Nick Renton's 50th book has just been published. His first book Guide for Meetings and Organisations was released in 1961 and is now in its eighth edition, but the bulk of his output dates from 1989 onwards. Some people regard the meetings book as the bible on the subject and it has been quoted in a number of court cases. The book is used by numerous organisations as their authority on chairmanship. This has led to one enthusiastic toastmistress being overheard saying that she had often taken Renton to bed with her! In a completely different area Renton's Family Trusts is also widely appreciated. It is believed that Renton has written books about more subjects than any other Australian author:
His 50th book is Public Relations: a Matter of Spin. It takes the total word count to over 3.5 million. People often ask him how long does it take to write a book. These days the answer he usually gives is "about 45 years". Of course, this does not refer to the actual keying in of the words on a word processor. Nor does it refer to the time spent in doing specific research before the main writing task commences or the proofreading near the end of the process. Rather, it refers to the realty that his current books are all the product of a working lifetime in a business environment. People often say to Nick Renton: "Oh, I have read your book" (singular). Nick Renton just smiles sweetly when somone tells him this and inquires politely: "Which one?" And how would Renton best like to be remembered? As an educator. |
