You had to have been asleep for the last couple of years or off the planet not to have noticed the upheaval that’s happening in the printing business. I’m talking about printing companies, newspapers, magazines and yes, even our beloved book publishing companies.
It’s a shame, but the slow progressing acceptance and development of a nineteen thirties invention, the computer and the subsequent development of the internet, have relegated the aforementioned businesses to the endangered species list.
With a home printer now attached to most home computers, the once prosperous printing business has become irrelevant. Oh sure, they’re still needed to print up wedding and party invitations, but their overall business has been severely curtailed. Their cousins, newspapers and magazines are in worse shape. Many once proud flagships of the newspaper industry have fallen—magazines too, though not as bad. They have become or are becoming the first dinosaurs of the twenty-first century, victims of technology and progress.
That brings me to Books. There’s been a lot happening lately in book publishing and sales too, some good, some bad, so I thought I’d discuss the future of publishing in the electronic world.
Yes, the future of book printing, at least the way we think of it is murky and ominous. Fraught with peril, book printing and it’s sister book sales are on a slippery slope, sliding toward an abyss.
It seems like every week or two we are reminded of the ongoing upheaval in both print and epublishing businesses. Harlequin started an epub, Dorchester is going all epub, almost all new print books are also released as digitized versions. Amazon sold more digital than hard cover so far this year and seems to be on its way to conquering the world, by offering Kindle in the United Kingdom. Apple jumped into the electronic book business by delivering books via its I-Pad, and audio books via I-Pod. To top it off, America's largest bookstore, Barnes and Noble is tottering and up for sale.
It seems like there’s almost as big a selection for e-readers as there is for automobiles and new epubs sprout up everyday.
What’s this all mean? Obviously, the news is better for the new technology than the old. If you’re in the new technology like I and most of us are, smile, but don’t gloat. Technology changes fast. If you’re involved in the old technology, adapt or get outta Dodge.
No, print books are not going to disappear. At least not overnight. But the squeeze is on. The New York publishers will have to embrace e-technology or shrink to irrelevance. They, their agents and authors will no longer be able to look down on us epub authors and epubs in general, for they will be one of us. LOL. Eventually, it may come to print books only being available through POD (print on demand) systems. There’s talk of POD book machines similar to today’s Red Box DVD machines. Wouldn’t that be something?
However, tastes are generational and over the years as less and less people want print books, they will ultimately vanish into the sunset, like music cassettes and celluloid film.
If I may I’d like to tout my latest release, French Kiss. This is a very sexy, extremely romantic story with a memorable hea ending. You won’t want to miss it and I’m sure you’ll like it.
Blurb
An admissions department snafu at Manhattan's prestigious Juilliard School for the Arts, pairs a lovely African American girl in the same dorm room with a blond blue eyed Frenchman. Maybe it's karma, but sparks of frustration turn into the heat of attraction and within the week the pair becomes a couple. But cruel fate steps in at Christmas vacation, when, after a second snafu, the lovebirds are separated the by an ocean of despair, the Atlantic Ocean.
11 comments:
Great post, Dee - and I agree, epubs are the future. And you know what? Without the worry over returns, transportation, warehousing, middlemen, etc. etc. more authors will be published. More stories will reach audiences. Innovatiion, rather than stagnation, will rule.
This is the dawning of a great time for authors and readers.
Cable TV brought such great hits as Nip/Tuck, Sex in the City, House, The Sopranos. If we were still reliant on network TV, we wouldn't have had half of that.
Thank god for innovation and change. :)
Great post! I love your cover for French Kiss - so sweet! I just posted something similar yesterday about the publishing industry. Lots of changes here and more coming.
Hi Tina and Julia, Thanks big time for dropping by. Yes, changes are happening and lately seem to be speeding up. For once I'm on the right side of change. Yeah!
I don't think print books will ever 'vanish' altogether, certainly not for more literary fiction. There is simply nothing like curling up in bed with a good book, curling up in bed with a rigid plastic reading device just doesn't have the same appeal, not for me anyway. :-)
However, there's no doubt that e-books are here to stay, it's a great way for readers to get throwaway fiction, stuff to read and then delete before moving onto the next fix of whatever takes their fancy. It gives more indie writers the chance of getting their work out and read and that's a good thing.
Hi Fabian, Thanks for stopping by. No books won't disappear overnight. As I said it may take generations but the outcome is inevitable.
I like to read the newspaper with my morning coffee, but the younger generations don't even read the newspapers, which to mean they probably would prefer reading books on a blackberry or an I-Pad.
As for throwaway literature, the average reading device can store up to a thousand books. That means you can carry a library around in your purse or coat pocket. Why would you delete any of them?
Hi,Dee,
Why would I want to delete any books?
Well, there are some books that I read online that are, for me personally, once only reads. I'll enjoy them, but never ever want to go back to them. They're like some magazine stories, I can read and thoroughly enjoy them while I'm sitting waiting my turn in the dentist's waiting room, but when my turn comes, I'll set the magazine down and not give them another thought...not because I don't respect the author's work or writing, but simply because some stories, again for me personally, serve their purpose after one read.
Hey Fabian, Your point is well taken. I can see deleting unwanted books for need, but with storage for a thousand books, whats the hurry. Who knows when something might come up in conversation or otherwise where you need to refer to something you read only to remember you deleted it.
I wouldn't delete a thing until I ran out of room. That's when I'd substantially pare down my library.
Enjoyed reading the comments. I like to hold a book in my hands when I read.
My question is What is the ebook going to do for the visually impaired and how will the blind read from a Kindle or such?
Hi,Dee,
I see the delete button on my computer as being the cyber equivalent of the Charity Bag Every now and again I just have to have a clear out, it's a psychological thing, it makes me feel liberated...of course weeks or months down the line there's always going to be an inevitable moment when I look for something and think, 'damn, why did I give that away?'
Good luck with your new release!
It's an adventurous time to be an author, that is for certain. Great post!
Joye- good point.
Although audio-books can apply to the sight impaired - NOOKS and I believe Kindle can change the font for those that need ginormous print. A paperback's print is as it is. No magnifying glass required. And since large print books are pricier that regular sized books, using the NOOK or Kindle will be cheaper in the long run - I believe.
For those that need Braille, I think paper books will still be needed. Until someone comes up with a sci-fi concept of keys with pulsating changeable pads that a blind person can 'read' from.
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