Saturday, July 28, 2012

Oh Writing Ideas, Where Art Thou?

For the past couple of months I have been struggling with what to undertake as my next project. Earlier in the year I was certain that I wanted to do a book about my mom's family, the Crushams. After all, they always say that you should write about what you know. Check. And that you should write about something you are passionate about. Since I have been tracing the family history since 1989, I can give that a big check. So what is the problem? I guess the problem is that I know how much work and effort goes into a book. Let alone the time to write the book, you have to consider the cover, layout, distribution, etc. And face it, the market for this book is really small. My first two books were also niche markets, so I know the uphill battle in trying to make enough sales just to cover the expenses. Do I really want to go through all this again for a family history book?

Michael A Crusham
I have considered just publishing it as an e-book. Certainly my expenses would be much less. But then I think about my older relatives who would never get to see it because they don't own computers much less e-readers. And if I had a few print copies done for them, I am back to hiring a designer and all the costs that entails. And so I go round and round with this topic. Then I look at this photo of Michael Crusham, a man who left Ireland on his own at a very young age, and I think about his story. There are a couple of sisters in Cincinnati, much older cousins of mine, who as children lived in the apartment below Michael and his wife Catherine. I think they may have stories to tell as well. I was supposed to interview them on my last trip to Cincinnati but something came up on their end. Perhaps I'll continue to put together the outline of the book and the questions I want to ask them. I have a feeling that after I interview these ladies I may have a better idea of whether to go forward with the book. If nothing else, I'll have some more material to put into the family tree and that is always a good thing.