I started with publishing the Checklist for two reasons: it established a baseline of Elder’s output, and it was a chunk of work that could be completed in a reasonable time frame. The Bibliography, at least the one that I would feel proud to call my own, involves a much larger scope of work. The logistical problems are daunting for yours truly, who must still hold down a day job:
- after many years of searching, there are still titles of which I have never seen a single copy
- many of Elder’s books were published in multiple bindings, marketing names, and cover artwork
- Elder published a large amount of ephemera: calendars, greeting cards, postcards, mottoes, etc
- a huge amount of material was surely destroyed in the 1906 earthquake and fire
In summary: while I have no intention of dying without finishing the Bibliography, I think it will be a while before it appears in print.