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The Story of the Book
My first poetry performance was at a 'night club' in Upper Queen Street, 1978. The proprietor, a bit of a character, poet, and a trend leader of his time, regularly invited anyone to get up and spout. So I did, performing Hitch-hiker from memory. I had conceived it that afternoon, trying to hitch home through Hamilton on a Sunday. At that time I had not yet written it down.
So that started it. Five years later I started making plans to publish.. Caxton Press in Christchurch finally agreed to print it, if I was the 'publisher' (and paid for it, of course!) [At that stage of my life I'd never heard of 'vanity publishing'. - True!]
So I called myself "Lookafar Books" (after Sparrow-hawk's boat 'Lookfar' in A Wizard of Earthsea). They delivered 450. I'd asked for 500 but being trusting I didn't count them for a while, and got no joy from Caxton on the missing fifty some months later. Countless times I wished I'd had them! The book sold so well!
I need to mention Keith Morant. I befriended him early in 1986 and asked him to do the illustrations. He hosted a double book-launch in his gallery in Victoria Street. The best launch I'd ever had.
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