Some Reflection on My New Book

On Wednesday, this week, I received an advance copy of my newest book. It is really an update - new edition - of one I've worked on 2 times before, but it takes almost as much time as writing a full book. The joy of seeing your work in print is almost indescribable. It's a surge of pride, of a job well done, of knowing that someone else will read what you have written - even if it is by assignment from an instructor. It makes up a little for the hours and hours of really hard work of finding, writing, editing, looking for photos, case studies, sidebars and the like. But the real joy is in the writing, no matter how hard it is and whether anyone reads it or not.

I am just starting on another book and I've been a little slow getting going, but receiving this book in the mail has really encouraged me. I'm ready to start writing, organizing, outlining, talking, writing memos (a format I use to get to thoughts). However, the book I just received is special. It was written by a friend and colleague who died about 8 years ago and I was asked to take over the book by the publisher. I selected two great colleagues to work with me, one of which has moved on to other projects, and now we are in our 3rd edition. It was a lot of work moving it from a very traditional format to a newer and more current and contemporary format and content.

Beginning with the last edition I began to include photos and material from our family. For instance my sister, she and her husband are big NASCAR fans, wrote me a first person experience of attending a NASCAR race. In this edition it was moved to be the very first piece anyone reads - it sets the stage for the recreation experience. I also asked our newest daughter-in-law to write a piece on Why I like to write and I turned it into a case study.

In the last edition I had photos of family and of trips I have taken. For example, I asked Jeni to take photos of her children at the water playground near their old home in Aurora, CO and included it. It also included the 2 oldest children of Donna. Some of the photos are shown here. The one to the right not only was used in the book, but also in our large wall mural at Indiana State University as a recruitment for the program.

I've tried to mix it up a little, but not always able to use just family photos. They need to look good and they need to fit the topic. In this edition I had a chance to work on the history chapters and knew I had just the perfect photo as I wrote about families, recreation, and children. This photo of my mother reading "Child's Life" is of a girl I never knew and yet I wish I had. I will talk more about that later. The photo has evoked such strong feelings in me that I struggle to understand them and at the same time feel like I'm seeing my mother in a different way for the very first time. Writing does cause introspection and reflection. I enjoy doing both.

Finally, I've been able to include a couple of my favorite photos, one of which I took below at a convent at a mountain side castle near Sparta, Greece. I was entranced by the scene, serenity, and beauty.

Thanks for allowing me to share some of my experiences in writing. I need to do more of this.

Writing

The summer season is my time to do writing. I have been a university department chair for 9 years and have one more year in that capacity. It has cut into my writing time during the academic year, so I look forward to having the opportunity to write in the summer. Knowing that I only have 1 year left as a department chair, and have less responsibility this year, I’m hoping I can find more time to write.

A big part of the writing is the research that precedes it. I didn't always understand the research side of writing, but I have certainly gained an appreciate for its importance. I am currently working on three different research projects, they are all related, but a little different. I won’t go into those topics, as I am probably the only one reading this blog who cares. However, it’s the research that I love the most. I certainly enjoy the writing, especially when I see the published project. When I’m writing I experience, what we call in leisure, “flow,” or the complete engagement in the activity which blocks out everything else - what Maslow calls creativity.

The research, however, involves the fun of discovery. I enjoy getting into a project, doing the research, and trying to create something new. Every once in a while we hit on a new topic that sets us off on a new or expanded research project. I frequently read 50 plus research articles just to find the information I need and to build my background knowledge.

The real challenge comes when I start to put the article together. Usually I write a number of long memos on the topic that sometimes exceed the article’s limit by 5,000 to 10,000 words. Even after we get the article written, we rewrite it 6 or more times before it goes to the publisher and then another 1 to 3 times after it gets to the publisher. Yet, when it comes out in print or on-line, I gain a sense of accomplishment. It doesn’t help my humility problem.

I like the challenge of writing a research article, based either on research we completed or the theoretical foundation of the research. As authors, we have a lot of interplay with how the research and writing fit, and what the final product will look like. When you have 2 or more authors it provides more opportunity for insight, but also is challenging to give coherence and continuity to the writing.

When I’m writing a book, and I only do that with other people I know and trust, we spend a lot of time on the outline and then constantly review the chapters we are writing to make sure we are on target and that our outline is being followed. It can be easier to write a book because you don’t have to write as tightly as an article, but you still have to know our audience and write to their level. The last couple of editions of one of my books, I have tried to insert photos of our family, and have been successful. The next edition will have an interesting family photo I will write about, only if it makes it in the book.

If you would have asked me 40 years ago if I was a writer I would have said, “no way.” Yet, after years of practice and refinement I’ve gotten better, but I’ll never write the great American novel, that’s not my style of writing. But I do enjoy the chance to write this blog. It is an outlet that renews me and allows me to get back to my other writing.

Lots of help writing

I'm sitting at my desk writing. JoAnn is out for the evening and I'm fighting a cold. However, it's a great time to be working on my book. It is due to the publisher at the end of the year. However, we have this cat. You know, the devil cat to everyone else and sometimes us. She has gotten into the habit of jumping up on my desk and if she can find paper laying on it and purring. It just so happens my cut sheets are 11x17, almost the perfect size for the cat.

I was about to quit for the evening and fix myself some chicken noodle soup, compliments of Albertsons - and yes it is pretty good! When who jumps up on my desktop? Whisper of course. First she sits right in front or me. It's difficult to type when her face is just above your left hand and she wants to be petted. Failing to pet her can result in a nip or bite. I can type with one hand, but it is really slow and even slower when one hand is trying to type and the other is occupied petting the cat.

When she had enough of that she moved t0 the left side of my "L" shaped desk and took up the whole 11 x 17 inches and spread across back into my working area. It's always nice to have a little inspiration, but she purrs almost as loud as some people snore (and no, I'm not referring to anyone in our family).

She is gone and I'm ready for dinner, plus I'm flat tired of writing today.

End of the Season

It's the end of the season. Students are taking finals, graduation is scheduled for Saturday afternoon and then summer officially begins. Who cares what the calendar says, when classes are over, faculty are on leave, emails drop to almost zero - that's the REAL start of summer.


We held our last faculty meeting of the academic year - another sure sign of summer - and we won't have another one for 3 months and 2 weeks (not like I'm counting). I do love the academic year because it is so full of vitality, energy, and enthusiasm (the latter for the first 9 weeks of the semester). But today, as the semester winds down, we see students excited about summer internships, faculty making plans for travel, and of course writing.

In some ways the time between graduation and the start of the fall semester is the writing season. Every year I find myself busy with multiple writing projects. This writing season I am focusing on a new edition of my entry level textbook, and no, I don't write it alone. I discovered a long time ago it is a lot more efficient to write a book with colleagues you know and trust. I enjoy the writing, the planning, and especially finishing the book. There is a sense of accomplishment when it all comes together and you see it in print for the first time. Yes, I suppose it could be pride, but I try to hold that down.

It is the writing that I enjoy, painful as it is, and for me writing can be a slow and tedious process. What I enjoy is the research, gathering sorting, and organizing material to put in the book. It is a chance to catch up on what I see as new. It is a learning process, and I enjoy learning.

As the academic season closes the writing season opens and I have pen, paper, computer, and googlescholar in hand and am ready to go.