Please read the shipping info below. It’s important.
It is an author’s right to sleep in on the day of the release. If we’ve done our job well, the readers might have stayed up, but we can safely get our rest.
Except I woke up at 5:30 am to the sounds of a dog puking and couldn’t go back to sleep. I sat up in bed, looked at Nykie upchucking something on the wood-look tile floor, and told her, “You do you.” And then I lay back down, picked up my phone, and checked to make sure Magic Claims was up and running on Amazon. It was. And the first review said, “It’s fantastic!”
So I lay in bed for awhile and smiled at the ceiling. Thank you for my little moment of happiness.
Now onto more pressing things. The release party zoom is tomorrow, Mod R has the details here. There will be a surprise if I can pull my head out of the drowsy cloud. If you miss tomorrow, there will be a spoiler zoom free-for-all on Saturday. At least one of the sessions will be recorded and uploaded to Youtube.
Now on to the store. The store will open tomorrow morning, barring some weird last minute glitches.
Shipping Info
Ah, merchandise. You go to a concert, you get excited, you buy a $35 T-shirt, it ages 20 years in 12 months, and you finally toss it and relegate it to the “bad inside T-shirt” collection, but at the time of the purchase, it is $35 worth of awesome.
By now, everyone knows how Amazon works. Most people that use it frequently end up springing for the Prime membership and they enjoy free shipping. You buy a lamp, a toothbrush, and a case for your phone, and it all comes free in a single box.
Our store doesn’t work like that.
Large retailers like Amazon have subsidized shipping. We don’t. Our store functions more like Etsy. Although it’s a single storefront, every type of item is produced by a different vendor on demand. Each vendor charges shipping per item. The shipping is not grouped.
For example, our US mug vendor charges the following rates on shipping to US:
First mug: $8.59. Each additional mug: $6.
This is me ordering mugs:
I am paying taxes because playing with Texas state’s money is like playing with their emotions. they do not like it.
If I add a second mug:
$8.59+$6 = $14.59.
$8.59+$6+$6 = $20.59.
The same vendor also makes stickers. Their sticker shipping is $4.29 for the first item and $.09 for each additional sticker.
You would think they would put the stickers and the mug in the same box, or just toss the sticker in with the mug, but the system isn’t set up for that. They are charging $8.59 for the mug and $4.29 for the stickers, for the total of $12.88.
When we originally opened the store, we had a flat shipping rate because we thought we would sell a few T-shirts and a couple of mugs. We had to cancel it within 48 hours, because the typical cart looked like this:
Every new type of item – T-shirts, Sweatshirts, Mugs, Stickers, etc., – is has its own shipping charge attached. We can’t get around that. I think the shipping is outrageous, but there is no way to reduce it. We could hide it and offer you “free” shipping, but then the mugs would cost $25. We have to make a profit, because we license art for the images, we pay to maintain the storefront, and we invested a lot of time into making these designs and items.
The only way to limit the shipping charges is to limit your purchases to a single type of item, like two T-shirts vs a T-shirt and a sweatshirt.
I downloaded Magic Claims this morning. It was fantastic. I loved every page.
thank you.
I got up at 5 to read and it was a goddamned delight. Thank you so much! Really! A LOT! (CLAMS!)
Where will the link to the store be?
It will be in the annoucement post tomorrow and on the website banner- where it currently says “under construction” 🙂
Just finished Magic Claims! So awesome. Love it! I think it is my favorite KD book!
Thanks for all the work on the store and explaining the shipping. It’s always something! But worth it to be able to grab some HA goodies. I use my rippercushion pillow every day and drink tea out of my BDH mug!
Did I stay up way to late reading? Yes. Was it worth it? Yes!
Thank you for the awesome book.
Mod R’s avatar is holding a clam! Bwa ha ha ha ha ha ha! 🤣😂🤣😂🤣
:)))) the avatar
😂😂😂🐚🦪
But if we want lots of stuff and are used to outrageous shipping? We can still have lots of stuff?
I’m being silly. I can’t wait.
I am still reading Magic Clams 😉 (just came up for a breath before I go back!) and I LOVE it!!!!!! Thank you for yet another amazing story!!!! Hope you get to relax at least a little today…it’s a well earned rest.
P.S.: I appreciate your explanation about shipping fees, but I think most of the BDH are probably like me: more than happy to pay all of the shipping fees ever to receive more HA merchandise! 💕💕💕💕
loved it, completely worth the lack of sleep then locking my office door during my lunchbreak so could have a bit of shut eye
I am a small business owner and the realities of shipping are wild. You’re doing great with this explanation. *gold star* We <3 you. Your stories help us and bring us joy and you deserve to profit from them and our delight in them.
Loved the book! Sped through it on my day off today, left a good review on Amazon, came over here to say thanks. Like Curran, I’m so happy to have stabby Kate back in action 😄 The set up for the next book is perfect 😘
Just finished Magic Claims. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Thank you both for writing this book, it was wonderful! I’m rereading it as I type. Oh and now I hear Curran’s voice in my head as the Graphic Audio voice, and it’s great. I can’t wait for them to go through the whole series 🙂
Magic Claims is great! I am halfway through the reread. (Finished it last night and started the second pass at the doctors office this morning.)
I loved all the little bits of funny – half of which I am picking up and the reread – though I did catch the magic clams reference…
Thank you so much for the care and excellence of the writing. We do notice but sometimes it gets lost in the”Shiny! So wonderful and new!” celebration.
I got Magic Claims a little after 9:00 PM Pacific time last night. I finished it at about 1:30 in the morning. I am currently about a quarter of the way through the first re-read and have killed a bottle of bubbly’s worth of tangerine mimosas.
I see I was wrong about Arachne’s children. I still want to be an archaeologist when I grow up (I’m presently 70), so I’m not about to argue that Ice Age survivors couldn’t do such fine weaving. But I do hope you find a use for Arachne’s children at some point.
Ok first of all: tangerine mimosas sound amazeballs! WANT.
You were not spot on, but I loved the guess!
And good luck with your growing up plans! Never too late!
i *think* they say that it’s the weaving/writing of the guard that was stolen from town? but maybe it’s just the hand writing of the guard turned into weaving. certainly I think the Fae have skilled weavers even if they’reany thousands years old 🙂
It’s the writing painstakingly copied into weaving 🙂
My book downloaded at 11pm CST last night and I was reading til 1am. Made myself go to bed. Today I’m dragging it out cause I’m almost FINISHED!! NOOOO!! Then how long until another one??? But so far it’s excellent! Kate/Curran do need to create their own pack support, it was good when they had it years ago even if it was broken. They know how to lead. Now this BDH member is waiting impatiently for an Innkeeper novel!! I want, I want, I want…..(eh, so I’m greedy! 🙂 )
The Innkeeper series will continue! 🙂
hey mod R, or one of the overlords, could you please add a link to the store in this post?
nevermind I see your response in the comments already, cheers.
If you look at the top of the page it’s already updated with an announcement about the link being posted there tomorrow 🙂- it will be website-wide!
left review for Amazon and good reads. so hard to do without creating spoilers! totally, totally worth waiting for. so hope for more in this part of kate daniels world! if allowed, I would give it 10 stars 🌟!
Just finished and it’s wonderful. I too have missed stabby Kate.
Thank you for another instalment in the Lennart chronicles.
Ditto everything that was said. I got up at 4am, barely finished the book in time for work. I plan on a leisurely read tonight! it was amazing! I laughed out loud so many times; thank you for the joy you bring to the world!
I read a little at 1 a.m., but tried to save it to make it last. Read it all starting at noon. *sigh* it still went too fast.! All good things do! I guess I will have to read it again!
Happy book birthday!!! 🎂📚🎉
Loved, loved, loved this book!!! 💖💖💖
I have the BDH affliction – read through fast the first time, then slower on the second read to savor and pick up details missed on the first read. Hehehe!
Poor Nykie! I hope she’s feeling better! (Kids and critters, that early morning “hork” will fling you out of sleep every time.)
Regarding shipping costs:
— mugs are heavy items to ship, relative to the stickers, so they cost more to properly wrap and pack to ensure they arrive unbroken.
— Alibris charges shipping for each vendor. I recently ordered three books from three different vendors, so about half the total cost was shipping. (And I really want those books and having them will make me very happy!)
Looking forward to the store opening! This time, I’m jumping on the things I like right away, instead of hesitating like last time. “Take the cookies when they’re passed”, as my grandma used to say!!
No problem. If * want it, I’ll pay the shipping to get it, and thank you.
After needing to sign out of my Nook profile and signing back in. I was able to see Magic Claims in my library. I had to download all my other books, but that didn’t take long.
I haven’t finished it yet. Spesky things called reports made me stop reading. I’ll pick it back up later.
Yay for the store! Oh to get another member of the BDH t-shirt just in case I mess up the one I have. I almost wore my Cutting Edge t-shirt today. 😁
Thank you! I needed this book so much. Kate’s world is one of my favorite places to go. I’ll be buying the audiobook as well.
OMG Clams I snorted my drink out my nose. Love it.
Glad to see I’m not the only one who did that!
Please be safe and do not give your payment or address details to anyone you don’t know online.
The BDH is family, but the internet is a big place and dangers lurk.
Are all items international shipping or just some?
US has the largest selection of vendors and items, so international collections have a limited selection for now- but there is hope to expand in the future! There are super fun items to pick from internationally though, and all of them are printed and shipped by vendors located in each specific country. So UK items are produced in UK, Australian items are produced in Australia, etc.
Yahhhhh!! Missed out last time…
Also, I know I said it yesterday, but Magic Claims is awesome sauce!!!
Loved, loved, loved it!
Poor rino.
Now we need a sequel to learn about magic freshwater clams.
Thanks for the story. I enjoyed it and looking forward to more.
Just finished reading! It was so awesome! Thanks for a wonderful peek into the lives of Curran and Kate. I love to see how much they are still growing and learning. Such a great adventure. 🥰👏
Will there be an international store this time?
Yes! There is international shipping to Canada, U.k., EU and Australia.
This has nothing to do with the merchandise store (sorry) but more of a misplaced general Kate world question. Do we (the readers) know what happened to Landon Nez yet? He is alive at the end of Hugh 1 and is mentioned (as alive) during part of Magic Triumphs although he does not appear. Is is safe to say he might reappear (and maybe get what he deserves) in Hugh 2 or 3 if they happen? Or did I miss a reference to his fate somewhere in Magic Triumphs? Thanks!
The last we hear of Nez is that he is alive but defeated by the dragon’s army. As for future appearances, we’ll have to wait and see!
loved magic claims, thank you. lol and thanks on the shipping issue, will definitely pay attention when I order, but do want to know if multiple t shirts, will have the same issue…oh well may just have to do several orders, no biggie.
For whatever reason, this morning I woke up at 2:30 a.m. I couldn’t get back to sleep so I opened my Kindle app and there it was. I read until it was time to get up and finished it at lunch. Loved it! Thanks so much for writing amazing books.
I devoured the book! 💛❤️💛
How long will the store be open for??
Sorry if I missed this somewhere else
For about a week! 😊
When I go to the link I had:
https://houseandrewsmerch.com/
I get a Opening Soon message and no merch. Do I have the wrong address?
No, that’s the correct address, but as the post says, it will open tomorrow morning. Hence the opening soon message 🙂
Happy Book Day. Loved the book (like always).
Now the all important question…when is the next one? A Christmas one?
Enjoy and do a happy dance. Magic Claims was awesome.
Wonderful. Now back to the real world and laundry.
I saw something awesome. You have an untitled Iron Magic in your post credits. 2023 is an awesome year.
Can’t wait for the details.
I wonder if it would be easier for HA if you did your merchandise by handing it over to Zazzle or Red Bubble or a similar company. I’ve seen other authors do it that way. I don’t like to see Ilona stressed, the lady deserves all the happiness and all her time free to make more wonderful stories! Your dedication to the storefront is noticed, thank you!
TeePublic is another company you might consider.
Of course, we are going to buy t-shirts. How else can we identify the BDH members when they show up at the family barbecue?
Halfway through my second reading of Magic Claims. FABULOUS book. Thank you for your hard work. Writing is harder work than digging ditches. We all appreciate your efforts.
I am loving the book so far! I laughed at loud at the first sentence! Can’t wait to spend a bit more time with Kate, Curran, and the rest of the great characters you create!
Superb. Thank you.
Amazing. Thank you.
Loved, loved, loved Magic Claims. I tried, I mean really, really to make it last but it was a no go….I devoured those pages and it was yummy. Thank you house Andrews.
Oh, and now of course I’m walking around singing “I’m A Little Teapot” 🤣🤣
Loved Magic Claims!! I have read it twice today.
Thank you Thank you Thank you!!
I didn’t get Magic Claims until I had fed my husband, chickens, dog and showered. It was finished shortly after a trip to the grocery store, lunch, chats with the grandkids, gathering eggs and cooking supper. I love every tie to the old Keep and the anticipation of the future!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ps thanks for letting us know that all of Julie’s secrets aren’t secrets any more 🙂
Thank you for the amazing book! Fourteen million likes! And the shipping debacle makes perfect sense. Rawr.
My husband, who is *not* a reader, out of nowhere tonight, wanted to know what the ‘latest with the lawn orphans is’? He claims it’s summer and, ergo, they should be rolling. Apparently he remembers me telling him about my favorite blog post ever. 😄 Are they mowing??