Category: Books

WIRED Review: “Sunken Treasure is full of gems”

Posted on 19 February, 2009 By Wil

Sunken Treasure got a really nice review from Geekdad:

Wil Wheaton came up with just the right word to describe his new book, Sunken Treasure. The subtitle is Wil Wheaton's Hot Cocoa Box Sampler, and sampler
is an excellent metaphor for what this small, sumptuous snack
represents. This is a variety box loaded with the delicious,
hand-crafted geeky confections Wil is so well known for, from sweet
'80s nostalgia filled with video arcades and Star Wars toys, to
affectionately snarky looks back upon his tenure on ST:TNG, and even a
few family stories with gooey centers full of win.

Wow, that's … awesome. Andrew and I thought we'd put together something cool and unique, but I never thought readers would like it this much. I think I did something right in the descriptions, too, because even though it's short — it's supposed to be short — people aren't complaining about that, which was a concern of mine. I wanted to make it very clear that this was a short collection, so people knew exactly what they were getting. So far, it appears that I've successfully done that, which makes me happy, because it was important to me.

If you picked up a copy of Sunken Treasure (thank you!) and you've written a review for your own blog, or you've written a review on its product page at Lulu (US Edition or World Edition), please let me know about it. I'd like to put all the reviews together in one place on my virtual bookshelf.

And now, a question from me to you: who wants a digital version? If enough people ask, I'll go ahead and make an eBook version available.

this crazy idea is feeling pretty awesome

Posted on 13 February, 2009 By Wil

Not that I’m closely watching the sales figures to see how Sunken Treasure is doing or anything, but Sunken Treasure is doing great, and if the last two days are any indication, my Operation Crazy Idea to release more original material using this kind of POD technology and distribution is going to quickly become Operation Awesome Idea that will let me create more cool stuff for my audience than I ever dreamed possible, and actually support my family doing it. Just less than a year ago, I wondered if I could apply Kevin Kelly’s business model to my work and make a living, and though I won’t know for about a month or so if it’s really working, it has never felt as realistically attainable as it does right now.

I have a lot of Crazy Ideas that have Awesome potential, including more original works of fiction, audio and video projects, and something that I’ve wanted to do my whole life but didn’t think I could ever — well, I’m getting way ahead of myself, but I sure am excited, and I wouldn’t feel this way without your support. So thank you. You who have supported me, however you’ve chosen to do it, you totally rock, and I hope to continue earning your support until they turn the lights out on planet Earth. \mm/

A quick reminder before I get back to work: If you wanted to get the bonus audio content (a live audio performance of See a Little Light, an outtake from Happiest Days of Our Lives, which I included in Sunken Treasure, because it turns out that I liked it a lot, and shouldn’t have cut it from Happiest Days in the first place), get your order in before 3pm Pacific today, because that’s when the download link goes to the Land of Wind and Ghosts. If you pay with an eCheck and it tells you it will take 4 days to clear, don’t worry. Just e-mail me a copy of your receipt (appropriately redacted, of course) and I’ll send you the link. But do it before 3pm Pacific today, because like keys dropped into a volcano, once it’s gone, it’s gone, man.

my newest book: sunken treasure

Posted on 12 February, 2009 By Wil

Thanks to the power of "feature this post" I can keep this announcement at the top of my blog for a few days. Yay!

My newest book, Sunken Treasure, is available now.Everything you ever wanted to know about Sunken Treasure (but were afraid to ask) can be found in this entry. Here's the book's description at Lulu:

Sunken Treasure is a short collection of my favorite
pieces from my books and blog, including a production diary from my
2008 role in Criminal Minds, and excerpts from a collaborative fiction
I took part in called Ficlets. As a bonus feature, it also includes the
never-before-seen script to a sketch I wrote and performed at the ACME
Comedy Theater.

If you ever wanted to know where to start with all my writing, Sunken Treasure is the book for you.

I have created two editions, a US Edition and a World Edition.
They are identical in content, but the World Edition is in a slightly
larger format, so it's $2.00 more. The trade off is that you don't have
to spend a million dollars on shipping if you're not in the US. NOTE: Canadian customers have informed me that, by choosing the US edition, they can save $2 + GST.

sunken treasure goes on sale

Posted on 11 February, 2009 By Wil

As promised, Sunken Treasure is now officially on sale!

I have created two editions, a US Edition and a World Edition. They are identical in content, but the World Edition is in a slightly larger format, so it's $2.00 more. The trade off is that you don't have to spend a million dollars on shipping if you're not in the US. NOTE: Canadian customers have informed me that, by choosing the US edition, they can save $2 + GST. Yay!

Everything you ever wanted to know about Sunken Treasure (but were afraid to ask) can be found in this entry. Here's the book's description at Lulu:

Sunken Treasure is a short collection of my favorite pieces from my books and blog, including a production diary from my 2008 role in Criminal Minds, and excerpts from a collaborative fiction I took part in called Ficlets. As a bonus feature, it also includes the never-before-seen script to a sketch I wrote and performed at the ACME Comedy Theater.

If you ever wanted to know where to start with all my writing, Sunken Treasure is the book for you.

The book is 90 pages long. The US edition is $13 + shipping, and the world edition is $15 +shipping.

Some of you may notice that I missed my noon Pacific release time today by about an hour. That's because, at 11:30 this morning, I got a crazy awesome idea (one in a series, it would seem): As a bonus and a thank you, for the next 48 hours everyone who purchases the book will get to download a live audio performance of See a Little Light, an outtake from Happiest Days of Our Lives, which I included in Sunken Treasure, because it turns out that I liked it a lot, and shouldn't have cut it from Happiest Days in the first place. When you place your order, you should get a thank you e-mail, which will have a link to the file's download location. I'll keep that link alive until about 1pm Pacific on Friday, when it will be sent to the land of wind and ghosts.

I'm super crazy excited that everyone who wants this, no matter where they are in the whole world, has a chance to get it, and I can't wait to hear your feedback.

I know that some of you are interested in the practical nuts and bolts of how this whole thing came together, what it was like to use Lulu, why I'm trying out Lulu, and some other publisher-y things. I've kept a lot of notes about this whole experience, and I'll put all this stuff in its own post, probably next week some time.

binary bubbles!

Posted on 11 February, 2009 By Wil

According to Flickr, about 2500 people have peeked at the cover of Sunken Treasure since I mentioned it on Twitter yesterday. I just love it, and before I release the book at noon Pacific today, I wanted to give everyone who reads my blog a chance to see it (and hopefully get as excited about it as I am) now.

The general consensus is that it's awesome, especially the little binary bubbles. I totally agree, and want to publicly thank and give credit to my pal Matt for designing it.

Edited to add: The release is going to be delayed just a little bit, but when you find out why, I think you'll agree that it was totally worth the wait.

Edited again to add: Yay! It's officially on sale now.