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[cblj_backup]

This is a weird little story about a weird little book.

Quite a while ago, I stumbled on the Duke University Advertising Ephemera Collection. The collection is an archive of ads from the late 19th and early 20th centuries, everything from product-oriented recipe books to single-sheet broadsides. I found one called Dr. King's Lucky Book, a snake-oil salesbook masquerading as a book of folk charms, and thought, I'd like to have a copy of this. I knew it was possible to save off every image in high-res, clean them, set them into a doc file, and publish just a single copy for myself through Lulu.com. I also knew it would be a pain in the ass, so I didn't bother.

Then I broke my leg.

I spent a lot of time off my feet, and a not insignificant amount of time on painkillers, which gave me the time to work on a few projects. As long as I was printing up a copy of Dr. King's Lucky Book, I'd throw in some of the other ads and ephemera I liked. Then I thought, why not make an almanac?

Then I thought, why not make an evil almanac?

My idea for the Evil Almanac was that it would start out innocently, with folk cures and ads and calendar pages and harmless charms and recipes, and then slowly it would slide downwards into incoherent madness (I'd like to remind you all I was stoned and bored when I came up with this). I wanted to emulate what would happen if a book went insane. I tapped a few more resources I knew were good for the creep factor, and I mentioned the book to my friend Kiki, who loved the idea and supplied me with all the additional archive sources I could ever require.

I've been working on it off-and-on since then, so the book's about two years old, but I was always hesitant to share it because really it's just me doing a collage. When I had guests recently I happened to offer it to them to see what they thought, and they really liked it, which bolstered my resolve.

It still needs a few minor tweaks, I think, so in the spirit of Extribulum I'm sharing a proof PDF with all of you before it goes to print, to generate a little interest, get some commentary, the usual. The PDF isn't perfect, but it gives you a good idea of what to expect.

So without further ado, please enjoy Dr. King's Lucky Book:



Download via Megaupload | Mirror
Download via Sendspace | Mirror

If you enjoy the PDF, tell your friends, share it around, and keep your eyes peeled for the paperback edition coming soon from Extribulum Press. The final paperback will be about the size of a very thick comic book, with a colour cover and black-and-white interior, and run you about $10.

Comments

[pixiepanther.livejournal.com]

I have downloaded the preview and it looks great :) I've already warned my boyfriend we're getting a copy as soon as the physical copies are ready.

[copperbadge.livejournal.com]

Hurrah! I was hoping people would enjoy it. I'm never sure whether they'll be willing to pay the amount I charge, or feel they got their money's worth...

[pixiepanther.livejournal.com]

But you are asking about the same price, if not a lower price, than most request. I'm pretty sure if people started getting a little irked by how much you want to charge, they'd either tell you or not buy it. I think the work you do is worth its price, and honestly, you're one of the few authors I will happily pay full/requested price for instead of getting it off Amazon for as cheap as I can find it.