In the midst of the debt-ceiling debacle, Congress surprised publishers and retailers by taking unexpected action and actually getting something right. The House of Representatives passed an amendment to the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) by 421-2 that excludes regular printed children's books and learning materials from the lead-content testing requirements that are due to take effect shortly. The Senate quickly approved the same measure by voice vote before adjourning, sending the bill on to President Obama for signing into law.
The amendment has been three years in the making, and its quick passage was a happy surprise to supporters. The amendment also makes clear the CPSIA applies only to new products, further relieving pressure on sellers of used goods, libraries and others. Most coverage so far focuses on all-terrain vehicles for kids, which were also exempted along with bicycles and used kids products.
The AAP's Allan Adler said in a statement the passage "resolves a problem that has vexed the Consumer Product Safety Commission since CPSIA was enacted in 2008: the inadvertent inclusion of ordinary books and similar materials in its all-inclusive definition of 'children's products' requiring testing for exposure to lead."
AAP release

Mariam Kobras, author of the upcoming The Distant Shore takes on Lynchburg VA

Mariam continues her reading tour of the US on YouTube!

AAP Monthly Sales Report: Digital Climbs 147%

All major adult print segments—hardcover, paperback and mass market—showed a decline in sales in May, according to the AAP’s monthly sales report. While e-books showed a steep uptick of 146.9% for the month, bringing in $73.4 million in sales, adult hardcovers dropped 38.2%, adult paperbacks dropped 14.3%, and adult mass market fell 39.4%. For the calendar year, e-books brought in $389.7 million in sales, a 160.1% climb over the same period 2010.

The few bright spots for the month, on the print side, came from YA paperbacks, which saw an uptick of 4.7% for the month; university press paperbacks, up 3.4%; and religion books, which were up 21.6%.

Who wouldn't love this?

I thought I'd take a break from the usual writing tips and publishing news to share this cool hideaway with you. How many ways can I say I love it? Well, maybe not the colors. Greys aren't really flattering to my complexion. I think some of the pillows should be bigger/thicker too.
So, here's my question for you: What would you change/not change about this reading hideout?
Share your thoughts!

10 things you might not know about punctuation

From an article by Mark Jacob and Stephan Benzkofer
in the Chicago Tribune 

12:22 p.m. CDT, July 18, 2011

There was big news on the punctuation front a few weeks ago: an unfounded rumor that the Oxford University Press was getting rid of the "serial comma." That's the final comma in a series, as used in most books but few newspapers. (The Tribune would write "blood, sweat and tears"; most books would write "blood, sweat, and tears.") If the uproar confounds you, read on: 

First of all, let's explain why the serial comma is important to some people. A blog on economist.com cites an apocryphal example: "I'd like to thank my parents, Ayn Rand and God." Without a comma after "Rand," the writer has a mighty unusual parentage.

Maybe it's not surprising that New York City, capital of the U.S. publishing industry, has plenty of lore about semicolons. When former Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia was annoyed by an overeducated bureaucrat, he used the insult "semicolon boy." When the Son of Sam killer put a semicolon in a note, police speculated he might be a freelance journalist. (Killer David Berkowitz was a security guard and cabdriver.)

Union Gen. Joe Hooker got his nickname because a newspaper printer left out a dash. The label headline that was supposed to read "Fighting — Joe Hooker" became "Fighting Joe Hooker." He hated it, but it stuck.

It could be said that the first blow that led to the Russian Revolution was over punctuation. Moscow printers went on strike in 1905, insisting they be paid for typing punctuation marks as well as letters. That led to a general strike across the country and to Czar Nicholas II granting Russia its first constitution.

Punctuation marks arranged to form smiley faces or sad faces may be common in today's digital communication, but emoticons predate texting and the Internet. Puck magazine published such typographical art in 1881.

The most rudimentary punctuation is the dot between words. Romans' ancient texts often ran together without spaces using all capital letters, which meant readers had to start decoding from the first line every time. The introduction of the dot suddenly rendered a block of text legible. The dot between words and numbers engraved on buildings is a legacy of this.

Playwright George Bernard Shaw hated apostrophes, writing: "There is not the faintest reason for persisting in the ugly and silly trick of peppering pages with these uncouth bacilli."

Unnecessary use of quotation marks drives some people so "batty" that they have "posted" more than 1,000 examples of "quotation mark abuse" on the photo sharing site Flickr. Our favorites are signs reading: "Cleaning lady 'available'" and "Best 'food' on 'Route 66.'"

People get awfully philosophical about punctuation. Said author Kurt Vonnegut: "When Hemingway killed himself he put a period at the end of his life; old age is more like a semicolon." Comedian Gracie Allen is credited with the aphorism "Never place a period where God has placed a comma."

In 1899, French poet Alcanter de Brahm proposed an "irony mark" (point d'ironie) that would signal that a statement was ironic. The proposed punctuation looked like a question mark facing backward at the end of a sentence. But it didn't catch on. No one seemed to get the point of it, ironically.

Mark Jacob is a deputy metro editor at the Tribune; Stephan Benzkofer is the newspaper's weekend editor.

Mystery Times Ten 2011 Has Landed!

The UPS man just delivered the first print run of Mystery times Ten and here's the first box

 And here it is!

Author's copies will be shipping tomorrow, everyone else will have to wait a few more days.

From Publisher's Weekly Fall Book Announcement Issue

The Distant Shore
http://tinyurl.com/6aqp3q9
and
Mystery Times Ten
http://tinyurl.com/6ejg2xg
Our apologies to the authors of Mystery Times Ten, apparently they listed the Editor's name in place of the actual writers . . .the price listed is also incorrect, but information had to be submitted months ago.

Pre-order The Distant Shore or Mystery Times Ten Today!

Just click on the link for the book you want (on the right) and you'll be set to receive the book as soon as it's released!

Print Book Sales Fall 10% in Six Months, According to Nielsen BookScan

Total unit sales of print books sold through the outlets whose sales are captured by Nielsen BookScan (approximately 70% of the marketplace) dropped 10.2% in the six month period ended July 3, falling to 307.1 million. Among categories, the biggest decline came in adult fiction with units off 25.7%, while  mass market paperback had the steepest decline among formats with units down 26.6% in the period. BookScan totals cover about 75% of the outlets where print books are sold. For a more complete report, see Monday's issue of Publishers Weekly.

Mariam Kobras' Reading Tour Hits Vancouver!

Mariam had her first reading in Vancouver this past week!

Good books, good friends, good food. What more could anyone ask for?

Stayed tuned-Mariam will be heading toward Seattle WA next!

Proof of Mystery Times Ten is on it's way!

The printer's proof was shipped today and should be here Tues at the latest. (Darn Holiday!) If all is okay we will be on press next week with finished books in hand here following week! I want to thank all the authors for their submissions-and their patience!

Mystery Times Ten Nearing Completion!

The files for the book have been edited, laid out, proofed, corrected and were sent off to the printer today!

Woo Hoo!

CELEBRATE SAVE YOUR LOCAL BOOKSHOP DAY 6/25!

Today's the day, so RUN, don't walk to your local bookshop and load up on some summer reading for the long, lazy days ahead! Where will we be shopping? Stop by The Raconteur Bookshop in Metuchen NJ and you might just run into us! Don't just sit there - get going, there's bookshops to save! NOW!

Today's DEFINITELY a Better Day!

* Photo Copyright John Harmon

Digital Jumps, Print Plunges in AAP Monthly Sales Report

Sales of the three adult trade segments had a steep decline in April, hurt no doubt by Borders and its going out of business sales. The major houses, who are among the publishers that report to AAP’s monthly sales report, were shipping selectively to Borders on a cash basis during the month and received no money generated by the GOB sales of existing inventory. As a result, sales of adult hardcover fell by 22.7% in April from the 19 companies that report to AAP, while trade paperback sales at 21 houses fell 25.4%. Sales of mass market paperback, for which Borders is an important outlet, plunged 41.6% for the 11 reporting houses. Sales in the children’s/YA segment rose 1.5% in April from 18 houses, but children’s/YA paperback sales declined 7.2%.

 

E-book sales had another strong month, with sales up 157.5%, to $72.8 million from 22 reporting companies. The increase, however, was not enough to offset declines in the print sector and as a result combined print and digital sales of trade books fell 10% at the reporting companies in the month.

 

For the first four months of the year, the sales decline was less severe. E-book sales were up 162.9% for the period, to $312.9 million, while print sales in the five trade segments were down 18.7%, leading to an overall decline of 4% in the first four months of 2011.

Not Saying it Was a Bad Day, But . . .

Bear Drops in on Us

Bear Sightings In Metuchen, N.J.: MyFoxNY.com

Montana deep woods are calling. . . .

The Last Track: A Mike Brody Novel (Kindle Edition) This is a fast paced action-thriller and Mike Brody a first-class tracker. Brooklyn born and raised, 14 year old Sean Jackson witnessed a murder near the Pine Woods Ranch in Montana and the killers want him dead. Sean is on the run and becomes lost in Montana's deep woods. Mike Brody and his family (Jessica and Andy), also guests at the dude ranch, become instrumental in searching for Sean and identifying the murdered victim. Ranch employees and/or local Police Officers do not want the Brody family to succeed and they do not want Sean Jackson found alive. Who should be trusted - Officer Dagget? Detective Lisbeth? Pine Woods Ranch owner, Erich? DEA Agent Crotty?

*a recent 5 star review on Amazon by  S. Ackerman

8 Ways to Develop Better Relationships with Bloggers

By Fauzia Burke, Founder and President, FSB Associates
 
When authors come to me and say, “I want to reach book bloggers or mommy bloggers,” I often have to tell them that bloggers have very specific tastes. More specific than you probably realize. For example, when reaching out to mommy bloggers, it is really important to know the age of their kids. Pitching a YA novel to a mommy blogger with a baby won’t get you far. Pitching a Sci-Fi novel to a blogger that loves historical romance won’t work either. Sending a WWII book to a blogger that covers the Civil War will make for a cranky blogger, and sending a press release to the wrong person may actually get you black listed.
So here are some tips to help you develop better relationships with bloggers.

Know Their Beat

The best piece of advice to any publicist trying to build a relationship with bloggers is to build it through mutual respect, trust, and consistency. Make sure you know the blogger’s focus and area of interest.

Search for Blogs

If you are looking for bloggers, try Alltop, Technorati, or Google Blogsearch. Another interesting but time-consuming site is called Listorious; it helps you search for people and lists on Twitter.
At FSB, we have also set up a directory where book bloggers are listed by category. Each book blogger has registered and submitted the information themselves and others are welcome to join. The directory is available for free to everyone – bloggers and publicists alike.

Value of Bloggers

It’s good to know the traffic of blogs, but don’t dismiss bloggers with less traffic. It is important to look at the “full reach” of a blogger. Sometimes blog features from smaller blogs can generate more chatter on social networks. It’s a good idea to follow them on Twitter and “Like” them on Facebook to check out their social networks. Some bloggers post reviews on multiple sites so they can be more valuable for that reason alone. Remember also, that placements on niche sites (with less traffic) can sometimes be more effective than placements on a large general interest site.
There isn’t a consistent way to get traffic information for every type of blog. However, here are a few tips: You can always see the number of people that are subscribed to an RSS feed (usually listed on each blog website); another way is to use a web tool like Compete or Alexa, but unfortunately these tools don’t keep traffic for all blogs; and lastly you could always check out a blog’s advertising info or media kit.

Make Things Easier

Understanding the needs of bloggers will help you work with them. Make note of the type of coverage they have. Do they like to interview authors, review books, do raffles or post guest blogs? Then make sure you send them the materials they need in a timely fashion.
Because bloggers need quality content often, we have set up a website just for bloggers called FSB Media. Bloggers can request review copies plus “grab” quality content from published authors. We make sure we have permission already in place so bloggers can feature the content on their site with ease.

Approach Bloggers One at a Time

Every time I say that, people either roll their eyes in disbelief or try to sell me on the benefits of mail merge. Here’s the honest truth: you are better off reaching out to 50 bloggers one at a time than 500 via mail merge. You’ll actually get better results. Is it time consuming and labor intensive? You bet. Is it worth it? Yes!

Don’t Push

Without follow-up nothing will come of your pitching, so you need to find time to follow up and develop skills in asking without being pushy or rude. Every good publicist needs to master the delicate art of begging.

Represent Good Content

Don’t send out press releases, articles, or op-eds that are not written well. Make sure the content that leaves your hands always looks professional and does not have spelling or grammatical mistakes.
There are a few endorsements from bloggers on our site, and I read them as market research for this piece. Many of them noted that being consistent and professional is important to them.

Perfect Your Publicity Database

All of these tips are good and fine, but unless you make some changes to your contact database, these tips will be difficult to implement. At FSB, we have several fields in our custom-designed database that help us develop relationships with bloggers.  We record when the contact was added, by whom, and any notes about their likes and dislikes. We also keep track of all the books sent to every blogger and which ones featured our books. This practice allows us to learn more about the blogger with every interaction and only send them the books he/she would be inclined to cover.
I hope these tips help you develop better long-term relationships with bloggers. A couple of years ago, I wrote a blog on The Huffington Post called Book Bloggers Rock! where I thanked them for their hard work and dedication to books and authors. I stand by that idea and encourage publicists and publishers to change internal publicity systems to develop an ongoing dialogue and relationship with bloggers.
Fauzia Burke is the Founder and President of FSB Associates, a publicity and website development firm specializing in creating awareness for books and authors on the web. For web publicity and social media news, follow Fauzia on Twitter: @FauziaBurke.

Read more at DigitalBookWorld.com: 8 Ways to Develop Better Relationships with Bloggers | Digital Book World http://www.digitalbookworld.com/2011/8-ways-to-develop-better-relationships-with-bloggers/#ixzz1OoY0xvKG

Book Video: Not an Oxymoron Anymore

By Rich Fahle, Founder, Astral Road Media There’s an ongoing discussion in the publishing business about the value of book trailers; the short, promotional videos often produced as part of the marketing campaign to support a book’s big release.
Even if you’re a big reader, it’s possible that you’ve never seen a book trailer before. Unlike their better-known cousins from Hollywood, there are no established forums or venues dedicated to the viewing and discussion of book trailers. No packed movie houses, no IMDB, Rotten Tomatoes or Apple trailer sites for books, no DVD releases to target a receptive viewing audience. Not in the book biz—at least not yet.
Instead, to find a book trailer today, you’ll likely have to visit an author’s website or Facebook page, which mean you’re probably already familiar with the author and their book. Perhaps you’ll notice a video on the book’s Amazon.com title detail page or one of the other online retail sites. Or, if the trailer is particularly well-done and engaging, it may even break through the noise and go viral, eventually finding its way to your inbox or social media channel of choice.
At this stage however, despite the fact that there are a lot of trailers being produced, there’s not a corresponding buzz among booklovers for them. And if we’re being honest, book trailers often lack the pass-along factor because many of these videos are, well, not very good.
But that’s not to say that there haven’t been some very successful book trailer videos, at least in terms of overall views. The video for the spoofish Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter by Seth Grahame-Smith was a big viral hit, generating more than 600,000 views and counting. An author that I’ve worked with, Kelly Corrigan, helped catapult her book, The Middle Place to The New York Times bestseller list in 2009 with her heartfelt video, Transcending, now at 4.7 million views. I still smile at the book video we created for Kelly in honor of Mother’s Day, You Never Stop Being a Mom.
In his recent Video-Commerce.org post, Grant Crowell profiled Pastor Rob Bell’s trailer for his new book, Love Wins, which has generated more than 200,000 views along with a good deal of discussion and debate. Clearly, when done well, book trailers are more than capable of earning their keep.
Yet, despite the power of the video medium and the low barriers to entry for anyone who wants to take advantage of video’s powerful reach, the debate rages on about video’s value in book marketing.
Why is it, in an era when more and more industries are embracing video as a marketing fundamental, within a publishing business that is itself rooted in media, and where many of the biggest publishers are in fact owned by large media companies themselves, should there be even the slightest reluctance to embrace video as a key marketing ingredient?

A Narrow View of Video

Cost is rightfully an important consideration for anyone entertaining the video option for the first time. Indeed, fully scripted, costumed segments with actors and elaborate sets like those used in the Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter video will definitely cost more than, for example, the simple, home camera-style shoot of Kelly Corrigan’s Transcending video, both linked above. I’ve also heard people claim that a trailer is “too long,” poorly acted or just plain boring—legitimate concerns, all.
But I believe that the bigger reason for the reluctance lies in publishing’s narrow embrace of video to date—and the over-emphasis on the “trailer” form itself.
The trailer idea is borrowed from a different industry entirely, one with it’s own target audience assumptions, value equations, and requirements relating to artistic approach. With movie trailers, we’ve come to expect a 30-60-second duration, the need to take your breath away in a short period of time, and the inclusion of a pithy, action-packed-thrill-ride-style quote from one of the critics. In short, everything encapsulated in the now infamous trailer intro, “In a world….”
But for anyone involved in maximizing the full potential of video, why limit its power and reach by inflicting another industry’s set of specific rules on your efforts? Or put another way, why borrow someone else’s video strategy when you can make a better one yourself?
When you let go of the narrow application, and think of the possibilities video brings to authors and content creators of all types, the value equation can change radically. When instead applied to the individual strengths of an author or expert and not simply to the sole act of selling a book at release time, video becomes more than just an expensive, gimmicky, 30-second commercial: It becomes an extension of the conversation—and likely far more interesting to that author’s niche audience, as well.

Understanding the Full Potential

Clearly, there are many authors and content creators who are embracing the new, more expansive canvas available to them now. Beyond just text on paper, these authors are expanding the definition of what it means to be author and providing an example to others similarly drawn to the idea of connecting with fans more immediately, where they are, and in the stream of their daily lives:
Gretchen Rubin is the author of The Happiness Project, a memoir of her year she spent sampling theories, studies and pop culture lessons about how to be happier. But beyond the printed book, Gretchen also created an ongoing dialogue using her blog, Facebook and Twitter sites, and YouTube channel. She frequently sits down to talk to her hundreds of thousands of fans and share her insights with short, inexpensive video missives. The result? The conversation continues, her reach grows, and yes, just last week, the paperback edition of her book reached #1 on the The New York Times bestseller list. For Gretchen, video is another arrow in her quiver, but certainly an important part of creating a human connection that we can see and share and trust.

John Green is the author of the Printz Award-winning book Looking for Alaska, Paper Towns, and other books. Together with his brother Hank, John created the Vlogbrothers YouTube channel, where the two brothers chat back and forth by video. It seems to be working: 140 million views later, the conversation rolls on, as do the popularity of the Green brothers, whose Nerdfighters.com website provides another connection point for their videos. Occasionally, fellow author Maureen Johnson, recently named one of Time Magazine’s 140 Best Twitter Feeds, joins John and Hank and provides her own videos, much to the delight of her fans, who follow and converse with Maureen on a daily basis.
When it comes to selecting authors who use video effectively, Gary Vaynerchuk is low-hanging fruit. One of the pioneers of the online video series genre with Wine Library TV, he’s recently launched a new wine program, The Daily Grape—along with two bestselling books, Crush It! and his newest big seller, The Thank You Economy. Besides his daily programs, Gary regularly takes to his UStream channel for live, impromptu conversations with his fans, which he blends with Twitter for a more interactive experience.
None of these videos required a large production budget. Most did not include a script or costumes. All connect with viewers in a way that is different than a trailer and that provide a fan connection on a regular basis.

Don’t Leave Perfectly Great Content on the Table.

Thoughtful video has an incredible ability to evoke passion, make you laugh, tell a story, engage your senses, and get you excited—in short, all the things that books do in text format. To be sure, not all authors will see themselves in these video examples. But other video opportunities exist for each book, for each author, for each audience. Seeing these opportunities requires creating a strategy unique to your business and your audience.
As anybody with an iPad or Kindle can tell you, the digital shift is creating a massive disruption in the book industry, and new reading devices are paving the way for new opportunities for publishers. Ebooks, apps, and other digital advances are opening the door for publishers to provide broader access to their authors, beyond the printed text, whether in physical or ebook form. Transmedia presentations, combining text, audio, video, and other communication forums, are slowly making their way into the consciousness of readers and browsers. Many authors are pushing the boundaries of their craft to the point where the term “writer” might soon be an insufficient designation.
As the platform expands then, why should a publisher, that spends enormous time and resources cultivating new talent, limit their curation and distribution expertise to only the part of the project that can be typeset?
In the book world that I see crashing through the ceiling, every publisher will be required to be a full-fledged media company, complete with a robust and creative video production division—or a partner that can capably develop this important extension of the author platform.
The lessons of the publishing industry go beyond books, obviously. Video, with its incredible ability to tell a story and complement other storytelling formats, will play a critical part in the marketing and presentation of every major business in the future. For each business, the strategy will be different, and each company must avoid looking at video through the lens of how it’s been done before, by other people in other industries for somebody else’s audience.

This article was originally published at Video-Commerce.org and has been reprinted here with Mr. Fahle’s permission.

Rich Fahle is the founder of Astral Road Media, a full-service digital media agency for authors, artists and content creators of all types. He is the former Vice President of Content, Digital Outreach and Entertainment for Borders. More info at www.astralroad.com or @richfahle on Twitter.

Read more at DigitalBookWorld.com: Book Video: Not an Oxymoron Anymore | Digital Book World http://www.digitalbookworld.com/2011/book-video-not-an-oxymoron-anymore/#ixzz1OA29Z9qE

SAVE YOUR LOCAL BOOKHOP DAY, June 25th!

We received this note and  now we are passing it along to all of you because we care, and we hope you do too!

"Hi everyone,

I’ve gotten sick of reading the bookstore obituaries in the publishing news, so I’m starting a viral campaign to get people, on one day, to go buy books from their local bookstore. Might not end up changing the tides, but it’s something small I can do and I’m getting a good response so far. Here are the details for you to pass on to your friends/family/fellow booklovers:

Who: You and all the book-lovers in your life
When: June 25th, the first Saturday of Summer!
Where: Your local bookstore
Why: Because bookstores are dropping like flies and we want them to stay alive

Thanks for passing this along to whomever you think would want to get on board.

Warmest,
Kelly

Kelly Sonnack
Andrea Brown Literary Agency


Prefer to read on your *!*%$ (I left out a blank, blank word from Bailey) Walmazart Kindle? Then buy a book for a book-lover you know!

Mark your calendars! DO IT!"

You heard the lady - Just DO IT!

Liberty Media Offers to Buy Barnes & Noble

After an investigation of strategic options begun by Barnes & Noble's board last summer, today after the close of the market the company announced an offer from a prospective buyer. The special committee of the board charged with evaluating offers said that John Malone's Liberty Media has offered $17 per share in cash to acquire control of the company. But "the proposal states that it is contingent on the participation of founding chairman Leonard Riggio, both in terms of his continuing equity ownership and his continuing role in management." The committee says it "will evaluate this proposal" along with financial advisors Lazard Freres.

Last October Riggio said he "remains open and flexible towards any solution which is good for all stockholders." At the time he reaffirmed, "...should an interested investor or group of investors desire me to be part of a group, I will consider such participation, and if I decide to participate with any investor or group, I will negotiate in good faith on matters of governance and control. It is not necessary for me to be the controlling shareholder of such a group."

The announcement is preliminary--the company "cautions" that "the proposal from Liberty Media has not yet been evaluated by the special committee and its advisors." And they do "not intend to comment further regarding this proposal or the company’s evaluation of strategic alternatives, unless a specific transaction is recommended."

But shares jumped in after-market trading on the news, rising almost 19 percent to 16.73 after closing regular trading at $14.11 per share. While it's a little premature, it's pretty clear the market believes this is the beginning of bidding for the bookseller, not the end, with the expectation of higher offers to come. (Barnes & Noble is heavily shorted as well, so an offer like this will drive the price up quickly as those shorts get covered.) Ron Burkle, the single largest holder of Barnes & Noble stock after Riggio with just under 20 percent of the company's shares, purchased most of that block at $20 a share and above. In testimony last July in his campaign to overturn the company's poison pill plan, Burkle had testified that he considered--but then decided against--making his own offer for the company at $25 a share.

The stock has been on a roller-coaster of sentiment, rising to almost $19 a share in February as Borders was heading to bankruptcy, and crashing to historic lows of $8.77 a share less than two months later, before climbing back in May, helped by reports of a new ereader announcement for next week. (As previously disclosed, I bought shares back recently, and still hold most of those purchases.)

Liberty Media is a conglomerate and investment vehicle which owns Starz and QVC and substantial online and ecommerce companies among other things.

*From an article in Publisher's Lunch

Traditional Book Output Up 5%; Nontraditional Soars

Despite the belief in many quarters that the growth of e-books will mean the death of the printed book, the number of books produced by traditional publishers rose 5% in 2010, to a projected 316,480, according to preliminary figures released Wednesday morning from R. R. Bowker. That number, however, is dwarfed by the growth in output of nontraditional titles, which jumped 169% to 2,766,260. As Bowker notes, the majority of nontraditional titles consists largely or print-on-demand editions of public domain titles. Self-published titles are also included in the figure. Based on the preliminary figures, the combination of traditional and nontraditional books totaled a projected 3,092,740 in 2010, up 132% from 2010.

 

Similar to trends in 2009, growth among the traditional categories in 2010 was led by the information segments with title output in the computer segment up 51%, science 37% and technology 35%. Segments more more dependent on disposable income had the largest declines in the year with production down in literature (29%) poetry (15%), history (12%), and biography (12%). Production of fiction titles fell 3%, but at 47,392 it still remained the largest segment.

 

Nontraditional output was dominated by largely reprint houses of public domain titles. BiblioBazaar produced a staggering 1,461,918 books with ISBN numbers last year, followed by General Books, which did 744,376 books, and Kessinger Publishing with 462,480 books. The self-publisher companies were topped by CreateSpace at 34,243, followed by Lulu at 11,127. Two AuthorSolutions divisions were next—Xlibris at 10,680, and AuthorHouse, which produced 8,502 books. 

 

The juvenile category was the largest segment after fiction and production fell 1%, to 32,638 titles; sociololgy/economics production increased 8%, to 28,991, while the 37% increase in science production put output at 21,414. Religion was in fifth spot with 19,793 titles, a drop of 4%.

 

Since 2002, the production of traditional books as increased 47%, while nontraditional titles rose 8,460%.

 

*from PW Daily

So you've finished your first draft, now what?

I recently got an email from a writer who had just finished their first draft of a novel. Some friends had read it and recommended they try and get it published. They wrote to me asking if I could give them a few suggestions on how to go about it. What made me really love their email was this-they also asked me what sorts of things they should avoid! YAY!

Here was my reply:

Where to start?


Edit, edit edit! Then when you think you're done, hire a professional editor to go over it again!

While you're doing those edits, spend some time figuring out who your target audience is. Age, what they read, what they like. You will need to be conversant on this when you pitch your story to an agent or publisher. It will also help you narrow the field when you are researching agents/publishers. You will want one that is successful at approaching this audience. It sounds simple, but this can take some real time and thought.

When you have an idea of your audience you can start checking out LMP (Literary Market Place). You can sign up online for it, or most larger libraries will have the latest copy in their reference section. Now is where you start looking for an agent/publisher. Another good tool is the latest edition of Writer's Market.

Things you will need before you ever send out your first query:

A short marketing hook - statement/plan for your book. Who is it aimed at and why will they want to buy it? How will you participate in this plan.

They will want to know if you have:
A website/blog, a twitter account and Facebook page. If you don't have all of these , now's the time to get them set up and start reaching out to that future audience of yours! What online chat groups (related to your book/genre) do you participate in?

You will need an outline of the book, and a synopsis (no more than 300 words) of the story. Don't worry about giving away endings - they want to know how and what happens in the story before they commit to read it. They deal with hundreds of submissions a month and have no time to waste on trying to guess whether your story is worth further investigation. They'll just skip on to someone else. It's best to prepare both of these as some will want one, some the other.

A brief bio - 2-4 sentences tops. Here's your chance to shine-include the writing groups you belong to, magazines/books that have published your articles-generally anything that helps them get a sense of what you bring to the table.

A complete manuscript that includes a VERY polished first 5 chapters. In all likelihood they will ask that you send the first 3-5 chapters with your query letter. Make sure you have a professional editor go over your manuscript with a fine tooth comb BEFORE you start the query process. (I know I said that before, but it bears repeating!) Agents/Editors who see too many grammatical errors, misspellings, or misused words will quickly file your letter in the round file (trash).

And please don't say things like 'all my friends (or family) love it'. Friends and family are rarely objective and are already a guaranteed sale. And unless your brother or sister is the Book Reviewer at the New York Times, agents/editors just don't care.

When your ready to write that query letter at last, stop and do some more research. Books like How To Write a Bulletproof Query can be a great help.

Hope this helps.
Good luck!

Oh, and if/when that first rejection letter rolls in - check this list of famous authors and how many rejection letters they got before they sold their first story!
http://www.dailywritingtips.com/famous-books-rejected-multiple-times/

And the Winners are . . .

We had over 200 entries in our competition and we'd like to thank all of them for participating. It was a tough job for our judges, but they persevered and have chosen what they feel are the ten best submissions. The lucky ten authors will have their stories included in the upcoming Mystery Times Ten.

All winners of our 2011 Mystery Times Ten YA Short Story Competition will
receive:

Two (2) copies of the finished book and the opportunity to “fast track” their next Young Adult or Middle Grade manuscript with our Editorial staff

And they are:

Johanna Harness for her story Cherry Bomb

Jessica Souders for her story Toothless

Kirsty Logan for her story Sea of Trees 

Elyse Dinh-McCrillis for her story Submerged

Kathleen Sprayberry for her story Falsely Accused

Barb Goffman for her story Truth and Consequences

Melanie Cummins for her story Frost 


AND the Top Three Winners are:

• The THIRD PLACE winner who will also receive a $75 Gift Card, featured placement in the book, and a Buddhapuss Ink tote filled with swag is Addie King for her story Poltergeist on Aisle Fourteen.

• The SECOND PLACE winner who will also receive a $100 Gift Card, featured placement in the book, and a Buddhapuss Ink tote filled with swag is Wendy Sparrow for her story Passing Notes.

AND a drum roll please!

• The FIRST PLACE winner who will also receive a NEW Kindle, featured placement in the book, and a Buddhapuss Ink tote filled with swag is Cecilia Dominic for her story The Coral Temple.

Congratulations to all our winners and a huge thanks to our Judges:

YA Book Blogger Panel:

• Danielle Smith, aka The1stdaughter from the children's book review site There's A Book, is a reader, reviewer and writer of books of all varieties.

• Gina Reba - Gina is the "insatiable reader" behind the site, Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers.  Gina is an avid book reader, reviewer, and general lover of the written word.

• Kristina Guidroz - Kris also known as the Cajun Book Lady where she reviews her favorite genres young adult, paranormal/fantasy, romance, and horror.

YA Teen Panel

• Caleb G 
• Connor M
• Katy H
• Jessica G
• Madison M 

 And our fantastic Editorial Review Panel

• Erica Sommer Karcher - Erica works for Baker & Taylor's Children's and Teens Services and writes reviews for Visual Bookshelf. 

• Joan Apgar - Joan worked for a major book wholesaler for 26 years, 15 of those as a Children's and YA Book Buyer.

• Ellen Myrick - Ellen has over two decades experience in the Children's and YA book field and runs Myrick Marketing & Media LLC.  

 We will have much more about our Judges and our winners in the book and on our website soon. Let's have a round of applause for them all!

Kindle Teams with OverDrive to Lend Library Books

Amazon announced this morning that Kindle owners will soon be able to borrow books from public libraries. Working with vendor OverDrive, which manages e-book lending for the vast majority of public libraries, the deal will make thousands of titles available via more than 11,000 of OverDrive’s public library partners. To date, Kindle has been noticeably absent from library lending, as OverDrive's service worked only with ePub-enabled devices, including the Sony Reader, the Nook, iPads, and smartphones. Amazon officials said that with Kindle Library Lending, library-ebooks managed by OverDrive will now be available for all generations of Kindle devices and for use with free Kindle reading apps on most other devices, including Android, iPad, iPod touch, iPhone, PC, Mac, BlackBerry, or Windows Phone.

The deal is a major score for OverDrive, and for libraries, which have posted impressive circulation numbers over the last year as e-readers and e-books have surged in popularity, and demand for library e-books has surged with it. In 2010, OverDrive reported a 200% increase in library e-book checkouts over 2009, with more than 718 million book and title catalog pages viewed, and more that 15 million digital check-outs of nearly 400,000 titles. Since Christmas, 2010, OverDrive officials say checkouts have jumped further, and are already approaching 2010’s annual total—especially impressive figures that are likely to increase  further with the addition of the Kindle, the most popular reading device. “We hear librarians and patrons rave about Kindle,” said Steve Potash, CEO, OverDrive, “so we are thrilled that we can be part of bringing library books to the unparalleled experience of reading on Kindle."

Of course, not every title available for purchase in the Kindle will be available for lending. Major publishers like Macmillan and Simon & Schuster still do not sell e-books to libraries. The Kindle Lending Library will launch “later this year.”

*From an article by  Andrew Albanese in PW Daily

E-Books Rank as #1 Format among All Trade Categories for February

by Andi Sporkin
April 14, 2011; New York, NY-- Powerful continuing growth of books on digital platforms--both e-Books and Downloaded Audiobooks--are highlights of the February 2011 sales report of the Association of American Publishers, which is being released today.
The report, produced by the trade association of the U.S. book publishing industry, tracks monthly and year-to-date publishers’ net sales revenue in all categories of commercial, education, professional and scholarly books and journals.
According to the February results, once again e-Books have enjoyed triple-digit percentage growth, 202.3%, vs February 2010. Downloaded Audiobooks, which have also seen consistent monthly gains, increased 36.7% vs last February.
For February 2011, e-Books ranked as the #1 format among all categories of Trade publishing (Adult Hardcover, Adult Paperback, Adult Mass Market, Children’s/Young Adult Hardcover, Children’s/Young Adult Paperback).
This one-month surge is primarily attributed to a high level of strong post-holiday e-Book buying, or “loading,” by consumers who received e-Reader devices as gifts. Experts note that the expanded selection of e-Readers introduced for the holidays and the broader availability of titles are factors.
Additionally, Trade publishing houses cite e-Books as generating fresh consumer interest in--and new revenue streams for--“backlist” titles, books that have been in print for at least a year. Many publishers report that e-Book readers who enjoy a newly-released book will frequently buy an author’s full backlist.
For the year to date (January/February 2011 vs January/February 2010), which encompasses this heavy post-holiday buying period, e-Books grew 169.4% to $164.1M while the combined categories of print books fell 24.8% to $441.7M.*
According to Tom Allen, President and Chief Executive Officer of AAP, “The February results reflect two core facts: people love books and publishers actively serve readers wherever they are. The public is embracing the breadth and variety of reading choices available to them. They have made e-Books permanent additions to their lifestyle while maintaining interest in print format books.”
Allen added that book publishers have been leaders among content providers in identifying and serving new audiences. “Publishers have always strategically expanded into all the markets and formats where readers want to find books, whether it was Trade Paperback, Mass Market or now digital. By extending their work as developers, producers and marketers of high-quality content to emerging technologies, publishers are constantly redefining the timeless concept of ‘books.’”
Other highlights in the February 2011 report (all February 2011 vs February 2010 unless otherwise noted):

Digital categories:
E-Book sales were $90.3 Million, growing 202.3% vs February 2010. Downloaded Audiobooks were $6.9M, an increase of 36.7%.

Trade categories:
Adult Trade categories combined (Hardcover, Paperback and Mass Market) were $156.8M, down 34.4%. Children’s/Young Adult categories combined (Hardcover and Paperback) were $58.5M, a decline of 16.1%

*Year-to-date 2011 vs YTD 2010: E-Books increased by 169.4% while all categories combined of print Trade books declined by 24.8%

Religious books:
February sales of $48.5M were an increase of 5.5%; this reflects growth as well in the category for year-to-date, up 6.1% to $93.9M.

Education categories:
Higher Education sales for YTD (January and February 2011) were $406.9M, down slightly by 5.6% vs YTD 2010. In K-12, YTD sales were $173M, declining 8.9% from 2010.

Professional/Scholarly categories:
Total sales for professional books and journals were $42.9M, a slight drop of 3.6% vs February 2010. Combined sales of University Press (hardcover and paperback) were $6.7M, falling 6% vs last year.

The AAP monthly and year-end sales report represents data provided by 84 U.S. publishing houses representing major commercial, education, professional, scholarly and independents. Data on e-Books comes from 16 houses. The report does not include all book and journal net sales but provides what’s acknowledged as the best industry snapshot currently available.

*From an article by Andi Sporkin for the AAP. 

eBook Sales Set Another Record, But Can't Outpace the Decline in Print

eBooks indisputably comprise a significant portion of trade revenues following the Christmas boom in ereading-capable devices, confirmed by another record ebook sales tally from among the 14 publishers who report. The AAP data also shows what publishers' net shipments look like in a world in which no one is sending books to Borders.

February ebook sales totaled $90.3 million, significantly ahead of the record $69.9 million reported the previous month. In January ebooks were the second-largest trade segment, behind trade paperbacks, but in February they moved ahead as the single largest-selling format (with trade paperbacks at $81.2 million).

Just as ebooks rose, print book shipments were down across the board by significant percentages, with adult hardcover suffering the most, declining 43 percent compared to February 2010. Net trade print book sales for the month among the reporting AAP members were $215.2 million--down 30 percent from $308.7 million.

In January, the increase in ebook sales of $37.5 million did not make up for the decline in trade print sales of $50.4 million. It was the same in February, with ebooks' gain of $60.4 million lagging print's decline of $93.5 million.

Overall, ebooks comprise 29.5 percent of the reported trade sales for February. (Which means they are actually somewhat higher, since more publishers report print sales to the AAP than report ebook sales. Similarly, we remind you that direct year-over-year comparisons of ebook sales are skewed because two additional publishers starting reporting ebook data for 2011.)


*An article from today's Publisher's Lunch

Mystery Times Ten Judging Enters Final Round!

We received over 200 entries in our Mystery Times Ten YA Mystery Short Story Competition. The YA Blogger Panel and Teen Panel have completed their scoring and the top 20 stories (based on their combined scores) are now in the hands of our Editorial Review Panel.

Ten lucky authors will have their stories published in our upcoming Mystery Times Ten anthology.

Good luck to all the finalists! Watch here and on our website for the announcement of the winners in late April!

This Just In - The Latest Review of "The Last Track" ~ New Suspense Author: Sam Hilliard!

 

About the Author:  Sam lives outside of NYC with his girlfriend and an army of four cats--one feline under the legal limit.  Working at an all-girls boarding school, he knows world-class drama firsthand.  It's also the reason he studies Krav Maga and Tai Chi.

Book Summary from Cover:
Mike Brody--the man you want, when the one you love is missing.

More than just a master tracker, Mike is a former Special Forces operative, smoke jumper, and now extreme adventure tour guide who can tap into the memory and emotional state of those he pursues.
In The Last Track, Mike is recruited to find an asthmatic boy lost in the dense woods surrounding a dude ranch in Montana.  An unwitting murder witness, the boy burrows ever deeper into the rugged terrain, fearful of being found by the killer.
While Mike tracks the boy, his ex-wife, a journalist, uses her contacts to unravel the truth behind the murder.  Her discoveries threaten to snare them all in a treacherous conspiracy...

My Review:
Sam Hilliard needs to quit his day job and write full time. He's a born writer of the first caliber. "Get out of prep school," as my preppie, grown children say, Sam, and go for your true profession. You have what it takes.

In "The Last Track," Mr. Hilliard introduces us to a cast of unforgettable characters. If he isn't writing a series of books about his main character, Mike Brody, the infamous tracker in question, I'm liable to send out a posse to track him!

With all the panache of a seasoned, gripping suspense writer, new author Sam Hilliard scores a direct hit with this book. Character development and His creation of an environment for them is at it's height. I actually saw myself there and felt the angst.

His tracker, Mike Brody, is a complex, infinitely intriguing man displaying a keen ability to track the lost in wilderness situations. He also is an apparent student of how to handle people, include those in positions of authority. His military background lends itself to his tracker abilities.

Using a sort of sixth sense that guides him, comes from an unknown source, and that he keeps close to the vest, Mike Brody is a quietly capable, and virtually unknown man. Personally, I loved this twist on an otherwise familiar protagonist. One not necessarily psychic, but just the right amount of odd. We never quite get a bead on this ability and I'm thinking that leads to another book.

Much could be said about the insights we gain into advanced computer espionage, wilderness survival and law enforcement cooperation, but these things play in accompaniment to the human story of the lost boy and Mike's connection to his family.  His spicey ex-wife is an asset to Mike and the story overall. This balance of story lines renders a wealth of knowledge that keeps the entire piece flowing. "The Last Track" is a page-turner.

Self discovery, coming of age, awareness of womens' issues, and loyalty are themes, as well, in this book. It is a mark of excellence that Sam Hilliard manages to get so much value into his novel without spoiling it. What an accomplishment, particularly for a first time writer.

If I were to give a black-eyed critique of the book, I would say this one thing: it starts off too slowly to capture the average reader. Having said that, I can only encourage readers to persevere. Believe me when I say that this book is worth the effort.

Given Sam's astuteness and his obvious writing skills, we can only believe there are more Mike Brody tracker books in the future. He's left too many unanswered mysteries. We are left begging for more explanations. This is one of the great things about this book.
Who amongst us doesn't love anticipation?

Recommended for all lovers of mystery and suspense novels. For all who love Jeffrey Deaver, James Patterson, Patricia Cornwell and Michael Connelly. Yes, Sam Hilliard is that good!

Deborah/TheBookishDame

PW Releases Figures on Ebook vs Hardcover Bestsellers and "Ebooks Rock"

The following article by Daisy Maryles ran in today's PW Daily. Although not all publishers contributed who were asked to the numbers still show an impressive gain in Ebook sales for Bestselling authors like Larsson, Grisham, Patterson and Sparks.

Back in March 2000, the big publishing news was Stephen King's novella Riding the Bullet being published exclusively in e-book format. King was the first major bestselling author to publish in an electronic format. At the time, Simon & Schuster spokesperson Adam Rothberg was widely quoted saying: "This could change the model of publishing."

This year, for the first time in PW's 100+ years of annual features on bestsellers, the magazine collected statistics on e-book sales. We asked publishers (and only publishers that had print bestsellers with sales of more than 100,000 in 2010) to submit e-books with sales of more than 10,000 last year. The response from the houses was mixed. Many declined to share this information, others only submitted selected titles. Still, we collected statistics on about 275 books—enough to underscore that the publishing model has indeed changed and that what is available in e-book format is ubiquitous.

Check out this first list and you will find familiar authors in familiar spots. Many top-selling authors on the 2010 hardcover chart are among the e-book top-sellers, including Stieg Larsson's The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest, with electronic sales of 775,000 compared to 1.9 million in print. John Grisham, James Patterson (at least 12 e-book hits), Nicholas Sparks, Stephen King, and more are high and plentiful on both charts. There is also plenty of backlist, as classics like Gone with the Wind, The Great Gatsby, and How to Win Friends and Influence People reap solid e-book sales.

In his March 13 blog, Mike Shatzkin's headline noted, "E-books are making me recall the history of mass market publishing." He also wrote: "The anti-paperback snobbery was widespread, and the separation between trade and mass market publishing persisted for a long time. For at least a couple of decades, paperback houses didn't do hardcovers." That's history now. But Shatzkin's last sentence resonates in today's fast-changing book marketplace. "Much less expensive editions, combined with access to audiences for authors that couldn't get past the gatekeepers in the established houses, can create millions of new readers." Anything that creates more readers is a boon for all kinds of publishers.

"The times they are a-changin,' " sang Bob Dylan back in 1964. It is the first part of that sentence that publishers are all singing: "You better start swimmin' or you'll sink like a stone."

Note: asterisked titles were submitted in confidence, for use in placing titles on the lists. Those numbers are rounded down to indicate their relationship to figures for other titles; in several cases the sales figures were omitted entirely, at the publishers's request..

E-book Sales, 2010
100,000+
1. The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest. Stieg Larsson. Knopf (775,000)
2. The Confession. John Grisham. Doubleday (*550,000)
3. Decision Points. George W. Bush. Crown (307,216)
4. Sh*t My Dad Says. Justin Halpern. HarperCollins/It Books (242,000)
5. Freedom. Jonathan Franzen. Farrar, Straus and Giroux (230,772)
6. I, Alex Cross. James Patterson. Little, Brown (152,626)
7. The Last Song. Nicholas Sparks. Grand Central (134,934)
8. Under the Dome. Stephen King. Scribner
9. Dear John. Nicholas Sparks. Grand Central (130,042)
10. American Assassin. Vince Flynn. Atria (*120,000)
11. The Lovely Bones. Alice Sebold. Little, Brown (118,583)
12. Shutter Island. Dennis Lehane. Morrow (115,528)
13. The 9th Judgment. James Patterson and Maxine Paetro. Little, Brown (114,998)
14. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. Rebecca Skloot. Crown (110,273)
15. Safe Haven. Nicholas Sparks. Grand Central (108,849)

E-book Runners-Up
16. Private. James Patterson and Maxine Paetro. Little, Brown (107,334)
17. The Postcard Killers. James Patterson and Liza Marklund. Little, Brown (100,490)
18. The 4-Hour Body. Timothy Ferriss. Crown Archetype (91,804)
19. Dead Witch Walking. Kim Harrison. Eos (90,922)
20. Little Bee. Chris Cleave. Simon & Schuster (*90,000)
21. The Lion. Nelson DeMille. Grand Central (85,819)
22. Fly Away Home. Jennifer Weiner. Atria
23. The Reversal. Michael Connelly. Little, Brown (85,121)
24. House Rules. Jodi Picoult. Atria (*80,000)
25. Deliver Us from Evil. David Baldacci. Grand Central (78,951)
26. Rage of Angels. Sidney Sheldon. Morrow (77,264)
27. Innocent. Scott Turow. Grand Central (73,215)
28. Don't Blink. James Patterson and Howard Roughan. Little, Brown (72,776)
29. Room. Emma Donoghue. Little, Brown (71,919)
30. Half Broke Horses. Jeannette Walls. Scribner (*66,000)

**by Daisy Maryles in PW Daily

January E-book Sales Soar, Top Hardcover, Mass Market Paperback

The surge of e-book buying expected to take place in January following a round of holiday e-reader gift-giving did in fact materialize. According to preliminary estimates from the Association of American Publishers, e-book sales from 16 reporting companies jumped 115.8%, to $69.9 million in January. No other trade segment posted a sales increase in the month. Sales of mass market paperbacks were terrible in January, down 30.9% from the nine reporting companies, falling to $39.0 million, $30 million below the sales of e-books. E-book sales also topped $49.1 million in adult hardcover sales reported by 17 publishers; hardcover sales fell 11.3% in January. Trade paperback sales fell 19.7% in the month but remained above e-book revenue at $83.6 million from 19 houses.

 

Downloadable audio sales increased 8.8% in January, to $6.5 million at 14 publishers, while physical audiobook sales dropped 6.7% to $7.3 million from 20 publishers. Religion was the only print segment to post an increase in January with sales up 6.8%.

How the Ebook Reader’s Bill of Rights Benefits Authors

By Andy Woodworth, Adult Services Librarian, Bordentown, NJ
 
About a week ago, Sarah and I posted the Ebook Reader’s Bill of Rights. We’ve watched it bounce all over the blogosphere much to our mutual delight. But there has been a recurring question in some of the discussions as to what this document would mean to authors. I will try now to explain how authors would benefit under the terms outlined in the Ebook Reader’s Bill of Rights. Here’s my breakdown:

the right to use ebooks under guidelines that favor access over proprietary limitations

As a librarian, I have a carefully honed monologue to inform people who come to the library why or why not their chosen ereader device will be able to download ebooks or audio ebooks. (At present, the Kindle one is the shortest at “Sorry, no can do”. The iPod is the longest since it starts out with a short shopping list of programs needed and permissions required.)  I am the de facto technical support for these devices and yet I am left holding the bag when it comes to explaining the convoluted jargon of Digital Rights Management, proprietary devices and software, and why’s and how’s of loading content into their devices. Now, imagine this interaction happening beyond the walls of the libraries as people look to purchase ebooks.
As an author, these limitations do you no favor when your readers cannot access your literature. When the effort eclipses the reward, people will forgo the attempt to get your work on their ereaders in favor of easier fare. I have seen people give up on trying to download library ebooks; I would hope that they would not give up on authors as easily.

the right to access ebooks on any technological platform, including the hardware and software the user chooses

Ebooks should transcend platforms. What you buy on the iBookstore or the Kindle should be readable on the Nook or Kobo and vice versa. Ebooks should be platform neutral and portable. As an author, in order to reach the widest audience possible, your books should be able to travel wherever your audience wants them to be. You’ve put in the hours and the hard work; why should something like software or technology get between your prose and the reader?

the right to annotate, quote passages, print, and share ebook content within the spirit of fair use and copyright

At present, there is an inconsistent ability to do any of these aspects across all of the devices and ebooks. While fair use and copyright should be respected, these limitations work against the reader and their interaction with the text of the ebook. They stifle potential discussion regarding book passages by the inability to copy and share with others. They frustrate the reader by disallowing annotations about significant passages and recording their thoughts or reactions. Finally, in preventing the printing of parts of the ebook, they keep the words in a virtual space when the intention of printing is to share with others for further discussion or commentary. Think of every work space you’ve ever seen where a line of poetry or novel passage has hung; that is one of the beneficial aspects that this is preventing. People find significance in those words and make them part of their daily life. The prevention of printing usurps that urge.
Again, while copyright and fair use should be observed, authors should be mindful of accommodating the habits and actions of their readers that have grown out of print editions of their materials over many years.

the right of the first-sale doctrine extended to digital content, allowing the ebook owner the right to retain, archive, share, and re-sell purchased ebooks

Now, I will admit this is the tricky one that has gotten people tripped up over this document. Retaining and archiving are common practices for people with software; it allows them to make a backup copy in case something happens to the original. There shouldn’t be a problem with that as it ensures the future of the ebooks that they have purchased.
As to sharing, I’ll put it this way: authors benefit from sharing. Neil Gaiman makes a note of it specifically in his Open Rights Group video where he asks audiences how many people found their favorite author through a friend lending them a book as opposed to buying it at a bookstore (I’ve linked to the specific part of the video). The American Library Association has a 2007 study which shows that people who borrow books are likely to buy those books for themselves or purchase them as gifts for others. Libraries are an integral aspect of word of mouth marketing for authors.
“Word of mouth is still the best form of advertising. The forces unleashed by new media technologies seem to have never changed the truth behind this age-old wisdom dating back to the times when human culture was largely oral.” (ComCorp) With the new communication and social media possibilities, people are not simply telling their immediate friends and family about books; they are telling everyone about books. People are sharing the books that they love through sites like Facebook, LibraryThing, Goodreads, Shelfari, and their own blogging. The Twitter hashtag #fridayreads (up for a Mashable award for Best Internet Meme) shows how people can make recommendations for books to their followers and to the people who follow the hashtag. That recommendation carries weight with others as depicted by this survey from eMarketer and presented as this graphic:

The 2009 Nielsen Global Online Consumer survey shows that 90% of consumers trust recommendations from people they know and 70% trust fellow consumer opinions posted online (think #fridayreads, sites like Goodreads, and Amazon/B&N user book reviews). This 2010 Guardian/ICM survey gives similar supporting results of this trust in others (especially question 4).
Sharing ebooks would be word of mouth on steroids for authors since it means  making a recommendation and the ability to put the book almost instantly in the (virtual) hands of another. Sharing is not a lost sale, but a new marketing foray into a previously unrealized potential fan.
As to the question of ebook re-selling, I will admit that I do not have a perfect answer on this point. If there was a limited DRM system that would enable people to do so (ensuring that the old copy is destroyed while transferring a copy to the new owner), I think it would be a fair trade-off to confer ownership and greater content rights.
My primary concern is less about re-selling and more in regard to people being given control over their own reading content. While I’m hesitant to engage in what may be construed as hyperbole, I appeal to you to consider the emotional connections to your own personal libraries and the importance of every book that you have selected to be a part of it. I would implore authors to consider how they would consider outside removals or modifications on your own book collections. Ownership matters, quite frankly, and it is an expression of intellectual pride.
As it concerns the passage of text that followed the rights in the initial document, I personally believe in every word written there. I believe authors can flourish when their work is available on the widest range of media and when readers are given the maximum amount of freedom to access and share with others. I believe in creating the best possible market for authors to live by and thrive. I also believe ebooks are an important new part of the greater cultural cornerstone of society; and I believe that a document like the Ebook Reader’s Bill of Rights works towards that goal.
For myself, there are farther reaching issues at stake here since the written word lives on long after our bodies have turned to dust. As a librarian, I strive to preserve the work of authors for future generations. It is a matter of great import and one I do not take lightly. It only gets more complicated when ebooks are locked behind formats and proprietary ereaders. It is my hope that the actions we take today will cultivate a vibrant literature market while increasing access to readers and allowing libraries to maintain their traditional societal role in maintaining the literary and cultural record.
I thank the authors who came here to read this post. I hope I made the meaning of the Ebook Reader’s Bill of Rights and the benefits authors would derive from it a bit clearer and show that it was constructed around the best of intentions. I welcome any author feedback on this post so that I can further refine the Ebook Reader’s Bill of Rights.

This post was originally published at Agnostic, Maybe and has been reprinted with Mr. Woodworth’s permission.

Andy is a librarian in New Jersey. He spends his days surrounded by vast amounts of information which he consumes on a fairly regular basis. He was named a 2010 Library Journal Mover and Shaker, an honor bestowed upon fifty librarians each year that are considered to be changing the face and future path of libraries. He writes the award winning librarian blog ‘Agnostic, Maybe’ at http://agnosticmaybe.wordpress.com.

Read more at Digital Book World

Should You Self-Publish?

Today's Daily Writing Tips Blog (a blog I never miss) explored this topic today. Although I agree with the author, Mark Nichol, on some points, I also disagree on others. So here's his article. What are your thoughts? Let us know, leave a comment with your thoughts!

Should You Self-Publish?

by Mark Nichol

No.
Because I’m getting paid to write posts of more than one word, I’ll qualify that answer.
But first, here’s another question, and this time, it’s your turn to answer: Why do you want to self-publish? If it’s because publishers and agents have turned your work down, you might want to retrench and start small, submitting articles or short stories to newspapers or magazines, or to writing competitions, to develop your writing skills further before going the trade-publishing route again.

But if you’re still determined to self-publish, consider this: If you hope to publish a novel, the odds are stacked heavily against you, and if you plan to put out a nonfiction book, they aren’t much better.

Why? It’s certainly not that you won’t be able to find a self-publisher. Myriad companies exist that will be happy to relieve you of hundreds of dollars (for a handful of budget-look books) or thousands of dollars (for higher quantity and quality) for the privilege of printing your book. If you plan simply to self-publish — and recouping your expenses is not a priority — you are almost certainly guaranteed to succeed.


Otherwise, the odds are against you because, as the term self-publishing suggests, you are responsible for every phase of the publishing process, from paying to have the book edited to paying to have it formatted to paying to have it printed (often by the same company offering a package deal, but often best performed in separate steps with distinct vendors). And then, once it’s published, what do you do with it?

Most significantly, whether it’s fiction or nonfiction, you will have to market it yourself. And if you’ve published a novel, an anthology of short stories, or a book of poems, your potential market is limited — it is unlikely to extend beyond a circle of family, friends, and other people you know. (If that’s all you want, by all means, go for it.)

If it’s nonfiction, the outlook isn’t much different, unless you have a marketing base: Are you a high-profile expert in your profession or in a field of study? Do you belong to a professional association or an organization such as a historical association or a large network of craftspeople? Do you teach courses or present at workshops or seminars? Do you own a business whose customers are likely to be interested in buying your book?

If you are honest with yourself about the likelihood that you can sell out a run of 100 or 1,000 or 10,000 books (keep in mind that small presses consider 1,000 a respectable run and major publishers would be content with sales of 10,000 copies of one book) — and can find several objective people to sincerely agree with you — then you have the potential to be a successful self-publisher. But if you’re expecting sales in the four- or five-figure range, then we’ve come full circle, and I have to ask you again: Have you been rejected by agents and/or publishers?
But, you say, all this talk about marketing overlooks the fact that most publishers make little or no effort to sell books by authors without track records. That’s true, but can you do better? And if you publish with a trade publisher with a recognizable name, bookstores will sell it, you’re more likely to be invited to do reading and book-signing gigs and radio and television shows — and any self-marketing you do will have better results because your book will have a brand name on it.

I’m not hostile to self-publishing, but I am highly skeptical about it as a route to even modest fame and fortune. If you insist, don’t let me stop you, but take great care to research the business of self-publishing — and be wary of self-publishing companies that are effusive about your work. They don’t call it vanity publishing for nothing.

*From Daily Writing Tips.