Friday 29 July 2016

Post 216 Bonsai book publication

I've been conducting an 8 lesson (3 hours each) training program for a couple of years, at the local club, which I've called the Foundations Program. It's for those new or not so new to bonsai who want to cover the basics in a more structured way than is possible to pick up at the usual club activities. The program is supported by a series of Powerpoint presentations on a wide range of topics. The idea is to cover the syllabus using mostly discussion points on the slides, so there have been no detailed notes. The idea behind that is to encourage active learning.
Suffice to say it has gone down very well and so over the last couple of months I've been writing it all down, in book form. The Powerpoint presentations felt like I'd done most of the work, but that hasn't been quite the case. Is it a text book? Perhaps, but with all the pictures it is close to 130 pages and I'm heading down the exciting path of self publishing.


This is the title page, featuring my Lilly Pilly. 
 


And this is the intended table of contents. The summary I've drafted to describe the book, which I've needed for the various registration details, like ISBN and Catalogue data etc is as follows:



"The book offers information on the aesthetic and horticultural knowledge which is essential to the cultivation and stylistic development of a bonsai tree. The Japanese bonsai aesthetic, as it is widely understood in the west, is analysed and described in terms of design principles. Alternative models and approaches to a tree’s style are discussed. Step by step guides are provided for a variety of development paths, activities and techniques."

 It's 95% written with 95% of photos taken. Should be out for Christmas!