Adventures in Writing - Collaboration

September 27, 2025 (Vol. 19 No. 37) - That dapper young man on the left is Dr. Charles "Chuck" Marsh, the best writer and editor I know. (This selfie was taken in May 2019 at the last University of Kansas commencement prior to my retirement.) Chuck and I have collaborated on three successful textbooks this century: Public Relations: A Values Driven Approach, Adventures in Public Relations: Case Studies and Critical Thinking, and, with Bonnie Short, Strategic Writing: Multimedia Writing for Public Relations, Advertising and More. (Upon retirement, Bonnie, Chuck and I turned over the writing/editing of Strategic Writing to two very capable colleagues, Angie Hendershot and Lisa Loewen.) Chuck and I have been friends for more than three decades. I can tell you without reservation that my collaboration with Chuck Marsh has been the most rewarding experience of my professional life.

We are, in many respects, very different people. He comes out of corporate public relations, was a magazine editor, and has a doctorate in English. I came out of government public relations following a career as a radio reporter/anchor and earned a Masters degree in journalism. I can be a hot head while Chuck is always Cool Hand Luke. They say print and broadcast folks don't mix. My collaboration with Chuck proves otherwise. I think Chuck would agree that I am a good "macro editor" or big picture guy while he is a better "micro editor," focused on grammar, punctuation and style. However, in a partnership such as ours, these roles often switch. It's not necessarily something is planned. It just happens as the occasion arises.

Engaging in a writing partnership is something that evolves over time. The partners develop their own rhythm of communicating with one another and their own systems of accomplishing their common publication goals. We have different writing styles but learned over time to blend them so our books had one consistent voice. However, the first thing that has to happen before anything else is that they must develop a common sense of trust believing that the partners share a common vision and respect for one another. As it turned out, that came naturally. I've liked and respected Chuck from the very first time we met when I came to Lawrence for a job interview in April 1991. He and I now are embarked on our own solo writing careers. But we still frequently talk, often over lunch, and share our ideas and stories of our journeys along the winding paths that authors take. Other than the women I have loved and married, this has been the most important partnership of my life. That's it for now. Fear the Turtle.