Wednesday, January 1, 2014

New edition of "First Flight" coming in April

Happy New Year, everyone. One of the things I'm excited about in 2014 is the release of a greatly expanded new edition of Dinotopia: First Flight from Dover Publications. The book will be coming out this April.
I just finished checking the proofs. Here's what my studio floor looks like. This new edition is going to be very lavishly produced, beginning with an unabridged republication of my 1999 story about Gideon Altaire, one of Dinotopia's early heroes who learns to pilot a giant pterosaur to challenge the mechanized empire of Poseidos.

The second half of the book includes a bonus of over 45 new images, including never-before-published storyboards, concept art, vehicle designs, and backstory illustrations, many of which I created just for this edition.

The written part of the new supplement fleshes out some of Dinotopia's turbulent origin stories during the ancient period known as the "Age of Heroes." We'll include a cinematic treatment that I wrote about a character named Blake Terrapin, who leads the resistance on the ground while Gideon takes to the air.


The relatively peaceful world that you may know from the other three books was forged on the flames of conflict, where human and saurian alliances were severely tested, and unlikely heroes emerged to face off some of the greatest challenges ever to threaten Dinotopia.

I'll share some of the new artwork in future posts as we get closer to the release date.

Meanwhile, you can get the other three Dinotopia books from Amazon or order them from my online store:
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12 comments:

  1. Jacob A StevensJanuary 1, 2014 at 9:42 AM

    I hope there's a way to get a signed copy of the new edition!

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  2. James GurneyJanuary 1, 2014 at 9:45 AM

    Jacob, yes, we'll have signed copies in our online store at JamesGurney.com or Dinotopia.com. It will be US customers only, unfortunately, because of the ridiculous costs of shipping overseas.

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  3. Jen ZJanuary 1, 2014 at 11:58 AM

    Wow, I'm really looking forward to this! I also had a look at the international shipping prices and really was gobsmacked. 65 dollars (for two books - 45 for one, 20 for the second book to be shipped internationally -that's more than the books cost themselves!) Perhaps I can get some sent to a friend in the States or wait hopefully that a book signing tour carries you to the far shores of Germany? :D In Berlin we have a great natural history museum that is always hosting fascinating exhibits.

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  4. James GurneyJanuary 1, 2014 at 12:08 PM

    Hi, Jen Z. Yes, the shipping rates are extremely high. Two books shipped to Europe via the cheapest US Priority Mail International Flat Rate is over $59, and they'll be raising the rates later this month. However, our shipping rates to US addresses is very economical thanks to the US book rate. So most international customers who order from us have the books shipped to a friend in the US and figure another way to get it there.

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  5. zarinaJanuary 1, 2014 at 3:07 PM

    This sounds like a wonderful edition to the Dinotopia library. I am looking forward to being able to put a book order in when this comes out --from your shop of course! Am very excited to see the storyboards and planning details, and to read further history of the culture. Yay!

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  6. UnknownJanuary 1, 2014 at 4:02 PM

    looking forward to this book :)cant wait to add to my little collection :)

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  7. Will KellyJanuary 1, 2014 at 4:16 PM

    Mr. Gurney, I'm really excited to hear about this! I've often amused myself by thinking about what the history of early Dinotopia would be like. I owned a copy of the first publication of the book when I was a boy, but sadly I misplaced it at some point. I'll be thrilled to get a new copy so I can explore it anew!
    Happy New Year!

    -Will Kelly

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  8. Carole PivarnikJanuary 1, 2014 at 4:26 PM

    I am now really glad this is the one Dinotopia book I didn't get for Christmas because this update sounds like it's worth waiting for! Really looking forward to getting a copy when it becomes available!

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  9. KraanJanuary 2, 2014 at 2:48 PM

    Such a splendid news!

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  10. playmst4meJanuary 3, 2014 at 7:43 PM

    This is very exciting news!!

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  11. Adam StoltermanJanuary 4, 2014 at 5:25 AM

    I am getting the new edition! It's impossible to get enough of Dinotopia!

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  12. dinodanthetrainmanJune 13, 2014 at 7:57 PM

    This comment has been removed by the author.

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