New Book Status

[NW Mailing List]

Ken,
Wow! Thanks for the reply. I understand the lower demand in recent history for books of any sort. Watching Morning Sun go from hardbound to paperbound was a flag run up the pole to me of things happening.....or NOT happening in the book business.
I'm quite surprised though to see the low numbers of reservations for this new N&W book, especially considering the author and subject. Wonder who the other 34 pre-publishing buyers are? LOL
I can understand, also, the hesitancy to pay in advance. Money is tight for most of us and the past has taught me the time for waiting to see a finished book can run years and maybe never see the book.
I hope things turn out for the Society, members and Ed. I'm anxious for the book and hope it does make printing.
Many thanks for your honest answer.
Roger HuberDeer Creek Locomotive Works 

    On Monday, February 15, 2021, 01:29:30 PM CST, NW Mailing List <nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org> wrote:  
 
 Roger:

I’m afraid you won’t be seeing the book during this winter season but perhaps next. There is some discussion of this in the upcoming Arrow, which is in the mail.

Since this is the second inquiry I’ve gotten today, here is what I responded first:

It is pretty simple, we need more orders for the book to fully justify production of it.

Over the past number of years, the Society has published a variety of books. Several hardcover editions including a volume on the Pocahontas Division. That book was initially printed ten years ago. Yet, we still have three full pallets of them, over 1200 copies, sitting in our warehouse section. This and diminished sales on some other books has made us somewhat cautious on printing books with low demand. 

The investment on printing a hardcover book is high, even on only 1,000 copies. Railbooks, over the past decade have seen a decline in sales. The board, on my recommendation, agreed to require a minimum number of pre-orders on this book before proceeding. Basically, those pre-orders will cover a reasonable portion of the investment in printing, but not the investment in design and production. That number is roughly 250 copies, as of today, we are, at this moment, officially have a total of 35 pre-orders. To guarantee a firm commitment, we have been requiring a deposit on those, which may have cut down on the pre-orders.

Since we do things like this to help cover the costs of our operations, archives and preservation ventures, we simply cannot afford to do more projects like this at a loss.

The plan is still to do Ed’s book, but I am not planning on layout until we are at least at 150 pre-orders. I’d like to think that by fall we will have gotten enough pre-orders to make it a success. I’d hope that we can get the book out by fall this year.

Best
Ken Miller


> On Feb 14, 2021, at 7:33 PM, NW Modeling List via NW-Modeling-List <nw-modeling-list at nwhs.org> wrote:
> 
> Hi! Not trying to pester anyone but just wondering what the current word is on the new book offered by the commissary. Memoirs of an Appalachian Railroad Man?
> 
> Just anxious to read something interesting during these long snowy nights here in the mountains!
> 
> Thanks,
> 
> Roger Huber
> Deer Creek Locomotive Works
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