Blog Layout and ARCs

Well, lookie there. Something new about this blog? Yep, it's the brand new blog layout I got. The layout was for free from the amazing Leelou Blogs here. You can get free backgrounds, layouts, and more for Blogger templates. I recommend checking it out if your blog needs some freshening up or a makeover. Leelou also offers custom templates.

So, now that I've finished fangirling about the layout, and how brilliant it is, onto more pressing matters. I had planned to do an ARC post later, as I currently don't have one of my two ARCs, but there's no time for that. Instead, I'm going to improvise with just one of my ARCs.

The ARC used in these photos is Pretty Crooked, which will be published by Katherine Tegen Books/HarperCollins in March 2012 and is written by Elisa Ludwig. My review should come later this week as well.

So, this is the final finished cover that will appear on all printed copies:

And this is what my ARC looks like (terrible picture, sorry):

But even in that awful picture, you can see the major difference: the big red box in the corner. The words are backwards thanks to the idiotic webcam, but the square box reads "UNCORRECTED PROOF, NOT FOR SALE".

And that brings me to the first major point of ARCS: what they really are. The following definition is not from a dictionary; it is mine.

advanced readers' copy (sometimes called a galley) noun. 1. An uncorrected proof of an unreleased novel distributed to reviewers, librarians, and bloggers. There are small quantities of these, and if reviewers, librarians, etc. want one they must request one and the publisher can decide who to give them to. 2. The blogger, librarian, etc. writes a review of the novel. It is printed in a magazine, online, or simply sent to the publisher.

The really big, major thing to know is THESE ARE UNCORRECTED.  

Yep, these are absolutely uncorrected. They have been reviewed by editors and given a cover, but there will be mistakes. I found a typo in my ARC on the third page:

My mom was a pseudo-Buddhist, and when she'd twaken me to churches, it was to look at the architecture (ARC, page 3).

See what I mean? It was the only typo I found, aside from some grammar errors (hmm, editors), but it's still the same.

The copies cannot be sold, either. It is actually illegal to sell them, and can be considered a federal crime. All ARCs are printed with the warning; it is usually printed in a box or a banner across the cover. For more information, I send you to this link: here. It's not the most reliable but has some good information. Browsing the Interwebtz, I also found a story on one of my favorite book blogs The Book Smugglers, about a store that they went to in New York that was actually selling illegal copies of galleys: link here. Scroll down until you see the section titled "Visiting the Strand Bookstore: An Expose". It's pretty far down but a fascinating read.

Okay, back to the ARC. A few more shots:

The spine:

See that strange orange (it's red in real life, actually) thing next to my head? It's hard to see in the picture, but the small square says "3/12" across the top. "3/12" stands for March 2012, when the book comes out, so reviewers will know which date the final copy is published. (Pretty Crooked pubs on March 13th, by the way.)

And the back of the book, complete with a beginning pitch (most pitches don't end up being the same on the final copy), marketing campaigns, and the nitty-gritty details (page sizes, ISBN numbers, sale date, reading level, etc):

It's all backward, sorry, but the big thing is that it's a lot of text. The picture of the lady, obviously, is the author bio. I figured you would want some nifty tibits. ;)

So here is the Marketing Campaign:

NATIONAL MARKETING CAMPAIGN:

• Online consumer advertising
• Featured title on HarperTeen's consumer website, epicreads.com, and romance channel, storycrush.com
• Featured promotional on inkpop.com, an interactive teen writing website and community
• Extensive social media outreach through HarperTeen outlets
• Teacher & Librarian blog feature at thepageturn.com

And now, a collection of pictures of my ARC:

Title page:

(Excuse the fact that all the pictures are backwards; stupid webcam.)

Library of Congress page:

Pretty Crooked is a cute little book, and if you like romance I think that it would be a fun read for you. :) Look for it in March 2012.