Writing Business

What's So Great About Writing Books?

by Steve Weinberg

The conventional wisdom about writing books is everywhere: Editors hardly ever edit. Publicists give only minimal effort. All in all, writing books is a disappointing and sometimes downright painful experience, according to purveyors of the conventional wisdom.

This personal account contradicts the conventional wisdom. The perils of writing books make a showing in this account, but the overall message is one of contentment. That is true for all my books, brought to market by both little-known and well-known publishers (in chronological order, Wallace-Homestead Book Company; Acropolis Books; Little, Brown; University of Missouri Press; St. Martin's Press; W.W. Norton).

The newest journey to contentment began about 15 years ago when I read a book published in 1904, The History of the Standard Oil Company."' Despite the word "'History"' in the title, the book served as an exposé of the nation's most powerful industrial corporation. "'The Trust"' (think of the current term "'anti-trust"') had become the common appellation for Standard Oil at the opening of the 20th century.

The author of that 1904 exposé: Ida M. (for Minerva) Tarbell. No other woman journalist had ever practiced investigative reporting like Tarbell. In fact, nor had any other journalist, female or male. I felt the call to write a Tarbell biography.

Like all authors, I hoped my book proposal would interest multiple publishers and yield a hefty advance. (After all, that conjunction of good fortune had blessed me once, for my Armand Hammer biography. Six publishers bid after seeing the proposal; I accepted a $160,000 advance from Little, Brown. Then I worked smoothly with two Little, Brown editors—Jennifer Josephy, since moved to Broadway Books/Random House, and Debbie Jacobs, since moved to the Boston Globe book section.)

Unfortunately, I received only one offer for the Tarbell biography—a distressingly low $15,000. But after a discussion with my agent (Faith Hamlin at Sanford J. Greenburger Associates), I said yes. I could not resist my passion for the subject. Furthermore, the lone bidder was Bob Weil, then at St. Martin's Press. Hamlin told me what I had heard from fellow authors—Weil edited all of his books with skill and engagement derived from enthusiasm.

An Alicia Patterson Fellowship of $30,000 during the early years of my Tarbell research supplemented the small advance nicely. The manuscript grew, with Weil always accessible and always wise when I needed to talk.

Suddenly, Weil moved from St. Martin's to W.W. Norton. He could move only a few of his books to Norton, leaving dozens of others behind at St. Martin's. Would my book become an orphan at St. Martin's, assigned to an editor who could not have cared less? Month after month, I awaited the decision, finding it difficult to continue my research and writing. Then, praise be, I learned that Weil would take my book with him.

After I completed the manuscript of the cradle-to-grave Tarbell biography, Weil read it carefully. His reaction, oversimplified here: Not bad, but maybe we should rethink the approach. Instead of a cradle-to-grave biography of Tarbell, how about something different? How about a dramatic narrative showing the collision course between Tarbell, the unknown female journalist employed in a male bastion, and Rockefeller, perhaps the richest, most powerful human being alive at the time, someone who disdained journalists?

Intellectually, I recognized the brilliance of Weil's approach. Selfishly, I despaired. I had long since spent my tiny advance as well as the Alicia Patterson Fellowship money. Redoing the book Weil's way would probably take at least two more years, because I would need to research Rockefeller and Standard Oil much more fully than I had during the previous five years. I would also need to increase my magazine freelancing, book reviewing and maybe even my part-time university teaching to support family members, pay the mortgage and buy food during those extra years.

My passion for the Tarbell story undimmed despite the obstacles, I said yes to Weil. Shortly thereafter, he told me I would be working closely with his assistant at W.W. Norton, Tom Mayer. At the time, Mayer was 23 years old, the same age as my youngest child. I was 57 years old. I wondered whether a 23-year-old editor could help me much.

My wondering soon received an answer. Editor Mayer is a younger version of editor Weil—insightful, accessible, caring, ready to discuss any and every word I wrote. As Mayer and I completed the manuscript, he received a promotion within W.W. Norton from Weil's assistant to acquiring editor status.

The Norton publicists assigned to the book have been diligent and accommodating. The book is now in stores, under the title, Taking on the Trust: The Epic Battle of Ida Tarbell and John D. Rockefeller. Thanks to the connections and diligence of Weil and Mayer, the dust jacket contains endorsements from Gay Talese, Kitty Kelley and David Maraniss. The cover, conceived and designed within W.W. Norton, is among the most striking I have ever seen. As I write this piece for ASJA, all three advance reviews have been positive.

Who knows whether the book will sell well enough to earn me significant royalties, or any royalties at all?

But, you know what? A professional freelancer should not admit this aloud, but when it comes to the book writing portion of my career, the money is secondary. I love researching/writing books; I love working with superb editors; I love the lasting nature of what I create.

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Steve Weinberg is a long-time ASJA member who also has served as vice president of the National Book Critics Circle and executive director of Investigative Reporters and Editors.