FAQs

What shipping option should I choose?

Right now, the only physical items available for purchase are issues of Forking Paths, my RPG zine. If you’re within the US, then picking “USPS Stamped Letter/Large Envelope” is probably best for zines. (Note that if you choose this option and order multiple zines, they might arrive in multiple individual envelopes in order to work with USPS weight limits.) There’s some automatically-calculated rates for faster USPS options as well.

If you’re outside the US, select “USPS Int’l” — a.k.a., the one that mentions it’s a blanket rate. That shipping fee roughly corresponds to the pricing ranges & weight tiers for the USPS’s First-Class Package International Service, which is the cheapest international shipping option in most cases due to USPS policy changes in 2018. Any difference from the final mailing cost will be refunded, so that there aren’t any overcharges for (already pricey) international orders. Whatever the cheapest shipping option I can find is, that’s what I’ll use if I can!

And if you’re standing in front of me (or plan to be soon) then enter the discount code “INPERSON” at checkout, avoiding shipping fees altogether. This mostly applies to folks I know in Portland, Oregon, but who knows where I’ll be!

My stuff was damaged in shipping. What now?

Sorry to hear it! I’ll definitely help get it sorted out. If you send a reply to the order confirmation email, it’ll come right to me. Including a pic of whatever mangling has happened is best, so I can see what needs fixing, and also better understand if changes need to be made in how certain items get shipped.

Can I subscribe to your zine?

Yes, you can! Right now the easiest way to do that is to join my Patreon and pick the appropriate patron tier. (The “Archivist” tier includes physical zines mailed to you as they get released.) It’s set up on a per-creation basis, so you’re only charged when I put out a new issue, which is about once every two months.

If you want to go truly old-school, you can send cash or check to my P.O. box and I’ll create an account for you, and mail ya zines until the balance runs out. No fooling! Zines run $5 a pop, so if you mailed me say $20, you’d get copies of the next 4 issues I release. Be sure to specify your mailing address, and that you’re looking to start a cash-based subscription. Here’s the P.O. box address to use:

Orbis Tertius Press
P.O. Box 55361
Portland, OR 97238

Note that sending cash in the mail can pose its own risks, so be smart about how you send it, or otherwise use a check/money order to be safe.

What’s “Orbis Tertius” mean?

In Latin, it roughly means “the third world,” though not in the sense used during the Cold War. In this case, it’s a reference to the secret Orbis Tertius society mentioned in Jorge Luis Borges’ short story “Tlön, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius.” The best way to explain why I’m referencing it at all is probably to read the story itself, if you haven’t before!