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Just to pass along the following info which was put out today in a press
release from ibooks/Simon and Schuster. Please forgive the release's rather
grandiose phraseology.
jms
-------------------------------
iBOOKS PUBLISHES JMS' PROSE WORK
Press Release
He raised the bar for epic science-fiction storytelling on television with his
syndicated series Babylon 5, then followed it by elevating the way in which
superhero tales are told with his critically acclaimed scripts for Marvelâ^A^Us
The Amazing Spider-Man and Supreme Power. Now, New York-based publishing house
ibooks, inc. is pleased to announce that it has solidified plans with Hugo,
Eisner and Emmy award-winning writer and producer J. Michael Straczynski to
re-introduce his growing number of fans to some of his earlier works.
October 2003 will see the release of Demon Night, Straczynskiâ^A^Us first novel.
â^A^ÜWhat made Demon Night work,â^A^Y says Straczynski in a new afterword written
specifically for this edition, â^A^Üand the reason that it has now been picked up
for republication by ibooks, is that I wrote it for myself, out of a love of
the form, the genre, and a desire to be entertained by a story told about
characters who mattered to me.â^A^Y
Following Demon Night will be Straczynski Unplugged, to be released in April
2004, a collection of published and all-new short stories, including a number
of dark tales adapted from his episodes written for the TV series The New
Twilight Zone. At press time, release dates for the remaining titles, the
horror novel Othersyde and the supernatural-mystery Tribulations, had not been
determined.
Demon Night is not ibooksâ^A^U first encounter with the writer, however: His
best-selling comic book series J. Michael Straczynskiâ^A^Us Rising
Starsâ^A^Opublished by Top Cow Comicsâ^A^Owas novelized for ibooks in two volumes
by author Arthur Byron Cover. Both volumes are still available from book
retailers, with Book 3 to follow after the series reaches its conclusion.
One doesnâ^A^Ut have to look far to see just how popular a writer Straczynski has
become in recent years. At this yearâ^A^Us Comic-Con International: San Diego,
Marvel Comics announced that pre-orders for his upcoming Mature Readers series
Supreme Power passed the 100,000-copy markâ^A^Oa new record for retailer orders
on a Mature Readers title. He has worked as writer/producer for such series as
Murder, She Wrote, Jeremiah and Walker, Texas Ranger, and he has published over
500 articles and numerous short stories for such publications as the Los
Angeles Times, Time Inc, Amazing Stories, Penthouse, Writerâ^A^Us Digest,
Pulphouse, The Los Angeles Herald Examiner and Twilight Zone Magazine.
Scheduled for release in October 2003, Demon Night is a trade paperback-sized
novel retailing for $11.95, available now for ordering through comic shops,
book stores, and on-line book retailers (ISBN 0-7434-7522-4).