Summer update
Current mood: lazy

Been pretty busy between the new house and bookbinding.  I'd say two-thirds of my time has been to house projects and the rest mostly to getting the remaining copies of Black Venus out of the way.  I have yet to formally announce the book outside of my direct circle of contacts (like via my infrequent blog) but I am happy to say I am finally ahead on the books with all pre-orders fulfilled. So now it is all about creating enough to have stock on hand. I hope to get some final photos on the WaningMoonPublications.com website this weekend.

Now that the biggest of the house projects are out of the way it means more time for bookbinding, but also, time to play with another personal project of mine: Art! Long story, wanna hear it?  Whaddayamean no???!

In early June Coley and I went to a local event called "Second Sunday" in Beacon NY where all the art galleries have an open house of sorts.  Beacon has really been becoming a bit like ..SoHo.. recently which is a nice change from the rather depressed area it had sank into.  There is a nice energy in that area now. 

While there I admired some of the art and was baffled at others.  For example how does one tack two pieces of bread to a wall with thread and sell it for $800? I guess I am just not hip enough to get it.  Whatever.  Other art was very nice and we even purchased a small painting on silk by Jane Blake which I look forward to receiving. I enjoyed speaking with her about her work. 

Anyway, as often happens when I go to art shows, I left feeling inspired to explore some of the ideas I have had for my own art and wondered if I could ever actually make enough decent art to have my own show.  Now, being a magician, I often find myself in a predicament.  I suddenly have a desire to do something and I know that AS a magician it is my duty to manifest my Will and not necessarily steep in idle wishful thinking (tho I guess daydreams have their place too).  My point is, if I say I wish I could create art, and I mean it, I instinctively answer with "so DO something about it – see where it takes you!" 

And so I began formulating my ideas more.  I would need to teach myself to sculpt and I would need to teach myself photography, since most of my ideas used those media.  I may also need to learn to paint too.  Being the geek I am, I (of course) have spent the last several weeks buying and reading books on those subjects and now have eased into experimenting a bit.  I have even gone so far as to start locating models I will need for the photography portion. (Anyone in my area with "expressive eyes" who would like to volunteer some time for face photos please contact me!)

That's all I will say on that topic for now.  I don't like to talk too much about my work until it has reached a point where I feel it has become something worth talking about.  I'm weird that way I guess. For now consider my art a series of experiments to articulate some thoughts I have.

I have tons of other ideas and projects to do but it comes down to pacing myself.  So for now, art experiment 1 and bookbinding will likely take center stage in my schedule the next few months.

I have not been doing any public speaking.  I had originally planned to do another Beltane with the Mid-Atlantic Pagan Alliance but was not available due to the insanity of buying a new home. Maybe if things quiet down a bit to allow for travel I'll do a few talks.

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Interview on The Magical Buffet
Current mood: geeky

The Magical Buffet posted a 10-question interview of me regarding my work on Waning Moon Publications.  Check out
http://www.themagicalbuffet.com/Issues/Vol03_Iss20/Article_137.html

6:50 PM - 1 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment

new email address
Current mood: aggravated

Wayyy too much spam these days and good emails are getting harder to locate in the mess so I am changing my email address.

New address can be found at http://waningmoon.com/contact

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Moving and Catching up
Current mood: sore

For the last several weeks I have been working hard on the new house and will finally be moving in this weekend – only a week past my initial schedule.  Not bad for the amount of work that unexpectedly had to be done.  I'm tired and sore in muscles I did not even know I had, but it was worth the effort since I knew I would not do any of that work once the furniture was in place.

Down side is I have not been working on my Waning Moon Publications projects.  Once the move is out of the way I'll probably take a 3 or 4-day weekend to catch up on production and begin to plan out the rest of the year.  I have so many projects and ideas lining up so it really comes down to getting the work currently in production out of the way so I can dedicate more time to the new things.  I'll finally have enough space to work on more than one project and/or production phase at a time which will help streamline my work. Maybe I'll finally have the time and space to explore some of my other artistic projects I have been contemplating.

Once I am settled into I will take and post the final pictures of Black Venus – the book came out really nice and has been getting great comments which is very exciting.  In mean time, all new orders will probably not ship for two or three weeks since I need to do some catch-up.

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Getting there with WMP logo
Current mood: geeky

Getting some nice feedback on the design finalists.  One response really hit dead on why I am being so picky.  This logo is a sigil - a magical device - so represents my Work on many.

To see the feedback or add your own check out the WMP blog entry.

You think this is bad... you should have seen when I was designing my tattoo! ;) 

But seriously, I take logo design seriously since it should resonate a certain way.  So the feedback is helping to ensure it's not just a personal resonance but... well... in a way, archetypal.

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Looking for a new logo design for WMP
Current mood: curious

When I first made Waning Moon Publication's logo (an inversed triangle enclosing a waning moon crescent) I started to realize it had certain similarities with another publisher's mark. While there was some unintentional irony in that similarity which amused me, it was clear I would probably need to change the logo since not only did it open the door to future legal headaches, but I had a certain legal and ethical responsibility to avoid logo confusion with books when I start producing paperback and hardcover titles which will make their way to the shelves of stores. (I refer to the publisher's mark on the bottom of the spine of a book.)

To make a long story short, I want to change the logo asap so I am revisiting my other ideas for logos and wanted to open this up to those who might wish to help.  As a token of appreciation, if I use anyone's submission, or if a submission inspires me to create the logo I ultimately use, I will offer a gift of your choose of one copy of any hand made WMP title currently in stock or in production (with a value of $200 or less).  I hope to make a decision in the next two weeks.

Submissions must actually contain two items:

1) A long logo which includes the words "Waning Moon Publications, Ltd." Which would be used as letterhead, on website, etc.
2) A short logo or publisher's mark which is used on spines of books and on title pages.  This need not have any letters or words. (i.e. some of my drafts use the WMP initials but that is not necessary.)

The two designs should be related as one is ultimately a shorter form of the other.

My email address can be found at http://www.waningmoon.com/publications/contact.shtml.  Images should be should be black and white Scans of hand-drawn designs will be accepted (you can also mail sketches to our POB found at the above link.

[Usual legal crap: one winner only and not guaranteed since I may prefer my own ideas, not refundable for money, the offer has no monetary value, choice of title must be made in 30 days of award announcement.]

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Last call for the High Priest editions of Liber Yog-Sothoth
Current mood: sick

I have 3 or 4 copies left of the larger-sized High Priest editions of Liber Yog-Sothoth (I ended up only making 10) so will be sending the rest to some dealers on Monday, so if you have been considering one please let me know soon so we can make arrangements to reserve your copy.

As for the 100 special editions, I probably won't do "last call" until late January since I still have a few left to bind but I do have copies available to ship now.

For photos, info, or to order please visit http://www.waningmoon.com/publications/books/yog/

-John

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Made a myspace page for WMP

Yup... time to start network.

For those interested in my work with Waning Moon Publications please visit http://myspace.com/waningmoonpublications and add to your friends. 

7:27 PM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

What ever happened to John?
Current mood: working

I have been a bit incognito of late since I am busy binding my Liber Yog-Sothoth and preparing The Little Book of Black Venus for printing.  Needless to say, the next two months will be busy ones, which is ironic since I will technically be using quite a number of vacation days at my "day job." Go figure!

Well for those following, all 10 copies of the High Priest Edition of Liber Yog-Sothoth are done and will probably be shipping on Friday.  Only a few left of those.  The standard edition is still in production but I have enough to fulfill the pre-orders and should be able to ship those out Friday as well with a few left over.  I won't be officially announcing them as "done" until all 100 copies have been bound but chances are starting this week I should have enough completed to fulfill orders as they come in.

Good news on the Little Book of Black Venus which I am publishing via Waning Moon Publications.  I am currently proofing the completed draft.  So much for "little" – this book is over 225 pages!  The supplemental essays truly bring the book alive, so not only will this be the first English translation, but it will also serve as an excellent resource to understanding and appreciating the grimoire itself.  I am still aiming for at least the first batch to be done in late December, if not early January.

Info on all the above mentioned books can be found at http://waningmoonpublications.com

I have lots of great things planned for 2008 with Waning Moon Publications so stay tuned!

6:27 AM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

RIP, Leo (Little Evil One)
Current mood: sad

The closest thing to a child passed this morning as I held him.  Always seems silly to hear of pets being equated with children but perhaps the bonding period when I carried it as a baby in a pouch clipped near my heart for two weeks was more of a 2-way process than I thought. 

As southern flying squirrels go, he lasted years past his expectancy.  And now, as I wrap him in a shroud laden with my tears and place him in his little box with his favorite nut, I already hear the stirrings of a new day.  The first chirp of the birds, the faint drone of cars in the distance, the stir of my neighbors… and soon the clatter of my own morning routine, as I try to pass the day.  Seems wrong somehow.  But life goes on, however less colorful.

3:48 AM - 2 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment