In an effort to divert Donna's attention, I have done a contest on Tote Bags. And for Sue, I sent her three chapters. But they both carry mean whips so I am working away, writing this wip.
Actually I am having fun writing.
The Telegraph today (pages 10-11 Review) carries an article about the publishing industry, implying that it is not all doom and gloom. Generally speaking for most people, books are not luxuries but necessities. Yes, second hand booksellers are up but certain types of books are not down as far as one might suppose. The charts editor for The Bookseller apparently discovered his reasonable remarks about the non death of the celebrity memoirs, being edited out in favour of the high profile flops so that more doom and gloom could be spread.
Unfortunately I could not discover the article on the Telegraph's website or I would have linked to it as it is interesting.In fiction, the general thinking is that depressing is out and escapism is in. During the 1970's genres such as romance and fantasy thrived. In the 1930s, Penguin pioneered the paperback and cosy detective fiction was popular. Helen Fraser of Penguin points out that unfortunately the price of paper is going up, but they are hoping to offset with the cost of typesetting going down. She does not see this as heralding the dawn of the e-book though.
I have done a lot of thinking about ebook readers and whether to get one or not. I dislike reading books on the computer. My major problem with them (besides the expense) is the lack of being able to share. My dd and I both read romance. I often have to go and fish the books I thought I was reading out of her room. She may have her nose in one, with another ready to read. With an ebook reader, you can only be reading one book at a time on the reader and you can not share the books between readers. With the mysteries, up to four people in the house may be reading them( My youngest is currently gone on polar exploration. ) So for me and my family, it does not make sense as we share books.
A friend who I was speaking to about this problem also commented that she liked to bump into books -- so she had a book on the go upstairs and one for downstairs. Carrying a reader around seemed somehow premeditated and she would lose that guilty pleasure...
Anyway, the best guess is that e-books will reach the size of the audible book market in about five years time. They are a niche market.
Right, Donna's whip is going to be looming and I have promised chapters, so I shall work.
1 comment:
Oh I always bump into books! I have Hitman on the go (David Foster's biography), North and South, and Deb Hale's Last Champion. Sometimes it depends on my mood. Sometimes it depends on what I'm doing. I read the odd book on the computer, but after being at the desk writing I don't necessarily enjoy it and I have to be in the right frame of mind.
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