I was asked what makes my books different from others? I will try without boring.
Firstly it has to be the amount of research involved. It would be easy to write a book where every case is labelled "unexplainable". The importance of the research is to look at cases and sort out which can be easily explained and which defy explanation. The books are not debunking but look at the facts and there are fully referenced sources that anyone can check -these days they can probably do so online.
There are maps, illustrations and photographs and through archive research I have found photographs that have been declared (by Forteans, cryptozoologists and ufologists) as "lost over a hundred years ago". I looked.
These are not dry reads. People who have read them have all described the books as "lively and not using over-complicated explanations". The point is that I want a good read when I buy a book and one that does not gtreat me like an idiot or spout over technical jargon that means having to find out what the hell someone is talking about. I think that anyone buying my books should expect a good read and not be talked down to. In ovber 45 years I have had to learn about atmospherics, aeronautics, astronomy, psychology and much more. So anything of that nature I explain in easily understood language.
"He (me) writes as though talking face-to-face with the reader" -I would accept that. The more "We should be looked at as the Elite" do not like that approach. Tough. I am not doing this work to look like a super scientist who no one understands but takes the word of.
One thing I always loved was getting my hands on chunky books. Lots of pages and illoes or photographs that made a great fun read. My books tend to have over 300 pages and are A4 in format. Each chapter deals with a seperate case so it is not a case of start reading about the Dead Aquatic Creatures of Canvey Island on page 5 and having to wait until page 310 for a conclusion. Everything on a case or series ofreports is self contained with full references at the end of each chapter.
I have a rather glowing appraisalof UFO Contact? from the Centre for UFO Studies aswell as other groups. When people start pinching your original work and use it uncredited on their blogs and in their books you must be doing something right.
Each book, because I saw these as a way to educate those interested in a subject or research, is priced atthe absolute bare minimum and when a copy of UFO Contact? is sold I 'earn' about £2/$2 -remember I have spent thousands of $/£ in over45 years gathering and investigating cases.
The books themselves I hope willinspire new investigators and researchers rather than sensationalist lie-mongers. Seriously, if just ONE person goes on to investigate and research a subject based on one of my books I will be happy. Poor but happy!
