And this reminds me to share Conrad's recipe for ELVIS LICKING SAUCE, which unaccountably never made it into the book:

ELVIS LICKING SAUCE

Ingredients:
1/4 C chocolate syrup
1/4 C strawberry jam
1/4 stick of soy margarine
juice of 1/2 lemon

Beat all ingredients until smooth, place in refrigerator for at least an hour.

Take turns drawing pictures of Elvis on each other's naked bodies with sauce and licking it off.

THERE IS NO BETTER WAY to show your reverence for The King than to lick His delicious likeness off a lover's ass!

PLEASE NOTE
If you coat a penis with sauce please then refer to it as HOUND DOG GRAVY.

If you listen you can hear Elvis say:
THANK YOU, THANK YOU OH SO VERY MUCH!

• He's the winner of this year's Danuta Gleed Literary Award

• He's a finalist for the Trillium Award

• He's a finalist for the Commonwealth Writers' Prize

• He's been longlisted for the Giller Prize

• And this just in: he's won the Ellis Award for the best short story for his contribution to Toronto Noir

And I'm thinking, the Canadians seem to be on to something here...

"Jen Miller (a/k/a Reverend Jen, Patron Saint of the Uncool)
has a heartwarmingly stubborn faith in the Lower East Side,
where she currently operates a troll museum, hosts the
monthly open-mike “Reverend Jen’s Anti-Slam,” and
cavorts with members of the “Art Stars,” a band of
deranged local performance artists. Her new book chronicles
her two-year stint as a sex columnist for Nerve with the
grace of a nymphomaniac Dorothy Parker. Notable exploits
include “cougar hunts” at NYU, key-party experiments,
and temp work on a porn set."

If you're still confused, you really need to check out the book. I just saw the Reverend read at McNally Jackson. She was wearing a silver sequined mini-dress and elf ears and she was amazing. I had never been at a reading staffed by a fully-uniformed butler handing out candy dots on a silver tray.

For me, this is a kind of homecoming, worldview-wise, and I’m looking forward to continuing our editorial mission, which at the moment seems to be obsessed with disaster, apocalypse, . . . and zombies. As a girl who knows her way as much around Richard Matheson as Peter Matthiessen, this is too f*cking awesome.

But now, confession time: I must admit it gives one pause to consider stepping into the shoes of someone like Richard Nash (not to mention Sander Hicks). I have tremendous respect for those men and they did an incredible job of cutting through the white noise of the book world and creating a sharp and commanding voice in indie publishing, and one that’s weathered many storms. What they’ve wrought is not just a collection of great books, it’s a persona—and, yes, we could take this discussion in a very existential, Bergman-esque direction but, suffice it to say, it’s the Soft Skull persona as much as anything that will be guiding me. I’ll be listening to the list and seeing where it takes me while at the same time looking for fellow travelers who may not have found a place at the table with us yet. But regardless of the path we take down the line, I suspect you’ll find that Soft Skull will remain true to its roots—the barroom brawler of the lit world, your super smart friend with the radical opinions who somehow seems to have read everything. She always drinks too much and often overstays her welcome—but would the party be the same without her?

I didn’t think so . . .

As introduced by Anne a couple entries ago, I’m Charlotte, yours truly when it comes to exploring our books for sale on this site. I’m happy to announce this year’s subscription lists. What does this mean, you ask? Well, it means a hefty discount for you: Pay $100 plus shipping for a fantastic collection of books that at retail would total over $150. Plus, each subscription comes with a bonus book or two we carefully selected. Check them out:

FICTION 2009

NONFICTION 2009

MUSIC 2009 – In case you missed Record Store Day this past weekend, consider taking a stroll to your local favorite record shop to take part in supporting music... on your way to your local favorite indie bookshop, of course. ;)

Segue:

In addition to checking us out here, be sure to friend us on Facebook and MySpace. We like to take part in frenetic posts about our authors—events they’re throwing, awards they’re being nominated for and winning, grand reviews their books are receiving, etc. We want your comments, which this blog doesn't have the capacity for. Plus, you’ll see our authors posting there, too, so you can friend them as well.

Now go feast your eyes on those subscriptions, and tell us what you think on Facebook and Myspace!

Yours,
Charlotte

Denise has a strong and intriguing publishing background, much of it at Farrar, Straus and Giroux, where she began her career as an editorial assistant and worked her way up to senior editor. I'm looking forward to working with her and learning from her as Soft Skull benefits from her expertise, energy, and creativity. Denise has already made it clear that she intends to publish a wide range of books that take Soft Skull in interesting new directions while also honoring its distinctive identity and very special backlist, which she admires. Very good news for us and our authors and readers!

But I don't want this blog just to be about internal happenings at Soft Skull. What's more interesting is what's going on with our authors. Michael Muhmmad Knight, five of whose books we are publishing in 2009, is all over the web this week, writing about the Five Percenter culture, and you should check him out. Killing the Buddha is featuring an exclusive essay by Mike, entitled The Man I Call Allah, and Mike also has an essay up here, entitled "Yes, White People are Devils, and Yes, That Includes Me." Mike is also Powell's guest blogger this week.

And before I sign off, some news about Jack Sargeant, 1970s underground culture in NYC, and the Cinema of Transgression. Jack will be featured in Blank City, screening at the Tribeca Film Festival. The film explores some of the same territory that is the subject of his pioneering book Deathtripping just out from Soft Skull last year. Featured alongside Jack in Blank City are Jim Jarmusch, Steve Buscemi, Lydia Lunch, Richard Kern, Nick Zedd, and John Waters. We're looking forward to seeing the film.

I have much more news, so I'll need to make a point of blogging more frequently to keep these entries short and sweet!

So it was, the following evening found me with said copy of Blue-Eyed Devil, excitedly/geekily showing Mike the various tiny changes we made since he last saw the book. And off Mike went to prepare for the reading/talk he was supposed to give. And then, no more than two minutes later, back Mike came, with the book open to a page. What did I do? What did I misspell? I was mortified before he said a thing. And sure enough, there it was, my nemesis, the copyright page. I left the "this is fiction" slug in the copyright page, when clearly, this book is nonfiction. Granted, anyone shopping for this book in the "Memoir" section will not be confused. And granted, everything on the back cover—hell, everything on the interior, including the lawsuit that was dropped, but which we printed in the Appendix—is nonfiction. But lo, a lame note on the copyright page stands there, waiting to confuse the average reader. Maybe this makes it a collector's item, who knows. Anyways, let it be known now and forever: NONFICTION! Sorry Mike.

In other, non-guilt-inducing news, Soft Skull has a book on breastfeeding called The Food of Love. It got its first US review last week, which is sort of like a baby getting its first tooth. This one's got bite! Hilarious drawings and a very logical, sane, and researched approach make it a must-have for all those new mothers out there who just can't bring themselves to read the back of a baby formula package (this book is way more entertaining). Kate Evans, the British author and cartoonist, worked with an American lactation consultant to make it relevant for the US audience, and I promise it will not disappoint. Take it from the book's 24-year-old male editor! Or take it from Roxy Aliaga, a Counterpoint senior editor, who had just had a kid when she proofread this book, and who said she'd buy it for a child-rearing friend in a heartbeat.

Well that's about it for now. Anne should be back around with some crazy news about a Soft Skull title from just a few years back being featured in an upcoming BBC documentary (no, not An Amputee's Guide to Sex), and possibly some insider news on what's to come a year from now. Peace ho!

Kevin Powell on Oprah! Author of Soft Skull standbys No Sleep till Brooklyn, Someday We'll All Be Free, and the forthcoming Open Letters to America, Kevin was on the program speaking from childhood experience about ending violence against women and girls. A great cause, a well-spoken messenger, and a dynamic writer. When not on TV, Kevin's putting the finishing touches on what should become defining essays for an Obama-generation-led world. In his spare time, he's running for office in Brooklyn.

Elsewhere, China Underground is whipping up a minor frenzy over in Asia, and seems now to be picking up steam here in the States. Zack's touring in April and May (including a couple events with Pasha Malla), so be sure to click the Events link on this site to hear him read, and possibly have that badass book signed. And, should you buy the book, note the "gritty matte UV" cover made to look almost like drawings on construction paper—sorry, I geek out on these details.

Poetry! Who publishes that stuff anymore? We do. That's who. And we have two award nominees on our list. First: Daphne Gottleib, whose heartbreaking verse in Kissing Dead Girls was nominated for a Lambda Literary Award. Second: CAConrad won the Gil Ott Book Award. We just recently sent off to print CAConrad's love epic/homage to Elvis, titled Advanced Elvis Course. It's roughly a portrait of America via Elvis, including interviews with Memphis locals, answering-machine messages to Elvis (prompted by a flier claiming that the author's home phone number is in fact Elvis's—which is recreated and printed in the book, with the real number, in case you want to talk to "Elvis" too), and of course, amazing poems about Elvis's power and grace.

Stay tuned for some graphic novels, a book cover with a banana on it and the titled printed on said fruit's sticker and said sticker being a real sticker, removable and all, and a couple full-color art books, believe it or not.

We expect Richard to continue to do great things in the world of independent publishing, and we wish him the best. It’s been an incredible opportunity, at least for me, to work closely with a true publishing visionary, a person with boundless intelligence, quickness, creativity, knowledge about publishing, and ambition for Soft Skull—not to mention great warmth, kindness, and grace. Meanwhile, there are a number of folks who are continuing on in their involvement with Soft Skull, and we’d like to take this opportunity to introduce ourselves.

I’m Soft Skull’s assistant editor, and I’ve been lucky enough to work for Richard for the past three years, both pre- and post-acquisition by Counterpoint. I came on board in time to be involved with the publication of some of my favorite Soft Skull books—Jamestown by Matt Sharpe, American Genius, A Comedy by Lynne Tillman, Lydia Millet’s How the Dead Dream, Tim Wise’s new book and the reissue of his earlier classic, White Like Me, the new edition of Mattilda Bernstein Sycamore’s That’s Revolting, the American release of Martin Millar’s oeuvre ... and many other wonderful books. I’m very happy to be able to confirm that Soft Skull will continue to operate from our New York office and that I will remain with the company, working on developmental editing and acquisitions.

We’ve also got a wonderful staff in Berkeley, headed by our publisher, Charlie Winton. While Counterpoint and Soft Skull books will remain distinct, there is much crossover in terms of personnel, and Soft Skull would be paralyzed without the efforts of the Berkeley staff. In particular, I’d like to introduce Adam Krefman and Charlotte Williams. Adam, who worked previously at McSweeney’s, works on Soft Skull’s production. He will most likely be the most frequent contributor to this blog. Charlotte is also a crucial member of Counterpoint/Soft Skull’s staff. She is also the person who handles all direct orders from the Soft Skull website. She will be a frequent contributor to this blog as well.

And I’m also happy to be able to say that I will not be alone in the New York office for too long. We are hoping to have a new senior editor in place sooner rather than later—someone with his or her own bold vision of independent publishing, someone experienced, someone who loves the current and past list of Soft Skull books and authors and who is ready to take that list in a new direction. There’s no question that we will not be the same without Richard, but with this change, there is also an opportunity to continue evolving as a company, and to build upon the great legacy of books Richard has left for us.

So on that note, here's our kickass Spring and Fall 09 catalogs. Check em out.


Thanks for reading, and Adam and Charlotte and I are looking forward to updating you as Soft Skull 3.0 begins to take shape.

Anne Horowitz
anne@softskull.com

Thanks for everyone out there for making Soft Skull what it is, above all the readers and writers whom we exist to serve and connect, along with my colleagues, paid and unpaid (!), who've put in vast amounts of hours, creativity, and intensity in order to bring those writers and readers together to create this thing we call culture.

When I explained to my colleagues yesterday that I would be consulting and freelancing, some were concerned this was a euphemism for leaving publishing. It is anything but. For me, my departure is actually about my passionate belief in the future of publishing, in the future of community built around long-form edited narrative texts, in the future of connecting writers and readers, in a Web 3.0 that's about the filters. I'm going to take this opportunity to go even deeper into publishing, to double-down, to go all in...

The Vinyl Countdown from Sleeve Notes 1948 on Vimeo.