Thursday, October 29, 2009

Quick Poll: Progress on the Book and a One-Question Poll

Hi folks. This is just a quick post to update you on the status of my book on design for participation in cultural institutions. Three items worth noting:
  1. I completed the entire draft manuscript. I'm currently slowly uploading the new text to the wiki, and it will all be there for you to review, edit, and explore by the end of this week.
  2. I've retained Jennifer Rae Atkins, superlative graphic lady, to create the cover art and illustrations for the book.
  3. The current schedule is to complete content development by the end of the year, copy-edit and layout in January, and go into final layout and production in February. You should be able to hold a book in your hand in March 2010.
I promise this blog will not be overly book-oriented in the coming months; in fact, I hope to get back to a more regular blogging schedule now that the creative work on the book is mostly completed.

But for now, I have one simple task I hope you can help me with: naming the book. Please fill out the one-question poll below to share your thoughts on the most effective title. And thanks!



4 comments, add yours!:

claire antrobus said...

'Design' isn't working for me in the title - sounds like it's going to be about designing exhibitions. I think you need a subtitle. Personally I'd be tempted to go for a title that gives a sense of why participation, and a subtitle that describes how the book does it - e.g. a practical guide, or examples of blah blah

How about if you post your draft title and ask people what you think the book is about (a bit like the Exquisite Corpse exercise?)

J Goreham-Penney said...

I agree with Claire (though I didn't know it until I read her comment). What about words like "create" and "creating"?

Nina Simon said...

Good points. I've been focused on design because most of the book is techniques and case studies, but the word may overly bias people in one direction.

There will definitely be a subtitle. Frankly, I'm sold on The Participatory Museum except for the fact that it might be seen as exclusionary to non-museum people.

Kirstin Nielsen said...

I agree, Nina, that's the one that grabs me, too. Do you think there's a way you can address the "museum/non-museum" issue in the subtitle? As museum folks, we often take inspiration from outside the museum field. My hope would be that with a good descriptive subtitle, people from other industries would be compelled to read your book despite the title.