Stu Jenks' Fezziwig Press

I'm pushing 60 and I think about these kind of things...

I'm pushing 60 and I think about these kinds of things.

Craig Acorn, Cathy Spann and Greta Ward have the details on how to get to C.J.'s Fault. (There's a topo map in a desk drawer too, if you need it.) When you arrive at the top, you'll find a small cairn I made four years ago.

When I die, I'd like to have my ashes sprinkled inside of that small chamber of rocks, or near by.

(You can take some of my ashes to the family plot in Virginia if you like, but that's not a big deal to me. Just let Currie Funeral Home in Kilmarnock, Virginia know I'm dead, and they'll sandblast the death date on my headstone.)

Come visit C.J.'s Fault from time to time, as much for the view as for the remembrance. It's a pretty place. Maybe you'll see a Big Horn or two. They bed up there.

Again, Craig Acorn, Cathy Spann, and Greta Ward know the way.

 

All images (c) 2014 by Stu Jenks

A free ePub download of The Transpersonal Papers (1861-2010) by Stu Jenks.

 

Download The Transpersonals Papers by Stu Jenks epub (c) 2013 Stu Jenks.

I was just at a Starbuck's buying an Egg Nog Latte, when a homeless woman came in and asked the clerk, "Do you have anything for just a dollar?"

I'm not struggling like her obviously, but as my father used to say, "It's not what you make but what you spend." And having my own business, Fezziwig Press, costs money and my little company isn't making enough money right now.

So I'm doing an Amanda Fucking Palmer thing. If I don't ask, you don't know to give.

Fezziwig Press and I have been struggling financially for the last year or so. Namely, I'm not quite breaking even, still a few hundred dollars in the red each month, even with my part time counseling gig and all. I'm making some sales with image rights, book sales, music sales, etc, but not like I did five to ten years ago. So I'm putting out the artistic begging bowl. And I'm giving shit away.

The Transpersonal Papers (1861-2010) was released in 2011. Cost a boat load to produce but I only sold seven ebook copies. (Thank you to the seven, by the way.) So I'm offering it today, to you all, for free.

If you like The Transpersonal Papers, or the StuBlog, or my work, I ask that you give a little money to my Paypal account. My log-in is my email address, stujenks at gmail dot com, spelled like you normally would type it. Donate to my Paypal, or buy some books, or send money to P.O.Box 161, Tucson, AZ 85702. Whatever you like. No expectations, but if I don't ask, you don't know. And of course, if you don't give, that's perfectly all right too. We're all tight these days, don't I know. Or you just might not like my stuff that much. It's all good, as the kids say. Except for my ever-shrinking savings account.

I hope you enjoy the photographs and the stories in this book. Perhaps someday I'll have enough money to print it as a large coffee table book, like it was originally envisioned. Perhaps not, but you can have it right now for free. Enjoy.

And just download the Adobe Digital Editions free software to see and read The Transpersonal Papers: (1861-2010), if you don't already have it on your computer.

Thanks, y'all, and have a Happy New Year.

Love and light,

Stu

Download The Transpersonal Papers by Stu Jenks epub (c) 2013 Stu Jenks.

"Wistman's Wood"

"Wistman's Wood, Dartmoor, United Kingdom" (c) 2013 Stu Jenks

I used to like Halloween as a child, with its Baby Ruth candies, its neighborhood spookiness and it being my mother's birthday too, but I haven't liked the holiday for years. I'm not a big fan that in America many adults use the holiday as an opportunity to express their sexual darkness, or their romanticism of Death, or their drunken angry inner selves. That being said, I do like the reverence of the Christian All Souls' Day, All Saints' Day and the resurgence of The Day Of The Dead celebrations, with personal altars displaying photographs of loved ones gone, and orange marigolds on graves newly cleaned.

I'll be walking in the All Souls' Procession in Tucson this Sunday, but I'm planning a more personal observance this weekend, of this time of the year when the veil between worlds is thin. Next year, I hope to be near Lively, Virginia, sitting on a bench in my family plot on November 1st, small candles burning near the headstones of my mother, father and sister.

Above is a photograph I took of Wistman's Wood last Spring when I was visiting friends in Chagford, Dartmoor. One of the oldest remaining oak wood in all of the UK, beautifully dwarfed by time and wind, Wistman's Wood truly is a sacred place, being its own gateway between earth and sky.

I wish I was there right this second, holding a photo of my family in one hand and a bunch of marigolds in the other. Or if not there, sitting on a marble bench in the Northern Neck of Virginia.

Step Zero by Stu Jenks is launched...

(Author Photo by Jeff Smith at www.jeffsmithusa.com

 

Step Zero, the novel, has been launched.

So where can you buy it?

For those of you with tablets and digital devices, you can buy Step Zero as an iBook from the Apple store, for your iPad and iPhone, or you can obtain it as an ebook for your Amazon Kindle device, via this link. (The Nook version is pending.) You can also purchase the soft-cover first editions at the Barnes and Noble online store and at the Fezziwig Press online store. And locally, you can obtain the soft-cover book at Tucson Touch Therapies at Pima and Alvernon and at Betty Blue's Junk Shop on South Plumer. Lastly, on, Saturday, November 10th, 2012, from Noon to 5 p.m., I'll be at my studio at 549 N. 7th Avenue, for an imformal book signing, in conjunction with the Tucson Open Studio Tour.

And as a special free treat to those who buy Step Zero, I'll send you a pdf of The Lost Images of Step Zero, a hundred plus images that didn't make the final edit, but are a nice adjunct to the Step Zero experience, whatever that means. Just send me a Facebook message or an email at [email protected] and I'll send the PDF right to you.

So push those buttons and buy those books, boys and girls, for baby needs a new pair of shoes.

From The Lost Images Of Steps Zero PDF:

Top to bottom, "A Rose For Chessie, California", "Matt Antone's Ginger, Arizona", "The 41 Nights, Arizona", and "Michael and Chessie's Moon, California".

 

Cover design by Gail Cross of Desert Isle Designs. Cover photograph by Stu Jenks.

 

 

Step Zero, the softcover first edition, is here!!!

A very good day at Fezziwig Press. The softcover, first edition of Step Zero: A Sober Love Story In 2076 is now for sale, ahead of schedule.

The digital editions of Step Zero will hopefully be available on your iPad, Nook and Kindle and other digital platforms by November 1st. The files have been uploaded and we are just waiting to hear back when they will available for download. We'll let you know.

But you can buy Step Zero, the analog first edition book, right now. Just click on this link to Fezziwig Press's Step Zero webpage and follow the instructions to buy the book. Easy Peasy.

And if you live in Tucson area, you can buy the book at Tucson Tucson Therapies at Alvernon and Pima, starting Friday, October 26th, 2012, and you can purchase the novel, right now, at Betty Blue's Junk Shop at 262 S. Plumer. All books at Betty Blue's and T3 are signed and I'll be happy to sign and personalize any book purchased through The Fezziwig Press Store.

Again, the ebooks version will be up very soon. I love ebooks. I truly do. But there is nothing like holding a book book in your hands. And you can hold the first edition of Step Zero in your hands right now.

Love, light, and luck,

Stu

Step Zero: A Sober Love Story in 2076 (First Printing Problems)

 

 

Update: October 7th, 2012.

I'm suspending the sales of the book book until I get the second printing. We are halfway through the final final proof of Step Zero now. There are just too many typos for us to sell this product. We have the names and addresses of everyone who bought the first printing, minus one name. Expect a cleaner, better, second printing book in the mail, or delivered by hand, as soon as we get the new printing done. We insist. All of us at Fezziwig Press are very sorry for the less than adequate quality of the first printing. But no worries. The second printing will be much better, and we'll have those books to you as soon as we have them in our hot little hands. And we'll let you know, through the StuBlog and Facebook, when everyone can buy the second printing of the book book of Step Zero. And, of course when you can buy it on the iPad, Nook, and Kindle.

 

It's less than three weeks to the official rollout of Step Zero: A Sober Love Story in 2076 by Stu Jenks. The first printing of this 500 plus page novel has already occurred, but we, at Fezziwig Press, are not happy with the number of typos we missed in that printing. So, a second printing will be available at or before the planned November 1st release of Step Zero. And the typos will be fixed in the upcoming eBooks that will available for purchase at Apple, Amazon, Barnes and Nobles, and the other digital platforms. Again, official rollout is November 1st or before. I'll keep you posted.

But if you wish to buy a flawed first printing of Step Zero, you can buy it now, via Paypal, using my email, [email protected] to log in. Price for $17.95 plus $6.95 shipping and handling. After we get the second printing, I won't be selling the first printing anymore. I'll just throw them in the dumpster outside of Studio BR-549 and keep a few copies for myself. Bottom line: Quality is very important to Team Fezziwig and we are in the process of fixing the typo situation.

And I'm very sorry to those of you who have already bought the flawed first printing. When we get the second printing at Fezziwig Press, we will gladly exchange your first purchase with a second printing copy, free of charge, and no charge for shipping either. That goes for those of you who buy the first printing now as well. I'll send you a new fixed, second printing, at no charge to you. And you don't need to return the first printing book.

And here is a blurb that Annie Gordon wrote for the back cover. I hate writing blurbs myself. It's a sad dog that won't wag its own tail, as my Dad used to say. But thanks, Annie for writing a great promo for Step Zero.

The time is 2076. The setting, a hopeful post-apocalyptic America. Much has changed in the world since 2060, but the resilience of survivors and those born since is strong and family means more than ever. Meet Artie, and get to know his girlfriend Georgia and their friends as he takes a road trip to reconnect with his grandmother in San Francisco. Mormon Tea is now the drug of choice and powerful gangs seek to addict and control the population. Support groups and a strong U.S. Marshall Service fight back. Loss, love, sex, music, hope and recovery are some of what you'll find in Step Zero along with fast paced action and several surprises.

That's all for now. I'll let you know when the ebooks are up on the platforms and when the second printing of Step Zero has arrived at Fezziwig Press and is available for sale.

Love and light,

Stu

"Thornton Beach Pelicans"

"Thornton Beach Pelicans, San Francisco, California" (c) 2012 Stu Jenks

Mom died a year ago today. Pamela, two weeks before Mary. Dad, ten years ago. My family is gone. Sure, I feel them from time to time. And all this spirituality stuff helps some, but I still wish I could give all three of them a hug. But I can't.

All 8 1/2" x 11" A/P archival pigment prints by Stu Jenks for $25, shipping, handling and taxes included...

Image: "Queen Esther Baptist Church, Lancaster, Virginia" (c) 2011 Stu Jenks (Just down River Road from Victoria's house. Love that luscious red carpet. And for you nocturnals out there, it was handheld. Rare for me.)

In this time of making photos on iPhones and Macbook Pros and only looking on screens, I forget I'm a old-school guy. I make a 8 1/2 x 11 work print on archival paper of EVERY image I make. EVERY one. It's the only way, for me, to accurately check for color shift, density, composition, etc. I really like my iPad screen but it's no way to make a good print.

And I have hundreds, if not thousands, of work prints artist proofs at my studio.

If you see an image of mine on The StuBlog or on my old website or on the Fezziwig Press Store or in any of my books, there's a beautiful small print in a box somewhere, perhaps with your name on it. And since I'm organized, I can find it.

Many of you can't afford my larger prints. I understand. I don't have an extra 50 or 100 lying around either. But I do have an extra $20 for stuff I really like.

So if you see an image of mine on any of my sites or in any of my books and you want it, it's yours for $25, shipping, handling and tax included. (I believe in paying taxes, sales and otherwise.)

Just email me at my facebook page or through the StuBlog or at [email protected], and tell me what print you would like or just pull the jpeg and send that to me.

I was just watching the Tarhells lose today in basketball, working on images at my computer when I thought, 'I bet people don't realize I have boxes of work prints here.'

You all do now.

Love and light,

Stu

p.s. Ignore the catagories belows. The computer went wacky. Another reason why I prefer a print in the hand as opposed to an image in The Cloud.

...The first draft of the novel is done!!!...

The first draft of the novel is done!!! It came in at 149,000 words, 552 pages in my document. Yeaaaa! I can't tell you how good it feels. The ending made me cry, as I hope it does you. (Last word in the novel, which won't change in revision: Sighs.) I want to jump right back to the beginning and start revisions, but Mary Ann suggests I take more than just a couple days off. OK. I'll take off three or four days. LOL. But then it's fixing this and revising that, then off to the editors. And I have ideas for the next novel in this series, too. I have some pretty great characters, I think, and I want to see what they will do next. But first things first. Get this novel to print.

One serious note: It took about a year to write this novel, but it almost didn't get done. With Mary and Pamela dying and all, I didn't work on it for about six weeks and it was so hard to get my momentum back. But I did. But it was difficult. If you are working on a novel or a large work, I recommend you plow through, even if the field is frozen. I've been told I'm very lucky to have gotten back on track.

Speaking of track, good luck to Danica Patrick tomorrow in the Daytona 500 and in the rest of Sprint Cup and Nationwide races this season. I might just have to go up to PHX next Saturday to watch her race.

By the way, did I mention I finished the freaking first draft of the novel?

Yeaaaaaaaaa!

"The Ferro Avenue Angel"

"The Ferro Avenue Angel, Tucson, Arizona" (c) 1997, 2012 Stu Jenks