I’ve known Nancy Chandler, owner of Azoth Khem Publishing for almost thirty years. In that time we’ve worked on records together, arranged tour promotions for bands, compiled film soundtracks, and, now, we’re both hooked on book publishing. To be clear, I have nothing to do with the publishing end of things. I just throw letters at a screen and pray for words.
Yesterday her mother passed away after a lengthy battle with various illnesses. To add insult to injury, since Nancy is currently dealing with COVID, even though she’s on the mend, she will be unable to attend her mother’s funeral.
For those of you who don’t know her Nancy’s a fascinating woman. She’s a lifelong devotee of Trinitarian Wicca. In fact, the name Azoth Khem roughly translates to blending the sacred feminine with our earthly realm.
Nancy’s always been her own woman. When I met her she was running Delinquent Records USA. The label featured goth and glam bands. While the pairing may seem unlikely, the two genres supported each other well, even releasing a two CD set called The Pink and the Black. Chicago residents will immediately recognize the legendary Scary Lady Sarah as the cover model. Support shows for the release covered from LA to NYC and all points in between. Although it’s been twenty-three years since its release it’s still a popular compilation.
When she approached me in 2016 about submitting to Azoth Khem I jumped at the chance. While I knew almost nothing about the company I knew a lot about Nancy. And, while I have made many poor life choices, this is not one of them. Thanks to the care she puts into anything attached to her name, all of my books have won critical acclaim and SPLICE: HIT BIT TECHNOLOGY won the Critter’s Readers Poll as the best sci-fi book of 2020. More importantly, as far as my landlord’s concerned, major chains like Walmart in the U.S. and Waterstones in the U.K. have begun carrying my humble offerings and making them available to an unsuspecting public.
Please remember to whitelist info@mcscifibooks.com so you don’t miss a thing.
I really don’t have much more to say. She’s a wonderful human going through some tough times. If you have a prayer to spare please send it her way. Next week I’ll dive back into the wonderful world of McSciFi. Until then stay safe, sane, inside, and wear a mask.
