Synchronicity? Parallel Invention? Whatever you want to call it, I had what I thought was an original idea that I believe dates back to October or November of 2025 where I considered writing a book of prefaces. I am pretty sure I stated as much publicly in a YouTube video at that time, when I began to document the process of writing my first book (which at the time of this writing is about one quarter through the third and final draft, before I perform the final grammar and mechanical corrections using at least one pro writing tool).
Not too long prior to this post, I learned that what I thought was an original idea I came up with, was already done! I’m not too surprised these days at 55 years old to find someone decades ago previously thought of an idea I thought was original to me.
Anyway, there are four books related to prefaces:
- 1844 is the year of the earliest book on this subject titled “Prefaces” written by Soren Kierkegaard under the pseudonym Nicolaus Notabene. It is an absurd metafictional story about an author who, to appease his wife who’s jealous of his writing, writes a book of prefaces for books that do not exist! (Note to self: must read once my 1st book is done, as well as other Kierkegaard books, of which I’ve not read a single one. An absurdist, metafictional writer and thinker like myself? Sign me up!)
- 1917 is the year of the next preface-related book titled “Book of Prefaces”. It is a collection of critical essays by American journalist H.L. Mencken.
- 1971 (how about that) is the third book titled “A Perfect Vacuum” written by Stanislaw Lem (who I’ve never read) which is a fictional collection of reviews/prefaces for fake, imaginary books.
- 2000 book “The Book of Prefaces” was “edited and glossed” by the Scottish artist and novelist Alasdair Gray. It seeks to provide a history of how literature spread and developed through the nations of England, Ireland, Scotland, and the United States.
So there you have it! It won’t deter me from writing my own book of prefaces, if I ever have the time or desire to, as it is just an idea among many. Not to mention I have 2 other books I want to write after this first one (one about Thalmultaria, my fictional universe, and the third being my official memoir).
Funny though, how you think you come up with an idea all your own, only to find out someone thought of it years ago. Even more odd is how someone almost two hundred years ago thought of it first. What are the odds. Apparently they’re not that slim!