Dave-Platt@LADC (05/23/85)
From: Dave Platt <Dave-Platt%LADC@CISL-SERVICE-MULTICS.ARPA>
Roy Mongiovi posted a note about "The Door into Fire" and the sequel
"The Door into Shadow" (just released in paperback by Tor), and asks,
> Is this a new way to sucker money out of us?
The simple answer (as simple as possible given all of the twists and
turns of the publishing business) is "No". The story is roughly as
follows (I'm working from memory, as my library is at home, and some of
this information is fifth-hand word-of-mouth).
- "The Door into Fire" was Diane Duane's first novel. It was originally
published back in '79 or '80 [I think] by Ballantine [ditto]. She
began work on the sequel almost immediately. "The Door into Fire"
was not widely distributed, and went out of print after less than six
months. Shortly after she negotiated an agreement with Ballantine
for the sequel, Ballantine suspended (and then completely dropped) all
further publication of SF/fantasy novels. Unfortunately, they already
had the rights to both books, and were reluctant to disgorge.
- Several years of litigation followed. Duane was eventually able to
retrieve the rights to "...Shadow", and contracted with Bluejay for
a trade-press edition [came out in December '84, I think]. A few
months later she was able to reclaim the rights to "...Fire", and
arranged to have this volume also published in trade format by Bluejay.
Both of these trade-press issues are currently in print ("...Fire" has
an unfortunate number of typos - somebody didn't proofread as carefully
as ought to have been done). "...Fire" was revised slightly for this
edition, in order to connect more smoothly with the further-developed
plot lines in "...Shadow".
- Tor Books is now in the process of releasing standard-paperback-format
issues of both books. In keeping with the usual trade practice, there
is a distinct time lag between the release of the trade-format editions
and the standard-paperback issues. Since "Shadow" was released first
in the trade edition, it's also the first to come out in the standard
format. Unfortunate, but given all of the complications that these
books have faced on their way to press, it's survivable.
- Duane is working on the third volume of the set (due for release
at the end of this year); the fourth and final is scheduled for
the end of '86. Goddess only knows what the quirks of the publishing
business will due to the schedules between now and then.
Some of this information is given in publisher's and author's forwards
to the trade editions; I don't know if they made it into the Tor
paperbacks.
I'm extremely glad to see "The Door into Fire" back in print after five
years of total unavailability, and to see the sequels well on the way.
I recommend this series highly, with only one minor caveat - if you have
a strong aversion to homo- or bi-sexual cultures, these stories will
push your buttons for sure. Read them anyway.