Today I am one day late in posting this roundup.
The end of
January creeps up and suddenly the family realises that the summer holiday is
over and school is nearly upon them. Cue plaintive cries for new stationery...
uniforms... and other essential items that earlier in the year they denied they
needed. How did they grow so fast over the last week? Why has one
child lost their school pens before they even got to school? And whoever
invented book covering plastic adhedsive should have a special hell reserved
for them with a stack of schoolbooks, a tearful child and book coverings that
never go on smoothly!
This week in the publishing blogosphere, Chuck and Mike
ruffled feathers over their different takes of the self publishing phenomenon
and the future of bookstores and publishing.
Mike Shatzkin started the week with a blog post on the future of bookstores and the decreasing shelf space for print books. Bookstores
are increasingly going into non-book ‘things’, how will this impact on
publishers and writers in the future. This is interesting reading and there was
a lot of discussion about ebooks and whether selfpublishing print was
sustainable...cue impassioned posts. Mike continued his examination of bookstores and the loss leader of selling cheap books to get consumers into the
store...can this be sustained?
Chuck Wendig was in the gun for daring to state that selfpublishers should do the best writing they can as a service to the readers. He
sees the increasing avalanche of badly published books as bringing down the
status of the industry. He has had an avalanche of comments but some
interesting ideas have come out of it. There was a mini thread looking at
author collectives and the buying power of a group employing editing, cover and
marketing services.
Andrea Phillips wrote a great follow up blog looking at different models of author collectives. Have a read then take a trawl around
her website...WOW
I think an author collective model is where we may be
heading in the future. (I’ve been saying it for years.) It maybe time for the
best parts of the Bloomsbury model to be ressurected...
Porter Anderson has expanded the Ether to a live Twitter
chat called #EtherIssue and this weeks topic was on self publishing where
everyone has a % stake in the book. A lively chat ensued with all sorts of
ideas and facts springing out. This was springboarded from the winning essay in December on the future of Bookselling. It is a brilliant read and was
anonymously done by a publisher from Faber and Faber... a must read.
Another writer springboarding off Chucks blog posts this
week is Ian Rodgers, a music critic, who looked at all the comments comparing the music industry and the publishing industry and decided to set the record straight. This is also a pointer to the way things also might be heading. A
thought provoking read.
The phenomenon, Joanna Penn, was interviewed on her writing life balance and what she would do now if she were just starting out.
It makes interesting reading.
Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi are a phenomenal
twosome. Angela is interviewed on how to co write with another author, across countries...
In the Craft Section,
Revision is on everyones mind...
Elisabeth S Craig on how to tackle big revisions...great
reading.
K M Weiland on when your character is out of character and
crafting great opening lines
Kate Walker from Romance University on cutting for pace...this is a bookmark post.
In the Marketing Section,
The Book Designer.... checking your epub files before publishing, tips and tricks.
Publishing Perspectives has an interesting discussion on
Book trailers. Do you need them?
Website of the week.
Life Hacker and Google tips for the student...Some great
tips in here for the writer!
To Finish,
Leaving a literacy legacy... This is an important issue and
one that is not really talked about but what happens to your literary work
after you are dead. Do you have a literary Power of Attorney? This is a timely
read because your work hopefully will last longer than you will. How do you want
your writing to be treated... and that means your good name as well.
My publishing advice - Do your homework in all facets of the
game. Weigh up which path is right for you and your energy levels. Work on your
writing to make it the best you can. Get it edited by a professional editor.
Whichever publishing path you choose make sure your work is as good as it can
be. Your name is on it and it is your legacy.
Writing is a Craft. Storytelling is an Art. Publishing is a Business. –Chuck Wendig
maureen
Pic from Flickr /Creative Commons/ Schristia
