We have big news from the Press—we have just launched a new campaign, and it is our most ambitious to date!
The campaign supports two great projects, working in tandem, to make the worlds of fine printing and hand-craftsmanship more accessible to all.
The Thornwillow Makers Village Community Bookstore
and
The Thornwillow Patron’s Prize for Emerging Artists
We are enormously excited about both of these new enterprises, which will allow us to grow and enrich both our local and global communities as we bring the first bookstore in more than 50 years to Newburgh and catalyze the careers of some of the most talented up-and-coming voices in the literary and art worlds. Both are ready for lift off, but we need your help to make them fly.
Our current campaign is unlike any we’ve run before because our goals are bigger than ever before. Tiers range from workshops and tours of the Press to Thornwillow Dispatch subscriptions (for you or a friend) and even custom printing commissions and book bindings—whether you're near or far, a book reader or book writer, we have something to tiers to surprise and delight... and help you celebrate the written word.
Those of you who backed our Death on the Nile campaign are familiar with The Mystery. It was incredibly popular and engaged backers across the globe (from London to Palo Alto and New Zealand to New Mexico) and inspired us to find a way to build on the momentum… SO, for the first time ever, we are inviting you—our readers and our community—to help us pick publications for next year and engage in Thornwillow's editorial direction!
For this to work, though, it is imperative that we engage the WHOLEcommunity. That’s why we have set a number of stretch goals, based on the number of subscribers to our Makers Village Kickstarter Campaign, that invites YOU ALL to participate in shaping the Thornwillow canon.
Every person who backs our campaign for the Thornwillow Makers Village will be eligible (and encouraged!) to participate, so please, pledge to help bring the project to life, then send us your suggestions for:
Quotes from Writers on Writing for a new, letterpress printed BROADSIDE. If we reach 100 Subscribers (at any tier), we will choose our favorite subscriber-submitted quotes and create a letterpress printed Broadside which will be sent to ALL subscribers.
A POSTER-worthy Poem. If we reach 250 Subscribers (at any tier), we will choose our top ten subscriber-submitted poems and poll all subscribers to choose a winner. The winning poem will be printed letterpress in a 16.5” x 21” poster and sent to all subscribers backing tiers with physical rewards. Submissions for the Poster must be in the public domain and fit in the space available.
A CHAPBOOK in the 2020 Season of the Thornwillow Dispatch. If we reach 500 Subscribers (at any tier), we will send a poll containing all qualified suggestions to our backers to determine the top ten titles; then, we will poll backers again to choose the winner from the top ten. The winning title will be published as part of the Thornwillow Dispatch in 2020 and sent to all subscribers to the Thornwillow Dispatch. As a sincere thanks for their contribution, the person who first submitted the winning title will also receive a one-of-a-kind half leather copy for free when the chapbook is finished! Submissions for the chapbook must be in the public domain and fit within 32 pages.
A BOOK. This is the big one… If we reach 1000 Subscribers (at any tier), we will poll all subscribers, first to narrow the field of suggested titles to ten finalists, then again to choose the winner. In 2020, we will launch a Kickstarter campaign for the winning title, and, if funded, will publish it—just like any of our other books. As a sincere thanks for their contribution, the person who first submitted the winning title will also receive a one-of-a-kind half leather copy for FREE when the book is completed! Submissions for the book must be in the public domain.
For each stretch goal we reach, we will compile ALL the qualified suggestions (those that fit the parameters), and in the cases of the Poster, the Chapbook, and the Book, we will begin polling to determine the winning titles after the campaign ends.
The Great Gatsby is now 99% delivered. There are just two of the full leather bindings getting their finishing touches in the bindery. The entire project will be fulfilled before the end of the year.
Looking forward to hearing your thoughts about future titles. Please join us!
Best regards from the Press,
Luke
Announcing Thornwillow's Next Publication — The Book of GENESIS
over 5 years ago
– Mon, Sep 30, 2019 at 08:55:05 PM
THE BOOK OF GENESIS in a Fine Press Edition as it has never been seen before.
As an established Thornwillow collector, I wanted to make sure you were aware of our newest project on Kickstarter. I am excited to announce that we are publishing a letterpress printed, hand-bound edition of the Book of GENESIS, and — for the first time in a fine press edition — we are printing the text in four distinct colors, corresponding to the four known authorial sources. This is Genesis as it has never been seen before.
The Half Leather NOAH'S ARK Edition
The NOAH'S ARK Edition is bound in brown morocco and woodgrained boards. It has rain pattern endpapers and is presented in a suede lined clamshell box. It is limited to only 16 copies.
In addition to a variety of very special bindings including some one-of-a-kind copies with historic artifacts that mark iconic milestones in the history of the Bible, with this project, we also have a special Early-Bird offer which is only available until 11:59 PM on Tuesday October 1st.For helping us jumpstart the campaign, we are offering a discounted price to subscribers who order a half-leather copy at the outset of the project.
The 1st Day Early Bird HALF LEATHER EDITION is available until 11:59 pm on October 1st at a special price to thank early supporters of the edition.
The volume is bound in blue morocco and handmade paste paper boards. It has hand sewn headbands and the top edge is gilt. It features. Early Bird subscribers will also receive the EARTH Broadside Portfolio Trilogy.
Because some of these opportunities will not be available for long, I wanted to be sure established collectors like you were aware of the project in time to take advantage of them. Please do not hesitate to contact me directly with any questions you may have regarding this newest publication, and thank you, as ever, for your steadfast support of our work.
With highest regards,
Luke
"Unopened" pages on Paper and Cloth copies of The Great Gatsby
over 5 years ago
– Fri, Sep 20, 2019 at 03:41:49 PM
"Unopened" pages on Paper and Cloth copies of The Great Gatsby
A number of people have been asking about the uncut top edge of the paper wrapper and cloth copies they have been receiving. Yes, for the paper and cloth copies, we did not cut the pages as a reference to the moment in the novel when it is observed that in Gatsby's library none of the books were "cut". (which, by the way, meant that he hadn't read any of them... they were just there for show). We advertised this in the campaign and there is a little gif on the project page showing how to open the pages. While we don't do this normally with our books, we thought it a fun thing to do in this case.
An owl-eyed man at a Gatsby party is surprised that all the books on Gatsby's shelves are "real": "See!" he cried triumphantly. "It's a bona-fide piece of printed matter. It fooled me. This fella's a regular Belasco. It's a triumph. What thoroughness! What realism! Knew when to stop, too - didn't cut the pages. But what do you want? What do you expect?"
The unopened pages in the paper and half cloth copies of The Great Gatsby are intentional... a tip of the hat to Ftizgerald and Gatsby's library.
In the early 20th century, books were often published and distributed with uncut or unopened pages and the reader would open them as they read them with a knife or letter opener... there were even elaborate book opening tools that looked a bit like a giant letter opener but with a rounded end instead of a point... they were often made out of ivory, tortoise shell or silver....
So, the unopened pages are not a defect, but a tip of the hat to Fitzgerald and Gatsby's book collection. It is up to you whether to open the pages or not.
NOTE: the half leather and full leather bindings are opened because they have gilt edges on the top.
An Imposition of Whales
Our recent broadside "An Imposition of Whales" also highlights how pages are laid out (or "imposed") by printers when books are made. Folio, Quarto, Octavo, and Duodecimo all refer to how the pages are arranged on the sheet when it goes to press. Herman Melville in Moby Dick groups different species of whales according to various book impositions.
GATSBY has started to ship... and announcing DRACULA'S GUEST
over 5 years ago
– Mon, Sep 16, 2019 at 12:56:47 PM
The Great Gatsby has begun to ship!
Last week the first paper copies left the factory and should be in the hands of collectors soon!
Paper copies of THE GREAT GATSBY have begun to ship!
Shipping will continue over the next several weeks as half-cloth, half-leather, and full-leather copies are finished.
ANNOUNCING DRACULA'S GUEST
In other Press news… the next title in the Thornwillow Dispatch has been announced! In October, subscribers to the Thornwillow Dispatch will receive “Dracula’s Guest,” a short story which Bram Stoker had originally intended as an episode in Dracula. It was ultimately “excised owing to length,” according to his wife Florence, who published the tale in 1914 (two years after his death).
“Dracula’s Guest” is available in two versions as part of our ongoing subscription (the Thornwillow Dispatch) on Patreon: one offered at the 30 pt. Baskerville tier printed on cream vellum paper, bound in letterpress printed paper wrappers, and limited to 300 copies; the other, offered at the 100 pt. Electra tier, printed on cream felt paper with deckle edges, bound in letterpress paper wrappers, and strictly limited to only 50 copies, individually numbered and signed by the publisher. Like all our publications, “Dracula’s Guest” is printed letterpress and bound by hand. But be advised—this new publication is only available as part of the Thornwillow Dispatch until September 30th! After that, the cost of “Dracula’s Guest” (if any copies remain) will go up and will no longer include the accompanying calendar card, motif cards, or broadsides. Sign up on Patreon at the 30pt. Baskerville tier or higher by September 30 to subscribe for a copy before they are all spoken for.
Thank you, as well, to everyone who supported our campaign for Agatha Christie’s Death on the Nile! We are now finalizing the closing surveys and typesetting and preparing the text to go to press. And if you were not a backer, it’s not too late! You can still order copies of Death on the Nile from our website.
For now, be on the lookout for tracking information for your copies of The Great Gatsby, and as always, if you have any questions on these or any other matters, don’t hesitate to reach out.
Best regards from the Press,
Luke
Gatsby is in the Bindery AND Announcing Kurt Vonnegut's 2BR02B !
over 5 years ago
– Tue, Aug 27, 2019 at 12:27:29 AM
Dear Gatsby Subscribers,
Gatsby is in the Bindery !
Printing of The Great Gatsby is officially complete, with all pages printed, folded, and moved up to the bindery. Here are a few images of the illustrations....
We anticipate to start shipping the first copies next week. For updates in the mean time, follow us on Instagram, where we post pictures daily of the various goings on at the Press. (You can find more sneak peaks of the illustrations there, as well).
... and here's a special opportunity for new subscribers to the Thornwillow Dispatch
The September Thornwillow Dispatch - Kurt Vonnegut's 2BR02B
For those of you not yet subscribed to the Thornwillow Dispatch, our monthly subscription box of finely printed ideas and inspirations, the deadline to sign up for the September box is August 31st. This month's box will feature Kurt Vonnegut's 2 B R 0 2 B (To Be Or Not To Be...), a short story he wrote that imagine's a world in which science has advanced to the point where disease and death have been eradicated. But immortality is not without it's problems. The September Dispatch also features letterpress broadsides, engraved stationery, and a monthly calendar card. At the $30 tier, subscribers will receive 2 B R 0 2 B letterpress printed on laid paper and bound in engraved black paper wrappers limited to 300 copies. At the $100 tier, subscribers will receive 2 B R 0 2 B letterpress printed on snow paper and bound in engraved scarlet paper wrappers limited to 50 copies.
AND... For new subscribers, we have a very special offer to encourage you to sign up for the Thornwillow Dispatch. If you sign up before August 31st the first 25 new subscribers to sign up will also receive the August chapbook, IF by Rudyard Kipling. Visit us on Patreon to sign up for the the Thornwillow Dispatch and celebrate the written word.
