Books > One Square Inch of Silence

One Square Inch (the book) began when a New York literary agent read an article about my work at One Square Inch (the place) by John Grossmann that appeared in Delta Airlines in-flight magazine, Sky. She recognized that the loss of quiet from our lives was more than an article—it was a far reaching subject that literally touched everyone’s life but few knew it. Frankly, John and I balked at her invitation because we knew the subject well enough that to cover it well would require at least two years of diligent work with uncertain rewards, a fact that no doubt accounted for the absence of other books on the subject. However, doing something that could make a real difference weighed in heavily. “What better opportunity would exist to save silence? If not now, when?” were two nagging questions every time I hiked up the Hoh to One Square Inch (the place). I knew John was patient listener and had the tenacity of bulldog for accuracy. But did I trust John enough to reveal my most inward thoughts (and doubts) that I had reserved only for private moments alone in aural solitude? There could be no holding back to do this right. We slowly inched forward. First with the book proposal, this proved our suspicions immediately true. Twice as much work as we had calculated. But the story was uncommon, and we knew it. It would take place across America, we could be the ears for the reader to hear the land rise in its own defense against noise. And what about the logistical nightmare of scheduling places, people and events? Why worry about what will happen next—as with all true adventures, something always happens next . Our journey began just before April Fool’s Day, 2007, ready to fire-up my rickety old VW bus, “Here we go!” we said over the phone. And go we did.