The Boston Globe from Boston, Massachusetts • 206

Necking Party Mem it. 'i c7 Going To VJxitc A Book? 1 I v. A YYS 4 1 i during This pair of amorous giraffes almost got entangled courtship at Nairobi National Park in Africa. Sunday Group Boston Globe Photo "I have a seven-year-old daughter, Barbara Ann. Her bedroom adjoins my study.

She frequently asked if she could bring a playmate to her room. I said no, not until the book was finished. So, every day after school, she would come in and ask: Daddy, are you finished with the book She was pretty happy when I said "Writing at best is a lonely job. Days on end at the typewriter can lead to frustration, to rebellion. But you have a contract that calls for a book to be finished by a specified time.

In my case, it took an extra six weeks to wrap it up. The publishers set a word length of 100,000 words, and the thought of all that wordage can stagger you. It builds up a mental block if you think about it. "Much of the research was carried on as I wrote the book. This entailed re-typing notes and mapping out rough drafts.

Then there were pages that had to be rewritten; and each passing day brought me closer to the contract deadline. "This pressure developed a blind spot so far as material was concerned: a condition prevalent in many writers. I was so close to the source that I couldn't view it objectively. I experienced a feeling of blind-flying; the fear and indecision that I was going astray plagued me, and a constant complaint to my wife was that nothing was going right. She kept reassuring me that it would come out aU right.

My publishers said, 'Keep "So I kept writing. I developed an infection in my right arm from constantly pounding the typewriter. It slowed me down. It got so that along toward the end of the grind I felt as though needles were being jabbed up my arm every time I struck a key. Finally the book was finished on yellow copy paper.

The publishers didn't cure about the color of the paper they wanted the completed manuscript." Other details on this one job of book-writing: Makris used 10 reams of copy paper, which would make a pile two and a half feet high; 12 typewriter ribbons, and a large stack of carbon paper. He smoked three pounds of pipe tobacco and two decks of cigarettes a day. of course, is just a short run-down on writing a book. We're going to keep these facts in mind when we grouse about the price a book costs Gosh, some people insist on making a living the hard way. One out of every 10 people you know are "going to write a book some day." In newspaper offices this percentage is much higher, about eight in 10.

Most people in this business have done a lot of thinking about "the book," and in many instances a chapter or two was written before the literary project died a slow, reluctant death. Matter of fact, few" of us know the lonely, dismal, tortuous labor that goes into turning out a book, and when we met a friend who had just completed one. we asked him for some of the details of his literary effort not "inspiration" or "ideas" or the "stream of consciousness" or some of the other things they lecture about in courses in English composition but the factual, human elements in book-writing. The author is John N. Makris of Water-town, who has been writing for a long time: TV plays, short stories, articles and newspaper features.

His finished book which has the working title of "Postal Inspector" (and may be changed) will be published in January by E. P. Dutton. It tells the story of how this branch of the postofRce safeguards the public against the intricate schemes to defraud individuals through the postal service. We know that Makris gave up a salaried position to embark on the book, and he graciously gave us this account of a personal writing experience: "It took me seven and a half months to write 'Postal I worked an average of 12 to 14 hours a day, seven days a week.

There were times when I wouldn't leave the house for three or four days at a stretch, then only for a walk or to buy a paper. During all this period I watched TV for no more than six hours. All social life was out no visitors. Very few fi lends called because they didn't want to 'Break my trend of thought' with small talk on the telephone. "My wife bore up very well under this siege, and she knew when or' when not to talk to me by the expression on my face.

There were days when we wouldn't exchange more than a dozen words; not even during the 15-minute coffee break in the afternoon or the half-hour I allowed myself for dinner. "She kept away from my second-floor study no dusting nor 'straightening up' although the official material was strewn all over the place. This material from which the book was written, measured some 14 feet in height. Now -just swallow one tiny tablet Control Coughs Up to 6 Full Hours $123 JL. POCKET-SIZE PACK It's a revolution NOT A COUGH DROP A TINY TABLET jy.

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If ye prefer a liquid, try -j Pinex Ready-Mixed for convenience, or Pinex Concentrated for economy. Page 12 BOSTON SUNDAY GLOBE. NOVEMBER 9. 1958.