The word is Russian for “self-publish,” and, according to this piece in the BBC, Russians have incorporated self-publishing into society in an interesting way. The piece focuses primarily on blogging and its usefulness in a country whose citizen have suffered…
Community Printing: We Say Yes When Others Say No
Yesterday morning, a dozen women from Troy’s “Thursday Morning Club” came for a visit and tour. It was a real pleasure to host a group of well-educated women who care about books, literature, literacy, and their community. It also gave…
My Kindle, Sugar-Coated Cyanide
This morning, Shelf Awareness selected a quote from Andrei Codrescu’s recent observation that reading ebooks is a public, even crowded activity. Codrescu made the comment on NPRs “All Things Considered.” “I won’t enumerate each new snare in the house of…
The Accidental (Kindle) Millionaire
This post from Kiri Blakeley at Forbes ((Who Wants to be a (Kindle) Millionaire?)) offers a brief but accurate look at some of the changes in publishing, changes that encourage today’s writers to consider the power of Kindle. The industry…
Sincerity and Good Will in Self-Publishing
Today there were two different authors who came to pick up their book projects, and each was genuinely grateful, even overwhelmed, their projects were finally done. To say thank you, one author brought a signed copy of his first self-published…
Susan Novotny Working to Open Indies Where Chains Once Reigned
Publishers Weekly wrote a good overview of Susan Novotny’s latest book business venture. She and another indie owner, David Didriksen, are “opening” Wakefield Books in Rhode Island, in a former Waldenbooks space. The thinking behind the venture recognizes that good…
The New York Times Book Review Includes eBooks
This weekend, the New York Times Book Review included eBook sales. A historic moment! At the bottom of the listings, there is an explanation of their methodology, and how sales are calculated. On a “sad” note, Borders will likely be announcing…
Book Expo America (BEA)
It’s that time of year when the book industry begins gearing up for its signature event, Book Expo. As reported in Publisher’s Weekly this morning, this year’s BEA is set for May 24-26 at the Javitz Center in NYC. Click…
Save the Date for The National Book Festival
Plans are underway for the 2011 National Book Festival in Washington, DC, sponsored by the Library of Congress. Last year, the festival celebrated its 10th anniversary. This year, the festival has been extended to two days (Sept. 24-25). Bookmark their…
The Act of Turning Pages
This morning I saw a cute skyscraper ad from Chronicle Books placed along the sidebar of Shelf Awareness. It said “Press Here.” So I did. (Try it.) What a great way to keep kids engaged with the act of turning pages!…