Date-A-Base Book 2010 – Historic Anniversaries
Dave Haslett Interview Plus Review of Paper and E-Book Publications
The Date-A-Base Book 2010, published by ideas4writers, lists anniversaries, such as those of births, deaths and historic events, occurring during 2010. The database, compiled by Dave and Kate Haslett, contains fascinating facts for television and radio producers, teachers and students. It is a rich source of ideas for speakers, and also for clubs needing an anchor for a public event.
Kate and Dave Haslett – Authors of The Date-A-Base Book 2010
Kate and Dave Haslett founded the website ideas4writers in 2002 to provide ideas and inspiration to writers, researchers, journalists, etc. In 2006 they launched their award-winning ethical publishing service, i4w2.
Kate Haslett is heavily involved in checking and cross-checking entries in The Date-A-Base Book 2010.
Dave Haslett has been writing since the age of 13 and is the author of The Fastest Way to Write your Book as well as short stories, reviews, poetry, screenplays and non-fiction books.
Interview With Dave Haslett
When Dave Haslett spoke exclusively to Suite101, he explained the reasoning behind this publication.
DH: I've written anniversary articles myself many times and know how frustrating it can be to find ideas and accurate source material. There are plenty of lists of dates available online and in reference books, but they are in completely the wrong format for what writers need. They list all the things that happened on January 1st, for example, or on this day in history.
Suite: How does The Date-A-Base Book 2010 differ?
DH: What writers need to know is which of these dates have significant anniversaries coming up in the next few months. We don't want to know what happened today in history because we need time to research and write our article and submit it to editors. So we need to know these dates months in advance.
Suite: It must take a long time to compile and check all the entries?
DH: It takes around three months to prepare each year's edition. The main issue is one of accuracy – which is absolutely essential to writers. Even trusted sources such as Encyclopaedia Britannica get it wrong sometimes. We've been through all the entries and double- checked them with official and original sources, so we know they are all 100% accurate. We've also submitted quite a few corrections to the encyclopaedias.
The Layout of The Date-A-Base Book 2010
The publication takes the form of a logical and easy-to-follow database. It is divided into monthly sections. Each is set out in three columns, one for the anniversary year, one giving the day and month of the event, see sample page. A third column gives a brief description of the event. The Date-A-Base Book 2010 contains 1,600 entries. Here are some examples:
- 8th January 2010 is noted as the 75th anniversary of the birth of Elvis Presley.
- 27th January 2010 marks the 100th anniversary of the death of Thomas Crapper, the British plumber and inventor who invented the ballcock and brought the toilet into common use.
- 21 April 2010 is listed as the 100th anniversary of the death of the American writer Mark Twain, author of Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.
- 10th October 2010 is the 30th anniversary of British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's speech during which she said: ‘The lady’s not for turning!’
The Date-A-Base Book 2010 – Value for Money
The publication is good value for money, easy to use and full of fascinating information. It is available from ideas4writers, as either a printed copy or an e-book (PDF). The printed book is priced at £8.99. Members of ideas4writers pay £7.99. The e-book is priced at £6.99 and members pay £5.99.
Date-A-Base Book 2010
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Sample Page
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