Conference noted::sf

I assume by "the first three" you mean Dune, Dune Messiah, and Children of
Dune.  God Emperor of Dune has been offered through the SFBC -- that's
where I got my copy, anyhow.  Neither Heretics of Dune nor
ChapterHouse: Dune has ever been offered, possibly because they're still
selling well enough (I don't think Doubleday is the publisher) that
the Club hasn't gotten the opportunity yet.

Anyone know anything more?

Dave Wall

	All I know is that someone is treading on dangerous ground there:
	What on earth do you mean by waiting for the other 3? Subject for
	another note. Ummm. Oh, yes. Those books were (are) originally 
	published by someone else-Putnam I believe, so SFBC won't have 
	them for a while at least. If you are really wanting, go to the
	library-some of us have to do it for everything we read.
					
						sam(15)

It's true that the books are originally published by Putnam, but that's
neither here nor there. The SFBC almost always publishes a new book within
a month or so of the trade edition (and sometimes *before* it --- there
are not a few books whose first editions are SFBC editions, not even counting
the omnibus volumes that the SFBC likes to put out).

However, the SFBC has to buy rights to the books, just like any publisher
does, and if the author's agent asks for too much, the sale does not take
place. The Literary Guild might well have picked them up, though. It's my
guess that Herbert's agent wanted too much for the last two books, and so
the SFBC didn't buy them. Remember, the SFBC offers their selections at
relatively cheap prices --- much cheaper than any other book club. And so,
generally has a lower budget for buying publication rights.

--- jerry

    As far as I know the Science Fiction Book Club is American based. I am
    Dutch, and would like to join it. As far as I know however, membership
    is only accepted from the USA or Canada.
    
    Is this true? If not, could someone provide me with an subscribtion form?
    
    If it is true, is there some Science Fiction Book Club operating in Europe
    (or elsewhere) accepting European (i.e. Dutch) members?
    
    Thanks, Wildrik. 8-)

    I don't know if the Science Fiction Book Club restricts its membership
    to the USA and Canada, but it wouldn't surprise me if it did. Since
    books have different publishers in different countries, for a book
    club to be able to clear international publication, distribution, and
    sale rights would be nothing short of a major headache to accomplish.
    
    As for book clubs in other countries, I know that there *used* to
    be a Science Fiction Book Club in the UK, but I don't know if they
    are still operating, or whether they accept non-UK memberships.
    
    --- jerry

Well I saw an ad for the SF Bookclub in an issue of Omni recently
and the fine print said only available to residents in the U.S.
and Canada.

Too bad for me too, here way Downunder.

Mike

    I too noticed the fine print in the ad. This leads me to suggest
    getting a local magazine and checking out ITS advertisers. I would
    think that advertisers in a local magazine (if there are any) would be
    specific for your market.

    re .6
    
    I suppose you could strike up a deal with someone in a particularly
    friendly mood here in the U.S. or Canada to sign up for you, get the
    books, send you the monthly literature and ship the books to you (being
    reimburse for postage).  Dunno if this would be cost/time effective,
    tho.
    
    
    ---kim

    This was the first note I ran across that was labelled 'science fiction
    book club', so I figured it would be the right place for some
    questions.
    
    I'd like to know, 1) is the science fiction book club worth joining?,
    2) do they offer only new books, or throw in hard covers of older
    books (for example, as noted earlier, would they still offer books from
    the Dune series?), 3) What's their typical price these days?  4) Do
    they offer incentives to present members to get new members to join?
    - by that I mean can a member get a book or 2 free, and the applying
    member get 2 or 3 free while agreeing to buy 3 more.
    
    I stick almost exclusively to paperbacks, but there are a few authors
    whose titles I'd love to have in hardback.
    Thanks for the information.
    _Marty                                    

    RE: last
    
    Marty,
    
    I've been a member for a while now.  
    
    - Yes, they do offer a couple of free books to current members who 
      bring in new recruits.  If you have a friend who's a member maybe you
      can split the freebies.
    
      Look in genre related magazines, such as OMNI, for their offers. 
      Usually it's 4 or 5 books free, and you have to buy 3 more in the next
      year. 
    
      They have very few special offers for members.  Just a few clearance
      sales on books they couldn't get anybody to buy (in my opinion). 
    
    - Cost is usually between $5 and $8. Plus s/h which is about $2 - $3. 
    
    - Quality. This is a big issue with me.  I want my books to last. I
      prefer publisher's editions, since they are full sized and printed on
      nice thick paper. The SF Book Club prints their own editions,  They
      are smaller than publisher editions and are on much thinner paper (I
      can sometimes read the next page through).  Think of them as trade
      paperbacks with hard covers. 
    
    - Yes, they do have older books such as the Dune series.  But only ones
      which they have contracts with the original publishers on.  You may not
      be able to get some author's works through them.  Example: they carry
      some Heinlein books, but only 6 or 7 of them.  I keep seeing the same
      works offered over and over through the years. They also have a
      tendency to put a series of books together into one anthology edition. 
      These are kind of nice.
    
    - Future Value: if you ever try to re-sell one to a used book store,
      don't count on getting more than a dollar or two for them.  The value
      is just barely above paperbacks as far as they are concerned. 
    
      For this reason I would recommend looking around used bookstores. You
      will probably see TONS of book club editions for 2 or 3 bucks. You can
      probably find the ones you want there.  Identify them by the "Book Club
      Edition" stamped inside the front dust jacket. (Some stores cut that
      part of the jacket off!)
     
      If you are a bit of a scavenger, try to find the PUBLISHERS editions
      in the used bookstores. They are MUCH more valuable, better made, and
      will add value to your home collection.  ANd it's FUN to find them!  I
      have several _first_ editions that I got for $5 - $8  - less than I would
      pay at SF Book Club! 
    
    
    To conclude, I'm thinking of quitting the club. I have found more 
    interesting and valuable books at garage sales and used book stores. 
    I've gotten the bug to own first editions. So I guess it depends on
    what you really want - a cheap book you can read over and over without
    worrying about, or a publisher's edition that will be more valuable to
    you. 
    
    Have Fun! 
    
    - Russ  
    

    Second the opinion on the quality of the books.  It's
    intermediate between regular hardbacks and paperbacks, which is
    not surprising considering that the price is also intermediate. 
    The page edges are often left rough, and the bindings are not sturdy.
    Still, they are an improvement over paperbacks.  They occupy more
    volume, though, which can be a problem as your collection gets large.
    
    Speaking of this trade-off, I read about another interesting
    angle on this in a column by Don Lancaster.  This was about
    one-off publishing by laser printer.  The source material is all
    kept in Postscript.  When an order comes in, it gets printed and
    bound on the spot. He apparently does this with
    his own books.  It's not quite the quality of hardbacks (you
    don't get a sewn binding, for instance, and 300 dpi isn't quite
    enough), but it's way cheaper for low-run technical books.  I
    would love to upgrade my old paperbacks to acid-free paper this way.
    
    /jlr

I've just recently re-joined the SFBC, after having cancelled a couple of years
ago. I received an offer in the mail where I could get six books free for 
joining and could purchase a seventh for $3.98, or something like that.  Well, 
when I got the final bill for the seven books, it was $12.73.  The flyer said 
the SFBC prints on acid-free paper, and I found that the quality of the books 
was much improved over what I remember.  The finish on the paper was smooth, 
and  the page edges of every book were cut smooth.  Sure, they're probably not 
as nice as the publisher's editions, but I am quite pleased.  The prices for
additional books looks to be $7 to $10, plus shipping, and I have to buy three
more books in the next three years.  Actually, I joined because _The Dragon
Reborn_, by Robert Jordan, was one of the offered selections, and I just wasn't
interested in waiting any longer to read it and didn't want to spring for the
hardback bookstore edition.  In order to fufill my obligation, I figure
it'll cost me somewhere around $45 - $50 total, which translates to $5 or less 
per book.  Not too bad.  Of course, if you continue to buy books, it becomes
quite a bit more expensive than purchasing paperbacks. I  like the feel of 
hardback books, but that's a personal preference.  Anyway, I'm glad I joined.  
I've got a ton (well, maybe half a ton) of new reading material that I can't 
wait to get into.  I've almost finished _TDR_, and can't really decide which 
one to read next.  

-Patrick

    Ok, I'm willing to give the SFBC a try.  There are only a few used
    book stores in the Manchester/Nashua area and its rare to find hard
    cover SciFi books - almost impossible to find the ones I want.
    
    Does anyone in the Spit Brook facility have either the membership
    application that comes with the club flyers; or a copy of Omni magazine
    in which they wouldn't mind if I clipped the application?
    I want to see what I can get for free selections because that would
    determine whether I bother to join.
    
    Thanks.
    _Marty

    You can also usually find an application in the front of
    ANALOG  or Fantasy and Science Fiction Magazine.
    
    helen