One of the best things about the Christmas /Holiday season is that memories from the past swim up. Sometimes they even swim to the surface in the mailbox, or on the phone
Three examples: I’m always delighted to hear from authors I used to publish. If they’re calling me for advice, I’m even more delighted.
Last week I heard from MARK JACCARD, in Vancouver. Mark is a Professor at SFU and one of the world’s great experts on Climate Change. Ten years ago Douglas Gibson Books at M&S brought out HOT AIR, the interesting text about the new topic that he co-authored with Jeffrey Simpson, and Nic Rivers. Now, of course, the topic of climate change has , some might say, heated up (my apologies), and Mark feels that he has more to contribute.
I was able to give him publishing advice that struck him as sound. I look forward to a fine new book, in due course.
My second example is JOHN SAWATSKY. It was in 1987 that DG Books published THE INSIDERS: Government , Business, And The Lobbyists. Before then John had become famous as an investigative reporter in Ottawa, with MEN IN THE SHADOWS, FOR SERVICES RENDERED, and GOUZENKO. Since then he has gained further fame with his Macfarlane, Walter and Ross biography, MULRONEY: The Politics of Ambition. (In that book he puts forward the interesting thesis, among many others, that we should see Brian Mulroney as essentially a French-Canadian with an Irish name. Interesting, as John Sawatsky always is.)
In recent years John has been out of the book business, working at a very high level at ESPN, in TV. Now, however,as a resounding phone call out of the blue from my old friend this week told me, he is back at work on a book about his decades of research on the art of the interview. He is now a world authority on interviews of all sorts, and John is carefully crafting a major international book about it.
Watch this space!
Finally, with much less waiting time involved, there’s the case of JONATHAN MANTHORPE. I was a beardless boy when I published THE POWER AND THE TORIES in 1974, and that book by Jonathan, The Globe & Mail’s Queen’s Park correspondent, was a huge success. Since then we’ve remained friends, as Jonathan moved West and produced thousands of articles and several books. When he approached me for advice about a controversial book about China that was scaring off potential Canadian Publishers, I didn’t hesitate. I put him in touch with the fearless Mark Cote, at Cormorant Books. As expected, the ebullient Mark was not frightened off by the controversial topic of our ally China doing alarming things in Canada , and to Canadians, and recent events and headlines have, as we all know, made the new book very important.
I’m very happy to recommend CLAWS OF THE PANDA: Beijing’s Campaign of Influence and Intimidation in Canada. I’m excitedly reading my advance copy. Grab yours in the stores next week!
And enjoy your contacts with old friends over the holidays.