The BABYLON 5 Preservation Project - Kickstarter

[JasonDavis]

Quarxius: Beautifully said. I've had the same experience of death stealing stories multiple times over the last two years, so I know where you're coming from. Thank you.

Phazedout: Once the book is published (assuming successful completion of the Kickstarter), it'll be available directly from me, or via your local bookstore or Amazon.

Looney: I'm digging through my cupboards today to see if I can find any more goodies. I plan to announce additional items to those already backing the project, so they get first dibs on the upgrade.

[Brandon Klassen]

Though I heard you and Brandon Klassen (the Creative Director at B5Books)

Just for clarification, I do work for B5 Books executing their products, but I'm not the Creative Director.

[Triple F]

Just for clarification, I do work for B5 Books executing their products, but I'm not the Creative Director.

Fair enough. Only going by the details in this bio. Emphasis added by me.
http://sierrachest.com/index.php?a=p...j8OxeESDtrwVDI

Brandon is currently the VP of Publishing for Publishing 180, which includes the role of Creative Director for Babylon 5 Books, where Brandon works for writer/producer J. Michael Straczynski. Babylon 5 Books has published over 40 books dedicated to the behind the scenes making of nineties sci-fi television series Babylon 5 and its spin-off, Crusade.

[Brandon Klassen]

Fair enough. Only going by the details in this bio. Emphasis added by me.
http://sierrachest.com/index.php?a=p...j8OxeESDtrwVDI

Gotcha, thanks for pointing that out. I need to contact that site and provide them with a proper bio.

[sftv]

Stopping by for a minute to mention my support for Jason's project. I've offered to help him in any way I can. There's definitely lots of good reference material out there on the show, but I think this will give us the whole story in a narrative that will be worth having around. I've got a lot of press materials from Warner Bros and TNT (as well as an interesting packet put together by a PR firm to promote the show's second season sent to the Arizona Republic's TV critic at the time) that I'll be getting Jason.

[JasonDavis]

Thanks for the support, Lee. Much appreciated.

If anyone has any questions about the project, I'd love to answer them.

[Looney]

Getting so close. I hope the ball keeps rolling.

[B5-Stefan]

Getting so close. I hope the ball keeps rolling.

"So say we all!"

err...
wrong universe

[JasonDavis]

My thanks to all who've supported The Babylon 5 Preservation Project. The goal was reached a little over 90 minutes ago, and the backing has continued, so the result should be a very special book when all is said and done.

Now I need a cup of tea...

[AstroBoy]

I added my support this afternoon maybe mine was the one that pushed it over the edge. LOL. Great to see the momentum and I can't wait to read it.

[Looney]

WOW!!!!! That was a HUGE jump. I blame myself. LOL So glad this happened. Goal reached with plenty of time to spare and plenty of time to keep it going.

[sftv]

Congrats on passing the base goal and hopefully it will keep on going. I personally would like to see a hardback edition (don't hit me, Jason!).

I did meet with Jason for a bit on Monday after spending the weekend in L. A. at the Nebula Awards Weekend (and, I guess revealing who Jason is referring to in the Day One update)! I still need to dig up a few things that I didn't find in my initial search.

[JasonDavis]

Lee, the only reason I didn't mention your name in the update is because I hadn't thought to clear it with you first. Thanks for the interview and the interesting artifacts to study.

On the subject of hardbacks...

I had originally intended to feature a hardback book as a stretch goal, but when I began crunching the numbers (which are all hypothetical because the price of printing could fluctuate over the next year due to tariffs on paper and the final page count is a variable, thus so is the weight of a potential hardback/paperback), I could not come up with a solution that could tackle ALL those variables and pin a stretch goal to it. There might have been away to do it if I didn't allow international orders (which are a complication in and of themselves), but I didn't want to disadvantage foreign backers any more than the US Postal Services rates were going to already.

So, on the subject of hardbacks, I will say only this. The more books needed to fulfill the Kickstarter, the better the chance of going with a traditional printer (rather than print-on-demand) that may offer quantity discounts that would allow the cost per unit to drop enough to offset the increase in shipping due to a hardcover's greater weight. Due to the variables, I won't be able to do the math until the book is finished, but--to sum up--the more books sold during the Kickstarter, the greater the chance that I'll be able to do hardcover.

[JasonDavis]

"What now?" you may be asking, the Babylon 5 Preservation Project having achieved its original goal with 17 days still to go.

As of this writing, 565 copies of the book will be printed. If that number goes up to 1,000 copies, there are more printing opportunities that become available to improve the quality and content of the book.

Everything in publishing is about numbers, which is why a traditional publishing house still wouldn't consider this book viable with "only" 565 books bought; it's not enough for a cost-effective print run.

So...

If you're wondering Should I wait until the book is published and buy it then? that's certainly an option.

But...

If you back the Kickstarter now, there's an opportunity to improve the product EVERYONE will receive at the end of the day, both in terms of the content (because more money gives me more time to work) and execution (because more books to be made means volume discounts at higher-end printers).

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1387618382/the-babylon-5-preservation-project

[JasonDavis]

Though I'll still be sprinkling bits of B5 trivia on all the various Facebook groups until the Kickstarter concludes next month, today will see the first Anla-Shok intelligence report dispatched via e-mail to backers who pledged $60 or more. (Ordinarily, it'll be material from the book-in-progress, but I haven't started writing yet, so today's first briefing will be atypical.)

So, if you've not yet backed, you still have a few hours to get aboard before the first inside scoop is revealed, and if you backed at the $50 level, there's still time to upgrade to $60.

As for today's enticing trivia:

Actor Beverly Leech--who played John Sheridan's sister, Elizabeth in "Revelations"--was nearly cast in a MUCH different role during season one.

More on this matter will be revealed in ALL ALONE IN THE NIGHT: The Making of Babylon 5, coming soon from:

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1387618382/the-babylon-5-preservation-project?ref=project_facebook