The Twelve Days of Christmas

EVERYTHING BUT THE PRINTING! And one other thing...
over 1 year ago – Tue, Jul 09, 2024 at 05:28:45 PM

Hello! I apologize for the long silence. It has been a very buy summer! There was an old children's book that I thought was the 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins, one of Dr. Suess's earliest works. But I was wrong. In the story I'm thinking of, a hat salesman is heading into town with dozens of hats stacked on his head, when he is accosted by an army of mischievous monkeys. I could have sworn that was Bart the Cubby, but that story is very different. So I have no idea. But that's me: too many hats stacked on my head: Illustrator, author, designer, printer, entrepreneur, con-goer, marketing guy (I ought to fire me, but no one else will work so cheap), launderer, maid, chief cook and bottle-washer, and grandpop! 

One hat worn and removed: I did the ALA / San Diego whirlwind signing gig on June 30th. That was crazy strange. I've spent countless hours in that convention hall when the Comic Con ran. I never saw so many people who looked like Librarians, or who were so polite, or who didn't careen through the crowds on a mad dash for free stuff. It was actually very cool and really chill. I signed and gave away 50 or so Advance Reader's Copies (and came home with 10 more of my own. I'll talk in another post about what I intend to do with them). 

As to production, last I reported, the books were at the printers, but apparently there were a couple of hurdles yet to be cleared. Not major, but the language and ocean divides are huge. That said, Brown has done a great job of handling their suppliers (Brown has clout by virtue of volume). As of this minute everything is approved. This was the message I got this morning from Brown Books: 

"Advances for 12 days are scheduled to ship on 7/29 and the bulk shipment goes out on 8/5. We are working with the plant to ship the special edition direct to you, and I will have more details on that later this week. Getting closer!"

94% of you have filled out your surveys: Good for you, and THANK YOU! If you don't know where your BackerKit survey is, or If you accidentally deleted the email containing your survey, you can recover it by going to the survey recovery page. Enter the name of the project you backed and then the email address you used to pledge on your crowdfunding platform.

In the meantime, I have started the alternate Dragon-themed cover for the Dragon version of the Special Edition. Here's a sneak peek:

This is the last thing left to complete. I am a little bit behind schedule, but we've been doing a lot of babysitting lately. I must say that it eats up huge chunks of days, but it's not a hat I'm willing to take off! 

More when I know more,

Todd

Catching Up! Book news, ALA, and more!
almost 2 years ago – Thu, Jun 06, 2024 at 11:11:40 AM

I apologize for the lateness of this update. I've been working on getting the Backerkit page up to speed. It has launched! The button that reads FOLLOW ALONG! takes you to the Backerkit storefront. Send your friends or relatives that missed the campaign here:

https://the-twelve-days-of-christmas-0.backerkit.com/hosted_preorders

The book itself is now completely finished and on its way to the printers, I expect to take delivery in July or August, and then fulfillment will start immediately. You should all have your goodies before the book releases across the country (across the world?) in October. You will be sooo ready for Christmas. 

Meanwhile, I will attend the American Library Association's annual meetup in San Diego. On June 30, I'll be signing Advanced Reader Copies (ARCs) at The School Library Journal's ALA booth #1638. This is happening on my own dime, so I appreciate my backers all the more—with your help, I may get this book into libraries everywhere. 

Finally, I'll soon start work on the Dragon Edition alternate dust-jacket, the prize in the Dragon Special Edition exclusive. I'll post updates all over the place as that progresses.

Thank you again from the bottom of my heart, which is where I assume the cockles of my heart are located. 

Todd

Advance praise for The Twelve days of Christmas:
almost 2 years ago – Thu, May 09, 2024 at 04:56:21 PM

“I never would have guessed that renowned fantasy illustrator Todd Lockwood had this delightfully whimsical side. His skill, as always, is astonishing, but the over-the-top fun he brings to this Christmas classic is a wonderful surprise. I still haven’t found all of the rings and hens and maids a-milking that he has hidden in these pages, but my grandchildren and I are gonna have a blast searching for them!” —Warren Hanson, New York Times Bestselling Illustrator of A Cup of Christmas Tea and the Beloved Peef: The Christmas Bear Series

Deadline Reminder
almost 2 years ago – Mon, May 06, 2024 at 12:03:47 PM

This post is for backers only. Please visit Kickstarter.com and log in to read.

Thank you!
almost 2 years ago – Tue, Apr 30, 2024 at 12:35:57 PM

Well... that was quite the rollercoaster, wasn't it? So many ups and downs, but we hit the important points in the campaign.

Thank you so very much for your support in making this dream happen. Todd is currently organizing things in Backer Kit, so look out for your surveys in the near future. 

In the meantime, we did have twelve supporters whose pledges Kickstarter was not able to collect. When you have a chance, please check your billing information to ensure everything is in order and that your pledge is not affected. We don't want anyone to miss out on their Christmas goodies!

Best,

Danielle