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I recently completed a large family legacy book and used Blurb as my print provider. Before we began, I discussed the four questions below with my primary contacts for the project. These questions are applicable whether you’re writing fiction or nonfiction, and can help you focus before you begin the work of writing any larger undertaking.

You can enjoy an incredible sense of accomplishment when you transform your ideas for a book from a sequence of notes and drafts to a professionally-bound printed piece. Not all that long ago, self-publishing used to be an expensive and arduous process, but now thanks to the technology of on-demand print, you can look brilliant in print no matter what your background or readership.

Cover of the Sargent Family Legacy Book, proof copy before our final print.

A PROJECT SAMPLE USING THE KEYSTONE FOUR QUESTIONS

This project began with an invitation from the Sargent family to attend their regularly scheduled family reunion, which they hold every five years. There were roughly 200 Sargents present and the idea was that I would interview the immediate grandchildren of Bert and Opal’s seven children and share in the festivities to get to know the family. It was an exciting weekend spent in Estees Park with Sargents everywhere I looked.

Who is your audience?

Determining the audience for your book is essential. Knowing who “they” are will shape what you share and how you craft your work. What will your audience be interested in knowing? How do they prefer to consume information?

For the Sargent project, I was fortunate to work directly with a Sargent family team who were able to answer these questions and who had a clear vision as to what they hoped to achieve in creating their legacy book. Their audience included several generations of Sargents who share an interest in their family’s history and have bonded over the decades in telling and re-telling family stories, some of which have become the stuff of family legend.

What do you want to say?

For fiction and nonfiction, the drive is to transport the reader to a place and time with characters that matter to them enough to keep reading your book. For the Sargent project, there was an interest in covering the stories and memories shared by many of the family, and also in diving into stories that were less well known.

The other challenge was to find our path to compiling the information of the subfamilies and their family experience in a way that would pull together all the other stories into one unified piece. The main theme of the book was “connection,” and all the content was to help drive home the message that all the family experiences bind the Sargents together because of their family tie.

How will you organize your story?

The structure of the Sargent book emerged early with interviews during the reunion weekend. In visiting with the Sargent subfamilies, I noted several shared themes that were reinforced when I discussed the chapter outline with my Sargent book team.

We knew there were many stories that would be shared memories across generations, including Y-Camp, the Reunions, Clear Lake Cabin, and, of course, memories of Bert and Opal. We also recognized there would be memories that were specific to the subfamilies and wanted to incorporate chapters for each of those groups. Plus, we knew there would be a collection of images to incorporate, and as the project advanced the images took on a life of their own in the book.

It seemed essential to organize the material in a way that would feel “all of one” but not be so overwhelming that the reader couldn’t pick up and read anywhere and glean something of interest.

We elected to use a timeline to stitch together stories, events, and images to help drive the connected continuum of all the events as part of the overarching story of the Sargent family. We also utilized the interview format in major segments of the book so that the audience could “hear” the voices of their family as they read about stories and memories shared.

A lot of pictures throughout the book break up text. Note the timeline panel on the side that appears throughout the book. One of the last segments of the book included a master timeline of all pinpoints. We are all on a continuum of time and connec… — A lot of pictures throughout the book break up text. Note the timeline panel on the side that appears throughout the book. One of the last segments of the book included a master timeline of all pinpoints. We are all on a continuum of time and connected to shared history.

How will you incorporate design?

I worked with a designer who created a malleable template, including a detailed color palette, fonts and photo treatments early on in the project. The design permitted me to weave together content and build it out in sections, which changed significantly over time.

I prefer to layout book projects in software outside the Blurb platform and then load it as a “PDF to Book” option. However, Blurb offers several book design tools to aide the skilled graphic designer, such as a portal for those who use InDesign. There is also downloadable program with built-in templates available, and if you need help at any level of book production, Blurb offers the services of pros you can hire.

The Sargent project turned out to be 440 pages of images, stories and memories bound together in the 10x8 Standard Landscape with case wrap cover. We maxed out the number of pages for this size of book, so the choice of another paper was not an option, but I find that the standard paper is of high quality and works well. I’m proud of the outcome and, more importantly, the family is thrilled and shares in the satisfaction of having created something that will be a legacy for generations.

Another page with lots of images. The great thing about legacy books is that memorabilia and images can be shared in an attractive manner that excites the reader. Also, the legacy book provides a platform to retain and share family history over-and-… — Another page with lots of images. The great thing about legacy books is that memorabilia and images can be shared in an attractive manner that excites the reader. Also, the legacy book provides a platform to retain and share family history over-and-over again.

I never tire of my amazement with the printed book. In a time when we have so many ways to consume information, I still find the book to be an enriching format. Maybe it’s the tactile nature of holding it in my hands, or the swish of paper as I flip pages which together with other details make the book such a lovely companion for sharing stories. Whatever it is, I’m hooked.

While other tools of the present will come and go, the book is steady, stalwart and a comfort having served us throughout history. However, to give technology its due, the use of on-demand print services such as Blurb have allowed more stories such as those you have to tell to make it to the sacred pages of books.