DOS AND DON'TS WHEN WRITING SPONSORED BOOKS

by Otha W. Linton

You won't find it on airport newsstands. It will not be reviewed in the New York Times. But it is your book. You wrote it. It was published and you got paid for writing it. That happens when you write a sponsored book.

More and more, American associations, universities, companies, and even governmental agencies see books about themselves as part of their public image. Many are histories, some are narratives of current activities and almost all look to the glorious future of whatever. Some may be monographs, rather than full-length books.

Fortunately, many organizations with even a glimmer of interest in a book conclude that a book should be written by a professional writer, as opposed to retired members or junior staff. This allows for responsibility, accountability, punctuality, and objectivity. It will be a professional job, delivered timely, and paid for, also timely.

Most NASW members have written enough words for hire to fill several books, even in short takes. We know about researching a topic, organizing a presentation, and such. The challenge is finding and persuading a sponsor that it should have a book and that you should write it.

In my 35 years with the American College of Radiology, I organized, contrived, and ghosted parts of a dozen books. The only one worth remembering was the history of radiology in the US which we hired Ruth and Ed Brecher, former NASW stalwarts, to write. One of my last projects before alleged retirement was organizing a centennial celebration of the 1895 discovery of x-rays. This involved three books-all compendiums of essays-plus videotapes, school teaching packages, slide sets, and press kits. We encouraged academic department and large radiology groups to commission histories and perhaps 20 did. After that, I wrote a 75-year history of the college, which it published.

That embodies my three principles for finding assignments. One is to begin in familiar territory. You know something about the topic before you start and people in the field know you. The second is tying a book concept to an occasion. Receptiveness to a centennial book is greater than receptivity to one with no good excuse. The third is helping a potential sponsor define the purposes and audiences for your magnum opus. One sponsor wanted a history to give to potential donors. The same book will be given to new trainees and potential recruits, plus alumni, trustees, deans, directors, and even competitors.

Few potential sponsors will have any notion of what is involved. All of my books have been published with a subsidy from the sponsor. Trade publishers are chary about histories, particularly of one institution or department. They may be willing to market it, but not at their own risk. Even university presses now demand subsidies. So do the many small publishers happy to work with you for guaranteed payment. That publishing cost is second only to your own writing fee. Several of my books have been published by the American Roentgen Ray Society, which wanted to expand its publishing activities. Editorial production and printing costs were less than $30,000 for each.

With no estimate of what I would need to do for the first book, I chose to work on a daily fee plus expenses. I take 60 to 90 days (not consecutively) to research and write each one. A complete project, including printing, takes about 18 to 20 months.

I ask that someone reasonably senior at the sponsor be assigned to line up sources and interviews. Because I have to travel, I want advance planning for time on site. There are archives, annual reports, earlier histories, personal memoirs, and such. In every organization, there is a senior person who saves things. She has been waiting for years for someone like you. I talk to as many people as I can.

When a sponsor said I brought his predecessor to life in a few paragraphs, it was a high compliment. I decline a "dates and battles" approach. I describe warts as well as halos. Early agreement about the tone and scope is important. So is agreement about who will read drafts and given acceptance. Try to avoid the organization's lawyer passing judgment on your manuscript.

I have written five books with three more committed. Four have been published and one was scuttled, but I got paid for what I had done on that one. It has been more fun than I could have imagined. For the first time in my career, I have the time to dig as deep as I choose, to talk to some remarkably interesting people, and to ask them why they did things.

Even after thousands of bylines, there is something remarkably gratifying about a book with your name on the spine.

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Otha W. Linton writes from Potomac, MD. He has been an NASW member since 1959.