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WHILE WRITING IS A SOLITARY PROCESS, YOU CAN’T WRITE A book without a lot of help. Most of all I would like to thank Bill Rusin and Bob Weil, the sales director at W. W. Norton, and the editor in chief at Liveright, respectively, for suggesting I write a history of America’s lighthouses. It was a great idea, and I thoroughly enjoyed researching and writing the book. Once I handed in the manuscript, Bob and his assistant editor, Will Menaker, did an excellent job editing, giving me valuable direction. With her “lapidary” cursor, my copy editor, Sue Llewellyn, also contributed significantly to the quality of the prose, and her sense of humor was much appreciated. Bob’s, Will’s, and Sue’s dedication to their craft made me a better writer.
All of my books with Norton have been beautifully designed, a feast for the eyes. Brilliant Beacons continues this trend, due to the careful attention and creative touch of Anna Oler, Liveright’s production director. Don Rifkin, associate managing editor at Norton/Liveright, was his usual tireless and keen-eyed self, repeatedly checking the text and layout for errors and inconsistencies. Kudos for the dramatic cover, which captures the elemental majesty of lighthouses, goes to Steve Attardo, the art director at Liveright. Without dedicated people working to promote a new title to bookstores, online sellers, and potential readers, an author’s work would fail to find a good audience, and for such promotion I am heavily indebted to Deirdre Dolan, assistant sales director at Norton; Peter Miller, director of publicity at Liveright; Cordelia Calvert, Peter’s assistant; and Phil Marino, who handles social media. And an author couldn’t ask for a more enthusiastic booster than Bill Rusin, who mightily supported the book from its inception, and made sure that it had an excellent launch at publication.
My agent, Russ Galen, as always, provided encouragement, sage advice, and perspective. I couldn’t imagine having a better partner in the writing business, and I am extremely grateful that he agreed to be my agent more than a decade ago. This is our fourth book together, and I hope there are many more.
Early reviewers of the manuscript include Jeremy D’Entremont, Sarah Gleason, Tim Harrison, Theresa Levitt, and Bruce Roberts. Their comments were invaluable, but of course any errors in the book are solely my responsibility. Jeremy deserves an additional thank-you for taking me on my first few lighthouse tours, and for being gracious enough to answer the many e-mail queries I sent, asking him for additional information.
Many dedicated individuals who love lighthouses have written wonderful books and articles on these iconic structures. Without their work I couldn’t have written this book, and my debt to them is reflected in the notes.
Other people whom I would like to thank include Kevin Abbing, John Babin, Charlene Bangs Bickford, Dolly Bicknell, Al Bina, Dot Black, Michael Blanchette, Lawrence H. Bradner, Tiffany Brevard, Robert Browning, Craig Bruce, Ken Carlson, Marion Chandler, James W. Claflin, Sandra MacLean Clunies, Lorna Condon, Tony Connors, Alfred J. Delaposta, Linda C. Dianto, Mike DiRenzo, Bill Dulmaine, Jeanne Gamble, Joanie Gearin, Tom Gill, Christopher Havern, Selden B. Hill, Al Hitchcock, Thomas Hoffman, Cathy Horridge, Joe Jakubik, Sarah Jones, Varoujan Karentz, Andrew Knight, Nick Korstad, Jami Lanier, Robert LaRosa, Mary E. Linne, Bert Lippincott, Valerie Lutz, Ronald Marcus, Gerry McChesney, Mark C. Mollan, Jane Porter Molloy, Art Noble, Edward Nunez, Lori Osborne, Henry Osmers, Jim Patterson, Peter E. Randall, Todd Reed, Clara Scarborough, Steve Schiffer, Doug Smith, Patrick Scalfani, Annie Schmidt, Scott Schubert, Alisa Scott, Ellen Schockro, Sally Snowman, Patti Stanton, Jeff Stephens, Brian Tague, Albert E. Theberge, Marie Thomas, Jr., Ashley Trujillo, Hilary Wall, Dave Waller, Tom Warren, Elizabeth Wood, and Jamie Wyeth. The librarians at both the Abbot Public Library, in my hometown, and Harvard’s Widener Library were also very helpful, as were the staff at the National Archives in Washington, DC; College Park, Maryland; and Waltham, Massachusetts.
I am most grateful for the support of my family. My parents, Stan and Ruth Dolin, and my sister, Penny, were always there for me when I wanted to talk, and my father and sister were also early reviewers of the manuscript. My in-laws, George and Ruth Rooks, to whom this book is dedicated, have been equally supportive, and Ruth’s comments on the manuscript were quite helpful. My children, Lily and Harry, encouraged me throughout the writing process, asking how my book was going and when I was going to be done! Lily’s beautiful painting of a lighthouse, which appears in the color insert, hung in my office while I worked, and looking at it not only brought a smile to my face, but it also spurred me on.
Of all the people who helped me along the way, none was more important than my wife, Jennifer. She was my first reviewer, and in so many ways, she makes everything I do possible. Without her, my best friend, I simply couldn’t have written this book.