BLAD!

 What an exciting day this Wednesday has started out to be, with a visit from the UPS man at the door. My breakfast (consisting of eggs, sausage, a slice of cinnamon toast and a cup of coffee), was abruptly interrupted by fierce knocks at the front door. As I went to answer, a UPS truck scurried off like some child guilty of ding-dong ditch. There at my feet lay a small special package from Harper Collins Publishing. I brought it into the dinning room where I was having breakfast with my wife. She asked if I was expecting anything. As I slit the envelope open, I quickly realized what i was in store for. I had received the BLAD for Frankenstein. With Karen Elson spinning on vinyl, my wife and I flipped through this first quality production of my new upcoming book.

What is a blad? A blad is a booklet consisting of a few sample pages or chapters of a book with a proof of the front and back covers or book jacket. It serves as a preview of the book for promotional use, reviewers, and advance sales. Blad stands for Book (or, Basic) Layout And Design. Dictionary.com suggests that the word comes from bl(urb) + ad. It is sometimes written in all caps as BLAD. A blad is similar to a galley although the galley is typically a low-cost version of the entire publication sent out to book reviewers, rather than just a sample. 

With a street date of August 2013, we are getting closer and closer to the day when this abomination (the result of a four year labor excursion) will become available for all to enjoy.