Serialised e-fiction: The Jewel Sea

Though nothing will ever replace the joy of a book-in-hand for me, there are situations when only an electronic device will do.  I almost always have my phone on me, so ‘sneak-reading’ (that’s another blog post) is a bit easier when a big open book isn’t visible.  Recognising the ubiquity of the smart-phone, the clever folks at The Pigeonhole have come up with a pretty innovative way to deliver their books. They send it to you in segments which they call Staves (a nod to Dickens’ A Christmas Carol I think).  The staves are delivered directly to your phone in their free app, and you can read them anytime after they arrive, or read along with their online bookclub, discussing the book with others, and making use of bonus content which they’ve incorporated - things like interviews, maps, pictures, little tidbits of information directly embedded into the text.  The conversations are also embedded into the text - all very discretely - you can ignore it or read as you go or read later.  

Not that I don’t already have a massive TBR stack - some on the go already - but the site was so slick and nicely designed, that I was tempted to check it out by joining in the reading of Kim Kelly’s The Jewel Sea which  started yesterday. So far I read the first stave and am enjoying it quite a lot.  The story is set in 1912, mostly on a fictionalised SS Koombana, a real boat that disappeared on a journey from Port Hedland to Broome. So far the narrative has drawn me in, and I’m looking forward to reading the second stave, which arrived in the past hour, tonight in bed (with the lights off - sometimes backlighting makes a lot of sense - sorry Kindle and paperbacks - I still love you - more the paperbacks than the Kindle).  One thing I noticed which was particularly cool about this reading, is that the author is joining in the conversation, and I’m pretty confident she will respond to questions if they arise.   Another nice thing is that the release a number of slots free for each book.  If you get in quickly, you can join in the readings that interest you free (there are lots of free classics too), and even if you don’t, the cost is pretty reasonable.  The Jewel Sea had 200 free slots, and there are still 3 free ones left.  If you’re quick, you can still join in at no cost and check it out here: https://thepigeonhole.com/books/jewel-sea/.

Guest post: On Digital Books and Reader Expectations by Leigh Russell

The first Geraldine Steel murder mystery, Cut Short, came out in print in the UK in 2009. In one of the first US reviews, which appeared in the Compulsive Reader, it was described as a 'fine police procedural, with a convincing if disconcerting feel of contemporary Britain.' I remember the thrill of reading a review on an American website, never dreaming that one day my books would find a US publisher.

A fellow author suggested my publisher bring it out as a digital book. It seems strange to recall that just four years ago I wasn't really sure what that meant. Nevertheless I sent a polite request to my publisher to bring my debut out as an ebook. No one thought it was important, but six months later the digital version duly came out. 'Of course your books don't sell on kindle,' someone in the know told me. As for me, I still had only a vague notion what a kindle was. Exactly the same happened with Road Closed in 2010.

But reading habits were changing. When Dead End came out in 2011, the digital and print books were published on the same day. By the time Death Bed appeared in print in 2012, the digital book had already  been available for six months. This pattern has been repeated in 2013, with digital versions of Stop Dead and Cold Sacrifice available for download six months in advance of  print books. 

Nowadays, no one says my titles 'don't sell on kindle'. Not only have the print books reached bestseller lists in the UK bookstore chains and on amazon, but the ebooks have reached Number 1 on kindle.

Every British author aspires to be published in the US, so I was very excited when, following the series' success in the UK, all of the Geraldine Steel books were acquired by a US publisher. They are also publishing my new spin off series for Geraldine's sergeant, Ian Peterson.

Harper Collins US are publishing my books at a rate of one a month, starting with Cut Short in November 2013. It is exciting, but times have changed since Cut Short was first published. Harper Collins are publishing my titles as ebooks first. I doubt if I anyone will suggest I send my US publisher a polite request to bring my books out in print. How times have changed!

Find out more about Leigh and her work at: http://leighrussell.co.uk/

Guest post - E-readers: Self-publishing and Quality

Written by Isabella Woods

Revolution is a term too often used when it comes to new technologies, but the rise of the E-reader certainly qualifies. Last Christmas alone, Amazon sold 1 million of its new Kindle Fire and together with Barnes and Noble’s Nook, the iPad and the various other E-readers on the market, E-book sales now account for 15% off all book sales, outselling Hardbacks two to one. If this trend continues, very soon the traditional book may go the same way as the vinyl record, videocassette or the film camera.

When you consider the advantages of E-readers, their success comes as no surprise. You can store a whole library of books on something the size of a paperback and instantly download from a choice of millions of different titles, from the very latest bestselling fiction and biographies, to self-help guides on relieving stress and buying baby clothing. However, there may be a consequence to all this reading freedom, because E-books are not only changing the way people read books, they are also making the entire publishing industry obsolete.

For agents, publishers and bookstores, E-books are having a dramatic effect. Many local bookstores have closed their doors and even big names such as Borders are no longer with us. But it’s not just the book sellers that are being side-stepped by the E-reader revolution. Publishers too, are becoming increasingly obsolete.

Self Publishing

For the keen eye searching Amazon, it is clear that more and more authors are self-publishing their work. And considering how difficult the traditional route to getting published is, it’s no wonder. First, a writer has to find an agent, which is a necessary step before publishers will even look at a manuscript. This can take month and years in itself and culminate in dozens of rejections. Even if successful, there is no guarantee an agent will then find a publisher for the writer’s work, and even if they do, the publishers need to convince the bookstores to stock it.

Now, however, in little more than an afternoon’s work, an author can upload their latest opus and start selling copies directly to readers. With no need for agents, publishers, or booksellers, and with a far better cut of the profits, it is no wonder so many writers are going the self-publishing route, but is this really a good thing?

Chaff from the Wheat

Publishers don’t just produce books. They serve a couple of really important purposes in the literary world. Firstly, while getting a book published is notoriously difficult, there is a good reason why. Publishers and agents receive hundreds of manuscripts each month. Some are excellent pieces of work, other truly awful. Publishers and agents have always chosen the cream of this crop, but now, with the freedom of self-publishing, there is nothing to stop all those badly written, poorly plotted manuscripts from polluting the virtual shelves of Amazon or other online bookseller.

Anybody that has searched the tens of thousands of self-published titles online will have come across some truly dreadful examples of literature. Even those works that are actually very good, too often are full of mistakes. You see, publishers don’t just print an author’s work, they take pains to make it better. Few self-published books are edited, which means all those mistakes in grammar, punctuation and spelling go unnoticed, as do all those gaping plot holes and poorly constructed characters.

Too Much Choice

This is not to say all self-published books are bad, they are not. Some truly great works have been self-published, especially in niche markets that would not be financially viable for traditional publishers, but finding them amongst all the poorly written ramblings can be almost impossible. Too much choice is not necessarily a good thing, and this is the other great purpose for traditional publishers and booksellers.

Bookstores have limited shelf space. Consequently, they try to ensure the books they stock will appeal to people. This involves talking to publishers, reading reviews and taking advice from trade magazines such as the Bookseller+Publisher. This ensures that readers are not faced with a plethora of poor quality books and can find something worthwhile reading when they visit the local store.

If traditional publishing and bookselling succumbs to the E-reader revolution, the reading public may suffer the most. While downloading books may be simple and easy to do, actually finding something worthwhile to spend your money on may become a time consuming and arduous task that could just put people off buying books altogether.

Getting my Kindle together and taking it on the road

This isn't a travel blog, but since I've finally buckled and bought a Kindle (actually my husband talked me into it after people kept raving about it to him at work), I thought I could combine my love of reading with a little review of my new book toy.  So how is the Kindle everyone keeps asking me (including the guy sitting next to me on the plane who kept dropping his book, my husband, my friends, my kids).  My answer is, it's just like reading a book, which is exactly as it should be.  Actually it's a little better and a little worse than a treebook.  Better, in that it's lighter than even a light paperback, and yet can still contain up to 3,500 books according to Amazon. That's a lotta books! For a heavy reader like me, running out of reading material is cause for panic, so it's kind of reassuring to have so much reading matter along for the ride, especially if it doesn't cripple you in the process. I've only got about 30 books on mine so far and I did my best to load up before I left (but it's new - give me time).  So it's easy on the handbag, which means there's lots of room left for your children to stuff it full of their water bottles, their own bulky paperbacks (more on that later), and jackets. It's versatile too since it manages audios with perfect ease (I picked up an audio Cloudstreet, which I'm actually re-reading in paperback) and it works as well as an MP3 player.  You can just turn it on and listen while driving or relaxing.  It's easy enough to operate with one hand (I'm getting one for my mother, who has recently broken her arm, for Mother's Day), super easy to use and load up, and it will browse the internet using wi-fi or 3G if you get that version, though it's typing capability is reasonably limited - you can insert notes though, and bookmark, which makes it a pretty powerful tool for a reviewer. The screen contrast is perfect and I was able to read for several hours, even in sunlight when the sun finally came out, without any eyestrain, which is more than I can say for my netbook or laptop.   Text is easily changed, which makes it good for those struggling with poor eyesight (not to mention the audio option), and there's an in-built dictionary (I haven't yet tested it with one of Martin Amis' books).  All in all, as much as I like treebooks, I'm convinced that e-book readers like the Kindle will most certainly become the norm. 

What's a little worse?  Firstly, because it's an electronic device, you have to power it off on take-off and landing.  Secondly, you can't really look over the shoulder of your fellow Kindle toting passengers and check out what they're reading (I like to spy on other people's books - and harbour a pathetic hope that one day I'll catch someone reading one of my books) though this may be a benefit for those that read clandestinely. Thirdly, I still ended up spending over $100 on treebooks at the airport because my kids had all finished the paperbacks they'd brought and needed more. That's half the cost of my Kindle, which actually makes this 'thirdly' point a 'better' rather than 'worse', since we were trying to travel lightly and I ended up carrying about 6 paperbacks in my handbag (and the water bottles, the spare jackets, the hats, etc) - that's what I get for buying a light, portable ebook reader and carrying a large handbag. 


The trip?  Great Ocean Road in Victoria.  Near Lorne.  Absolutely beautiful scenery, even in the rain.  Those are a few of the Twelve Apostles above.  Kindle in left hand, camera in right. Just kidding (though it's probably do-able). You've got to give the books a rest sometime and look around.

What's Up with Publishing?

Today we have a guest blog from the wonderful Nancy Famolari

What's Up with Publishing?

First, I want to state that I have no answers about what's happening with the publishing industry. However, over the last several weeks I have observed some interesting trends:

• Borders is bankrupt and is planning to close a number of stores. I'm not sure how many will eventually be selected, but this is a major blow to book publishers as well as Borders. The company is in debt to several publishers and there's no suggestion that all the owed funds will be repaid.
• Sales on ebooks continue to climb. I don't think this is an artifact. People are increasingly getting ereaders, Kindle, Nook, and others. Versions of ereader software are available for PCs. I suspect that the ease of obtaining and the price are turning more and more people to buying books for ereaders.
• Random House has announced that they're joining the agency model. Random House announced that "Going forward, Random House will set consumer prices for the e-books we publish, and we will provide retailers with a commission for each sale."
• Thomas Nelson is offering coupons in it's books in bookstores for prizes. I'm sure the company hopes that the desire for something free will encourage people to look for TN books.

So what does all this activity mean? A few things are clear, at least to me. Ebooks are here to stay and may well be the wave of the future. This becomes even more likely with the advent of iPad 2. The iBookstore is apparently a lucrative place to sell books. In all this maneuvering, it seems to me, that independent bookstores, including those on the web are on the losing side. From personal experience, I can say that I sell twice as many books on Amazon and Barnes and Noble than I do on sites like Smashwords and other independent sites, certainly more than I sell hard copies.

I'm interested in what you think. For me, I think it's a good new era in publishing. The playing field for authors is leveled. Amazon and Barnes and Noble, among others, will sell your self-published books the same way they do the books from the major publishers. Is it a bad time for independent bookstores? Without question. I find that I spend my time locating books on the web rather than visiting my local bookstore. Prices are better and I don't have to travel a long distance and then be disappointed.

So what do you think about the state of the industry? I'd like to know.

BIO: Nancy Famolari splits her time between her farm in the Endless Mountains of Pennsylvania and a smaller farm near Ocala, Florida. Her five horses are becoming seasoned travelers. Before moving to Pennsylvania, she and her husband owned a small Standardbred breeding farm in Central New Jersey. Her soon to be released novel, Winner's Circle, is based on her experiences in harness racing. Her other novels include: Unwelcome Guest at Fair Hill Farm, Murder in Montbleu, and The Lake House.

Nancy's Website

Blogs:
Nancy Famolari's Place
Nancy Famolari's Author Spotlight
Montbleu Murders

For more writerly insights, please visit Virginia Grenier's blog tommorow for a feature with Donna McDine.

E-books, Piracy, and the Value of the Book at BookExpo 2010

The opening plenary at Book Expo America featured, as its discussion topic “The Value of the Book,” which stems, in part, from an Op-Ed piece that appeared in The New York Times (January 2, 2010) by Jonathan Galassi, President of Farrar, Straus & Giroux, titled There’s More to Publishing Than Meets the Screen.  BEA and ABA officials acknowledge that this is a watershed year for change in the industry, and it is critically important to get leaders and opinion makers with different interests and from different segments of the industry together in one room to discuss the many aspects of “value” in books. The panel featured Chief Executives and professionals from the book industry and discussion was heated, particularly around issues like piracy, the long term viability of e-books vs print books, and what direction the industry should take.