The Book

When I retired in June of 2006 from my library career, one project I wanted to begin was the creation of my own book. This blog is an account of my progress. By "creation", I don't just mean writing. Rather my intention is to make the paper, write the text, illustrate it, print it, bind it, and create the cover. The idea is evolving as I move forward. But for now, I am considering printing 10 copies. They may all be different. It may be a series, instead of a book. I will create a unique cover for each book. The illustrations may also vary from book to book. This will help me stay creative rather than repetitive.

Since I spent most of the summer traveling, I took only small steps toward my goal. One of the retirement gifts I received was a certificate at Sarasota Art and Frame where I invested in some of the material and equipment I would need. Already I had a small proof press I had purchased years ago when we lived in Wisconsin. The press came from the Lake Mills Leader, a weekly newspaper that had moved ahead in the publishing world and got rid of its old printing apparatus. I purchased a variety of type, mostly Caslon Oldface, from Doug Etter, a retired printer in Lake Mills. I chose Caslon because it had been used at the Golden Cockrell Press, the topic of my independent study in library school.

The first step I wanted to take was that of educating myself so I signed up for a class at the Penland School in North Carolina. That was a great idea! The class was called Pages and Possibilities, taught by Lynne Avadenka. We learned a variety of printing techniques and spent time in the studio practicing what we learned. Being around so many real artists was inspiring! And Lynne was an excellent teacher. She encouraged us, was non-judgmental, and pushed us to try new things. In the studio next to ours was a papermaking class that I sampled from time to time.

When I got home, I tried making some miniature books, using samples of the printing I had done in class for the illustrations. So far, I have made about ten of these. They are fun but not what I plan for my project. At holiday time, I printed some greeting cards just to get back to printing. It was good practice and a refresher in the use of my proof press.

So that's where I am at the moment. Next step is to try making paper. I have a video tape in lieu of taking a class since there isn't one being offered nearby.