Five years ago today I signed over the digital rights for Felafel and The Tasmanian Babes Fiasco to my then publishers, Pan MacMillan.
Famously, things went a bit pear-shaped shortly after.
It was nothing to do with those titles, but it did mean that they were locked up inside the company vault for the next five years.
I wrote to the publisher yesterday and requested that the rights be reverted. They kindly agreed.
And so, a happy moment…
I was thinking of just re-releasing them, but flicking through Tassie Babes this afternoon I realised it is as much an historical document as anything, filled with references and technologies that had vanished into time.
So I might noodle around and wrote a few footnotes, explaining stuff like ‘Who was Jana Wendt’ and what was a newspaper.
I saw a brown couch on the footpath last week. It must have been a sign. So, my Spirit Guide is actually a Felafel prop. The couch stayed there for three days. Share housers are pretty slow on asset spotting these days.
I still purchase every copy of babes I find at lifeline etc. I have distributed over 50 of them over the last many years. It is my go to book for non reading bogans.
It has reminded me that I have to assign the beautifully signed copy of Felafel to my eldest who has finished his final exam yesterday as a salutary lesson around share houses. That will be his second JB book to read....
That is a pretty big rabbit hole you are about to dive into. My kids don't believe rotary dial phones were real (no one would wait that long to dial) so your explanations of old tech better be accompanied by pictures and links to Wikipedia.
I first read Felafel in badly photocopied reviewer Folio and just pre-purchased Shattered Skies for Kindle. Re-edit all you want and definitely re-release, but don't do a George Lucas: they are what they beautifully are. Don't fuck em up.
Found mine the other week too. Got a carton labelled JB in the mountain of books (real ones like we all real back in the old days) in my storage unit waiting for me to add a library room into the apartment rebuild ...
Very pleased for you John. Good news. Are you planning to restore the 'missing' chapter from the famous midnight edit, or did that get pushed into 'Babes'. I can't remember the details of that story right now.
On another note, who has the rights to the two Felafel guides titles. I have a copy of 'Getting Wasted 'but I have never seen a copy of the Felafel Guide to Sex, and I have hunted for it, believe me. I also remember how bloody hard it was to find an affordable copy of 'Savage Henry'.
I saw a brown couch on the footpath last week. It must have been a sign. So, my Spirit Guide is actually a Felafel prop. The couch stayed there for three days. Share housers are pretty slow on asset spotting these days.
Interesting but some gems such as "Sandmen of the terror data" are timeless and even more relevant in the current world of Duttonland
I's love to write a story about the Sandmen.
I still purchase every copy of babes I find at lifeline etc. I have distributed over 50 of them over the last many years. It is my go to book for non reading bogans.
You could swap Frazer McLennan for the Decoy.
Would that be a good or bad thing? Asking for a friend.
It has reminded me that I have to assign the beautifully signed copy of Felafel to my eldest who has finished his final exam yesterday as a salutary lesson around share houses. That will be his second JB book to read....
That is a pretty big rabbit hole you are about to dive into. My kids don't believe rotary dial phones were real (no one would wait that long to dial) so your explanations of old tech better be accompanied by pictures and links to Wikipedia.
Congratulations on your first children returning to the fold. Maybe some footnotes with splosions in them, just so they don't feel left out?
I first read Felafel in badly photocopied reviewer Folio and just pre-purchased Shattered Skies for Kindle. Re-edit all you want and definitely re-release, but don't do a George Lucas: they are what they beautifully are. Don't fuck em up.
I've still got my yellow first edition Felafel as a prized possession!
Found mine the other week too. Got a carton labelled JB in the mountain of books (real ones like we all real back in the old days) in my storage unit waiting for me to add a library room into the apartment rebuild ...
Very pleased for you John. Good news. Are you planning to restore the 'missing' chapter from the famous midnight edit, or did that get pushed into 'Babes'. I can't remember the details of that story right now.
On another note, who has the rights to the two Felafel guides titles. I have a copy of 'Getting Wasted 'but I have never seen a copy of the Felafel Guide to Sex, and I have hunted for it, believe me. I also remember how bloody hard it was to find an affordable copy of 'Savage Henry'.
The missing chapter became Babes, so I'll probably keep them separate. The Guides, I dunno what happened to them.
Why did you sign over the rights in the first place, John?
The original publisher was closing down and I was already working with Pan Mac. It seemed a smart move, until it didn't.
What sort of sin is it to have never read either book?
I did see the movie though, but only because I was on a long flight somewhere.
You did it the wrong way around.
Any way that involved watching the movie at all is the wrong way around.