What makes a good "house book?"

[hypnoraygun]

I'm slowly embarking on plans for my next project. It is going to be about one house and the family behind it. Similar to the new Pauson House book.
I was wondering, since many of you read these type of books, what makes a good "house book?" What type of things do you like to see in these type of books?

A perfect example is the book "Building with Frank Lloyd Wright: An Illustrated Memoir" by Herbert and Katherine Jacobs. Herbert Jacbos was an amazing author/writer/journalist and I can learn a lot from his style. I feel the book did a great job presenting the story and the factual information in a way which was very enjoyable.

Any suggestions and thoughts would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks!

[SDR]

I suppose I think it should include an interview (at least) with the surviving original client (where possible), or, failing that, another original or early resident. That means that it's now or never for the final group of houses where the client survives today.

(The walk-thru video with Katherine Jacobs comes to mind -- one listens so closely for any little bit of comment or remembrance which brings the project and the experience alive.)

Beyond that, how the house came to be, what Wright said and did relating to the commission -- construction site visits, later visits, correspondence -- and (finally) remembrances or comments by the relevant apprentice.

Early (as-built) photos, details of drawings (as opposed to tiny full-sheet repros) and the relevant photos of that part of the house. The whole point should be to take into account what's already been published, and show something other or beyond that -- in my opinion. The projected audience for the book will come into play, here.

SDR

[egads]

Any such book should include plans that one can actually read.

[hypnoraygun]

SDR and egads, Great information. This of course will be an E. Fay Jones house. The original client is still in the home and willing and ready to work with me on the book. I have all the plans already digitally scanned by a professional blueprint/architectural printing company.

We have already done one video walk through, but I would like to do another one. At a leisurely pace.

I'm also having the children (now adults of course) and grandchildren write about what the home means to them.

I'm working on gaining access to publish the plans along with correspondence, construction photographs, etc.

Thanks for the tips!

[peterm]

It should also discuss the importance of the house within a larger context. In this case, what is its relationship with other Jones houses, Wright houses, American mid century architecture, and perhaps even its place internationally? What is the nature of the dialogue between this particular house and the sociopolitical scene in the U.S. at the time it was designed/built?

[Deke]

How cooperative is the Foundation on such books that want to use plans and drawings? How much do they typically charge? I agree with the need for drawing details. I wonder why more books don't create original drawings of various elements.

Deke

[SDR]

Not many authors can draw -- and people charge good money for new illustrations. But it does happen:

[Reidy]

Lots of photos of the house, under construction and as lived in over the years (not just when it was new and after the restoration). Nearly all the house books have this, and I want to commend the practice.

[jmcnally]

My suggestion may be obvious, although I am always amazed by the lack of obviousness in some books. There are some questions that are probably repeated every day about certain buildings; I would hope a book would answer them. Check with the home owner - what do people always ask about?

When I purchase a book about a specific property, though, I am generally showing that I am a sophisticated purchaser. I don't need a lot of background about who FLW was. I am looking for the level of specificity I don't find in other books. I like lots of interior photos and areas the ordinary tourist will never see, and details about dates of construction, etc.

[SDR]

Great thread. I, too, assumed we were talking about a FLLW house. Jones may deserve and require more background. In any event, there's nothing wrong with a set of elevations and (absolutely necessary, in my view) a plan, to enable the reader to understand what the photos are illustrating. One occasionally encounters numbered arrows on a plan, showing where certain photos were taken. This is optional; I imagine it may be useful to some.

S

[Mark Hertzberg]

You want to appeal to different audiences. Some people want the nouns and verbs of the architecture and the history of the house. Others want the adjectives and adverbs of the architecture and how people experienced the house. In addition to plans and history, I tried to write how a building 'lived' for the people building it and using, it in my Wright books.

Mark Hertzberg

[Palli Davis Holubar]

Date the photos of the house, even yours. Years from now your photos will be vintage photos.

[Wrighter]

Hypno—great to hear you’ve selected your next project. A few suggestions:

1) As an interviewer, don’t be satisfied with clichés from your subjects. No reader needs to hear another owner say living in such a house is “like living in a work or art.� Or that “you notice something new every day.� These are genuine responses, but they are vague, and provide almost no usable information.

If you get a response like that, ask a follow-up that encourages the subject to quantify what they mean, to attach it to something concrete. If the subject says, “you notice something new every day,� try following up with, “So what was the last thing that you remember discovering about the house, or that you found yourself surprised by?�

That invites the speaker to develop his/her thought, to be concrete. That will later allow you, the writer, to show rather than tell. And that always makes for better reading.

2) Some of my favorite single house books describe the development of the design. Starting with the facts the architect was given—the site, the client’s needs—how did he solve the problem? What changes did the design experience, and why? I think Grant Hildebrand’s Palmer House does a great job of providing this narrative. With Jones as your subject, you are in luck since those early sketches are going to be in the archives. Even if you don’t get permission to use the drawings, you can still trace and narrate their development.

3) Finally, because of the interview project, you have Jones’ recollections about the house. Do we have a sense of his own idea of where the house fit into his work? In his memories of the house, where does he place the emphasis—on the design itself, or in the interaction with the clients? What views did he choose for the presentation drawings? Is this one of the houses that Jones photographed himself? If so, what views did he choose, and can they tell us anything about how Jones ‘saw’ the house.

And please, many photos, as large as possible. I was so excited about the Grant house text, and still think it’s a very readable narrative. But the relatively small number of photos—disappointing. I hope for such a book to pretty thoroughly document the entire house. Betty Pappas’ book does a great job at this, for instance.

[SDR]

The main reason that my Wright library grew as it did is that I was always ready to spend for a book with one or more photos that I'd never seen -- and which I knew would give me a bit more information about buildings I already loved.

SDR

[hypnoraygun]

I wanted to thank everyone again for their input and advice. I'm going to spend the next few days with the home owner and his family. I will use the information provided above. Thank you again..