IF SF Inks Deal with Thomas Fuller

San Francisco-based IF SF Publishing announced today that it has reached an exclusive agreement with the reclusive writer, Thomas Fuller (pictured), calling for the nomadic Fuller to deliver an unspecified number of books between 2016 and his death, whichever occurs first.

"We are ecstatic," said Brooks Roddan, founder and President of IF SF. "It's always a real grind with Tom--he's ornery, a tough negotiator, and something of a hermit. He's a difficult guy to pin down."

Roddan flew to an undisclosed Wyoming location Wednesday,!meeting Fuller not far from the cabin he keeps in northwest Wyoming, and the two hammered out the deal in a matter of days. Terms were not forthcoming, but anonymous sources say Fuller is committed to write four books under the IF SF imprint. A source close to both men believes Fuller's compensation package to be somewhere "between one and two million," and that Fuller's free to write in "whatever genre pleases him on whatever subject he chooses."

IF SF published Fuller's, "Monsieur Ambivalence: A Post-Modern Fable " in 2013. Though sales were disappointing, reviews were positive, with one critic calling the book, 'a minor masterpiece', and another, 'a cult classic.'

Speculation in publishing circles has it that Fuller's about to deliver a second novel to IF SF, provisionally titled, "The Classical World: A Novel of Ideas," but IF SF spokespeople refused comment.

Notoriously hermetic, Fuller is said to be close with only a handful of family and friends. Those familiar with his work assume that he writes under a pseudonym, given his penchant for privacy. Even Roddan, his publisher, is unsure of the writers' real identity.

"To get Tom to pose for a photo was a major production," Roddan said. "You can't imagine the disguises he tried--wigs, a clown's red nose, a woman's dress and high heels, a chef's hat...finally he agreed to pose as himself, but only in black-and-white."

The publisher believes the relationship will benefit both parties and is willing to give his reluctant author a lot of leeway, or 'rope' as he prefers to say.

"You don't ask for too many details from a writer of Thomas's temperament," Roddan said. "I did see a manuscript in the cabin in Wyoming where he writes. It looked pretty hefty. But he was more interested in talking about what we'd have for dinner--the portobello mushroom stir fry or the broccoli casserole with hot salsa and goat cheese--and which wine we might drink."