Twice a year I publish an exclusive chapbook just for my Patreon supporters. These are never offered for retail sale because they’re a special reward for those readers and collectors who have supported my work via Patreon. As an example, the most recent exclusive chapbook was “You Are Released” by Joe Hill.
Today, I’m extremely pleased to announce the next Patreon exclusive chapbook is…
“What’s In a Name?” by Bev Vincent is an intriguing essay about the Stephen King titles that might have been. To make this chapbook really special, François Vaillancourt has contributed cover artwork and a dozen full-color interiors depicting what these Stephen King books could have looked like if King had used the original titles.
Here’s just one example:
(Can you guess what book this could have been? It’s actually kind of a trick question because King tried to use this title twice, according to Bev’s research!)
This chapbook is the result of my fascination with Stephen King’s “working titles” — the title given to a book or story while it’s being written — and how King’s titles have occasionally changed by the time the project is announced… and even one title that changed after the official announcement.
Bev Vincent is one of my “go to” experts for all things Stephen King, and this insightful essay includes a ton of interesting facts. Which title was changed because a family member refused to say the original title? Which one was changed because the publisher said they didn’t know how they could sell a book with that title? Bev explains everything we know about these Stephen King titles that could have been.
Then François Vaillancourt fired up his powerful imagination and created his version of each book’s cover with the original title. He even kept some of the design details era-specific in terms of what book covers looked like at the time the book would have been published.
Bev Vincent and François Vaillancourt have both signed the signature sheets for this chapbook, which is limited to 400 numbered copies.
For those who are curious, here are some of the original Stephen King titles that Bev Vincent discusses:
Getting It On
Second Coming
The Shine
Roland Draws Three
Night Moves
The Napkins
The Annie Wilkes Edition
Gypsy Pie
In the Path of the Eclipse
What Tricks Your Eye
Unnatural Acts of Human Intercourse
Cancer
The Crawling Shadow
The Suicide Prince
and more!
Please note: The chapbook printer is running behind schedule for the first time in all the years I’ve worked with him, but that’s pretty much the case for everyone in printing these days. It’s hard to get some of the paper stocks you need, etc. But still, he’s expecting to deliver the finished chapbooks to me by the end of June, so I can ship them very early in July.
More news soon! Thanks again for your continuing support and enthusiasm!
Best,
Brian