Thissssssssss Weeeeeeek... InPublishing
Page Critique Friday is alive and well!! It's happening over in the Forums. You do not need to register in the Forums to check out the Page Critique thread, but you will have to register if you'd like to leave a comment. To register, just click here and it should be quite self-explanatory. Other than that it's the same as before, so stop on by.
Lots and lots of news this week, so let's get started.
First up, the most comprehensive review I have ever seen about the relative environmental benefits of e-books vs. paper books was published by Slate's The Green Lantern. The winner? E-books on every count, provided you read more than 18 books on an iPad and 23 books on a Kindle. Even on chemicals/metals, often cited as a problem with e-readers, the Green Lantern judged the side-effects of producing ink more harmful than the metals that go into e-readers. Worth a read.
Random House and agent Andrew Wylie have settled their standoff over the rights to backlist e-book titles that Wylie had announced would be exclusively published by Amazon. In the end, Random House and Wylie came to terms, and the e-books will be published by Random House after all. Word this morning is that Wylie and Penguin are negotiating as well. Bloomsbury publisher Peter Ginna has a great analysis of some of the implications. While early reports tended to characterize this as a "win" for Random House, Ginna points out that it really depends on the deal that was struck (and the ones yet to be struck).
In further e-book news, PWxyz spotted a good explanation from Wired about the economics of e-book pricing, another e-book domino has fallen as Laura Lippman's brand new bestseller is selling more e-books than hardcovers, there's a color e-reader called the Literati coming, the Wall Street Journal took a look at the reading habits of e-book readers (hint: they read more), Seth Godin made some publishing waves as he said in an interview that he will no longer publish the traditional way (citing the frustration of the long wait and filters of traditional publishing), and oh yeah, the NY Times had an article about digital devices and learning and attention spans but I've already ohmigod how awesome was Project Runway last night????
And yeah yeah news news, what about e-books and author revenue? Well, Mike Shatzkin has a really great post explaining how the royalty ma
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By: Nathan Bransford,
on 8/27/2010
Blog: Nathan Bransford (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: E-books, Amazon, Literary Fiction, This Week in Publishing, Barnes and Noble, E-Readers, Future of Publishing, page critique, Add a tag
By: DGLM,
on 8/26/2010
Blog: Dystel & Goderich Literary Management (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: e-books, advice, Michael, future of publishing, opinion, Add a tag
By: Nathan Bransford,
on 8/24/2010
Blog: Nathan Bransford (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Future of Publishing, E-books, publishing industry, Add a tag
Another way of thinking of publishers is not as companies that decide your fate as an author, but rather as companies that offer the authors they've chosen to work with a comprehensive package of services.
Here are the basic services traditional publishers provide for an author, why these services matter, and how this is (and isn't) changing:
Editing and Copyediting:
While the myth that editors don't edit is alive and well, the truth is that books are edited and copyedited at traditional publishers (please please please know the difference between editing and copyediting). This affords a certain degree of quality control. Now, sure, we've all spotted typos in books, which infect us temporarily with disproportionate outrage and a jolt of smugness. It happens. But all you have to do is read this blog on a regular basis to see the horrorshow of typos that results from text published without copyediting.
Editors and copyeditors (yes, still), provide professional editorial expertise that improve books. I'm sure you've heard they don't edit and copyedit anymore. It's not true.
Design:
Cover, trim size, interior design, illustrations/photographs, font choice, paper choice, etc. The best-designed books are works of art.
Printing and Distribution:
Once the books are actually produced, someone has to get them into bookstores and e-bookstores. Traditionally this has been the irreplaceable service offered by publishers. Not only would they make the books, they would draw upon their reputation, sales teams, and infrastructure to get print books into bookstores in large numbers.
Even in the e-book era distribution still matters. There are new e-book vendors cropping up every day, and publishers have the scale to sell their e-books in as many venues as possible while dealing with all of the accompanying electronic conversion headaches.
Publicity and Marketing:
At minimum publishers get their books sent out for review and do some basic advertising. When a publisher turns on the publicity and marketing fire hose for their biggest books, they will manage book tours, author appearances, giveaways, major advertising campaigns, co-op, and much more. Publicity and marketing aren't everything, but they can provide a major boost.
Patronage (i.e. an advance):
While debut novelists almost always have to figure out how to write a novel on their own time and dime, publishers nevertheless offer nonfiction authors and previously published novelists money in advance of writing the actual books, which both rewards authors before their book actually comes out and theoretically supports them as they're writing it. Obviously the degree of support this affords the author depends on the amount of the advance, but money up front that the author doesn't have to pay back even if the book tanks ain't nothin' to sneeze at.
Cachet:
Aside from all the tangible services publishers offer authors, there is one intangible element: cachet. There is something to be said for the sel
By: Nathan Bransford,
on 8/20/2010
Blog: Nathan Bransford (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: E-books, Google, This Week in Publishing, Jonathan Franzen, Suzanne Collins, Barnes and Noble, E-Readers, Future of Publishing, Add a tag
Lots of links! Let's get to them.
There were a few controversies this week in publishing. Firstly, if you have ever attended a conference with the fabulous YA Author Ellen Hopkins, you know that in addition to being a brilliant writer and storyteller she's also a terrific, honest, and inspiring speaker and devotes a huge amount of time to mentoring up-and-coming writers. So it was very distressing to hear that she was dis-invited from the Teen Lit Fest in Humble, Texas, due to a librarian's complaint. In the wake of the news about Hopkins, several additional writers subsequently withdrew from the event in protest.
Secondly, bestselling author Jody Picoult made some waves this week when she accused the NY Times Book Review of a white male literary fiction bias in the wake of Michiko Kakutani's rave about Jonathan Franzen's upcoming novel FREEDOM. While I leave it to you the reader to agree or disagree with this characterization of the NYTBR, PWxyz's Jonathan Segura recalled the Kakutani/Franzen spat of 2008: After Kakutani slammed Franzen's memoir THE DISCOMFORT ZONE, calling it, "an odious self-portrait of the artist as a young jackass: petulant, pompous, obsessive, selfish and overwhelmingly self-absorbed," Franzen shot back, calling Kakutani "The stupidest person in New York City."
And in further controversy (or is it?), industry sage Mike Shatzkin wrote a post that characterized print books, as "On a path to oblivion." The crucial takeaway: "Indeed, the insistence by some people that they will “never” give up the printed book — which leads to rather ludicrous glorification of the smell of the paper, ink, and glue and the nonsensical objections that the screen would be unsuitable for the beach (depends on the screen) or the bathtub (I can’t even imagine what the presumed advantage of the printed book is there) — must ignore the fundamental dynamic. Print books aren’t getting better. Ebooks are." No doubt there will be lots of reactions to this article, and we have already been discussing this in the Forums.
In further e-book news, Saundra Mitchell has a thoughtful take on a WSJ Journal article that speculates that ads and product placement could soon come to the e-book world, Apartment Therapy Unplggd surveyed the different e-reader apps on the iPad, and two new iPad-esque tablets seem to be on the horizon: one from Google (link via PubLunch) and one from HP.
Ever wonder if editors (or agents) have second thoughts after passing on projects? Well, of course
By: DGLM,
on 8/5/2010
Blog: Dystel & Goderich Literary Management (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: covers, e-books, Michael, future of publishing, Add a tag
While the serious, business-minded e-books news continues to unfold at a rapid pace, I thought I’d take a moment to show a creative insight into what books can be. And this one is simple, doable, and doesn’t change the nature of the reading experience: the digital book cover. Instead of just a static cover, why not have something that’s animated or video? And if all covers are as elegant as this clip, I say bring ‘em on!
By: DGLM,
on 7/29/2010
Blog: Dystel & Goderich Literary Management (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: opinion, fun, e-books, Michael, future of publishing, Add a tag
How many of you owned a Laserdisc player? Hands? None of you? Well, I owned one (which no longer works, making my Laserdiscs sadly unplayable), so I found this article over at TripleCanopy which I found via TeleRead--doubly fascinating. I had no idea that e-books and Laserdiscs had any shared heritage, and I never could have guessed that they were also related to one of the founders of the SDS at Columbia, who also happens to head the Institute for the Future of the Book. The interview is really enlightening, as it shows how the changing technology at times created new formats, while at others the technology was chasing the ideas of great thinkers.
And in other e-news, a new Kindle is born. Looks pretty nice, though with my iPad now I won’t be diving into a dedicated e-reader anytime soon.
By: DGLM,
on 7/26/2010
Blog: Dystel & Goderich Literary Management (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: reading, opinion, e-books, optimism, Jane, future of publishing, Add a tag
Over the last several months – it could be as long as a year, actually – whenever I have met someone not in our industry who asks what I do and I tell them, I invariably get the question, “Is publishing going to survive.” What they really mean is whether the business of book publishing will be able to survive the arrival of the digital book.
I have always maintained that the changes that reading books electronically will bring to the book publishing business can and will be very exciting. In fact, I have been absolutely certain that as a result of these changes, reading overall would increase.
And then Jeff Bezos, the CEO of Amazon announced that for the last three months, sales of books for its e-reader, the Kindle, outnumbered sales of hardcover books. This news is really historic.
There was other news though that was just as exciting. According to the American Publishing Association, hardcover book sales were up industry-wide 22% this year. Indeed, reading has been increasing, and I believe as more and more electronic reading devices are sold – and sales of these are way up as their prices have dropped – people will read more in all formats.
So, rather than being concerned that book publishing is going down the tubes, outside observers of our business should jump on the bandwagon and spread the word. This is only the beginning of a wonderful new digital publishing age.
Do you all agree?
By: Nathan Bransford,
on 7/23/2010
Blog: Nathan Bransford (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: This Week in Publishing, Future of Publishing, Add a tag
It was a pretty eventful week in publishing this, um, week so let's get right to it.
The news that everyone is talking about is agent Andrew Wylie's move to deal directly and exclusively with Amazon for e-book rights to many classic works by authors such as Vladimir Nabokov, Hunter S. Thompson, Philip Roth, and more. Basically, the original contracts for these books were signed before e-books were a glimmer in Jeff Bezos' eye, and Wylie is taking the stance that these rights belong to the authors and not the publishers.
This, as they say, is a pretty big deal for publishers. As author Jason Pinter writes in the Huffington Post, backlist sales represent a huge amount of money for publishers, and could drastically affect the publishers' revenue in the future if they don't have e-book rights to their backlist.
The publishers themselves have reacted strongly. Macmillan CEO John Sargent released a strongly worded statement, and Random House announced that they "would be taking appropriate action" and would not do any business with Wylie's agency until the matter is resolved. For his part, Wylie told the Times that Random House's response took him by surprise, and that he needed some time to think about the situation before responding.
For analysis of what this all means and the full ramifications, definitely check out Pinter's HuffPo article, Kassia Krozser's recent post on the matter, and Publishers Weekly's new PWxyz blog has a good roundup of the reactions around the Internet.
And meanwhile, there was other big e-book news as Amazon announced that e-books have been outselling hardcovers on Amazon for several months. It's not quite apples to apples considering the lower price of e-books, but still, another benchmark as e-books continue their rise.
And yet amid all of this e-book hullaballo, @OtherLisa linked to an article about how indie bookstore sales have risen this year. Go indies go!!!!
In life of a writer news, Tahereh has the five stages of querying, Susanna Daniel wrote an article on the quiet hell of taking ten years to write a novel, and oh yeah, now might be a good time to link to San Francisco legend Broke Ass Stuart's guide to the best literary bars in San Francisco.
Oh, and if that doesn't work you can cheer yourself up with the Times' r
Posted on 7/15/2010
Blog: Dystel & Goderich Literary Management (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: fun, e-books, Michael, future of publishing, Add a tag
Via Mediabistro, I was led to this fascinating article about Hearst’s plans for their upcoming magazine apps for the iPad and other tablets. While I’m not sure they’re being realistic about the pricing of these apps, I’m excited that publishers are finally looking beyond delivering the print versions in an electronic format. Of particular interest to those of us in publishing is that the O, the Oprah Magazine app will allow users to download books within the app itself. It’s a smart way to sell books, as readers can buy what they want immediately — not only do they not need to go to the bookstore, they don’t even need to leave the app! I’m curious, of course, about what format the book will be in, and if you’ll be able to move it to other reading platforms, but this is all still early and preliminary. I’ll be eager to try these apps out when they arrive!
By: Nathan Bransford,
on 7/13/2010
Blog: Nathan Bransford (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Future of Publishing, Add a tag
Publishing industry sage Mike Shatzkin wrote a post recently that was dash of smelling salts by way of a sledgehammer.
The post's title says it all: "Where Will Bookstores Be Five Years From Now?"
If you take Shatzkin's premise that e-books will comprise 50% of the book market in five years (which is current conventional wisdom in the industry; Shatzkin actually thinks that's conservative), he estimates that brick and mortar stores' share of the marketplace will likely plummet from approximately 72% of the market today to 25% in five years. (The other 25% in the print market will be made up of print sales via online booksellers.)
72% to 25%. Five years. Yowza.
These last few years have been incredibly tumultuous for the industry. The recession and the Great Digital Transition combined forces to wallop the industry, and the effects are everywhere: shrinking lists, closing imprints, shuttering indie stores, a vanishing mid-list, and belt-tightening across the board.
Things changed a lot in a short period of time. And it's still quite possible that these last few years were a relative walk in the park compared to what's to come.
If 75% to 25% transpires it will have huge implications for the way books are planned, marketed, acquired, published, and discovered. Everything from the seasonal publishing calendar to print runs to marketing campaigns will be in for reevaluation.
And yet...
As I've said before, people are still buying and reading books. The ease of access afforded by e-books might even mean they'll buy more when they can download a book at home rather than planning a trip to the bookstore. To be sure, there is lots still to be worked out on the author side, including paltry royalties and more reliance on authors for platforms and buzz-making.
But the challenges the industry is facing are on the distribution side of things -- it's literally a massive shift in how text gets from author to reader (and how reader discovers author). Anyone who is part of the paper side of things is going to feel the squeeze.
Still, even as seemingly everything changes, there's a lot that will remain the same. Authors will still write books, publishers will still be the go-to place to put a book together and market it, there will be self-publishing for those who want to go it alone, and readers will have still more choice and ease of access. E-readers are steadily getting more affordable ($99 Sony Readers sold out in the blink of an eye) and contrary to the doomsayers, e-books are not an existential threat to the world of literature. Words are words are words are words no matter how you read them (you're reading pixels now, ain't ya?)
It's certainly a wild ride, but it's a roller coaster, not a death spiral.
By: DGLM,
on 7/13/2010
Blog: Dystel & Goderich Literary Management (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Rachel, future of publishing, children's books, reading, opinion, Add a tag
A couple of years ago, before moving to New York, I worked as a Kindergarten teacher in San Francisco. I can remember quite well the day before summer vacation began—almost every teacher was complaining that the time spent away from school during the summer would have students forgetting everything they had learned that year. That’s not to say teachers wanted to stay in class and teach all summer, but the “summer slide” was definitely apparent on the first day back at school, and so something to cause a lot of worry. So, come the last day of school, I sent my students home with their backpacks full of books—they thought Christmas had arrived (and how happy I was to see 5- and 6-year-olds excited about reading!).
David Brooks’ article in the NY Times last week was an interesting read, as he touched on the effects of books on a child’s learning, especially in regards to the power of books over the summer period. According to results, students who took home 12 books over their summer vacation had significantly higher reading scores than other students (to be expected, I would imagine), but that having books in the home also produces other significant educational gains.
Another study brought to our attention in the article illustrates the effects of the internet and the declining math and reading scores of students. Though the internet helps one become knowledgeable about current events and trends (and what our friends are up to every second of the day), it is the literary world, says David Brooks, that produces better students right now.
I’m going to agree with Mr. Brooks on his opinion. As I saw with my young students, the class computer was fun (and incredibly popular during free time), but reading books gave my Kindergarteners something more, and there was such pride on my students’ faces when they had finished reading a book that I never saw when they had finished a game on the computer. Seeing my students beaming from taking home a backpack of books on the last day of school—and having a love of books themselves—was definitely worth all the headaches of being a Kindergarten teacher.
While reading the comments following the Times article, it seems there are many people who feel as though the internet has affected our attention span, and so made it more difficult to sit down and enjoy a good book with all the distractions out there—breaking news, twitter updates, constant email notifiers etc.
So, my question is: do you think books and the internet are two different worlds and able to complement each other? Or, do you think the internet really is the downfall of our students and their love of books?
By: DGLM,
on 6/1/2010
Blog: Dystel & Goderich Literary Management (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: libraries, opinion, BEA, publishers, Jane, future of publishing, retailers, subsidiary rights, Add a tag
Historically this annual meeting was known as the American Books Sellers Association (ABA) meeting. It began in the basement of the Shoreham Hotel in Washington, D.C., and was held annually—initially over Memorial Day Weekend. The convention’s purpose was for book publishers to present their fall publishing lists to bookstore owners who would actually place their orders on the floor. Those in attendance from the publishing companies were mainly sales people with some executives making an appearance now and then; editors weren’t included.
Over the years, the ABA convention grew larger and larger. More and more publishers added more and more staff and they began to build larger and larger exhibits. The ABA outgrew the Shoreham and was moved to a convention center in Washington and then began traveling to a different city in different parts of the country each year.
The convention has been held everywhere in the continental U.S. from Chicago, to Los Angeles and Anaheim, to San Francisco, Las Vegas, New Orleans and even Miami (I remember that ABA well—for many reasons, it was a disaster). And each year it grew, with publishers spending more and more money on their exhibits, and having hugely lavish parties to entertain booksellers, authors and agents.
Slowly but surely foreign publishers began to participate and the ABA became a rights fair as well, sort of a mini-Frankfurt (before the London Book Fair grew as large as it now is).
Then as the chains became all powerful and publishers took orders on fall books from these huge accounts before the ABA (or at least outside of the convention), that reason for the meeting became irrelevant. Smaller accounts also started to order less at the meeting and more in other ways and at other times.
Publishers began to realize that the enormous sums of money spent on exhibits, on parties and on travel could not be justified. Displays began to get smaller; some publishers skipped years coming and eventually the exhibit was sold to an organization that became Book Expo. Now, it is a truncated and less interesting event.
My question is what really happens at BEA nowadays? Sure, it is wonderful to see old friends, but the individual exhibits are so small now that one can’t even find the fall books one is looking for. Last week I saw very little activity at the parts of the convention occupied by foreign publishers and the exhibits were downsized from two floors to one in the Javits Center. Very little actual business in terms of the initial book ordering is done anymore and with the other rights fairs around the world, those sold at BEA for the most part are also insignificant.
As I wandered around the floor last week at BEA 2010, I honestly thought to myself that the money still being spent by publishers on this meeting could be much better allocated toward finding new and effective ways to sell books in an age when our business is changing enormously and very quickly.
I would love to know what those of you who have participated in BEA in the past think about all of this.
By: DGLM,
on 5/24/2010
Blog: Dystel & Goderich Literary Management (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: independent bookstores, opinion, e-books, optimism, Jane, future of publishing, retailers, Add a tag
Last week, I was chatting with a client who was visiting from out of town and who I hadn’t seen for a while. We talked about all of the changes in publishing, especially in the area of electronic publishing, that had occurred since we had last seen each other.
One of the things he asked, and which I thought was a very interesting question, was what will happen to the brick and mortar bookstores now that electronic books are gaining such a foothold, to say nothing about the increased market share that Amazon and the other on-line booksellers have. What will this mean for the large chains – Barnes & Noble and, especially, Borders.
Then on Friday, the 21st, there was a piece on the front page of the Wall Street Journal, “E-Books Rewrite Bookselling,” discussing just this topic.
And Mike Shatzkin, industry pundit, estimates that by the end of 2012, digital books will be 20%-25% of unit sales with another 25% of books sold online. That’s 50% of all books sold and it would seem to me that losing that volume of business will cause the large chains, at least, to shutter a significant number of stores.
The only way I can imagine they could survive is by carrying an even greater variety of products other than books than they already do. And, because these changes are happening so quickly, they would have to begin carrying this additional merchandise immediately so as to build up customers before their book business deteriorates any further.
I think the independent stores that are left—after the chains took over a huge part of the market and put many of them out of business years ago—will be less affected and, in fact, could thrive. For them, selling more varied merchandise will be less of a “leap” than their much larger, more corporate cousins and their customers are truly the most loyal of book lovers. How ironic, considering what happened to the bulk of the independent booksellers when the chains descended over a decade ago.
I am still convinced that electronic book publishing will increase readership as opposed to destroying it. It is up to the big retailers to figure out how to keep up with this new world in order to stay in business.
What do you think? Will the chain bookstores survive and if so, how?
By: DGLM,
on 5/6/2010
Blog: Dystel & Goderich Literary Management (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: opinion, e-books, Michael, future of publishing, retailers, Add a tag
Depending on your feelings about the Apple iBookstore and iPad, this may or may not come as a surprise. According to a report on Publisher’s Marketplace (subscription required), ebook sales through the iBookstore have been robust, comprising “12 to 15 percent of all ebook sales.” This makes the iBookstore the #2 ebook retailer only a month after opening, and with Random House still holding out. (And, if you ask me, a terrible, terrible user interface in the iBookstore—it’s a wonder you can find anything.) As the report notes, with income lower on a per-book basis under the agency model, ebook sales need to increase 20 – 30 percent in order to make up the difference. It looks like that may just be happening.
The report also notes: “At least two publishers were certain that iBook sales so far have been incremental, growing the overall ebook market rather than taking share from other accounts.” This is even better news, as there was worry that ebook sales would just shift from one store to the other. Growth is good — especially with the news of declines in print book sales.
Publishers have to be thrilled with this news, as moving to the agency model was definitely a short-term gamble. They sacrificed the money they were making from Amazon off loss-leaders for the chance to open the market to another major player. And it looks as though that might be paying off. That said, it’s only a month out, and it remains to be seen if people will continue to purchase their books through the iBookstore.
So does anyone else have an iPad? Anyone buying books with it? So far, I’ve read Lowboy on it, along with many, many submissions, and while I hate the iBookstore, I love the reading experience. How about you?
*For the record, I know this isn’t the correct Sally Field quote, but it’s how most people remember it!
By: DGLM,
on 5/4/2010
Blog: Dystel & Goderich Literary Management (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: opinion, fun, advice, future of publishing, Miriam, why we are agents, Add a tag
Jane and I were meeting with a prospective client yesterday, a lovely young woman with a great book idea and lot of good questions about the agent-author relationship. In the midst of explaining who we are as an agency, and why and how we do things, Jane mentioned that few authors, even those who are successfully published, end up getting rich from their efforts. So, the goal, she said, should really be to have fun with the process. The comment stuck with me. Even though “Have fun!” may seem to be as much of a platitude as “Have a nice day!” the sentiment is one that I wish more people in our business would take to heart.
In the midst of gloom and doom predictions about the industry as a whole, flagging book sales, the terrifying juggernaut that is the electronic revolution, and the fact that readers are dumber, more distracted, cheaper, unable to read more than a couple of Twitter feeds at a time—fill in the blanks with whatever the wags are wagging about at any given moment—it’s hard not to take what we all do as seriously as a migraine. Happily, we at DGLM are lucky in that, as a group, we’re fairly sophomoric in our sense of humor and more delighted than most by the absurdities and ironies inherent in the publishing process.
Yes, we do keep a binder with samples of the worst query letters ever sent, we treasure anecdotes about authors behaving badly and editors throwing office furniture at their assistants, we are inveterate gossips, and we spend way more time than we should chortling over pictures of the Mr. Romance contest at the Romantic Times conference. Does this mean that we don’t consider our work and that of our clients and potential clients important? Not at all, it means that in order to be good at what we do, we have to have perspective and even a sense of play. A potentially disastrous conflict between an author and a publisher can be defused by reminding both sides to “Lighten up! It’s not brain surgery.” And, our jobs are infinitely more engaging when we remember that before we were agents, editors and “serious” writers, we picked up books because they provided a world of fun.
Bottom line is that if we allow ourselves to forget how much joy there is in the vigorous exchange of ideas, in the beauty of a perfect sentence, and in the collaboration with brilliant people to create content that inspires, instructs, and entertains, then we might as well cash in our chips and leave the table. Meanwhile, we’ll keep doing what we do until it’s no longer fun.
By: Nathan Bransford,
on 5/3/2010
Blog: Nathan Bransford (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Future of Publishing, Add a tag
Yes yes, it's time for my obligatory iPad review! Sure, you've read a million of them ever since the wireless-only iPads came along last month as I waited for the 3G version, but you haven't read a review WHERE THE IPAD IS HELD FOR RANSOM BY DERANGED MUTANTS.
Actually that didn't happen. This really is just another review.
First of all, the all-important question: is this a game-changer for the world of books???
Yes. Kind of. I think so. I don't know.
In my opinion the iPad is a pretty radically awesome e-reader and I love reading on it almost but not quite as much as life itself. It is awesome to read on. During the day. At night. On the couch. On the bus. I zoomed through THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING like I was being chased by ringwraiths, downloaded THE TWO TOWERS faster than you can say "mellon," and yes, I started acting like Gollum when my wife wanted her turn with it. PRECIOUSSSSSSSSSS.
However, the iPad is also a pretty radically expensive e-reader and holy cow is it kind of distracting to be able to access so many shiny things with a few clicks while you're reading. (It is the best interface for reading e-mail ever).
Let's break this down with e-book reading in mind:
OVERALL PROS AND CONS
Pros: The screen is incredibly crisp and clear, and no matter which e-reading app you're using the page turns are smooth. Even better, you can adjust the brightness of the screen in all the apps, and some reading apps have a night function where the background is black and the text is white so it's much easier on the eyes to read in the dark.
Cons: It's not the really-looks-like-paper e-ink you find with the Sony Reader, Kindle, and Nook, which I realize bothers some people, so you should decide which type of screen you like. I personally vastly prefer the iPad/iPhone screens because there's no flicker when you turn pages, there's color, and I like not having to worry about a nightlight. But the iPad isn't as good as e-ink in the sun, and it's also heavier than the Kindle, so it's tricky to read with one hand (which is a consideration for bus/subway riders).
THE BOOK APPS
Meanwhile, as has been well-documented on this blog, there is also a book app war afoot on the iPad - publishers have moved over to an agency model for selling e-books, in part, in order to open up the marketplace to other e-book vendors.
But wouldn't you know: in my opinion Amazon has a substantial early lead in the iPad book App wars, even if iBooks and Kobo also have nice apps and they all will likely improve greatly in the coming months/years.
The best thing about Apple's iBooks is that it has the most beautiful display - WINNIE THE POOH comes free, and the colors of the illustrations pop. Apple has knocked the page-turning animation out of the park, and the pages curl beautifully when you turn the pages. You can also choose between several different attractive fonts, if that's your thing. And for all those people frustrated that Kindle doesn't have page numbers: iBooks does.
However, iBooks lacks some key options that are really important to the e-book reading experience. There's no night reading option (though you can dim the brightness), there's no note-taking ability, and while I gather this functionality
By: DGLM,
on 5/3/2010
Blog: Dystel & Goderich Literary Management (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: reading, opinion, e-books, Jane, future of publishing, Add a tag
Now, it is six months later and I have been reading both books and manuscripts on my Kindle. There is no question in my mind that it is far more versatile than the Reader and, when I am traveling, as I have been quite a bit for the last six months, there is nothing more convenient than the Kindle.
Over the last several weeks, though, I have been reading Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann, and while I was doing so, I kept wondering why I wasn’t loving it as much as many of my colleagues had. I finished the book the other night and all of a sudden I realized that the reason I hadn’t gotten the same pleasure out of reading it as everyone else at DGLM had was because I wasn’t reading an actual book—I was reading it on the Kindle. Let the Great World Spin is, first of all, a beautifully designed book with a gorgeous jacket; there is no way to tell this on the Kindle. It is also a story that makes the reader want to dip back and forth to re-read certain passages and this is all but impossible to do on the Kindle. In addition, because there are no page numbers on the Kindle (all one can tell is the percent of the book one has already read), there is no way to know how to reference page numbers. Ultimately, even though I enjoyed the book I believe it would have been a far more pleasurable reading experience had I had a print copy of the book.
Then, recently during a meeting in our office, one of my colleagues was describing her experience reading The Help. She mentioned that it felt like a really long book. I was surprised to hear this. In fact, I had read the book last December and had no sense of how long it was—none at all—because I had read it on the Kindle.
There are so many different opinions about what reading on a Kindle is like. My doctor, who only reads on the Kindle, has to go buy the actual book when he is writing a paper and needs to cite a page. There are those who say they really miss the “feel” of an actual book when they are reading on the Kindle; and then there are those who say that the iPad is better than all the other devices.
I’d like to believe that, in time, much will change technologically with these electronic readers and I think that, ultimately, they will increase the number of readers over all. I would also like to believe that old fashioned books will never disappear entirely; they offer too much comfort to many of us who love physical books. Reading a book electronically simply does not offer the same kind of pleasure in my opinion as reading it in hard copy.
So now I would love to know what you think?
By: DGLM,
on 4/30/2010
Blog: Dystel & Goderich Literary Management (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: fun, Rachel, future of publishing, Add a tag
The LitDraft, he says, is more than a recruitment tool. He envisions this event going on TV, with running commentary, red carpet interviews, and “nifty segments on writers’ fascinating stories.” Matt believes this will get people excited about new voices, as well as getting those not so interested in reading, interested in reading.
The article may be all tongue-in-cheek, but I love the idea of a LitDraft. So, why not go one step further and hold the Literary Olympics? It could be a cross between Iron Chef and Wipeout. I’ve already though of one event: The Write Splash. Authors get one hour to come up with the synopsis of a story; the contestants are then judged on character and plot development by famous authors; one winner goes onto the next heat, the losers have to sit through a reading of bad celebrity biographies as they’re being pelted with water balloons.
Any other ideas as to what events could be held?
By: DGLM,
on 4/26/2010
Blog: Dystel & Goderich Literary Management (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: e-books, advice, Apple, Amazon, publishers, Google, Jane, future of publishing, retailers, Add a tag
With all of the sturm und drang going on in the publishing business over the last few months with regard to Amazon, Apple and Google, there is an enormous amount of confusion—understandably.
I found this article in this week’s New Yorker to be quite enlightening. Even if it will “date” quickly because of the speed at which things are changing, I highly recommend that all published and unpublished writers read it. There is much to learn and absorb here.
I would be interested in hearing what you think.
By: DGLM,
on 4/22/2010
Blog: Dystel & Goderich Literary Management (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: reading, opinion, publishers, Michael, future of publishing, Add a tag
I think we all probably suffer from information overload, and I know that those of us who work in publishing are often even more inundated. At this point, I’ve stopped adding to my RSS reader, and I’m actually taking off all the things I never get around to reading. And, though I love technology and all it affords us, I’m generally trying to pare down. So I was fascinated by this Ars Technica article I found this week. To sum up, Oxford University Press has created a scholarly, peer-reviewed search engine that allows users to find worthwhile articles on specific subjects. Now, instead of wading through pages and pages of Google results to find out what to read on, say, Menander of Athens, you can find out what the authorities think you need to know. And with the curators of each section listed, you can decide for yourself if they’re expert enough to trust.
And while that’s publishing-related enough to mention, it brought to mind some of the ongoing discussion about the future of trade publishing. There’s been talk lately that publishers are on the way out, as authors can now just publish directly through several ebook and POD options. But with statistics like the most recent ones from Bowker stating that over 1,000,000 titles were published last year, I believe publishers and editors become all the more necessary. No one has time to find what they want out of a million titles, so readers will expect someone to help direct them and narrow their choices. That job is going to fall to publishers, their imprints and their editors, all of whose names will be more important in the future as readers will expect that each name means something. It’s not just the amazing editorial, design, publicity and marketing that publishers bring to the table; it’s also the simple act of separating the wheat from the chaff. In a world of information overload, it’s hard to put a price on that service.
But am I just being a publishing Pollyanna? I’d love to hear your thoughts on the matter.
By: Nathan Bransford,
on 4/4/2010
Blog: Nathan Bransford (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
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Over the weekend, the New York Times "Ethicist" wrote a rather controversial post defending the ethics of illegally downloading an e-book when you own the hardcover.
The Ethicist writes:
Your subsequent downloading is akin to buying a CD, then copying it to your iPod. Buying a book or a piece of music should be regarded as a license to enjoy it on any platform. Sadly, the anachronistic conventions of bookselling and copyright law lag the technology. Thus you've violated the publishing company's legal right to control the distribution of its intellectual property, but you've done no harm or so little as to meet my threshold of acceptability.
Aside from being quite surprised that Ethicists are in the habit of encouraging people to break the law, I found this to be an astounding and irresponsible response.
It's one thing for an Ethicist to remind a reader that they are within their ethical (and though I'm not a lawyer, likely legal) rights to create their own e-book by scanning their book into a computer strictly for personal and not-for-profit use. This is the proper CD-ripping analogy. It's taking something you own and converting it to another format through your own time and effort, whether that's making an electronic file or to taking a book apart to wallpaper your house.
The fact is, buying a hardcover (or CD or DVD or paperback) does not grant someone the right to own a work in all platforms in perpetuity. I mean, this: "Buying a book or a piece of music should be regarded as a license to enjoy it on any platform" is an extraordinarily sweeping opinion. Any platform? Should we get the paperback for free when we buy the hardcover? Should we be able to get into the movie for free when we own the paperback? Those are just different platforms, right? Should I have shoplifted the DVDs when I switched over from my VHS collection? What exactly are we talking about here?
An e-book is a fundamentally different product than a hardcover - it's searchable, it's electronic, it's portable, it doesn't weigh anything. It allows you to do things that you can't do with a hardcover. Not everyone obviously thinks it's an improvement, but I think we can all agree that it's a different product. They may be the same words, but it most definitely is not the same thing.
It may seem like it's a trivial distinction to make when the resulting file from converting vs. pirating a book is potentially almost the same, but that's where the line between ethical/legal and unethical/illegal is drawn for a reason. In the first version, you're adding the value yourself through your own effort (just as taking notes in your own margins adds a form of value). By downloading a file illegally you're misappropriating that added value from the only people (the publisher and author and e-booksellers) who are legally and ethically entitled to profit from it. That's why we have copyright law. That's where we've chosen to draw the line.
This is all completely setting aside the question of whether publishers should bundle hardcovers and e-books for sale - lots of people have expressed a desire for a situation where you, say, pay $2 or $4 or however much more for a hardcover and get the e-book for free. It's a great idea! I suspect the fact that isn't yet possible for most books is because of the logistical challenges involved (and see Joseph Selby's comment for more background), but it's one that I hope publishers will continue to explore.
But the fact that it's not yet possible as a matter of course doesn't then justify theft - I me
By: DGLM,
on 3/30/2010
Blog: Dystel & Goderich Literary Management (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: opinion, e-books, Apple, Amazon, publishers, distribution, Michael, future of publishing, price wars, Add a tag
April 3 is right around the corner! For those of you who don’t pay attention to, well, any form of media, that’s the day that Apple’s iPad finally hits the stores. And, being the nerd that I am, I have to say I’m pretty excited. I love product launches, and Apple does them like no other. (I was very disappointed by the lack of excitement surrounding the launch of the Palm Pre when I went to purchase it on day one last year, but I digress.) I think our readers know how this relates to books, but in case you don’t, Apple is launching their iBookstore that day, as well. They’ll be offering books from all the major publishers, with one huge exception: Random House. When Steve Jobs announced the iPad back in January, he said that 5 of the 6 biggest publishers were onboard for the iBookstore. The absence of Random House was conspicuous, but they released a statement afterwards saying that they were working on an agreement with Apple. I’d assumed there’d be one in place by this point, but it looks like the iBookstore could very well launch without the largest trade publisher on board, as reported by the Financial Times. Honestly, I was really surprised. Until last week.
That’s when this article popped up on an iPhone fansite. It purported to show the working iBookstore, along with the prices. And the price for 27 of the 32 listed bestsellers that day? $9.99. The same price that publishers have been fighting against in the Kindle bookstore. I was thrown for a loop. The reasoning behind the to switch to the agency model was to take control of pricing and get rid of the expectation that ebooks cost $9.99. But here we were at that price again. Then, only two days later, a new screenshot showing most (but not all) of the bestsellers at $12.99. Color me confused. This pricing kerfuffle brought to mind this New York Times piece about publisher agreements with Apple. The piece suggests that Apple wanted the flexibility to drop prices for hot books that would be majorly discounted in print. As of today, it’s not at all clear what iBookstore pricing will be on April 3.
Thinking about the possibility of an ebook sold at $9.99 is troubling. In the agency model, retailers act as an “agent,” selling books at prices determined by publishers and collecting a percentage of each sale (30% in most cases). Authors are generally being offered a percentage of the net income from these sales—publishers are pushing for this to be 25%, so we’ll roll with that number for the purposes of this argument. In the agency model, with a book priced at $9.99, authors will earn $2.50 per book or less. Compared to the $3.75 they currently earn on a $25 hardcover (15% of list price), this is a dramatic reduction. Comparing this amount to what authors would earn under the current ebook market conditions is nearly as depressing. In the current sales scheme (the consignment model), a retailer is buying the book for about a 50% discount, then selling it at whatever price they like. Assuming the same $25 price list price for the ebook (which is pretty standard) and same 25% royalty for electronic books, the author receives a royalty of $3.13. (The question of why they would receive less than they do on the hardcover in this situation could be a blog post in itself.) If ebooks eventually make up 50% of the market (a number I believe is possible), that royalty arrangement will radically alter author compensation. That, obviously, concerns me. I’d really
By: DGLM,
on 3/25/2010
Blog: Dystel & Goderich Literary Management (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: opinion, Michael, future of publishing, Add a tag
So Lauren isn’t the only one who can blog about the Irish! One of the publishing folk I follow on Twitter is Eoin Purcell, a publishing analyst and editor of Irish Publishing News. Over on his Green Lamp Media blog, he’s currently running a feature about “Things Publishers Fear.” So far the list is Amazon, Google, Apple and Price. I don’t agree with everything he says, but for those interested in the future of the business, the series is worth checking out.
By: Nathan Bransford,
on 3/19/2010
Blog: Nathan Bransford (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: This Week in Publishing, Future of Publishing, Add a tag
This week in March Madn... I mean publishing.
The big news this week in publishing has, as usual, to do with Amazon and Apple and that whole iPad thing. Scrambling before the April 3rd release of the iCan'tWaitToGetOnePad, the so-called Agency Four major publishers (so-called because they've agreed to "agency model" deals with Apple) are hoping to adjust their deal with Amazon, who, according to reports, is making noise about removing buy buttons for both digital and print if the Agency don't cave to a three year term and favored nation status. Let's all just hope the Agency Four end up in better shape than the Oceanic Six.
In other big news, HarperStudio publisher Bob Miller will be leaving Harper to become the group publisher at Workman. Amid questions about the future of the experimental imprint, web marketing maven and HarperStudo Associate Publisher Debbie Stier showed they aren't done experimenting yet, as she was extremely transparent about the future of the imprint via questions on Formspring.
The Rejectionist had a truly fantastic contest last week: query rejections in the form of re-written heavy metal songs. The grand prize winner, as announced by Wayne and Garth, was Pitch in an Elevator (sample: Pitch in an elevator/"It's like Moby Dick meets My Two Dads"/Pitch in an elevator/"Like Sixth Sense crossed with the Iliad") and the runners up were actual real life performances by Rick Daley and Tom, which are well worth a listen. Le R, all I have to say is: We're not worthy!! We're not worthy!!!
Mary Ulrich passed along a post by Seth Godin about a possible bookstore of the future: experience-driven over selection-driven.
Lapham's Quarterly has a truly awesome chart: the day jobs of famous writers. The next time you lament not being a full-time writer it's worth remembering that Charlotte Bronte made $1,838 a year as a governess..... and that's in today's dollars. (via JacketCopy)
In agent advice news, Jenny Bent, who is celebrating the first birthday of the Bent Agency, has a very helpful post on some very commo
By: DGLM,
on 3/15/2010
Blog: Dystel & Goderich Literary Management (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: optimism, future of publishing, Jim, reading, Add a tag
Peter Miller has been logging interesting reports from the South by Southwest Interactive festival in Austin. This one in particular amuses me.
We in publishing are obviously concerned with the future of epublishing and where the ebook will take us. But those folks who seem to think we’re all on the Titanic after it hit the iceberg are all a bit too panicky for my taste.
No matter how many twits are tweeting or how many people buy the unbelievably badly named iPad; whether books will develop interactivity in the electronic age or formats actually become open, this remains a business about the written word.
It’s so now to be convinced that the industry is outmoded and to cast about blame rather than looking for actual solutions. It’s nice to see someone at SXSWi with an open mind toward the potential developments of the future who also isn’t about to ignore the fact that publishing has already survived other potentially crushing developments like movies and television.
I’m excited to see whatever the future looks like, as long as I can keep reading.
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Great. You had to throw in the environmental benefits of e-books. Now I'll have to get used to reading them.
Nathan, you don't have a cat do you?
That ereader with color has piqued my interest. I am solid with my physical book love but my interest has been piqued nonetheless.
Dude, you can train bunnies? Sorry, I was going to say something about your post, but now my life has changed. I love that guy's "YES!" reaction after that black bunny made it over that tall obstacle! Go bunny go!
Even though people waste trees and paper in a million other ways.
But since you brought it up, I've gotta re think it.
Nathan,
There was an article on Yahoo this morning that I think might have gotten a rise out of you. I wish I had kept the link, but I was a tad too disgusted at the time to think of it.
The article included the top ten reasons people should not buy ereaders. One of the reasons being that ebooks are severely overpriced considering how much cheaper they are to produce as opposed to paperbacks. Another reason was because you can download classics for free without an ereader, and classics are better than most of the stuff coming out today anyway.
Let's just say the article did not convince me to not go out and buy that kindle I've been wanting.
Hatred breeds violence.
Hhmmnn...
Where's that hardcopy of my synopsis? Don't want to wreck my computer!
I think both Comment of the Week links currently go to Fiona...
I like seeing all these positive links about e-books. Back in the day, I was against e-readers and e-books because I couldn't conceive of giving up paper. I don't know what it is exactly, but ever since I've gotten my e-reader, I've been reading more than ever.
I wonder if the people buying ereaders also drive gas-guzzling SUVs--a bigger threat to the environment than books. Books can be recycled, passed on to friends, sold in church or library book sales, sent to other countries where people need books etc etc. So, sorry, I'm not convinced--and yes, I'm a tree hugger.
Although you blogged about so many important things, it's the bunny-jumping that I'm responding to. Bunnies are a whole lot smarter than most people think and are skilled at more than simple jumping. My mini-lop, Madison, could jump straight into the air about three feet from a dead halt, turn 180 degrees midair, and take off like a cheetah. And yes, Project Runway was great last night. You may now resume your regular program.
I blame MG author Dee Garretson for the bunnies...
Thanks, Kristan. Fixed now.
I never really liked rabbits untill now. That was cute!
I still haven't got round to even purcasing an ipod/touch/pad - but I just might consider it now.
Holy WOW, Nathan! There are, like, a bajillion links here! How do you have time to read all this stuff, on top of your job, your life, and reading for fun?
I'll probably look at the links about e-readers, but I kind of feel done with the conversation. They're happening; my books will probably one day be available on them; I'll avoid them for as long as humanly possible, because it's just not my chosen format; all of this is fine.
I'm very interested in the articles about Wylie, and in Shatzkin's post. I'll check in later with my opinions on Tao Lin once I've read the articles.
Thanks for this post!
Not sure why the Franzen stuff has novelists trying to eat their own. Why bust on the guy for doing something no novelist has done in a decade. The author in general is becoming slighted, the hate's not just reserved for commercial writers. Be glad for the guy, when a book is in the news, it brings people to the bookstore...
I'm sure I had something intelligent to say but I must sum it up in one word:
BUNNIES~!
>>FYI
New Thriller Sells More E-Books Than Hardcovers
By Jeffrey A. Trachtenberg, August 26, 2010
Weeks after Amazon.com said that it is now selling more electronic books than hardcovers, a leading book publisher said one of its prominent new titles is generating greater e-book unit sales than hardcover unit sales during its first week on sale.
Laura Lippman’s thriller, “I’d Know You Anywhere,” went on sale Aug. 17, and in its first five days sold 4,739 e-books and 4,000 physical hardcovers, said News Corp.’s HarperCollins Publishers.
“This is the first book of ours of any consequence that has sold more e-books than hardcovers in the first week,” said Frank Albanese, a senior vice president at HarperCollins. “What we’re seeing now is that if a book gets a good review, it gets a faster lift on the digital side than it does on the physical side because people who have e-readers can buy and read it immediately.”
Ms. Lippman, who has written more than a dozen books, is well-known in mystery circles and has authored four novels that have hit the national best-seller lists.
In recent weeks, a number of leading publishers have indicated that e-books today account for about 8% of total revenue, up from 3% to 5% in the same period a year ago. Some expect that e-books will account for as much as 20-25% by the end of 2012.
Ms. Lippman’s novel was published by William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers. News Corp. also owns The Wall Street Journal.
http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2010/08/26/new-thriller-sells-more-e-books-than-hardcovers/
I had no clue that such a thing as a rabbit leash existed. Thank you, Nathan, for expanding my bank of knowledge today.
Now I'm wondering how much bunny poop is on the floor of that place, as rabbits generally leave little pellets behind when they bounce.....
dave-
I linked to that in the post.
I'm so glad finally someone did a comprehensive environmental impact review of ebooks vs. paper! I'd seen speculation before, so this is nice to have (even if I was a bit scared to read it at first because I didn't want to see how much either process probably wrecks the environment...) Post over, I'm happy since I'll probably get an e-reader as soon as I can afford one.
(And to address Anonymous, gas-guzzlers disgust me and I don't plan to every purchase or drive one. And print won't go extinct for a long time, so all the things you described will still be doable, and I'm fairly sure e-books will eventually be loanable. We library-types are arguing constantly for that, anyway...)
Just kidding, I read the rest of the post. I loved the royalty breakdowns and am also intrigued by the Literati. (Oooh, comes with 150 e-books?)
I've nothing against e-readers or e-books (though don't use them, yet). But I have the wishful hope that children's books will always be books.
Watching my young baby learn to turn the pages of the hard cardboard, seeing his delight when we pull out oversized books (sometimes bigger than him!) with colorful illustrations that he can touch and lift-the-flap books he can manipulate. Pure joy to watch and he learns so much from the tactile experience as well as from looking at the pictures and helping 'read' the words.
I hope all generations can experience that. Pictures on a screen, while neat, just don't seem the same in this case.
Sorry, I missed the link.
I was juggling plumbers, landscapers and tree removal people. It's all their fault. Blame it on them.
;)
Those Danes know how to live.
It's wonderful that you'll be doing Page Critique Fridays! And lots of great links to check out. I’ve been following many of those stories online – interesting stuff. Have a great weekend!
So does anyone know if the Literati is e-Ink, or...?
Not that I still don't have me some major iPad lust, but I'm liking the idea of a single-purpose, really light and portable eReader, and the backlighting, like on my iPhone, yeah, not easy on my eyes.
I do not dig Tao Lin at all. He is one of those authors who tries to appear to be exploring big themes by writing about nothing (and writing poorly).
If you ask me, a vast emptiness is not primarily vast; it is primarily empty.
This dude is a virtuoso of self-promotion, but he hasn't got the goods to back it up. I'd bet the people who bought shares of his book won't get their money back
lisa-
Pretty sure it's LED. There are also some rumors that Apple could announce a smaller iPad in September.
Good thing I'm not ready to buy yet!
Great piece on e-books.
First time I've ever seen a rabbit on a leash.
My daughter wants a Kindle, I'm too technology challenged to want one or an ereader. Somehow I don't think they would be good for reading in the bathtub.
candy-
Put the Kindle in a plastic bag.
And holy cow, Amazon needs to do some serious bathtub outreach. That is one persistent misconception.
Batteries in the bathtub, man, let me tell ya, that don't work. I'm about to give up.
jeff-
Wait - how does that not work if the Kindle (and battery) stays completely dry in a bag?
nanosleepmo - ha, ha, ha. You're funny.
So, the discussion this week has tuckered me out (a discussion you handled so beautifully, imho, Nathan.) And here I see you have out-done the out-doing of the out-diding of yourself on links this week. Uh oh.
I can see I'll need to prepare to comment on the links. Some finger push-ups. Nutritious meals and plenty of sleep. Manicure and pedicure. Deep muscle massage. Weekend trip to a full appointment spa. It will be a rigorous training routine, but anything for the team.
Before I go though, I have something extremely important to say: I want a bunny!!!! OMG, so cute, cute, cute, cute, cute.
Btw, Nathan, this was the week you were on the panel, right? I was so distracted by the topic on Wed., I forgot to ask! I hope it went really well, and I hope you blog about it, if you want.
Back to comment on the links - have a fun weekend, everyone!
At one of the trade shows, Amazon had an aquarium, and they were dropping Kindles in waterproof cases into the water.
I think the possibility of losing or breaking a device that still costs a lot more than a book and can access your credit card information is problematic, but the beach/bathtub issue is not a huge issue for dedicated e-readers, though the poor performance of the iPad's backlit LCD in sunlight is a serious drawback.
Nathan, I'm sorry, that was a Friday about three sheets to the wind joke about writer suicide. I'm old, and I have a bad sense of humor. E-book? You can't even kill yourself with it. I guess that's one for those guys they have locked in a room figuring the safety angle of e-books. And an example of a writer thinking everyone can see the interior of his mind and therefore not making writer-sense, and other such things. Love ya! Read ya next week!
Jeff-
Ha. I knew I was missing something!
I like what Jeff Fischer said about him being old and not having a sense of humor. Like aging and a dwindling sense of humor go hand in hand. Hey! We're all getting older everyday! That's not true, is it?
Your post made me smile Jeff Fischer.
The debate over e-books seems to have run out of steam. They came, we saw, they may conquer. So? Like TV their accessibility and convenience is irrefutable; why keep hammering on the subject? When TV became popular, especially with good news reports (once upon a time) newspapers were supposed to die and somehow they survived. Our times are achanging, that's all. Something's got to go now and then or we'd still be buttoning our shoes.
Surely debating the production of ink is beyond time and energy. What's next? What's new? What's going on with cross readers and cross genre books? Let's get back to enjoying our stories and not be doomsday naysayers about the efforts of getting them written and read. If one wants to post and let it be downloaded, go ahead.
I'll hang onto paper copies awhile, awhile.
What I want to know, is this:
If I buy four e-readers (a personal one for every member of my family and one for the family "library.")
If I buy an e-book, can I download it on all of my family e-readers or do I have to buy it four times?
(I know, we could trade e-readers, but I like the idea of having my own and my kid wouldn't take as good of care of hers and my husband's would smell like his peanut butter sandwiches...)
anon-
It depends on which e-reader you go with, but Amazon allows you to share across (I think) six devices with one account. I share one with my wife and we have no problem reading each other's books - she reads on her iPhone and I read on either my iPhone or iPad (and used to read on my Kindle).
I think with Apple it's five but I'm not positive, and B&N has a lend-me feature where you can lend one of your books so someone else with a nook.
Wow, that's sooo cool.
I am thinking how my daughter and I often want to read the same book at the same time and one of us has to wait.
And for being out of town, how cool.
I have been pretty possessive about books leaving my library (and getting lost or mistreated).
My husband wouldn't have to wait for me to come back from Argentina (as an example) to read the book I took with me. Cool.
I am starting to think Christmas.
The Kindle 3 sounds like it's about to sell itself.
Thanks for answering.
(The e-reader people should pay you a commission, Nathan.)
Nathan,
Can you tell me how you can write or take notes on a Kindle 3 too?
anon-
There was note-taking on the old Kindle, so I assume that's been carried through.
I agree that you shoud get a commission Nathan. For the environment, anybody with a heart will make the switch. But, one thing. We readers, that like paper books, are the ones that read instead of, say, going shopping and wasting bags which is worse for the environment. We readers are filling are minds, not wasting away in front of the television, which could ultimately be worse for the environment.
There have always been books; the health of the environment has been compromised in far worse damaging ways. So we readers have to adapt. Hmmm. Well, okay. If it's for the environment.
WEll, if I wasn't always so busy with Nanowrimo, I'd love to take part in Nanoreadmo. Well, I read 6 books this month, so I guess I'm golden.
So, I meditated in an ashram in India. I hiked the mountains of Tibet. I walked on hot coals in the place where you walk on hot coals. All in perparation to respond to Nathan's awesome assortment of links.
I am ready.
(I am also lying. I did none of those things, but I did take an extra long nap on Sunday, which I figure is in the same ballpark.)
First up, Page Critique Friday. Cool. I noticed that people are getting into it on the Forums. Maybe it feels safer or more intimate. And your critique was terrific, as it always is, Nathan.
So, e-books. Yay! I have had the Kindle app for about 3 weeks, and in that time, I've bought twelve books. I'll probably have bought eighteen by tonight, which means two things:
a. I will have saved the enviroment, and
b. I'm going to be broke by the end of August.
I love e-books.
I KNEW Wylie wasn't ready to put Random House under such a strain, at least not yet. I figured he was just holding out for more money. But....I think the key phrase here is....not yet. He's a sharp cookie. I liked Ginna's article alot.
I also like the article about digital devices. That was interesting that looking at funny cat videos wouldn't really rest your mind. But did we really rest our minds that before digital devices anyway? I think we just looked at real cats.
I have no clue what Mike S.'s royalty graph means. What's a trade? What's a wholesale? Why all the complicated jargon? I can't figure it out, so I'm still going on the assumption that if I make 70% royalties on e-books, I make more money that way.
You know, in the article defending literary fiction, it seems like she is giving some authors a hard time for 'selling out.' Why is the idea that authors want to make money too ignored and/or discounted as not important?
Woo hoo! Finally. I'm so glad some women are challenging the male bias in publishing. Yes! I have no actual statistics that it's happening, but OF COURSE IT'S HAPPENING.
Saying all fiction is women's fiction, however....well....maybe there's a way to get more men to read. I wonder if e-books will work better for men.
I don't know. This Barnes and Noble thing seems all distracted by the power struggle, but I sort of feel like the main point is that the bookstore is in trouble.
I can't get the link for Tao Lin to work, but that would be a great discussion.
I definitely think that agents should take on 10 clients each November. Soon, we'll all be represented. I see absolutely no downside to that scenario. I also like the idea of NaNoReadMo.
Good comments of the week - that was a really interesting discussion on Thursday. I found the article by Lisa to be rather touching, actually.
Okay, I'm done. Once again, I have foiled you, Nathan, in your attempt to out-link me. Ha! I am triumphant! I am the Victor! I am the friday-long-post King! I am also going to take a nap.
Hope everyone is having a happy Monday! Thanks for the great links, Nathan.
"environmental benefits of e-books vs. paper books was published by Slate's The Green Lantern. The winner? E-books on every count, provided you read more than 18 books on an iPad and 23 books on a Kindle."
Wow- this is great info, but it makes me sad. I like my paper books. I don't think I can ever give them up.
I don't think it's either paper or ebook... I like to think it's simply more books with more options. I love my paperbacks. I love hardcovers. I also am coming to love my ebooks.
Side note: reading on an iPad is a wonderful experience. Very cool! I hear tell there are rumors of a 7-inch version of the iPad due to come out perhaps by year's end?
And, finally, after a bit of snooping around online, I'm going to predict an upswing in the popularity of tablet devices like the Cruz. I'm already thinking it would make a great gift for my mom. She can read ebooks on it. She can also check her email & FB, and browse the internet, in color, and the price point is right in line with a dedicated ereader. Granted there's a backlit screen, which means glare and eye-irradiation, like any computer screen, and that is a downside, but I think multifunctionality may eventually win out.
My four-year-old goes bonkers over bunnies. She will love this video. Thanks!