For an author, there’s always the temptation to publish your
own writing, and today’s technology makes that process easy. Just write your novel or memoir, go to a
company’s website, and in a few hours or days, your ebook can be available for
sale on Amazon.com. Some self-published authors even
make it big, as Christopher Paolini demonstrated when his dragon novel Eragon was picked up by a major publisher, and became an
international bestseller. Another
author who self-published her first novel was Beatrix Potter.
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| Looking for some great Beatrix Potter merchandise? Try this place. |
During last year’s trip to England, we visited Hawkshead in the Lake District. This village consists of a few short streets, with most of the businesses
tailored to tourism. Gift shops offered a variety of Beatrix Potter souvenirs and books (in addition to
the bookstore). William Heelis, who
married Beatrix Potter after she moved to the Lake District, once had his law
office in Hawkshead, and this building now houses the Beatrix Potter
Gallery.
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| Interested in learning about the author and her stories? Try this place. |
The theme of the Gallery changes annually. Last year, it focused on Beatrix Potter’s first book, The Tale of Peter Rabbit. Before Frederick Warne & Sons published
her children’s book with color illustrations, Miss Potter self-published the
book with pen and ink drawings. We
toured the small (tiny, really) rooms downstairs, then climbed the narrow
stairway, bending to avoid the wooden beams in the low ceiling, and watching
our feet on the uneven steps. Upstairs,
we were given two versions of her first story, so we could compare the
self-published work to the version that we have all come to know and love. It was interesting to notice how much more
refined the drawings were in the Frederick Warne & Sons' version. I also found interesting which pages, both
text and illustrations, didn’t make it into the later, official edition. As we made this comparison, we enjoyed the
full sensory experience, making use of the headsets that hung from the ceiling,
and followed along as the narrator read the official story. Before we left, we toured each upstairs room,
in which framed, full size illustrations from the story hung on the walls.
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| Just watch your step (and your head) inside. As the sign above the door warns, "Bend or Bump." |
I remember reading Beatrix Potter as a child. From watching the movie about her life, “Miss
Potter,” I can understand the long-standing and far-reaching allure of her
books. Comparing the two versions of The
Tale of Peter Rabbit demonstrated the significant role a publisher plays in an
author’s life. Any company can format,
reproduce, and make copies of a book available for sale. Editors at a publishing house, who fall in love
with an author’s work, and desperately want it to succeed, can insist on edits and alterations to the material.
Their suggestions (or mandates) may not always be right, but in this case, I found Frederick Warne & Sons' version superior
to the self-published version.
I’m glad I got to read them both, and make that comparison.
Dragon Dave
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