Doug's Book Chapter Five

Coming Up for Air was an early draft to get a feel for a cover and a shape for the book. But it was never taken really seriously ………

WHAT’S IN A NAME?

Date: 15 June 2011 11:47:02 BST
From: Roz
Subject: Book Title
To: Doug

How about this for a possible title?

If you like it in theory, Simon could mock it up to see what it would look like as an actual cover title.
Doug Allan’s terrible tales
The trials and triumphs of a polar cameraman

I know that not all the tales are polar, but I think we can cheat when we call you a polar cameraman, given that most of the tales are from the poles.
Your scribe Roz

Date: 15 June 2011 12:28
From: Doug
Subject: Re: Doug Allan¹s terrible tales
To: Roz

Doesn't that bring to mind the very popular "Terrible Histories" series of books for children? Doug

Date: 15 June 2011 16:47:11 BST
From: Roz
Subject: Book Title Mk 2
To: Doug How’s about this, then?

It’s not the bear you can see that’s going to get you
A cameraman’s adventures on ice
By Doug Allan

No worries if you don’t like it. Roz

Date: 30 June 2011 19:17:06 BST
From: Roz
Subject: Book Title Mk 3
Cc: Doug

How about this? (David’s, not mine.)
It answers the brief, fit’s with the design and goes with our favourite picture.

Freeze Frame
A Wildlife Cameraman’s Adventures on Ice

If you like it, we can get Simon to mock it up when he’s back so you can see it in context (often makes a difference).

Very best
Roz

Date: 30 June 2011 22:06:18 BST
From: Doug
Subject: Re: Book Title Mk 3
To: Roz

I do really appreciate the talent you people are bringing to the short story titles and to this main one.

These latest ideas are appealing, and I had something similar in mind a while back.

But just a couple of points ......... I thought we'd reckoned a good idea to have my name in there somewhere on the front cover? And funnily enough, I've come to like "it's not the polar bear you can see that's going to get you" for its off the wall character.

I wonder about using the polar bear line, then underneath "Wildlife Cameraman Doug Allan's Adventures on Ice" But that's an awful lot of writing for the front page.

I'll keep thinking but I do like the way we're going ........

x Doug

Date: 30 June 2011 22:14:15 BST
From: Roz
Subject: Re: Book Title Mk 3
To: Doug

I like the polar bear line, too, but Simon thinks it is too long for the main title (design-wise). To discuss.

"Wildlife Cameraman Doug Allan's Adventures on Ice" is a tad clunky.

But your name can still be made big enough to jump out. Again, to discuss.

The right title will come (have only just signed off the jacket for FP!).

Date: 7 July 2011 10:31:15 BST
From: Doug
Subject: Re: Book Title Mk 3
To: Roz, Simon
OK here’s a list of possibles and permutations that come to my mind

White Light, Black Water

Quest for Wildlife

Freeze Frame

Life Behind The Lens

Sub titles:

A wild life behind the lens

Images, adventures and insights from the ends of the earth

Images, adventures and insights from the coldest ends of the earth

Polar images, insights and imagination

Images, imagination and insights from a life of polar filming

Images, adventures and insights from a life of polar filming

Adventures, images and insights from a life of polar filming

LIFE BEHIND THE LENS
images, adventures and insights from the ends of the earth

FREEZE FRAME
a wild life behind the lens

FREEZE FRAME
polar images, adventures and insights

FREEZE FRAME
polar images, insights and adventures

FREEZE FRAME
polar adventures, images and insights

FREEZE FRAME
Images, adventures and insights from the coldest ends of the earth

FREEZE FRAME
Images, adventures and insights from the ends of the earth

FREEZE FRAME
images, insights and adventures from the ends of the earth

FREEZE FRAME
adventures, images and insights from the ends of the earth

Other possible key words:
Visions / revealing / quest / seek / mission / story / tale / encounters / dreams /
ice

Thoughts:

White Light Black Water is bonny and artistic but doesn’t say polar particularly and would right from the start set the book’s vibes off down a different route.

Quest for Wildlife is just flat

Which leaves the last two.

FREEZE FRAME is a touch, a tiny touch, cliché’d but it does grab and it has a dynamic feel to it. Short and pithy.

LIFE BEHIND THE LENS says maybe a bit more but it’s a bit unsurprising and not dynamic.

Of the subtitles, I do like the idea of the main title in bold caps but not too big, and the one liner below not bold and all in lower case.

a wild life behind the lens is very neat, maybe too much so?

I think I like best

FREEZE FRAME
images, insights and adventures from the ends of the earth

with perhaps “Doug Allan” in bold same size as FREEZE FRAME but well separated and in a different place on the cover from the title and sub heading. Or is that too much text on the cover?

Date: 25 July 2011 11:44:20 BST
From: Roz
Subject: Cover line
To: Doug
Cc: Simon

Doug, sorry I haven’t been able to give this full attention earlier.

I did have a good look yesterday at your suggestions.

MAIN COVER LINE
I still think FREEZE FRAME is the best overall title, as it is not just a reference to photography but also to the freezing nature of the locations and therefore goes beyond a cliché.

SUBLINE
Your favourite is
Images, insights and adventures from the ends of the Earth
One drawback with this line is that it doesn’t say anything about wildlife or filming, and if used with the sidecar shot, that could be misleading (also, not sure if you can have adventures ‘from’ the ends of the earth).

I think that
A wildlife cameraman’s adventures on ice
does the job better.
I know it doesn’t have images in the line, but cameraman implies that.

I tried to come up with one more alternative, but I failed.
I asked David to have a go this morning.

He has suggested adding
Stills and stories by
Doug Allan

The trouble with this is that it adds another line of text, and Simon already has the following line to add it:
Introduction by David Attenborough

Very best
Roz

And so that was how it came about
FREEZE FRAME
A wildlife cameraman’s adventures on ice

Coming Up for Air never really got a look in ………