Essay Man - Selected Essays and Writings by John Nichols

Essay Man contains the essays and writings of John Nichols of Santa Paula, Calif. He started writing for the local newspapers in 1990 and then added writings for food and photography magazines, ghost stories for the annual Ghostwalk theatrical event and a lot more. It is suggested that you read this in random order.


Here is what the Introduction has to say.


In March of 1990 Peggy Kelly from the Santa Paula Daily Chronicle approached me with an idea. I could write a column for the Chronicle on what was going on in my bookstore and the column would be called What's New? Peggy approached Bente Marganet of the Calico Cat to write a column on what was going on in her used book shop and her column would be called What's Old? We alternated weeks.

My first column appeared on March 13, 1990. I was writing about what was new at Mr. Nichols. That was the name of my bookstore. The John Nichols Gallery was in the rear. I wrote several columns about what I had in the store before tiring of that. I decided that I really wanted to write about myself. Peggy gave me one lesson in writing and that was, "Why don't you try to write more like you talk." After six columns Peggy even told me that I could put my own titles on the columns.

What's New? appeared every other Tuesday until February 11, 1992. After that the column was called Along The Mupu Trail until it was pointed out to me that I had stolen that title from the Santa Paula Historical Society's newsletter. Oops.

Marianne Ratcliff was working at the Chronicle and later moved to the Ventura County Star. I began writing an occasional essay for their opinion page.

Along the way I wrote essays for Shots Magazine, a photography publication, Pangolin, a poetry magazine, Ventura Life and Style, and others.

In 2002 I was approached by Arcadia Publishing asking if I had any photographs in my collection that might make an interesting book. I had several hundred on the St. Francis Dam disaster. After all that practice writing for local newspapers I felt confident to write "The St. Francis Dam Disaster".

Ghostwalk is an annual fundraiser for the Santa Paula Theater Center. Original scripts are performed around Santa Paula every October. This theatrical event weaves history with ghost tales. Several of my scripts have been used.

When my friend Jane Handel became editor of Edible Ojai and Ventura County I dusted off an old food related column, The Lesson of the Stove, and sent it to her. She liked it and asked me to shoot the cover for the issue featuring that piece. I became a occasional contributor.

I have published "The Santa Paula Portrait Project - Paintings by Gail Pidduck and Photographs by John Nichols" through MagCloud and "Mexico, 1895 A Vernacular Album" through Blurb.