David David Katzman

I’m joining several other authors who have been published by the Chicago Coalition of Literature and Photography (CCLAP) on a four day reading event in New York City from May 31st – June 3rd. All shows take place from 7 to 9 pm, with performances generally starting around 8:00.

I’ll be reading at the following venues: On THURSDAY, MAY 31ST, at the lower Manhattan performance space Le Poisson Rouge. [lepoissonrouge.com]

On FRIDAY, JUNE 1ST, at a Brooklyn bookstore Book Thug Nation. [bookthugnation.com]

On SATURDAY, JUNE 2ND, at the Brooklyn experimental performance space Vaudeville Park in conjunction with New York jazz band Battle Of The Camel. [vaudevillepark.org]

And on SUNDAY, JUNE 3RD, for the largest showcase of the tour, at revered lower Manhattan “lit bar” KGB. [kgbbar.com]

Get more details, including the other authors being featured at http://www.cclapcenter.com/nyctrip/ or on the Facebook event page.

Bookstores can now order my book from the fabulous Last Gasp who produce and distribute many gorgeous art books from the likes of Mark Ryden, Todd Schorr, Camille Rose Garcia, and many more.

Last Gasp
777 Florida Street
San Francisco, CA 94110
phone 415.824.6636
fax 415.824.1836
Email: Kristine at lastgasp dot com

A Greater Monster, has won a Gold Medal as an “Outstanding Book of the Year” in the 2012 Independent Publisher Book Awards. So say the awards: “These medalists were chosen from our regular entries for having the courage and creativity necessary to take chances, break new ground, and bring about change, not only to the world of publishing, but to our society.”

There were only 10 winners in different categories out of 4000 entries.

A great deal has happened in the span of the past 24 hours. My book tour in New York City has been finalized, and I won a book award!

First, the award. A Greater Monster, has won a Gold Medal as an “Outstanding Book of the Year” in the 2012 Independent Publisher Book Awards. So say the awards: “These medalists were chosen from our regular entries for having the courage and creativity necessary to take chances, break new ground, and bring about change, not only to the world of publishing, but to our society.”

Phew, that’s long-winded but very flattering. There were only 10 winners in different categories out of 4000 entries.

Now, onto the tour. I’m joining several other authors who have been published by the Chicago Coalition of Literature and Photography (CCLAP) on a four day reading event in New York City from May 31st – June 3rd. All shows take place from 7 to 9 pm, with performances generally starting around 8:00.

I’ll be reading at the following venues: On THURSDAY, MAY 31ST, at the lower Manhattan performance space Le Poisson Rouge. [lepoissonrouge.com]

On FRIDAY, JUNE 1ST, at a Brooklyn bookstore Book Thug Nation. [bookthugnation.com]

On SATURDAY, JUNE 2ND, at the Brooklyn experimental performance space Vaudeville Park in conjunction with New York jazz band Battle Of The Camel. [vaudevillepark.org]

And on SUNDAY, JUNE 3RD, for the largest showcase of the tour, at revered lower Manhattan “lit bar” KGB. [kgbbar.com]

The Brooklyn events were graciously organized and sponsored by the arts-and-entertainment website Brooklyn Spaces [brooklyn-spaces.com] and Oriana Leckert.

Get more details, including the other authors being featured at CCLAP or on the Facebook event page.

My last bit of news is that, at last, I have a book distributor. Bookstores can order my book from the fabulous Last Gasp who produce and distribute many gorgeous art books from the likes of Mark Ryden, Todd Schorr, Camille Rose Garcia, and many more.

Last Gasp
777 Florida Street
San Francisco, CA 94110
phone 415.824.6636
fax 415.824.1836
Email: Kristine at lastgasp dot com

Just posted: Goodreads Giveaway for A Greater Monster. You can enter for it here.

AGM is currently available

… in Chicago: The Book Cellar, Unabridged Bookstore, After-Words Books, Quimby’s, Sandemeyer’s Books, Chicago Comics, and 57th Street Books (just added)

… in St. Louis: Dunaway Books, Subterranean Books, Pudd’nhead Books, Star Clipper Comics, and Left Bank Books (just added)

… in Austin, TX: Book People

And of course on Amazon: http://amzn.to/greatermonster

Other news: I’ve submitted my book to the distributor who carried Death by Zamboni, so I’m hoping they will agree to carry it, in which case bookstores can order it directly from them. Coming up in June, I’ll be on a mini-book tour in New York City with several readings. More on that closer to the date.

Had a great reading at After-Words Books the first night of the AWP convention. Over twenty folks showed up on a blustery cold evening. Had a great time.

An online newspaper based out of Seattle picked up a very complimentary review by a literary critic. Full review here.

The last paragraph reads:

“Intelligently written and displayed, A Greater Monster is truly like no book I have ever read before. While visions of Alice in Wonderland strayed through the back of my thoughts, this book is so much more. I admire David David Katzman’s creativity and the amount of work that must have gone into creating such an exotic literary gift for readers who like to read beyond the lines of contemporary fiction.” Paige Lovitt, Blogcritic, Seattle PI.

In the Science Fiction & Fantasy category, I received a nice review. The highlights are as follows:

[When] we see something unusual, we rarely expect it to be the tip of the iceberg. A Greater Monster is a novel from David David Katzman who brings readers into a unique alternate reality that has many twists and turns [...]. With unique humor and plenty to think about, A Greater Monster is a fine and much recommended choice.

Support your local bookstore! A Greater Monster is now available

… in Chicago: The Book Cellar, Unabridged Bookstore, After-Words Books, Quimby’s, Sandemeyer’s Books, and Chicago Comics.

… in St. Louis: Dunaway Books, Subterranean Books, Pudd’nhead Books, and Star Clipper Comics.

… in Austin, TX: Book People

And for those of you in other cities … yes, on Amazon.com here: http://amzn.to/greatermonster

Good news: I was fortunate to receive a nice review from Midwest Book Review this week—a not-for-profit website of unpaid reviewers who focus on small press books. They’ve been around for about 11 years and seem to have a particularly strong relationship with acquisition librarians. Here are the highlights:

[When] we see something unusual, we rarely expect it to be the tip of the iceberg. A Greater Monster is a novel from David David Katzman who brings readers into a unique alternate reality that has many twists and turns [...]. With unique humor and plenty to think about, A Greater Monster is a fine and much recommended choice.

This could potentially lead to a slew of orders from libraries … it really depends on whether it catches their eye, and they go to the trouble to contact me.

I’ve been working furiously over the past few months to finish all the emails and letters that were included in the rewards for my Kickstarter project. I dedicated anywhere from one to three hours to each letter and with about 125 letters to write …! You’re probably better at math than I am so let me know how that works out. I’m grateful that my project was successful, but now it’s back to making A Greater Monster even greater.

I’ve submitted the book for several small press publishing awards and other general fiction awards. The best resource I’ve found so far is Poets & Writers magazine. Each issue includes a list of upcoming deadlines and the general requirements.

I’ve been making the rounds to bookstores in Chicago bit by bit and asking them to carry it. Don’t forget to support your local bookstore! A Greater Monster is now available

… in Chicago: The Book Cellar, Unabridged Bookstore, After-Words Books, Quimby’s, Sandemeyer’s Books, and Chicago Comics.

… in Austin, TX: Book People

And for those of you in other cities … yes, Amazon here

Next Steps: get into more bookstores, find reviewers/bloggers who appreciate edgy, experimental literature, and lastly hook up with a distributor. More on distributors in my next blog post.

You can purchase my second novel here: http://amzn.to/greatermonster

Soon, I hope to have Paypal set up on this site so you can order a signed copy directly from me as well.