posted April 28, 2008 08:18 PM               

"Footprints in the Dust" tells the story of Project Apollo, from the landing of Armstrong and Aldrin on the Sea of Tranquility through to the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project mission. Although fully intended as a stand-alone book, it will take up the story where the book "In the Shadow of the Moon" (French and Burgess) has its ending. Any prospective author would therefore not only need to be familiar with this book, but with the social mandate of the Outward Odyssey series.

Some of the chapters have already been recently completed, while others have had some preliminary work done on them, and a couple of authors have already been willingly assigned to other chapters. The chapters for which I am now seeking authors are those which tell the stories of Apollo 11, Apollo 12, the abandoned Soviet lunar landing program, Apollo 14, and Apollo 17. There would be constraints applicable to each chapter - they must be no more than 40 double-spaced A4 pages in Times New Roman 12-point or similar, or around 11,000 words. Photographic illustrations would be discussed at a later time.

I am not seeking a straight narration of each Apollo mission. In keeping with the social or human side of this story I would be looking for interesting ways of approaching each of these five chapters. Think Tom Hanks' magnificent "From the Earth to the Moon" and that is the kind of different approach that is being sought. Where possible, personal reflections from the participants should be used, and this is not necessarily restricted to just the crewmembers, even though they are the focal point of each story.

Because so many authors will be involved, no separate contracts will be issued. Instead, all proceeds - and I do mean all - from this particular series book will be directed under contract to an administrator from a well-known and worthy space-related cause (details to be announced upon their acceptance) to assist in their wonderful work. Each author will be recognised in the book and will be asked to prepare a short autobiography, and each author will receive two complimentary copies of the book upon publication. It will be my task to ensure that there is a seamless and logical transition from one chapter to the next, so some light editing of the authors' work may be necessary, but will be subject to their approval.

Because authors have yet to be assigned to the nominated chapters, the publishers obviously cannot yet offer a 100 percent assurance that the book will become part of their Outward Odyssey series, but they are excited about this innovative concept and the editorial board has given its unanimous approval, expressing an opinion that it will fall nicely into the social history emphasis expected of such an important volume in the space book series.

If you are seriously interested in participating in "Footprints in the Dust," I would ask you to please contact me at the e-mail address listed in my profile information above. You should include a brief summary of your writing experience, why you would wish to tackle any of the chapters listed above, and possibly any thoughts you might have on the composition of that particular chapter. Obviously I cannot guarantee any person a chapter in this book simply by asking; I would need to know that you can produce a work which not only complies with the philosophy of the Outward Odyssey series, but one that is fresh, innovative and involving.

I do expect to receive a lot of applications and requests for further information, so please bear with me. Could you also please place the words Outward Odyssey in the e-mail subject line so that it does not fall foul of my spam filter?

As to when the book will actually be published, I cannot say at this time. The University of Nebraska Press tends to publish the books in the order in which the manuscripts are received, and I would envisage this book would be fully completed in manuscript form around this time next year. Once it has formally been accepted for publication it may be a further year before release, but this is something to be determined by the Press.

I might also add that an Apollo astronaut who flew to the moon has already pledged a foreword on condition of first reading and approving the complete draft manuscript.

posted May 03, 2008 08:14 PM               

All chapters are now spoken for by a truly international group of talented and enthusiast followers of spaceflight history, with the last chapter being secured and assigned just last night.

So now all the hard work for some begins...

posted September 19, 2008 07:03 PM               

The unique facet of this particular book is that each chapter (relating to a particular Apollo mission) is with a single exception being written by a collectSPACE member with previous writing experience, and each will bring to the project their own enthusiasm and literary experience in relating the story of the Apollo programme. Sometime in the not-too-distant future I hope to be revealing the names of all the authors on collectSPACE.

Because of the number of authors involved, we have all reached an exciting agreement that all proceeds from this book (and I mean ALL) will be allocated to the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation, and this agreement is currently being formally organised between the ASF and the University of Nebraska Press.

In a way, I can see this book being a little like Tom Hanks' "From the Earth to the Moon" as each chapter will have a uniquely different approach to the overall story, and of course the concurrent Soviet thrust to get to the moon will also feature.

posted September 28, 2008 11:47 PM               

• Rick Houston, a full-time journalist from North Carolina, whose (other) passion is observing and writing on the NASCAR scene.

• Dominic Phelan, a freelance writer based in Dublin, Ireland, and a regular presenter of spaceflight lectures at the BIS in London.

• John Youskauskas from Baltimore, Maryland, who normally writes on technical aspects of flight operations and safety, but who has a great passion for the history of space exploration.

• Stephen Cass; Irish-born, now New York-based, and a senior editor at Discover magazine who has written extensively on space technology and history.

• Philip Baker from Hampshire, England, who has written several articles on space exploration, and whose book on the history of space stations was published just last year.

• Geoffrey Bowman from Belfast, Northern Ireland, with a family history of aviation personalities. He has written several articles for magazines and newspapers based on interviews with astronauts.

• Simon Vaughan from Toronto, Canada. A long-time space enthusiast who has written extensively on the subject, including a popular co-authored guide to astronaut autopens.

• Mel Croft from Houston, Texas, a regular correspondent on collectSPACE with a background in geology, who is turning his expertise in the subject to writing about the final Apollo lunar mission.

• And last, but certainly not least, Robert Pearlman, our praiseworthy host at collectSPACE, who brings a wealth of knowledge and writing experience to this project.

posted July 04, 2009 12:42 AM               

• Edited by Colin Burgess
  
• Approx 500 pages, including Index
  
• Outward Odyssey series, University of Nebraska Press
  
• For release: Spring 2010
  
• Expected rrp: $34.95 (US)

This book essentially begins where the earlier series volume "In the Shadow of the Moon" (French and Burgess) left off, with Neil Armstrong setting foot on the moon in July 1969. It then takes the reader on a breathtaking ride through the Apollo program, culminating in the cooperative ASTP mission in 1975.

Each chapter has been written by a different author to give the narrative a continually refreshing and personal approach to mission stories that are otherwise so well documented and known to us all. With just one exception, all of the authors are regular contributors to collectSPACE, namely:

• Geoffrey Bowman
  
• Colin Burgess
  
• Stephen Cass
  
• Mel Croft
  
• Rick Houston
  
• Robert Pearlman
  
• Dominic Phelan
  
• Simon Vaughan
  
• John Youskauskas
  
• and the late Phil Baker

In a similar approach to the way in which Tom Hanks set about telling the story of Apollo in his magnificent HBO mini-series "From the Earth to the Moon", in which he used a different director/producer for each episode, so each of this book's authors presents the sagas of the American and Soviet flights covered in this extraordinary period from a different and quite unique aspect. Through dozens of personal interviews, correspondence and conversations, many new facts and fresh anecdotes have come to light.

An extensive foreword has been written by Gemini 11 and Apollo 12 astronaut Dick Gordon.

By common consent of the editor and authors all proceeds from this book, without exception, have been formally allocated by agreement with the publisher to the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation. It means that every book purchased through the publisher or elsewhere will go to supporting this very worthwhile scholarship program.

posted September 02, 2009 04:07 AM               

• hardcover
  
• 2010. 496 pp.
  
• 978-0-8032-2665-4
  
• Expected Availability 6/1/2010

posted September 04, 2009 05:55 PM               

May I also say what a pleasure it was to meet you and your father at Spacefest back in February, and I can't say how honoured I am that you have made this unexpected suggestion. I hope we can work something out.

posted September 05, 2009 12:22 AM               

quote:

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Originally posted by ColinBurgess:
I should have an answer Monday...

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posted September 05, 2009 02:02 PM            

quote:

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Originally posted by ColinBurgess:
The cover photo is one of Charlie Duke walking towards Plum Crater - very effective in regard to the book's title, as it shows footsteps trailing behind him, and his boots are kicking up a little lunar dust.

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posted September 08, 2009 05:09 PM               

Chris - following the Labor Day break the Chief Editor at the Nebraska Press is currently discussing your wonderful offer with the art and design department to see if something can still be organised at this late stage, and I should have an answer very soon.

Brad - there are plans in the pipeline for a limited number of bookplates signed by all of the authors (and a dedication to the late Phil Baker, who wrote the chapter on Apollo 14) to become available and placed inside a number of books through some retail outlet, possibly through this website, but this has yet to be finalised.