Why You Love Your Readers

I love my readers because they buy my book, obviously! But today I'm not talking about the people who purchase a book after it appears on Amazon or at Barnes & Noble. I'm discussing the people who read a work while it is still in manuscript form and make recommendations to the press about whether it should be accepted or not.

For works of history, an academic press like the two I have worked with (University of South Carolina Press and the University Press of Florida) send the manuscript to someone in the writer's field, someone who should have a good working knowledge of the material and can judge it not only on its style, but on its factual merits, or for the argument it makes. Generally, the readers can choose whether they want their names revealed to the author or whether they would prefer to remain anonymous. I'm very grateful that the two people who read my manuscript weren't secretive. I know both of them and I am very pleased with their selection. They are people I respect and trust, and they have done a fantastic critique of my work.

I suppose every writer is biting his nails while waiting to hear back from the readers. After all, if they say "this really stinks," the author can forget his hopes of being published! And there's always the possibility that they will say "publish but only after extensive revisions." Then it's back to the drawing board.

I was lucky in that both my readers recommended for publication, but they also made extensive comments and suggestions. They pulled out the names of books that I was not familiar with, and that I should consult. They argued for alteration in tone, in places, that I agree will make the work more balanced. One reader sent a long sheet of simple corrections, pointing to places where I forgot to put an "a" or "the" or used the wrong word. That sheet allowed me to insert corrections in less than an hour, a job that might well have taken me days had the reader just said "oh, and correct all the little errors."

I think reading the reader's comments is one of the hardest parts of the process. After all, a manuscript becomes a "baby" who wants her baby to be criticized? But it is very necessary, and it makes every book better. I am extremely indebted to my readers. I've been a reader for several manuscripts, and I know that it is not a job that you do for the money. It can be a real pain, especially if the manuscript is more of a work in progress than a finished product. I should be like those old Saturday Night Live characters and kneel before my readers crying "Not Worthy!" They are certainly essential to this process.

So the next time you read a book and enjoy it, don't just thank the author, thank the readers who came before you.

And So It Really Begins

It's finally time---the month that I will give over to revising and proofing the manuscript. I'm terribly nervous about it; I've done this before and I know that by the end of it I will be saying, quite loudly, "I WILL NEVER WRITE ANYTHING AGAIN, EVER!"

I won't mean it, of course, but it will make me feel better to say it.

But before I begin regaling anyone with the technical details, allow me to state where this project came from. I've always been fascinated by tourism in Florida. I enjoy being a tourist myself. The tackier the attraction, the better! I think tourism is a neglected topic, in that there are many articles on it, and it always merits coverage in works on state history, but as far as I can find it has never had the full historical treatment. No one has told the story from beginning to end. I'm starting with Ponce de Leon and working through to the 2009 recession. I won't talk about everything, obviously, but I hope to demonstrate the way that tourism has changed, and its incredible impact not only on the economy of Florida, but on the image of Florida and the cultural identity of Floridians.

This project grew in part out of my dissertation (on Wakulla Springs, a tourist attraction) and my interest in Florida tourism during World War II, which resulted in a chapter in a small book called Florida at War. In 2008, I applied for a 2009 Summer research grant to fund travel and archival work. Once I got started, I realized that I already possessed a great deal of material. And, quite frankly, I was terribly lonesome---I find that when I'm away from Wofford and from my friends, the only way to stay sane is to stay productive. So I wrote, all the time, and by the end of August I had 99.9% of a manuscript ready to go. I took a deep breath and sent it to the University Press of Florida, where a friendly editor had been asking me when I was going to send her something. The week of Thanksgiving, I received notice that the press wanted the book and they wanted it revised, etc. by mid-February. After recovering from the seizure that news caused, I started re-aligning my life to try to get this done.

This blog---which has also been created as my part of the Independent Research in the Humanities Class---is designed as a window. You are welcome to look into my life and see how I'm doing, and perhaps even fuss at me to do more.

Welcome To Imaginary Eden

Welcome to my blog about my work as a professor and a writer during the 2010 Interim. I'll be supervizing two students who are working on a travel research project (they're following in the footsteps of Van Gogh) while I complete the revisions of my manuscript, tentatively titled Imaginary Eden: A History of Florida Tourism, which has been accepted by the University Press of Florida.