The things other people say about Southland have kept publishers in print for decades.

The Rolling Stones famously insulted Invercargill as the “A***-hole of the World” after they were pelted with jelly and their comments were duly recorded for posterity by journalists.

The Lonely Planet’s travel guide description of the southern city as a “pit stop between Fiordland and the Catlins’’ might also seem a little unkind, because the truth is motoring enthusiasts will find plenty to do in town.

However, Dunedin writer Ian Dougherty would have people forget the awful comments outsiders have said.

His new book, Southern Spirit: The People and Places of Southland, describes Southland as one of the finest combinations of people and places anywhere.

It’s his 28th book and gives his own take on a region he regards as part of his extended back yard.

The book celebrates the southern landscapes, the fantastic fiords of the west, the green plains and the fossil forests in the east. It is illustrated with 150 photographs by Mr Dougherty and other photographers.

Readers are introduced to some of the world’s rarest plants and birds and served with southern delicacies such as oysters and cheese rolls.

Characters include Bert Munro, Derek Turnbull, and Bill Richardson.

The Southern Spirit book celebrates Southland's "enormous playground". IMAGE: SUPPLIED

“It acquaints readers with old and new settlers, authors and artists, brewers and distillers, champion shearers and sawyers, and machines and the people who collect them. And it lays out the region as an enormous playground relished by locals and visitors alike,’’ Mr Dougherty said.

Mr Dougherty is a former journalist and has a masters’ degree in history from Otago University.

He was born and raised in Dunedin and returned there to live about 18 years ago after several years living and writing in other places, much of it in the south.

He has worked as a journalist in Invercargill, taught journalism at the Southland Polytechnic (now the Southern Institute of Technology) and lived for several years in the fishing village of Waikawa on the region’s south-east coast. 

His keen interest in tramping has given him a first-hand knowledge of Southland. He’s also a fan of old-fashioned book shops and the experience of having and holding a book.

Mr Dougherty believes New Zealanders have a lot of appetite for the non-fiction genre, with Otago and Southland readers particularly good supporters of book shops and the printed book industry.

“My books are all available hard copy, until I sell out, and then I put them online . . . But I still love the tactile side of reading books,” he said.

Throughout his writing career, he has continued to work as a freelance journalist because it helps pay the bills. He presently writes for two University of Otago publications and has also written for organisations and institutions in Wellington and Christchurch. 

“It is a pretty solitary activity actually, but I don’t mind it. I enjoy doing my own thing,’’ he said.

Uncharacteristically, this is the first time in 26 years he has “nothing in the pipeline’’.

“But I have a few ideas. Each book takes on average, about a year. That is usually six months research and six months writing,’’ he said.

Dougherty has self-published his books through his business, Saddle Hill Press.

His other works include Arawata Bill: The Story of Legendary Gold Prospector William James O'Leary and a book on Southland’s champion netball side, Southern Sting: The Team That Inspired a Region.

Southern Spirit was designed by Craigs Design and Print in Invercargill.

GET A COPY: Southern Spirit: The People and Places of Southland is available from book and gift shops and from Saddle Hill Press. Recommended retail price: $30