The Impressions of the Waning Void book is NOW AVAILABLE for purchase! You can follow the link to my website below for links on where to buy each edition of the book:
It’s been one hell of a journey from when this started in 2020. I’m proud to say the fruits of my labor these past 2 years (when I actually started thinking of making a book.) has culminated into this.
Also, this is not the end. This book represents the first installment in this series as there are a ton of unpublished artworks yet to see the light of day. If you do pick up this book, I sincerely thank you and I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed my time on this project.
IoWV: RELEASE DATE (For Real This Time)
After a push back of the release date that was originally due on May 2023, I'm relieved to finally announce—once again, and for real this time— that the book for the Impressions of the Waning Void will finally be released. This time both in Digital and Physical formats.
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RELEASE DATE for both Digital and Physical formats will go live on the following date:
JULY 15th 2023
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Here are details of the editions and where you can buy them:
DIGITAL EDITION:
Will be available in Gumroad.
Purchasers of the E-book will receive both the Single Pages and Spreads versions in two separate PDF files. This will give readers options on which layout they'd prefer if they choose to either read it from a monitor, or a mobile device such as a tablet.
PHYSICAL EDITION:
Will be available in Blurb's Print-on-Demand service.
The book is a matte hardcover with glossy paper finish for the pages.
Size will be 10×8 in (25×20 cm)
I will be doing periodical shoutouts and marketing posts on my Instagram and Twitter about this book until the release day on itself, to generate awareness and hype. Please note the book may release a day earlier depending on where you are due to timezone differences.
This whole journey has been a great learning experience for me. And only here in DeviantArt—if you have been following this book's development since the start—you would know of the roller coaster this project has gone through. Thank you for being with me this entire journey.
So take note of that date, and any help to spread the news as I make the announcement in my socials is very much appreciated!
Since my last update, I've been busy doing final rounds of editing on the book, and I've also taken note of the mistakes I did with the Proof Copy and made changes accordingly. After some grueling final checks, I finally uploaded the draft and ordered the book.
And after waiting for nearly 2 weeks, et voila! The final copy of the book has a arrived at my doorstep. The courier came early in the morning while I was still asleep and got awakened by the call on my phone. Despite how embarrassingly groggy I looked when I met the courier at the gate, all that changed when I saw the actual book under the packaging.
I'm so pleased (how many times have I said that before) that final version of the book turned out perfect!
So what has changed with the final draft?
For starters, I've made changes to the cover since I noticed how dark it was on the Proof Copy. Second, which is most pertinent, the size of the book has been shrunk to 10 x 8 in (20 x 20 cm). I realized that the initial 12 x 12 in version of the book was too large and cumbersome. With this smaller iteration, the price is significantly reduced, and will certainly reduce (even eliminate) the incidence of costly courier charges if you were to order the book outside of the US. I know this for sure as I was surprised that I was not charged anything by UPS when the book was delivered, compared to last time when I was charged nearly USD$50 dollars on top of the printing and shipping price!
Furthermore, the reduced size of the book does not diminish the quality of the artworks. And I also feel that it's easier on the eyes especially when it comes to reading the narrative along with the imagery.
This version of the book is the one that will be sitting on my coffee table officially for display. With that said, I'd say that a major milestone for this project is now complete.
So what comes next? I now have to make some minor updates to the Digital Edition of the book and finally make a release announcement—for real this time.
So stay tuned for the next important update. As it will be a RELEASE ANNOUNCEMENT that will go live on all my social media platforms.
Finally the Proof Copy of the book from Blurb has arrived at my doorstep.
Okay so first of all, the front cover of the book is an Image-Wrap Hardcover with a matte finish which is pretty nice. Although I may have to adjust the brightness of the front cover artwork as it's currently a bit too dark to the naked eye. You can't really see what I mean here due to the camera's exposure and post-processing.
Here are some snippets of the inside, without revealing too much. Please ignore the stick-on notes, as I've been doing editing and inspection work on the book itself since it arrived.
I have to say I'm quite impressed with the quality of the print. I was worried initially about how the artworks would turn out, which is the most important aspect of the book itself. And guess what, it exceeded my expectations. I absolutely love how vivid the reds have turned out, and the details on each piece are as crisp as ever.
The paper quality on the other hand is also very good. I'm glad I chose a glossy finish for the pages as it really brings out the contrasts of the artworks. Thickness wise, it's the standard thickness for most artbooks you'll find out there in the market.
If there's one aspect of the book that I'm—slightly—unhappy about is the appearance of a very thin white line on the edge of a few pages (as seen below). I guess this is due to the cutting process and I reckon is a random incidental occurrence. But it's a very minor detail that isn't obtrusive, other than a minor eye-sore.
The book itself is about 12x12 inches which is just the right size in order allow readers to appreciate the artworks contained within.
Doing the layouts for the book was not too difficult with their Indesign Plugin and only required some minimal learning curve on my part. Overall I'm well pleased with Blurb's service. The book is definitely well made and I'm glad I used them for this project.
I'm going to finish this one final round of editing, and other details that need to be ironed out, and then most likely order a second proof copy just to make sure that everything is in order before I officially put it up for sale. So till then, expect another update on this front.
So I've read most of the feedback during the last update. While many are excited about the digital release of the book, I think it's a also obvious that some others do want a physical print of the book, which is completely understandable. I'm certainly bummed out myself whenever I think of it since it'd definitely be cool to see lots of these red artworks in physical print.
Just recently, an acquaintance reached out to me and advised me to try out a platform that offers Print on Demand services—and guess what, it accepts to-and-fro transactions for folks living in my region (unlike other platforms I've checked out before this), which is what totally excites me! That platform is Blurb.
I've worked hard during the past week to quickly create a draft for the book as per Blurb's requirements for the kind of project I'm aiming for. After some tinkering with Blurb's InDesign Plugin and the boring part of contending with the science and technicalities of book printing, I've finally managed to send a draft to Blurb and order myself a Proof Copy of the physical book! If the book prints and ships out according to schedule, the book should arrive at my doorstep sometime around the 3rd or 4th quarter of May 2023.
So now for the obvious and pertinent part: With the sudden twist in the schedule, I'm going to have to postpone the launch of the book. I know, I know... we're all excited for the launch date announcement, but I think it's worth waiting a little longer in order to open an extra for everyone.
I'm certainly eager to check out the physical copy myself and make an assessment of it. So till then, stay tuned for the next update, which I will showcase images of the physical book, its technical specs and what to expect from it.
So let me repeat again:
THE 12th MAY 2023 LAUNCH HAS BEEN SCRAPPED!
I felt like I have to emphasize that in case anyone comes rapping at my door when that time comes. XD