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Feature

Self-Publishing a Southwest Masterpiece

Demand for Excellence Pays Off with Recognition and Awards

Thomas Wiewandt wasn’t about to settle for that scenario. His book would be the best it could be -- or he wouldn’t do it at all. As an educator and professional photographer, he wanted the information to be accurate and the images to be perfect. Perhaps more importantly, as a book-lover, he wanted to produce a book with the visual and educational appeal he would have treasured as a child. And as the leader of photographic safaris in the Southwest, he’d seen all of the books available.

“Beautiful coffee-table books and titles on geology, history, flora, and fauna seemed to be everywhere, but I found none that offered a holistic overview of our desert and canyon country,” recalls Wiewandt. “Because most people come to the Southwest to explore our awesome landscapes, it seemed logical to organize a book around distinctive features of the land.”

“The book needed to focus on natural landmarks across our entire region, from southern California to west Texas, and from northern Mexico to northern Nevada, Utah, and Colorado -- what I call the Greater Southwest. I wanted the content to be aesthetically inviting, educational, useful to travelers, and full of surprises -- done in a way that would capture the attention of both children and adults.”

Like most creative endeavors, this book didn't happen overnight. In fact, it didn’t happen over a decade.

For 11 years, Wiewandt’s idea matured while he led photographic safaris in the Southwest, under the name Wild Horizons. He was, in effect, planning the book he most wanted as a tour leader. Each page-spread would have to be self-contained, with a tight relationship between photographs and text. The biggest challenge would be to say as much as possible -- in as few words as possible -- while keeping the text scientifically accurate. Having already produced three children's films for National Geographic and written one children's book, he had met this challenge before. He would also need new maps and illustrations, a lengthy annotated resources section in the back, and a full index.

"I wanted to produce a new view of the Southwest, a holistic overview of our natural landscapes with a synthesis of geology, ecology, history and pre-history written to be read for enjoyment,” he says.

Wiewandt said the go-it-alone decision came when he could find no press willing to take a chance with fresh ideas and try something new in content and design. "I realized my vision for this book would never see the light of day in the hands of someone else." The process from initial concept to finished product was what he calls "a wild ride in a business not designed for part-timers."

First, he took advantage of a large and active publishing community in Tucson, and began to explore independent publishing by joining the Tucson Book Publishing Association (now a chapter of the Arizona Book Publishing Association). Through the monthly TBPA programs, conferences, trade shows, and friendly advice from established publishers, he learned a tremendous amount about the book industry in a relatively short period of time.

To gain first-hand experience with book planning, production, overseas printers, marketing, and distribution, Wiewandt published a series of three postcard books, a test that forced him to re-consider where he was headed.

Eight years later he knew what he had to do -- bring the book to life -– and he decided to bite the bullet and publish it independently. Luckily, a faithful tour client and patron of the arts offered to invest in the project.

While the photographic images and entrepreneurial spirit remains his, Wiewandt is a team player, quick to acknowledge his contributors. No less than 16 freelancers were involved, among them eight Tucsonans: writer/geologist Susan Cummins Miller, journalist Mari Jensen, editors Linda Gregonis and Elizabeth Shaw, musician and friend David Morton, illustrators David Fisher and Paul Mirocha, and computer graphics pro Michael Robinson. Geologist co-author Maureen Wilks wrote text during her off-hours from work at the New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources. Sedona book designer Carol Haralson graced the book with the look and feel Wiewandt had envisioned.

In addition, 21 experts in their fields -- most within the National Park Service -- reviewed the text for clarity and accuracy. The Arizona State Museum, the Arizona Historical Society, the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, Tucson Marble & Granite Co., and the International Wildlife Museum are among the 23 organizations and individuals who loaned me artifacts and specimens to photograph for this book.

Throughout the publishing process Wiewandt remained dedicated to quality and the unwavering adherence to his beliefs of how things should be. Not surprisingly, his first claim to fame was a dubious honor from the book’s printer: he made more pre-press changes than anyone they had worked with that year.

But it soon became apparent that his hard work and attention to detail had paid off.

The 12-year labor of love was reviewed by The Tucson Weekly and called “an encyclopedic treasure” and rated in the "must have" category. It received top honors in two national competitions for book publishing excellence: Best Science/Environmental Book in the Publisher's Marketing Association Ben Franklin Awards and Best Environmental/Ecology/Nature Book in this publication’s “IPPY” Awards competition. The book was also a finalist in the Writer's Digest Self-Publishing Awards in the Reference Books category.

Finally, it was named Best Book of 2001-2002 by the Arizona Book Publishers Association, beating a wide mix of Arizona-published titles (some from fairly large presses), an honor Wiewandt is particularly proud of.

"Given the diversity and quality of winning entries in this year's competition, I was stunned. This industry, especially book marketing and distribution, is heavily biased against the small player, so it's gratifying to know the little guy can come out on top," said Wiewandt.

"I'm indebted to all who contributed," he says. "Receiving these honors validates the decision to persevere and make a total commitment to an unproven idea. The journey has been a long one, but worth the effort. The awards are a bonus -- and they belong to all of the creative souls who made this book possible."

Critics are quick to point out that awards are great but what really matters is how well a book sells. "Like most science books, The Southwest Inside Out won't fly off the shelves," says Wiewandt, who proudly points out there are only a few hundred copies left from the initial print run of 12,000. “I look forward to keeping this book in print for many years."

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The Southwest Inside Out: An Illustrated Guide to the Land and Its Historyby Thomas Wiewandt and Maureen Wilks. Wild Horizons Publishing, $24.95 (ISBN – 1879728036) Info: www.wildhorizons.com