Heathen City Is Coming

After several months of hard work, with the aid of an enigmatic financier and two criminally underpaid artists, Heathen City is rolling full steam ahead.

The first issue of this new comic, written by yours truly, illustrated by the insanely talented

ayato

 and colored by his partner-in-crime Distasty, this tale of gay sex, blood-chilling action and epic urban struggle will set a new standard for furry comics.

I've been a big fan of ASB and Circles, and Genus Male still gets me off, but it's time to raise the bar.

Feast your eyes on these promo desktops, and visit www.heathencity.com for more information.

FurRag Ninja Update

FurRag, the furry fiction archive which I had set up with the aid of a dear friend, has sadly gone untouched (visibly, at least) for over a year. Behind the scenes I've tried to kick-start the development numerous times, each time failing to find consistently available assistance in regards to the coding aspect. So I finally decided to give up looking for help, and teach myself some skills.

In the last few weeks I've been working on the update, which is reasonably radical, and tonight, after six or seven uninterrupted hours of toil (my eyes feel like hammers) the site's up and running. New features:

- Integrated review and rating system.
- E-mail notification option for nw stories from watched authors or collections -- or if someone leaves a review of your story.
- Separate, optional spaces for story notes, start and end notes for chapters, and summaries.
- Simplified ratings system (PG-13, Mature, Erotic).
- Hopefully properly cross-platform WYSIWYG editor (fingers crossed!).
- Co-authorship is now possible!
- Challenges.
- A new, more secure, hopefully spam-free forum.

And much else I can't get into. I'll be adding bits and pieces to the site as time goes on, incuding instructions as to how best to make use of its new features.

Ladies an gentlemen, after a year and a half of trying, I can finally, proudly, present to you:

FurRag.com.

Year of the Bad Dog

2007: The Year of the Bad Dog.

(this message is also available as an audio podcast at Baddogbooks.com!)

When things go quiet at Bad Dog Books, it can mean three things.

One: we're having a party and you're not invited. This doesn't happen nearly as often as we'd like it to. Alas!

Two: we're working very hard on something. This happens all the time. We wish we could have more parties, but between schmoozing, editing, wheeling and dealing we just don't have a whole lot of time to spend just drinking. Usually we end up drinking while working.

But there's a third option, too. That's when we're working very, very hard on things, so hard, in fact, that often we can't even drink. Can you imagine?

You don't have to. This is that eventuality. And we of Bad Dog Books, the hardworking yet comically underpaid Ben Goodridge and the money-grubbing, egomaniacal and always humble Alex Vance, are proud to reveal to you all the sweet, golden-hued fruits of our labours.

 

It Lives.

One year ago to the day, an enterprising, ambitious, ballsy (and gorgeous and brilliant, ed.) publishing visionary pestered you -- yes, you -- with the announcement that FANG was happening, and proceeded to babble about what this FANG was, anyway. Or rather, what it was going to be.

It was going to be a breath of fresh air to fan the flame of furry fiction. It was going to be brilliant. It was going to be gorgeous. Oh yes. Yes, yes. Yes indeedy.

Of course it did indeed turn out to be all those things, and shame on you if you doubted that. And to prove itself better than so many other ambitious undertaking in our fuzzy little fandom that fizzle after the first issue, there was a second after that, with a third in development. That last phrase is not the normal English idiom, but rather the ominous curse Microsoft mutters when asked about Windows Vista.

Well, not very long; progress was made... and then halted due to the deterioration of the fingers on my paw, and boo hoo, some of you might sneer cynically. Well in honesty the majority response has been thoughtful concern and sympathy, and to answer that most common question: it’s a more or less permanent condition that will get better and worse as my life drags on.

Life! Life is what was breathed into FANG with the unexpected intervention of a humble, hardworking furry author called Ben Goodridge. I’d been impressed with this individual when he submitted a very fresh, crisp story that impressed me so I demanded he write too more, and then a whole damn novel. And then he up and mails me, asking whether I’d like to let him run FANG.The gall! The sheer gall. “My daughter is sick -- Oh really? Would you like me to take care of her for you?” My baby, suckling at another’s teat?

I passed the test, though, and my possessive ego did not overrule my sense and dedication, and Ben, patient soldier that he is, whittled away at my insecurity and doubt until they were crumbs, For those of you who have experienced the force of my, say, affection for FANG, you understand what a monumental task that was him, and it was that chutzpah that finally convinced me he was the man for the job.

We started hatching dreadful plots for world conquest when the sudden arrival of Anthrocon and the simultaneous anniversary of FANG’s first announcement took us completely by surprise. Who knew there were only so few days in June? Like madmen we worked on some little things that every good launch needs: a new name (Bad Dog Books -- badass, huh?), a new site (www.baddogbooks.com -- fucking metal, yeah!) and a semipornographic postcard distributed at Anthrocon. Check ‘em out.

So what’s the great news? Let’s see.

FANG is now finally ‘the little book of furry fiction’, because the printer I use has developed the ability to print pocket-size books. The current and coming volumes are being reduced in size to be actually pocketable. How awesome is it to have that sticking out of your back pocket. Just look at our fabulous lupine model Owen Zelazny; that’s how awesome it is sticking out of your back pocket.

FANG is more expensive -- yes, yes, boo hiss, I know. Zip it. If it weren’t necessary I wouldn’t do it, and if you think I’m a liar and a money-grubbing charlatan you ought not to be reading this website anyway.

FANG is renamed, or rather renumbered. Volume 1G becomes Volume 1, H05 becomes 2 and confusingly 2FG becomes 3, finally arriving at logical numbering. See? Don’t I never take others’ advice.

FANG continues. FANG Volume 3 (nee 2FG) is being finalized by yours truly, while Ben is primed to take charge of the new, fourth issue.

So what comes next? Well, in a few weeks the revised edition of FANG Volume 1 is published, Volume 2 and the long-awaited Volume 3 (remember, that used to be 2FG) following soon after. All the while, Ben Goodridge will be hatching the science-fiction-themed Volume 4 while I give the first few novels in the FANG Presents line (two by Badger, one by Teiran and another by Ben -- the dude is tireless) some much-needed attention.

So yeah, it lives.

Want to know more? Check out www.baddogbooks.com and sign up for the newsletter; cool stuff’s coming up.

Oh, if you’re on the Osfer.com newsletter: technical inadequacy on my part means you have to sign up on the BDB website separately. Sorry! And I’m sorry I had to make FANG cost more, but dagnabbit, you know it’s worth it!

Shilling! Vote ends May 6!

No time to explain:

FANG has been nominated for the Ursa Major Awards. Booyah!

Problem is, very few people know that and voting ends this week. Ohnoes!

You people can help. Break out the red pencils, take five minutes’ time and vote for the Little Black Book of Furry Fiction. Imagine if FANG wins! There’s a million scenarios you can imagine in which my receiving such an award works out in your favour. Just think!

In all seriousness, though, as much as I’m trying to shill votes, do be honest. If you think Heat was cooler than FANG, or you’re a bigger fan of Tai-Pan, vote for them. That said, if you don’t know what to vote for, you could always copy my sheet (Volle, Digger, VGCats and the Volle cover by Sara Palmer).

Go here: http://www.ursamajorawards.org/Voting.htm, then Enroll. You'll get a registration key. Then you can click VIEW THE NOMINEES and VOTE HERE!, copy-paste that page into an e-mail, fill in your details and registration key and submit your vote :)

Voting ends May 6, hurry!

FurRag - beta.

"Hey Osfer, have you been a big dirty slacker lately? I haven't seen you post anything--no stories, no LJ posts... have you turned lazy and unambitious?"

Haha, no. Aside from the fact that I'm courting two prospective employers in the real world and that I've been offered a job as editor of a fairly well-known furry publication, aside from the fact that I've started the first of a series of five NaNoWriMo writing workshops I'm giving, aside from the fact that I'm participating in this madness with the full intention of getting the result published--I've been working on a project.

Yes, yes, I know, "you and your fucking projects", but listen, this is a doozy. A sweet and talented coder friend sacrificed way too much of his free time to make some of my more frivolous dreams come true, while the fabulously talented Kamui contributed reams of artwork and the result is this:

FurRag, the definitive furry fiction archive (beta).

Even at 15% of its planned functionality it's already on a par with the functions of just about every other fiction archive out there and there's tons more to come. Despite the fact that it isn't finished it's now been opened to help furry participants in the National Novel Writing Month through the nifty integrated per-chapter and full-story word count and forum integration functions.

Zawesomes, now?

Halloweeeeen stories deadline approaches!

Mount ye your flaming carriages, ride ye screeching across rooftops, delighting one and all with the wake of your blood-dimmed tide! The lowliest of holy nights draws nigh, with many a pumpkin deserving a gutting and many a child's tooth plotting its next cavity.

To quote that epic piece of serious, insightful and deeply moving dramatic cinema, "Starship Troopers": Are you doing your part?

Ten days remain until the deadline's close - September 30 - after which date, new submissions will not be considered for the upcoming FANG Halloween '05 issue which, considering the printer's slowness, should be available around October 20, leaving young and old ample time to obtain a copy in time for the around-the-fire-sitting and the sharing of scaaary tales.

Should you consider yourself lacking the skills needed for such a venture, surely you know of authors whose works you'd like to see printed. Mmm, in clear, carefully balanced print on crisp, off-white paper, properly weighted lettering and a cover whose gloss rivals that of many a lacquered death-mask... If you know or know of someone of such talents, you can do them a great service by dropping them a quick e-mail to inform them that FANG, the Little Black Book of Furry Fiction, is accepting Halloween- and horror-themed submissions of any rating and comfort level until September 30!

So polish up whatever you might have lying around until it gleams like the hook on the serial murderer's ragged arm-stump, or dip your quill in the blood of innocents and set it to parchment, and be swift as the raven while you're at it!