When an artisan begins a new job, s/he must acquire the tools of the trade.During a period of unemployment I seriously considered getting certified as a plumber.I’d done some plumbing repair and, unlike many people, I wasn’t afraid of it.(I am, however, terrified of electrical work.)When I was looking into it, it became clear that there would be a significant outlay of tool purchasing up front.While all of this may seem obvious, people are often surprised to learn that writing books also involves tools acquisition, although it generally pays far less than plumbing.The tools used to be made of paper, but they can wrench pipes apart and rebuild a bathroom from scratch.I’m referring to books, of course.In order to write books you have to read books.
Long ago I gave up on trying to read everything in an area before writing.There’s just too much published these days.When I was teaching and actually had a modest book allowance I would attend AAR/SBL only to come back with armloads of books that I needed for my research. Of course I had the backing of the seminary library as well, so I could find things.As an independent scholar doing the same work, however, you have to do a lot more tool acquiring since no library will back you up.Nightmares with the Bible came back from peer review with a standard-issue academic who wanted me to “show my work.”(I.e., document everything.)Apart from slowing the book down (it is written), this also means acquiring tools.AAR/SBL always reminds me of just how much is being published these days and that my toolbox, although already quite hefty, isn’t nearly big enough.
As I’m going through Nightmares rewriting and adding footnotes, I’m discovering more and more material that could be included.As an editor myself I try hard to keep to assigned word counts, and the entire allotment could easily be taken up by bibliography alone.I am very modest in my spending at conferences now—independent contractors have to be.Nightmares will likely be my last academic book; I can’t afford to keep going like this.I don’t plan to give up writing, of course, just academic publishing.Both this book and Holy Horror were written for non-specialist readerships, to showcase my non-technical way of explaining things.Both ended up with academic presses and are slated to be among those specialist tools that the beginning artisan covets but for which s/he has to budget.And when this house is finished it will have an impressive, if most unusual, private library.
