Cryptozoological Publishing: What Books?

Well, Loren appears to think that I've been "having at him" over his Cryptomundo posting on Big Bird!, though he's certainly not the only author who tends to overemphasize speculation than fact. I'll just quickly note three points, then move on to what actually interests me: the scope of cryptozoological publishing.

First—I'm not concerned about world views; I'm concerned about spin.
Second—Yes, it appears Gerhard was pushing the pterosaur angle. Reminds me of some writers who, say, push the American Atrox scenario in mystery cat discussions. Glass houses and bricks...
Third—good grief, get over the CFZ's overhyped marketing. If you haven't figured out by now that they've never met a superlative they didn't love, cherish, and adopt into the family, you've been wandering in the woods too long. So what? The only insult to a reader's intelligence is when we assume readers can't discern a marketing ploy on their own.

Now, to the fun stuff. What kind of cryptozoology books are actually being published? From what I've seen, (I am not concerned with fiction or juvenile non-fiction here) I would categorize as such:

Encyclopedias—These are the entry-defined volumes, with broad scope (usually encompassing the whole of cryptozoology, though could conceivably cover subsets). Depth and details of entries will usually be limited by the background information available. Some mystery animals will be covered well, others won't; but hopefully the editor/author has spent enough time to adequately cover the subject. The two primary encyclopedias now are by Newton and Eberhart, but you'll notice that even with wide overlap, there are significant differences and some cryptids are not covered by both books. And, I know that there are mystery animals not covered by either book. Still, I would be unwilling to suggest that yet another broad coverage encyclopedia is necessary. (It requires enormous effort and time, which may not be adequately recompensed.) Perhaps some specialized encyclopedias... Loren's Cryptozoology A to Z, is representative of a decent entry-level encyclopedia—the entries cover the primary elements of cryptozoology. Loren might want to consider an offshoot project for this (hint, hint): perhaps a [biographic] encyclopedia (Who's Who Past and Present) of cryptozoology, but with greater scope of personalities involved, especially in the past. I've also thought it would be interesting to see a chronological timeline-style entry-book on cryptozoology, so that we can actually see how the methodology developed, as significant species were discovered and major players emerged, showing how sightings of different cryptids play out over time. I don't have time for that project right now, maybe someone (experienced, please) would be willing to take it up. (I'd certainly be interested in publishing it...) The biggest problem in this and certain other types of cz books, however, is that often an author is trying to put the book together alone; that means there is a higher chance of overlooking material that should have been included. There needs to be some willingness to solicit help from a wider range of investigators. [Addition: I should note that Eberhart's encyclopedia found its roots in his earlier massive bibliography on the subject. Bibliographies are a category in themselves, and very useful; but, with today's technology, I'd personally rather see an online effort that can continuously incorporate new citations.]

Cryptozoological Apologetics—Heuvelmans' books are the foundation for cryptozoology. His writings (including his articles in the ex-ISC journal Cryptozoology), and those of others (Mackal, Greenwell) who discuss the necessity for cryptozoology, what it concerns, and how it is practiced, should form the basis of any cz library. I don't think I've seen anything published in this category for some time. My Cryptozoology: Science & Speculation delves into some of these areas, but I prefer to see these written by professional biologists who actually recognize cryptozoology as a working methodology. With the demise of the ISC, it may be some time before we see much more in this direction.

Single Subject Reviews—These are the books written about a specific mystery animal or cryptozoological category, usually one well-known to the public, whether Bigfoot, or lake monsters, or sea serpents. Shuker's Mystery Cats of the World is a good example. We can note several subcategories, as well.
(Popularization): The book isn't meant to be in-depth. It may present noteworthy case-studies, discuss various theories, discuss some pros and cons, etc.
(Incident-Based): This is generally a "just-the-facts" style book, providing the details in sighting reports or interviews, without much speculation. This is particularly useful for investigators who may want to follow up on reports, or make comparisons. (Let me state here that one of my biggest problems with speculative books is that they often do so at the expense of details, which are supposed to be shoring up any arguments made, anyway.)
(Investigation-Based): Similar to the Incident-based, but derived primarily through personal interviews and on-site investigations.
(Folkloric): Lake Monster Traditions is one for this category, as are some of the Bigfoot folklore-based texts. These tend to be written by those outside the cryptozoological community, though we certainly see our own discussions of the influence that myth has on cultural understandings of mystery animals. I wouldn't mind seeing someone create a folkloric encyclopedia of Bigfoot-style subjects, for example, though I wouldn't want to see it written by someone who thinks that all myths have a basis in solid facts.
(Scientific): These are books written within a scientific (preferably experimental) mindset. It isn't enough to just say "I'm scientific," and then list a bunch of sighting reports. These are the books that incorporate scientific methodologies: Meldrum's recent Sasquatch: Legend Meets Science is a good one here.
(Historical): Not merely a discussion of the subject, but showing the historical development of the subject. Several of the old sea-serpent books fit in this category. The author may have a specific argument, but takes the subject back to its roots and shows how opinions, theories, and reports affect the mystery creature public image over the years.
(Speculative Biology): In this area, the author may pull data from alleged related organisms (past and present), in an effort to provide a reasonable biological picture of the mystery animal. Generally speaking, I don't see much point in this, unless the purpose is to determine a way in which to actually acquire confirmative evidence of the mystery animal.
Obviously, many books will show overlapping characteristics from more than one category.
I'd personally like to see more categorical reviews: Mystery Bears of the World, Mystery Whales, Mystery Canines, etc.

Regional Emphasis—Similar to the Single Subject Review, this category just focuses regionally rather than biologically. (Such as, Out of the Shadows: Mystery Animals of Australia.) Subcategories will generally also follow the same route. This is a particularly good area, though, for small self-published projects. There are lots of small booklets covering specific state Bigfoot sightings, for example. (Opsasnick's Maryland Bigfoot Digest is one of my favorites.) Often these are widely publicized; in fact, I've got a couple on hand (Bigfoot Sightings of East Central Alabama, etc.) I still need to review on BioFortean Review when I get the time. Most of these will have reports you won't find in the broader subject reviews.

Expeditionary Investigations—These are the often personalized accounts of an expedition in search of a specific mystery animal. While the cryptid may be the reason for the trip, you'll often see what is more of a travelogue, so the author may at any point make sidetrips (geographically or philosophically). Sometimes the investigation will be straight-forward, other times it really meanders. (Occasionally, you get the gonzo journalist, and anything can happen.)

New Discoveries—Some authors (i.e., Matt Bille, Karl Shuker) like to recap zoological discoveries of significance to cryptozoology. These are very useful in showing why cryptozoology serves a purpose, though I'd like to see some more emphasis on those discoveries that actually resulted from cryptozoological methodologies (even if the scientists involved are not cryptozoologists themselves).

There are probably a few other categories that could be noted, but I think that's enough for my purpose. Could we use more cryptozoology books? Absolutely. But I'd like to see authors take a little more thought in what would be most helpful in the continued organization and development of cryptozoology.