Last week I signed a contract with Arcadia Publishing for a book with the working title, “Legendary Locals of the Long Beach Peninsula.”  It will be my third book for Arcadia and promises to be the most interesting one yet.  As part of their new series, “Legendary Locals,” this book will be about the men and women who have lived or worked here, who were born or died here, who shaped the character of our communities and who have made a difference to our quality of life.
      As with all of their books, Arcadia’s parameters are strict – an exact count of photographs, all with very stringent specifications; a tight limit on words for each caption; deadlines with no wiggle-room.  To those guidelines I’ve added one of my own – no living legendary locals.  I don’t want to place myself in the position of choosing ‘this person, but not that person.’  YIKES!
     The scope and feeling of this book (as with all Arcadia books) will hinge on the availability of photographs.  It can include 130 to 250 people, individually or in groups.  It’s the photographs that make the Arcadia publications distinctive and the images included or not included set the tone of each book.
     From the get-go, I know that many folks who should be presented, cannot be.  For instance, as far as I know, there are simply no photos available of Comcomly or his son-in-law Elwahco-Jim after whom Ilwaco was named or of the other early Chinookan people who first populated our area.  Photographs of the early explorers and settlers are scarce, as well. And there will be others – familiar names of historically important people for whom images are simply are not to be had.
     Even the boundaries of the “Long Beach Peninsula” present a challenge.  I have chosen to include the river communities of McGowan, Chinookville, Chinook, Ilwaco and Pacific City along with those communities that are technically on the peninsula.  Historically, economically, socially we are closely knit, no matter what the geography looks like.
     Although I’ve already given this book considerable thought and have enlisted the help of folks at our local museums, I begin in earnest today.  My final deadline is in early November.  Meanwhile, I’m looking forward to the adventure and to seeing how it all turns out.  The best part will be those I meet and work with along the way.  It always is!