Types of Books
Cemetery Dance Novella Series
You can find out all about these books on the Novella Series page.
Cemetery Dance Signature Series
You can find out all about these books on the Signature Series page.
eBooks
You can purchase our eBooks through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iTunes/iBookstore, and Kobo.
ARC or Advance Reading Copy or Advance Reviewer Copy
These early editions are also often referred to as galleys. They are usually produced three to nine months before a book is actually published — in perfect-bound paperback format, or sometimes in a spiral-bound format — and then sent out to various book reviewers around the world. This is the earliest form of the book, and often contains minor errors which are fixed before final printing. The print run of ARCs varies — we usually produce anywhere from 10 to 40 copies for most of our titles, while some major New York publishers will print hundreds or even thousands of copies.
Chapbooks
A chapbook is a booklet made of folded & stapled paper, on a slightly heavier than normal paper stock, usually with B&W artwork on the cover.
Sometimes our chapbooks have color artwork for the cover. In that case, the cover is usually a heavier, glossy stock.
The chapbook itself can contain one short story or an excerpt from a longer work, although sometimes we print 3 or 4 excerpts in a single chapbook, and we also have done chapbooks that contain 4 or 5 short stories from different authors like a "mini-anthology."
Often chapbooks are signed by the author with a specific print run limitation like a normal book -- usually 350 to 750 copies. Sometimes chapbooks are unsigned with no specific limitation. The page count is usually in the 20 to 60 range.
What are the differences between a "Trade Hardcover," a "Limited Edition," a "Traycased Lettered Edition," and a "Deluxe Lettered Edition"?
Our trade hardcover editions are not signed, and have no pre-set limitation as to the total number of copies available. The first printing of a specific trade edition may be as low as 600 to 700 copies or as high as 100,000 copies. It varies from book to book. Once these trade copies are sold, we have the choice to either consider the title out-of-print or go back to the printer and print additional copies, which are then marked as a "Second Printing" and offered for sale. Our trade editions sell in the $19 to $40 price range. Note: When we publish a trade hardcover edition, we often still feature the same top-notch production standards of our Limited Editions, including acid-free paper, Smyth sewn binding, full-color dust jackets, etc. Each product is different, of course, but our Trade editions still tend to be a step above the usual books you see in the big chain bookstores.
Our Limited Editions are very special editions and once they are sold out, they are gone forever. A Limited Edition is signed by the author(s) — and/or sometimes the editor(s) or artist(s) — and has a pre-set number of copies which will be offered for sale. Our Limited Editions generally range from 250 to 1,500 signed copies. Sometimes the Limited Edition is slipcased, but we have found that we can offer these special editions at a much more affordable price if we sometimes remove the extra expense of the slipcase and add other touches to the book, such as additional interior artwork, illustrated endpapers and autograph pages, heavier cloth stock, etc. Some of our Limited Editions are also individually numbered (example: This is number 219 of 500 signed and numbered copies), while others simply state that they are, "One of 750 signed copies." Our Limited Editions are widely-considered the finest in the genre. They are produced with only the highest-quality materials and sell in the $30 to $450 range. There are no second printings when it comes to Limited Editions.
Our Traycased Lettered Editions are even more lavish in presentation, featuring such additions as extra full-color artwork inside the book, special autograph pages, full-leather binding, and a satin ribbon page marker. Our Traycased Lettered editions are protected inside gorgeous fully-enclosing traycases (some featuring embossed artwork on the cover). These very special books are available in print runs of either 26 signed and lettered copies (hand-lettered from A-Z) or 52 signed and lettered copies (hand-lettered from A-ZZ). There are no second printings when it comes to Lettered Editions.
Our Deluxe Lettered Editions are among the finest books produced in the genre. For certain projects, we're taking the budget we used to allocate to the traycase production and we're instead devoting those funds to upgrade the materials used in the production of the actual book. All of the titles produced using this new Deluxe Lettered Edition style will feature an upgraded leather binding, spine hubs, illustrated or marbled endpapers, and page edges that are hand-dipped in silver or gold gilding (something we've only previously done on STEPHEN KING books!). The front cover stamping often includes unique artwork stamping to make the editions even more unique. Many of these features have previously been exclusive to our high-end special editions and we're thrilled to be using these techniques on editions that are more affordable to the general collector. There are no second printings when it comes to Deluxe Lettered Editions and you can see a few photos on the page where we first announced this new addition to our line-up.
Why do Traycased Lettered Editions take longer to produce?
There will always be some delay between the release dates for the Limited Edition and the Traycased Lettered Edition because the traycases have to be custom fit to the books, so they're good and snug. That means the traycase manufacturer — who often does all of the work by hand — needs a finished copy of the book to get started. Also, sometimes the Lettered Edition books need to be hand-bound in a different material, and that takes time, which further delays the start of the traycases. Finding a traycase manufacturer and a binder who can provide top-notch quality and reliable turnaround times has gotten very difficult in the last few years, but we think we've found a team that will do what we need in a timely manner while providing the level of quality our collectors have come to expect.
Why do your "Trade Hardcover Editions," "Limited Editions," and "Traycased Lettered Editions" sometimes have the same price on the dust jacket?
We often cannot print all three prices on the dust jacket because it causes confusion with the larger retailers. So your Limited Edition might say "Trade Hardcover, $25" on the Dust Jacket. You can quickly tell you have the correct edition by looking at the signature sheet near the front the of the book, which will have a limitation statement such as "This is one of 1000 signed Limited copies" or "This is one of 26 deluxe Lettered Editions." We apologize for any confusion.
Are there extra copies of each book produced?
There is no exact number of extras that are produced because each project is different, but we generally print 25 to 50 extra signature sheets.
This is done for three reasons:
- The printer requires we send "extra" signature sheets because they can (and have) damaged or destroyed sheets during the binding process and will need replacements.
- The author, artist, their agents, the publisher, and our staff all need copies of the book and they do not usually get copies from the official print run.
- We need a few copies of the book on hand to replace customer copies that get lost or damaged in the mail.
These "extra" copies are commonly called "Publisher's Copies", or "Publishers Copies", and are usually abbreviated "PC", since those letters are what we put on the numbering/lettering line to differentiate them from the real print run, when we send them out to the contributors.
Not all of those extra sheets always get bound into actual books because sometimes we don't need that many extras. There could also be a few more sheets than that printed because some authors contractually require more copies or the book might be an anthology where we need more PCs for all of the contributors.
Special Deluxe Editions
You published Stephen King's novel From A Buick 8, as well as several deluxe signed editions by Dean Koontz, Peter Straub, William Peter Blatty and Justin Cronin — what's the difference between your edition and the one I can buy at any chain bookstore?
There are many differences, but let's start at the very beginning.
The print runs. They are limited to only 750 signed copies. The print-run for the mass-market editions found in all the bookstores is over a million copies. The Cemetery Dance edition is truly a "limited" edition. Also, our copies are not only signed, they are also numbered or lettered, depending on which edition you purchased. We also sometimes issue a "gift" edition that is printed on the same paper stock and features a hand-made slipcase, but not a signature page. Even this edition has a tiny print run compared to the trade edition published by New York.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, there is the presentation of the book itself. The Cemetery Dance edition is completely different than the mass-market edition you find in the bookstores. Completely different in every physical aspect of production. A fancier page design, heavy acid-free paper stock, lots of interior full-color artwork and exclusive dust jacket artwork, many of our editions are bound in full-leather, with Smyth sewn binding, satin ribbon page-marker, handmade cloth slipcase or leather traycase, illustrated autograph page... the list of lavish production values goes on and on.
Slipcases and Traycases
Slipcases and traycases are designed to protect and showcase special edition books. A slipcase is a form-fitting case that encloses the majority of the book, exposing just the spine.
A traycase is a true box — picture a very fancy cigar box or jewelry box! — with a lid, created for a specific book and sized appropriately. Usually bound in either a fine cloth or leather.
We always traycase our Lettered Editions, which have a super low print run of just 26 or 52 copies and other special production features.
Autographs and Signed Books
How do the authors autograph these books?
Here is a "Signature Sheet" in the process of being shipped around the world for signatures. This process can sometimes take years to complete due to the location of the authors and their busy schedules.
First, we print specially-designed autograph sheets, featuring the title of the book, the author's name, and often times a piece of artwork. These are printed as oversized pages which are later trimmed down to book size by the printer.
We then send a box of these pages to the author and he or she spends a couple of days signing their autograph on each and every page!
When the author is finished, they mail the pages to our printer; the pages are then trimmed and actually hand-bound into the finished book at the very front of the edition.
It's a time-consuming and costly process, but well worth the effort to make your book a true collectible!
Are your editions unique or do you just add signed pages to other publishers' books?
Our editions are designed and printed specifically for us, and you'll find the Cemetery Dance logo on the spine of the book and our name on the copyright page. Our editions often feature artwork and unique design flourishes you won't find in other books. Although bigger publishers often reprint books and stories that we publish, those mass market and trade editions are not related to our special editions.
Why is Cemetery Dance one of the few publishers who still continue to release major horror and suspense anthologies?
For the most part, anthologies are very expensive and time-consuming to produce. Without fail, more problems seem to arise on anthology projects than single author books. Multiple authors to deal with, dozens of stories to pay for, rights issues for reprints, layout issues for the designer — all these issues factor into making anthologies a tough haul. Add into this the general publishing belief that anthologies "don't sell", and it's pretty easy to see why most publishers stay away from the expense and hassle.
So, then, why do we publish so many anthologies?
Because we love them as readers, and feel they are important to the continued health of the genre! Pure and simple. For us, they are still worth the extra effort and expense — and many times — the long wait.
Do you prefer me to purchase your books directly from Cemetery Dance...or can I find them in a store? Which is better for your company?
Well, when it comes to the hardcover books, it's probably a safer bet to recommend that you buy them directly from us here at Cemetery Dance for a couple of reasons.
First, we work hard to give you more personal attention, meaning that if you receive a book with slight damage or a torn dust jacket or a dinged slipcase, all you have to do is call us and we'll replace it. These are expensive books and we feel that they should always be sold in fine condition. You can't count on that kind of treatment from most retail outlets. Also, if you have special requests, such as matching limitation numbers for a specific author's books (for example, you might want #350 for each of the Koontz titles), we can help you with this, where most stores cannot.
Also, by purchasing directly from Cemetery Dance, you are added to our exclusive Customer List — as a result, you can be notified before anyone else in the world about upcoming titles and are also offered frequent specials, such as big sales and savings coupons.
Also, our hardcovers are often very difficult to find in retail outlets. Many times, by the time a specific store has placed an order for one of our titles, it has actually already sold out, and you are out of luck. This happens each and every time we release a new book — dozens of readers are left without their copy of the book! The store might promise you they can get a copy, but that is just not always the case.
Finally, there is the issue of price. Many stores will sell our hardcover titles for higher than the actual cover price of the book, and they justify this by referring to its Limited Edition state or saying it's a very difficult-to-find book or claiming that our discount to stores is a small one. These are all good reasons, but you still shouldn't pay more for the book than we're selling it for on our website.
Contacting Our Authors or Artists
If I send you a letter for one of your writers/artists, will you forward it to them?
Sure, we're always more than happy to pass along reader feedback. But please remember, the best we can do is promise to forward your correspondence, we can't guarantee you a response. Send your letters to Cemetery Dance, c/o Author's Name, P.O. Box 623, Forest Hill, MD 21050.
Please note: We cannot forward books or other items to be signed and we cannot guarantee any items of that nature will be returned.
Contacting Cemetery Dance
How do I submit a story or artwork to you?
Please visit our Guidelines page for more information.
I still have a question. Can someone help me?
Please email us at [email protected] if you have any other questions or if anything isn't clear.
