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AllAccessCon graphic by SciFi&Scary

Have you heard? We’re helping people deal with social distancing by offering free online events and free shipping on all orders to addresses in the United States.

We understand everyone is stuck at home or, at the very least, unable to socialize, and we want to do our part to keep you happy and healthy — and out of bookstores for the time being (see the bookstore relief fund below for booksellers and comic book shops impacted by the novel coronavirus).

The safety measures at RDSP and our business partners have resulted in not just cancelling face-to-face meetings but also our public events for the foreseeable future. Many of our authors and readers were eagerly anticipating our forthcoming book launches, and like everyone in the publishing industry we’ve been scrambling to replace those lost in-person interactions and sales.

Fortunately we have AllAcessCon to fall back on. If you’re not familiar with it AllAccessCon is a recently launched online system for virtual fan conventions, workshops, book launches, reading clubs, and more. You can contribute to the permanent crowdfunding campaign and get lifetime access as either an attendee, vendor, or sponsor.

The first of our upcoming events is this Saturday March 28, featuring EV Knight, whose book we were set to launch next month in the UK at StokerCon. There are 100 free tickets available for this event, and $10 VIP tickets that include a copy of the eBook, access to the VIP after party, and more. You’ll also be able to join us at many other AllAccessCon events to be announced in coming days. Those who have contributed to the crowdfunding campaign and have permenant access will receive their tickets shortly.

While Amazon has deprioritized filling orders on many books, depending on where they are warehoused, we still have plenty in stock to fill orders through our website. The government has not only declared shipping companies like UPS critical infrastructure, but in places like Maryland and New York City authorities are actually working on ways to increase the deliverability of goods to decrease public exposure to the virus.

The back catalog of novels, short fiction collections, nonfiction, poetry collections, and childrens books from Raw Dog Screaming Press, Dog Star Books, Guide Dog Books, and Imaginary Books spans nearly 20 years and a variety of genres. While many of our readers are familiar with a certain portion of our work it’s likely we can still offer plenty of unexpected material our customers have yet to become fans of. Peruse our catalog to order directly from us.

And remember, with our free domestic shipping, the more you order the more you save. After clicking to order a book you’ll be taken to the PayPal shopping cart. Simply click on the “continue shopping” link to be taken back to our book catalog. You can check what’s in your cart at any time by clicking the “view cart” button on all our product pages.

If you have questions during the process simply click on Contact in our site header and use email to reach editor John Edward Lawson — he’ll help in any way he can.

As for international orders, at this time we still require customers outside the USA to click the International Shipping button to add shipping costs. This covers some, but not all, of international shipping expenses for us; we limit the customer cost in order to make ordering more feasible for readers who want to support us from overseas.

We thank you, everyone, for supporting the arts community during this unprecedented health event, since many creators work without guaranteed healthcare, days off, or retirement funds — and we have special gratitude for delivery personnel worldwide who make it possible for people to get by without going out in public spaces to borrow books from friends or libraries, or visit shops.

In the meantime please watch our social media for book sale updates such as our featured book of the day, and flash sale items such as our “dents and dings” copies. You can find it all in our online catalog, and join us for book chats coming soon on Twitter and AllAccessCon.

Safety measures and COVID-19 resources for customers, publishers, and booksellers

Speaking of not visitng shops, ensure your local bookseller knows about this resource that could help them survive the COVID-19 slowdown: the Book Industry Charitable Foundation is providing an economic relief fund for booksellers who meet the listed conditions and fill out their online application.

The Independent Book Publishers Association has established a COVID-19 resource center for those in the book industry. They list a wide array of content ranging from industry roundtables you can attend online, how to make donations to financial relief funds for businesses, news updates, and more.

For our part we’re working around the clock so you can order from us with the peace of mind that comes from our commitment to health and safety practices within our company, and from our business partners. Some of the safety measures we are employing:

• Use of gloves and disinfectants when handling incoming packages or mail due to high volume received by RDSP (despite low risk of transmission, cited below)
• Disinfecting all common touch points within the RDSP premises and vehicles
• Use of the Post Office drive-through dropbox for shipping orders
• Only three or fewer people are allowed on the RDSP premises at any given time
• Video conferencing has replaced meetings

These practices have been in place since March 12; we implemented social distancing as of March 6; other increased sanitary measures were in use prior to this as a response COVID-19 cases appearing in the USA.

OSHA guidelines for COVID-19 control and prevention in the workplace can be found here. A more extensive downloadable booklet covering the subject is available from OSHA in PDF format.

Our current printing and distribution partner, Lightning Source/Ingram Content Group, is taking precautionary measures at their facilities worldwide. These include following best practices established by the CDC and other global health agencies, limiting employee travel, establishing quarantine procedures, and more. They have been declared “essential services” and are continuing to operate while also putting contingencies in place to maintain service with continuing reductions to their workforce and/or disruptions in the supply chain.

All books ever published by RDSP have been made in the United States of America by Lightning Source/Ingram Content Group, and other USA-based printing companies, to ensure we support the American economy. You can click here to read the LSI/Ingram COVID-19 statement.

Services we use for delivery, such as the United Staes Postal Service and UPS, have both instituted strict practices much in the same way as Lightning Source since they are considered critical infrastructure and must remain in operation throughout the pandemic.

According to the Postal Service statement “…the CDC (https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/faq.html), the World Health Organization (https://www.who.int/news-room/q-a-detail/q-a-coronaviruses), as well as the Surgeon General have indicated that there is currently no evidence that COVID-19 is being spread through the mail.” The USPS statement goes on to explain some of the science behind that, as well as detailing safety measures in the USPS work place and out in the field on delivery — such as inputing customer names from a safe distance instead of making customers sign a tablet.

UPS has instituted similar practices in their facilities and for deliveries, in addition to helping the government establish drive-through testing, deliver humanitarian aid, and serve as a crucial part of the medical supply chain. Read their statement for more info at this link.

Lastly, for anyone who needs it, the CDC guide to protecting yourself during the COVID-19 pandemic is available here.

And don’t forget, even though you may be stuck at home following all these safety guidelines, you can still stay social and hang out with us this Saturday at EV Knight’s book launch party or at all future events through the AllAccessCon campaign.