THE BOOK STORY
Some
of you may have wondered how we were able to produce such a detailed and
comprehensive family history in small quantities and for a reasonable price.
The answers are manifold, but have much to do with time, tenacity, and
technology.
The authors, Chris and Judith, are two family members who are both
retired and have the time to devote to hobbies that they enjoy: Chris is
an enthusiastic genealogist who has been tenaciously working on our
family history for over 20 years, and Judith was formerly an editor who has
become involved in a variety of desk-top publishing projects since retiring.
They found out about each other by chance when they were both visiting
Digital technology allows small
quantities to be printed without the high set-up costs of offset litho and
other conventional printing processes. Ten years ago the sophisticated software
necessary for such a project was not available for home use. There are now
printers who specialise in short runs for home-produced publications. And with
e-mail, collaboration between the authors, even though they live on opposite
sides of the 'pond', was simple, quick and cost-effective.
The Barchams of Edingthorpe has
been priced on the unit production costs, plus the authors' expenses, mailing
costs, and a small profit margin. There are no overheads, no royalties, and no
freelance fees as all the origination work and admin has been done 'in house'
on a voluntary basis. Unfortunately for overseas family members, one-third of
the price is due to the high cost of mailing, but we hope those of you who
purchased the first edition thought it was worth the additional expense. Some
of the profit from the sales of The Barchams of Edingthorpe will be
spent on the fee to maintain the website for several more years. However, after
allowing for that, if there is a surplus, Chris and Judith have agreed that the
Barcham Family will make a donation to an appropriate Norfolk charity.