Stud Marks On The Summit

[Monolith]

All,

I just wanted to extend the debate on a subject some of you will have seen raised on the FRA Facebook page. I wondered whether anybody had ever looked into a printed reissue of Stud Marks On The Summit? I’m aware that many of you (including Alan and Yiannis) knew Bill well and your opinions on the issue matter greatly.

It seems a great shame that a significant number of enthusiasts would like to own a paper copy of this tome yet there are so few about. Mention was made in the Facebook thread that Bill might not have been keen for another print run. Does anybody know on what grounds this might have been; print costs? Number in circulation etc.? Times have certainly changed since the year in which it was published and with the prevalence of Kickstarter-style funding, appetite for a product or service can be gleaned in advance to any monetary commitment being made. One certainly wouldn’t want to go against the author’s wishes if these were clearly expressed but as a fellow Liverpudlian, it would be fantastic to see all of Bill’s hard work and dedication live on in print.

Further, if the applicable licenses were in place an idea might be for the FRA to sell copies of it via an ecommerce facility on their page. Sales of the book could run as a not for profit operation with all surplus going either back to the FRA (as I understand was originally the case with the first edition) or to mountain rescue charities (or one of Bill’s preferred if anybody happened to know of one).

Some light was shed on the publishing setup at the time with the link between SKG Publications and the FRA mentioned by Anthony Kay. I know little about acquiring licenses for copyrighted work but I do have some useful publishing/print contacts that could be of use to a project group if this were to extend beyond a feasibility discussion.

In summary, it would be good to hear the views of the FRA Committee, members and anybody else with an interest in this matter.

Bests,

Tom.