Skurka Gear Book

Andy,

I would start out by defining the segments in terms of weight. Traditional, Light, UL, SUL, etc. This would be base-wight. I would not express your opinion as to the best method. Allow the reader to figure out which is best for him. Also comment on why base-weight is the proper method to use so we can compare "apples to apples." Then in each section place the gear in each category. For example stoves (e.g., white gas, canister, alcohol, tabs, wood, etc.). You will also need to discuss how a heavier stove might be appropriate in special conditions. You will also need to treat winter as a special category. If as a hiker I am just not going to buy into a trail runners, what other light weight options are there. And if I am going to reduce most of my gear weight, but just cannot get over leather boots, which ones are the best? Lots of gear lists are helpful. Fletcher used gear lists with weights over 40 years ago.

1- How geeky do I get? Is it reasonable to talk about R-values of sleeping pads, the water absorption rates of different fibers, and the nuances of LED technology?

Absolutely. Get very detailed. Allow the reader to pick the gear based on the features and benefits of materials, construction, weight, longevity, etc. Numbers are your friends :) !!!!!!

Also lots of pictures and diagrams. Show the reader what the gear looks like and how it is used.

2- How can I defend this book against inevitable attempts to dismiss it as a lightweight book?

I don't think you will need to, if all the options are presented properly. The reader will be able to consider all the options, and make his/her own decision based on the material you provide. You may get more people to go really light, but those who opt not too, should be able to use your book as a valuable resource. Three different people may pick Light, UL, and SUL, based on their own needs. Take a look at the last edition of Complete Walker, Rawlins sprinkled in a lot of UL stuff, even mentioning Jardine several times. Here is where I would be cautious… will you come across as a credible expert on non-UL gear. Do you have enough experience using it; does your analysis logically entice the reader to try lighter options? 99.9% of the readers will never attempt one of your adventures, so you need to make sure that what you present makes sense to the average hiker. Fletcher was known for his epic trips, but his Walker often discussed the gear he used on short trips, even simple overnights. Appeal to what your reader will be using their gear for. If I am a recreational runner, I am not going to use the training methods of the world record marathoner, but if I can take pieces of the training that are applicable to me, I will use them. I am not going to train 150 miles per week.

3- Given the changes in the publishing industry, am I correct in taking the self-publishing route, and printing a pre-edition that will be out for about 3 months before the full edition is ready?

Your profession is "Adventurer." So I think this needs to be an income producing effort, not a social good for the UL community. So you need to consider the options. Traditional publishing will get you into more "markets" and you will have publisher advertising, exposure, etc… however unless you have a track-record name like Fletcher, no one is going to invest in a niche-market. Plus, you will earn less money per book; so it depends upon how many copies you sell. I would go the self-publishing route. Kindle eBook is probably going to be your most profitable approach in this day and age. I would not pre-edition it!! On Amazon, you can allow readers to see small portions before purchasing. Will I buy your book? Maybe. If it presents lots of information in a single source, that I can apply to my personal needs, yes. And I prefer it to be available on Amazon in Kindle format.

4- What are the major weaknesses of other lightweight books? How can I avoid them.

They promote UL as the only way. Do not preach "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." Many BPing authors present too few options, and much of what is presented is opinion, not detailed information (the geek factor). This is true even with traditional books. Fletcher sold more copies than anyone else, because his books were large and full of lots of objective information.

I do have a concern that you are rushing this to market, and it might not be as good as it could be. I write technical manuals. Last year I wrote a 50,000 word training guide and needed to do zero research, as the information was in my wheel-house as a subject matter expert. It took me 6 months to complete it. This manual was not sold, it was part of training my company provides to our clients and is proprietary to our training delivery. The success of our training is dependent upon the skill of the trainer, but the manual had to be good.

Even with the self publishing effort, I highly recommend that you hire a good copy-editor. That person will help you more than you know. You want this book to stand the test of time, with only technological advances as the variable for future editions. Since Fletcher has stood the test of time, I would read Walker 1, and Walker 4 very carefully to see what worked, and what did not. You do not want to emulate him, but dissect the most successful backpacking book of all time. If you limit your audience, you limit your income. If your book appeals to most of the Backpacker.com, BPL.com, WhiteBlaze.com, etc. audience, then you will be more successful. Also your potential readers may never venture into a backpacking message board. Remember there is no right way to hike, there are many ways to hike.

2- How can I defend this book against inevitable attempts to dismiss it as a lightweight book?

Stand on your accomplishments. Why defend anything? You're talking about gear that worked (or didn't) for you, on some of the greatest hikes ever attempted. So what if a bunch of armchair quarterbacks/hikers disagree?

Andrew, I look forward to reading your book. While you're still writing perhaps you could pose some questions to the materials industry that serves our gear manufacturers.

Namely, far better synthetic insulations, much improved solid fuel tablets in terms of BTUs (and maybe cleaner burning), lighter footwear that STILL protects our soles from rocks & roots.

Design-wise we are already seeing revolutions in tents and packs and some types of stoves. But it is the materials and processes improvements that will drive even better designs. i.e radio wave welded fabric seams instead of sewn seams, etc.

Your extensive experience with many backpacking products must surely leave you desiring "better" in many areas. Let's hear those needs.

.

IIRC much of your Sea to Sea hike was done with a poncho tarp. I hope you go over your poncho tarping experiences. Such as how you've handled difficult situations and when you've had them fail.

As a professional writer, illustrator, and photographer who has gone the traditional route I know firsthand just how difficult it is to get recognized by an editor and publisher. Even if you do get recognized and published the publisher may not realize where the market stands for what you are writing. And therefore you may sell less copies than you ought to be able to. I think a big part of where your book comes in rests upon the same audience that brought so many people to BPL, viral marketing by word of mouth. You have all your big walks to back up what you discuss and I think the connection between the experience of your adventures and the gear you used is extremely important for the success of your books. People will want to come to your book because of the allure of your adventures, stoking their desire to one day do the kind of journeys you did. That was the method behind both Fletcher's and Townsend's books (You should take a good look at Townsend… he gradually grows into ultralight techniques, and definitely goes into geeky detail); you could trust them (and Jardin) because they actually went on those long walks and used the gear. Part of their credibility comes from their also knowing what doesn't work.

The BPL lightweight book, Lightweight Backpacking and Camping was okay in that it discussed most of the topics that have been the cornerstone of UL, but one of the very big problems with it is that it often got TOO scientific, with too much science research report type writing. That is not going to hold a lot of readers or make for a memorable book that they will want to tell others about (remember being self-published you want people to talk about the book, ie. Sarah's very good advice). The book has to be engaging and friendly, talking in great detail about how gear is used, but explained in a way a lay person or someone with little experience in the new techniques can intuitively understand. You don't only want your audience to be engineers and technical writers. Being a book for people who love adventure, make it such; write to the same person you are, someone who gets out there for the love of it and the excitement of being away from civilization. Don't write only to the gear heads who sit in front of their computers all day.

Some LW books, like The Ultralight Backpacker: The Complete Guide to Simplicity and Comfort on the Trail by Ryel Kestenbaum, immediately date themselves by relying solely on specifically mentioned gear, gear that within a year have been replaced by new models. Mentioning models is unavoidable, but it is important to concentrate mainly on their appropriateness, rather than basing the book's whole premise on a few, quickly forgotten gear models.

I think wondering about whether to defend your UL position is sort of shooting yourself in the foot. Why would you want to take a stance that you have doubts about what you have done? Obviously you didn't. The proof in the validity of your methods is in your experiences. All you need to do is explain why you did what you did; your readers should be intelligent enough to see the merits when it is explained the right way. If you show that you are not insane or have no desire to get yourself into unnecessary danger than there you have your argument without having to argue.

In this day and age I think more and more self-publishing is the way to go. You have a huge advantage in that you've already made a name for yourself in the market that would want to buy your books, even without having yet written it. A lot of members here on BPL already give evidence of that. The trick is to get it out to a broader audience, and that would best be served through the internet and, as Sarah mentioned, Amazon. With Amazon you have a worldwide audience automatically at your fingertips, without any extra marketing effort by you. That is extremely important. The Amazon market is enormous and one thing Amazon does really, really well is marketing. Just by providing the right keywords and tags people's internet searches will bring up your book. And on Amazon you will have readers who recommend your book, so there grows your audience.

I think a Kindle edition is good and important, but I also think your book should definitely NOT concentrate on that market alone. Personally I'd much prefer to see the book with color photos and an enticing layout. One of the problems with Kindle books, especially guidebooks, is that it is very difficult to navigate back and forth within the ebook. Unlike a novel which follows an linear narrative, a guidebook will have the reader rereading passages, looking in the index to find out more about a certain topic, bookmarking pages for later reference, underlining ideas, searching on the internet for information about a certain pice of gear then having the reader go back to the guidebook to compare notes… this works far better in a physical book. To make a Kindle book that efficient and readable you'd have to spend considerable time working on links and references and the index. Remember, all those take a lot of time to create, too, and is definitely no fun.

One of the great things about Fletcher was his use of very well illustrated explanations of a lot of his ideas. Even today, almost twenty-five years later, I can remember all the illustrations and what he explained. Sometimes illustrations work far better than photographs in explaining a technique. So a mix of photographs and illustrations would go a long way towards clarifying what you are writing.

Don't just get a copyeditor… get a proper editor to look at the entire work and evaluate how it works as complete work and then make suggestions to cut, change, or add things. You need someone other than yourself, someone who knows writing and editing, to give you honest appraisals and good criticism. And that includes someone who knows when to tell you, "That whole section doesn't contribute anything to the book." Most of the best books written got that way due to good editors. It may be true that self-publishing is the way to go these days, but to eschew the editing process because you don't want to deal with criticism or changes won't make for a good book, unless you are an exceptional writer.

The interest that people are showing here already shows that you have an audience. A book will be a link that probably a lot of people would like to have to your adventures. It makes your journey personal to them and brings your stories alive.

Good luck with the book! And may the words flow like wine!

When you do the electronic version, don't forget the color Nook thru Barnes & Noble. Or so my kids tell me.

You know, if Miguel would dumb down some of his posts on here, I wouldn't feel nearly as ignorant about mine as I do!

+1 to Miguel's advice!

+2 Miguel!!

One thing that has not been pointed out regarding Fletcher; his writing style. Even if one was not interested in all the details, he was just plain fun to read.

"One thing that has not been pointed out regarding Fletcher; his writing style. Even if one was not interested in all the details, he was just plain fun to read"

Fun and a bit irreverent.

.

1- How geeky do I get? Is it reasonable to talk about R-values of sleeping pads, the water absorption rates of different fibers, and the nuances of LED technology?

I would like to see major discussions in two parts. In the fist section I would suggest a basic analysis of your position with substantiating facts. Outline to the reader what you suggest and why in a simple relatively short section. Then perhaps if you feel its warranted (and I would read this section as well) go into greater detail and give the formulas, and theories that back up, or give more detail, or dispel current myths.

2- How can I defend this book against inevitable attempts to dismiss it as a lightweight book?

I think plain logic here. Dispute the basic myths of light equals unsafe, or non durable. Dont get in an argument, just get the facts out while targeting the most common objections

3- Given the changes in the publishing industry, am I correct in taking the self-publishing route, and printing a pre-edition that will be out for about 3 months before the full edition is ready?

Out of my area..

4- What are the major weaknesses of other lightweight books? How can I avoid them.

I think non specific advice on gear is a current weakness and am glad to see you NOT doing that. I also think making predetermined statements to "value" and I mean vs cost is a mistake. I recently read one book where the author was talking about making bivys and rain wear out of garbage sacks. While we all know you can do this, it made me less interested in his book, by his not looking at all options, rather than the cheapest he could find.

On a slightly different level and to back up my input of putting in gear specific stuff. I bought Yogi's PCT book even though I have no intention of hiking the entire trail anywhere in the near future. I loved the sections where you got the different opinions of other folks that hiked with her or she met. I was very disappointed in the fact that most of the gear they reference is so out of date, I couldn't duplicate it.

while I realize your style and hers are going to be different, having other opinions that either support or contrast your own, gives the reader the option to analyze your data better and make an informed choice.

I for one will buy a copy as soon as its for sale. I love reading and learning from folks who have done it, and now want to share their insight.

Joe, lol! Let's see… Andy, but I wanna write a book like that! :^P

And, you know, great writing knows when to eliminate redundancy!

I just found and subsequently read this thread so most of the good advice has been given. I will focus only on your #1 (how geeky to get) and #4 (avoiding weaknesses of other books) questions, and the answer will be essentially the same.

I would cross the books Mike C has illustrated with "Lightweight Backpacking and Camping". The former were very easy and fun to read, but lacked the depth. Illustrations were, of course, very good and helpful (and humorous). In general, illustrations are better than photos for getting points across, too. The latter had great depth, but too much and the writing was often not very engaging. It was like trying to read a dissertation at times though there were some nuggets of info I was able to filter. Just so you know I am fairly new to LW BPing and am an engineer/geek.

You've gotten some decent suggestions on how to accomplish the geek factor without overwhelming or boring those who could care less why certain LEDs work the way they do for example.

I'll also echo Nick's concerns about your timeline. It likely runs in your blood given your adventures, but unless you're an incredible writer, creating such a finished project by summer is a momentous task. Maybe you are being pushed by NG, though it would certainly make sense to have it available whenever their article on you hits.

"What are the major weaknesses of other lightweight books? How can I avoid them."
US/UK units are pretty hard to follow for a person who's using grams, kilograms, liters etc. in normal life. Add some small unit conversion table in the inside of the cover. Not just 1 oz = x grams but like 1oz = , 2oz = , 5oz = , 1 lbs = , 1 foot =, 50 yards = and so on. So that the quick look gives coarse estimate how much some value is in units your are familiar with.

"How geeky to get?"
I have one 20 years old Finnish hiking book. The geeky parts + literally hundred tricks of fixing something or getting something done easier are about the only parts that still make good sense with the lightweight approach. But those few parts of the book do make sense so much, that I actually looked through parts of the book this year again. So I say, geeky is good, at least if they are in "geek-boxes", something that can be left unread if you are not that deeply interested in that part at that time.

avoid a lot of numbers and a lot of proper nouns. those are 2 things that make me skim pages. one of the most boring books i ever read was some ww2 book about the eastern front of germany. it was blah blah blah this general in this town in the provence attacking the 42nd division but getting resupplied by this town. etc

others may vary but that's what i don't like to read…

1- How geeky do I get? Is it reasonable to talk about R-values of sleeping pads, the water absorption rates of different fibers, and the nuances of LED technology?

Yes please. I'll wager that 27% of backpackers that I meet on the trail are engineers. Another 43% are tinkering with something in their garage. People that take the time to backpack usually are into these kinds of things, and those that aren't probably don't want anything more than one of the (excellent) Clelland books. But I think the complete walker was so lasting because Fletcher has one thing all the others don't: narrative. I'd try to always preface and interweave the technical details with comments about how this or that worked the one time in Montana when this grizzly was outside my bivy and…

2- How can I defend this book against inevitable attempts to dismiss it as a lightweight book?

Perhaps sell it as "the gear I've used to backpack X thousand miles in X conditions, that is X simple to use and safe for anyone because X" (probably doesn't make for a good title)

4- What are the major weaknesses of other lightweight books? How can I avoid them.

Naming specific models. Many lightweight books tell me I should get a Golite Breeze or a MLD Zip (read: probably published in 06). In other words, I think recommending gear manufacturers is great, and to describe what to look for in gear (X many cubes, cuben vs. spinaker vs. sil, etc.) is a good idea, but to build gear lists and make comparisons based on specific models seems to outdate the book very quickly.

When it comes to stoves remember the good woodburners like Bush Buddy and the brilliant Caldera Cone Ti lineup. Not carrying 8 days of fuel is a significant weight savings.

Don't forget Freezer bag cooking. Good food can raise morale after a hard trail day.

Include trail drinks for electrolyte replacement and/or fuel.

I think everything has already been said but here is my 2 cents.

1. Don't be afraid to have an opinion, there is nothing worse then someone saying here are 5 different types of tents and not telling you which one they prefer (and why). I think Ray Jardines book was successful because he was not afraid to take a stand and even if you did not agree it sure got you thinking.

2. Please try to share your experience, experience matters when things go wrong, anyone can setup an A frame tarp, but what do you do when the wind changes direction and turns your tarp into a wind tunnel. Or what do you do when this breaks or you loose that,etc, here is were anecdotal stories really help engage the reader.

3. Don't forget the basics, when you are just starting out is when you tend to flock to the books for information so I wouldn't assume that people have all of the fundamentals. Once again I would try to draw on your experience, I have read a lot of survival manuals that show 10 techniques for building a fire but trying using any of them after a week of steady rain.

4. I would try to cover a wider base then just long distance hiking. I think we all dream about a long distance trek but in reality most people are lucky if they can get out for a weekend walk in the woods probably on a marked trail with designated camping sites. With this audience in mind I would cover a few things like how to use a compass when you don't have a map or what do you do when you are kinda lost but not really.

5. I think a picture is worth a 1000 words, nothing worse then reading a trip report when the user hasn't included any pictures. The pictures help me visualize the writers experience and more importantly they get me dreaming about being in the same remote location.

I have never written a book so I have no idea how difficult this task is but from reading your bio it seems difficult tasks are your specialty. Good luck and I look forward to reading the finished product.

Kevin

I am thrilled to announce that my forthcoming how-to book, The Ultimate Hiker’s Gear Guide, will be released on February 21st by National Geographic Books.

More info at this post: http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/forums/thread_display.html?forum_thread_id=58054