Alright. I've had enough people ask me about when preorders for the Field Guide are gonna start that I finally decided hell with it--let's make 'em happen now! Tomorrow's the Monday after a nice 4-day weekend, I don't wanna go back to work, there's snow outside--I'm going to do something fun something good to start the week off with. So here it is!

For those who don't know, A Field Guide to Otherkin is my forthcoming book on the Otherkin subculture, and it will be published by Immanion Press/Megalithica Books. The Otherkin community is a small but growing subculture of people who identify in some way--spiritually, metaphorically, etc.--as Other than human. Some resonate with dragons, while others believe they were elves in another life, and still others identify as wolves, great cats, and other animals.

Of course, this all may seem a little odd to those who aren't Otherkin. What do Otherkin believe? Why do we believe these things? How does being Otherkin affect how we relate to the world around us--and ourselves? A Field Guide to Otherkin offers answers straight from over 100 survey respondents, collected by me, and elaborated upon by me.

A Field Guide to Otherkin is designed to inform both Otherkin and non-Otherkin about the community and the people and beliefs that create it. Rather than being a collection of statistics, it is a look into the lives of Otherkin, qualitative rather than quantitative. It's written by a wolf therianthrope for the Otherkin community, as well as those who aren't a part of the community but are curious anyway.

A Field Guide to Otherkin is due out in March 2007--which, depending on publication schedule, could mean early March or late March. The cover price will be $21.99. While Immanion/Megalithica is a UK-based publisher, we do have a U.S. based printer (as well as one in the U.K.). That means no huge expensive shipping costs within the U.S., just the usual domestic post office rates. U.S. customers have the option of either priority mail or media mail by way of the United States Post Office; everyone else will be shipped air mail. (If you're in the U.K., Immanion/Megalithica will have preorders at a later date--they won't be signed because they won't come with me, but they'll be shipped from Stafford, which will be lower shipping for you.)

All copies ordered from me will be personally signed; if you want something special or want it signed to someone specific, please make a note with your payment. You can order via Paypal via the website, or email me at chaohippie (at) excite.com if you need to pay via check or money order, though Paypal is preferred.

And, as an added bonus, since we've got the Yule-flavored holidays coming up, if you want to preorder a copy for someone, I'm making a little printable preorder gift certificate that'll basically say "Hey! This person has preordered A Field Guide to Otherkin for you for Xmas/Yule/Festivus/etc.!" I'll email it to you and you can either forward it on to the person, or print it out and give it to them on the holiday itself--of course, they'll have to wait til the book comes out, but in the meantime it gives them something to look forward to. Do please give me the information for the recipient, though, since I am going to be maintaining a database of all preorders.

Finally, speaking of preorders, we are still taking preorders for a couple of other books.

The first one is Taylor Ellwood's () Inner Alchemy. The body is the most important magical tool you have--here's how to fine tune it! From working with body fluids in ritual, to DNA magic, to working with your neurotransmitters as spirit guides and much more, Inner Alchemy is designed to help you connect with your body like never before. It follows in Taylor's tradition of charting unexplored realms of magic, and is due out in December of 2006--click here for preorder info!

Also due out next month is Nicholas Graham's The Four Powers. It may seem a little surprising for us to be publishing a beginner's manual--but this one is unlike any other out there. Nick not only explains the different models and paradigms of magic, but presents the reader with a number of practical exercises based largely in Chaos magic. The book is designed to help the seeker figure out where to focus hir practice--after all, there are a LOT of options out there, and it can be overwhelming! However, those who have been practicing within a single paradigm for a while will also find it useful in determining where best to branch out and explore. And, best of all, unlike a lot of introductory manuals, this one is written without that annoying condescending tone and watered-down material tha tmany 101 books have. The Four Powers includes solid, practical information to help you find the beginning of your path--click here to find out more!

BTW, if you know anyone interested in any of these, please feel free to pass a link to this public post on to them. I'm primarily keeping this to my own journals; I'm not going to put anything on any communities/etc. myself til the Field Guide is actually out.

Thanks :) And now back to your regularly scheduled Lupabitchin'.