An Excerpt: Part IV of So, You want to Write a Doll Book?

Part IV: At last year’s Midwest Modern Language Association convention, I presented a paper on “The Invention of Hugo Cabret” and automatons. A group of my metal dolls, automatons, and robots travelled to a display at The German American Heritage Center, and I did two programs on the dolls, one that involved local readings from poets and writers in our area. We wrote the group poem, “Hinges and Hearts” featured on my site. Along the way, I picked up a few rivals, one in particular, was determined to copy my work. Others tried to get my printed manuscript and my pictures. Never hand over unpublished material like this to anyone, not even your best friends. If it is printed and copyrighted [which it technically is as son as it is published, then use your own discretion]. The book is now featured on Doll Pile, my Twitter page, My Facebook page Dr. E’s Doll Museum, and it is for sale on Alibris and Amazon. Four local stores and one museum carry it, and it is doing very well. I am thankful to Mr. Barry Mueller of Doll Castle News and to Donna Kaonis of Antique Doll Collector, who have it such good reviews, and to the five star reviews I’ve received on Amazon. My friend and penpal, Anne Marie Porot was also helpful when I was writing, and she sent a nice email after I mailed her a copy, stating she thought it was the first book of its kind. Thank you, Anne Marie, and Galerie Chartres, who sent me a catalog as research. The next article discusses the process of writing a bibliography. The Internet has made publishing much easier than it was, especially Independent Publishing, but this kind of research is till a long haul. If you have had experience publishing a book on dolls, especially as an Independent Publisher, we’d love to hear from you! Read the rest at Doll Collecting at About.com