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Questions
and answers with Julie and Mike Neal, authors of "Sanibel
& Captiva: A Guide to the Islands"
Why did
you write this book?
"We
had always enjoyed showing guests around when they visit us here,"
Mike says. "One day we noticed there was no travel guide
to the islands, and we both thought 'Publishing an island guidebook
- what a dream life!' We knew visitors could use a good book,
and figured we knew just enough to put one together."
How was
it published?
We published
it ourselves. Though we'd run a small publishing business for
15 years, we had never done a book before. Our first step was
to form a separate book publishing business, Coconut Press. Then
we bought a new computer and a new camera and got to work. First,
Julie spent a few days walking the beaches, asking tourists what
they wanted to learn about the islands (the most common question:
"Where's a good place to eat?"). Then she surveyed
and interviewed islanders to get their tips and insight, and
compiled lots of research. Meanwhile, Mike roamed the islands
with his camera, taking over 5,000 photos. We wrote the text
together, Julie writing the first draft, Mike the second, Julie
the final.
Where
did you write it?
We wrote
it on a laptop, mostly at a back table at the Sanibel Public
Library, as well as during many long, leisurely meals at Mona
Lisa's Pizza and the Bean.
How long
did it take?
One year,
from Christmas 2000 to Christmas 2001.
What do
you feel are the highlights of the book?
1. The Shelling
chapter (pages 90-123), which has information and photos of 39
shells as well as 14 other types of sea life found on the beaches.
2. The Wildlife
chapter (pages 124-159), with information and photos 35 animals,
from birds to marine life.
3. The History
chapter (pages 38-71), which covers the Calusa era to the present,
and includes more than three dozen photos.
4. The Restaurants
chapter (pages 252-265), which has 64 separate reviews as well
as the results of our survey of more than 500 island residents.
5. The "What
Things Cost" information (page 24).
6. The sample
itineraries (pages 27-29).
7. The Island
Living chapter (pages 238-251), which includes interviews with
a number of residents and two poems by Joseph Pacheco.
8. The photos
of islands visitors, residents and workers.
9. The main
maps (pages 6-8).
10. The biking
map (page 195).
What were
your favorite experiences writing the book?
"I really
enjoyed interviewing Francis and Sam Bailey," Julie says.
"They have so many great tales [see "Island Originals,"
page 71]. And I loved going out to Bowman's Beach and writing
down everything I saw ["An Afternoon at Bowman's Beach,"
pages 88-89]." "For me," Mike says, "it was
having our daughter, Micaela, take our photo for the "About
the Authors" information [page 4]. "We all went down
to Bowman's one morning, and Julie and I played leapfrog while
Micaela stood on a stool and snapped off about 50 photos. In
many of shots we were laughing so hard we just looked ridiculous."
What else
was especially fun?
"I loved
taking the Holiday Waterspots Waverunner trip [page 212],"
Julie says. "I loved doing the history chapter," Mike
adds, "It took forever to put together, but so much of the
island's past is fascinating. I especially liked doing the stories
on early tourism [pages 45-54] and the McDonald's fight [page
64].
What was
the most frustrating thing about writing the book?
"Finding
a sea whip!" Julie says. "We couldn't find one anywhere!
Finally our daughter found one while she was out playing at Bowman's."
Any other
photo secrets?
"The
mature ibis [page 129] was very irritated when I aimed the camera
at him," Mike says, "In fact, as soon as I took this
shot he spit at me!"
What was
the hardest part of doing the book?
"The
cover!" says Mike. "We worked for nearly two months,
trying out different ideas. Finally this one came together in
just a few minutes. Originally the cover photo was of Micaela
jogging along the beach; we even matched the green in her shirt
for the highlight color. We ended up switching to a different,
family shot, but the green looked so good we left it on the cover
anyway. Micaela's shot still made it, too; we put her photo on
page 1."
What's
it like to work together?
"It's
easy, really," Mike says. "We've been together 25 years,
and run a business together for 15, so we've got most of the
arguing out of our systems. For this book, we decided we would
each have veto power on anything. So if either of us didn't like
something, out it went, no questions asked."
What's
your background?
We grew up
in Missouri, and met at a county fair in 1977. We got married
and moved to Florida in 1980. We started a small corporate publishing
company in 1986. Our daughter, Micaela, was born in 1994. Mike,
now 45, attended the University of Missouri. Julie, 42, studied
art and biology at Florida State.
What's
next?
"A vacation!"
Mike says. "We're hoping to take off for a week or two later
this year and do an old-fashioned family automobile trip."
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