The whole book writing process is arduous yet enjoyable. There is a whole spectrum of things when it comes to writing a book, particularly a how-to book. Nowadays you have to wear a lot of hats. And I love that. With a how to book you have to be a writer, of course. And you have to be a photographer so you can clearly express the process. And you have to be a crafter with the skill required to write that book. This book is a knife making book so I got everything covered and am loving it.

I am at the point here where I lay most of the book out on a wall so I can get a good feel for the visual images and what needs work/replacing. It’s an efficient and creative way to see the book as a whole.

Anyway, I have made a whole bunch of knives and now I am putting it all together into a book. It is a book for beginners which I love to do. It feels like I am introducing a person to something totally new and different. Which I guess I am.

And of course, I needed more pictures so I am right in the middle of a new knife which is fun.

The knife has been shaped. Now it’s create the handle then heat treat it.

A big focus for me with this book is simplicity. Often times knife making books assume you have all kinds of tools, a forge, an anvil, a variety of power tools and a well stocked workshop. This book is all about keeping it simple and using just some basic hand tools to make some reallly excellent knives.

I will keep you posted on the progress of the book. I already have a publisher interested so keep our fingers crossed that they pick it up. Meanwhile I will continue to develop it as the best book I can write!