NYC Debrief

I was awake at 4:30am yesterday morning for a quick trip to New York City to meet with my agent and my new editor over at St. Martin’s Press. I caught the 7:30 Bolt Bus out of South Station and arrived at about 11:30. Joe, my agent, met me at the bus stop and we proceeded to catch the train to Union Square and then walk over to where we were due to meet my new editor from St. Martin’s Press, Daniela. We hit Sushi Samba on Park Avenue South and had a fantastic lunch getting to know Daniela and her goals for the book and beyond. I’m absolutely thrilled to be working with her and I think she’s fantastic, so there is definitely good stuff ahead.

Now, obviously, I can’t reveal everything we talked about yesterday, but there’s a lot of very cool things afoot. You’re definitely going to want to stay tuned!

After Joe and I said said good-bye to Daniela, we headed out for a late afternoon hot chocolate (which was more like chocolate soup than what I’m jused to, but amazingly rich and good) and then I was back on the 4pm bus home. A whirlwind trip, but oh-so-worth it.

Which brings me to my first “fun thing” to announce: the 5th Lawson Vampire book will NOT be a mass market paperback, but will be released as a trade paperback. This is very much a step up the ladder, so I’m thrilled. We’ll be brainstorming cover art very soon, and I want some of you loyal fans to be able to get a signed cover flat from me. I don’t know how many extra cover flats St. Martin’s does for their authors, but Daniela is checking into it. So I don’t know if everyone who wants one will be able to get one. It’s vital, therefore, that you get your name in as soon as possible to be considered for one. With that said: send an email to I Want To Win A Jon F. Merz Cover Flat with your Name, email address, AND snail mail address (so I can actually send it to you). The packaging on this book is going to be spectacular, and these will no doubt be collector’s items, so get your name & info to me ASAP!

This is going to be a very fun journey and I’m thrilled you’ll all be coming along with me!

Jon's New Publishing Home

Official announcements will go out next week, but in the meantime (since I’m chomping at the bit to release this news)…

I have signed a great deal with St. Martin’s Press to release THE KENSEI (book 5 of the Lawson Vampire series) in the Spring of 2011 (exact date to be forthcoming). The deal was spearheaded by my amazing agent Joe Monti at Barry Goldblatt Literary with editor extraordinaire Daniela Rapp. Plans are underway for a LOT of great stuff for the series as a whole and I’m off to New York City next week for lunch and meetings with my agent and new editor. Right now, THE KENSEI is slated for a trade paperback release, although this may change if there’s enough buzz and interest in the series (so tell everyone you know to clamor for more!)

Needless to say, this is probably the most excited I have been in years. I have a team (at last) that believes in Lawson as much as I do and it’s extremely gratifying to moving ahead after so many years slogging away.

This is the start of a whole host of awesomeness coming in 2010. So strap in, double-check your gear, and get ready for one helluva trip!

By the way, don’t forget to sign up for the on-going Lawson Vampire e-serial THE MADAGASCAR MATTER by clicking the order form below:

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Also, you can now pre-order the Lawson Vampire graphic novel coming in October 2010, so grab that as well!