RD Books
Rodney Dale’s first book was a biography:
Louis Wain – the man
who drew cats
It was published by William Kimber in 1968, and was the first full-length
life of the artist. It revived interest in the largely forgotten Louis
Wain (1860-1939), and led to a retrospective exhibition of his work at
the Victoria & Albert Museum in 1972. Here lay the foundation of the current
popularity and commercial appeal of the artist.
The 1968 book was a demonstration of faith on the part of William Kimber,
and for financial reasons was illustrated in black and white. But much
of Wain's work was in colour, and in 1991 the publisher Michael o'Mara
and gallery owner Chris Beetles jointly published a version of the biography
with many colour plates, at last doing the artist justice. The current
biography (2000) is published solely by Chris Beetles.
Since 1968, Rodney Dale has written many other books, as sole or joint
author, almost all non-fiction. Go to RD Books
to see a chronological list. Click on a book cover to find out more about
it.
Fern House Publishing
History
Following his long experience in the trade as a writer, editor and producer,
Rodney Dale set up Fern House Publishing in 1995, initially to publish his
own work of fiction About Time before going into hospital – in
case it was the last thing he did! However, it wasn't, and Fern House has
gone on to publish many more titles – see a list here –
with a wealth of descriptive material available by clicking on the jackets
illustrated. An example:
About Time
Rodney Dale
Pub. Fern House 1995
The author's only work of fiction so far; time is the subject –
time turned about (hence the Fern House colophon).
Book Production
We are pleased to discuss producing books for those who want to self-publish,
and are always willing to give advice and estimates of costs.
If you are interested in getting your work into print, please e-mail info@fernhouse.com
for our 'How-to-do-it' notes.
Publishing Opportunity
The Secret World
of Zoë Golding
Jane MacGowan
This novel might be classified as 'Medical fiction for young adults'. So unusual
is it that the author commissioned Fern House to prepare a special edition
to introduce it to the commercial arena while searching for a publisher.
More info here.
