How the Publishing Industry is Evolving

This article entitled “Have We Reached the End of Book Publishing? spells out what I’ve suspected for so long and heard from some of my fellow writers — that the very nature of the way major publishers do business does not bode well for aspiring writers. Large, million-dollar advances taken on new authors spell doom for literary writers, who find their advances shrink every time a publisher makes a “new” discovery. The argument of whether or not e-book readers will kill book sales continues to resurface, and the very nature of how corporations function take their toll on editors’ morale.

The book business as we know it will not be living happily ever after. With sales stagnating, CEO heads rolling, big-name authors playing musical chairs, and Amazon looming as the new boogeyman, publishing might have to look for its future outside the corporate world.

There is no doubt in my mind that the publishing industry is fractured. Read More…

September 19, 2008
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Update on Network Neutrality – ISPs Rolling Out Caps for Internet Usage

One of the issues that I’ve been following fairly closely, is the concept of network neutrality. What is it? Wikipedia defines it as:

Network neutrality (equivalently net neutrality, Internet neutrality or simply NN) is a principle that is applied to residential broadband networks, and potentially to all networks. A neutral broadband network is one that is free of restrictions on the kinds of equipment that may be attached, on the modes of communication allowed, which does not restrict content, sites or platforms, and where communication is not unreasonably degraded by other communication streams. –SOURCE: Wikipedia entry for Network Neutrality

While there have been laws introduced to make network neutrality “official,” to date it’s just been a business concept. Highly contested, many big-names have come out in favor of net neutrality including Google, Yahoo! and Microsoft. Recently, though, many telecom companies are testing the waters a little more fervently these days by putting caps on downloads. For example, Comcast will Cap Data Transfers at 250 GB October 1st and, as this YouTube! vlogger reported: TimeWarner is Experimenting with Capping Internet Usage in Texas. (About 2 minutes in.) Here’s a link to an article about Time Warner metering internet usage in Texas. Additionally, small ISP provider Frontier is toying with a 5 GB download cap.

What does this mean? It means that the concept of network neutrality is alive and well not only in Congress, but in our everyday lives affecting how we access the internet for email, gaming, blogging, banking, etc.

I hope that you will take time to read up on both sides of the issue, and whether you’re for or against it — realize that network neutrality is a topic that isn’t going away any time soon.

Save the Internet – a website that is for legalizing Network Neutrality

Hands Off the Internet – a website that is against legalizing Network Neutrality

September 17, 2008
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How CNN made me Laugh with Bad Headline Placement

Whether you’re a Democrat, Republican or Independent, I had a little chuckle at this headline placement on CNN.com. Sure, CNN.com probably didn’t “plan” to have the headlines show up in that particular order, but it just goes to show you why bland, keyword-rich headlines are not only better for SEO — they’re better for readability and can prevent some interesting headline combinations. This CNET article entitled, “Newspapers search for Web headline magic” is a great one, and goes on to say that keyword-rich headlines make it easier for other writers to find the articles already written, to avoid duplicate efforts.

Of course, I’m sure CNN.com didn’t mean to put “Palin Comes out Throwing Punches” “Just Say it, Please” “Go Ahead and Puke” together, but it made me laugh anyway.

CNN Headlines | Funny Headline Placement

September 6, 2008
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Stephenie Meyer’s Internet Leak — Why Cancel the Book?

I first heard about young adult author Stephenie Meyer in Barnes and Noble; admittedly the classy photographed covers drew my attention. Then I noticed the gold seal, describing the upcoming movie “Twilight.” Admittedly, I don’t typically like a lot of romance with my vampires or overinflated female stereotypes but, as a fan of Angel and Buffy: the Vampire Slayer, I can understand the appeal and its nice to see another female author enjoying success.

With a little bit of internet research, I watched as this Mormon-turned-paranormal romance author embraced her online fans, asking them to squelch spoilers before they start. Then read about how sections of the new book, Midnight Sun, were leaked on the internet before the book was published. How did I find out about this? Twitter. Someone had posted a link to Stephenie Meyer’s letter and their fan response.
Read More…

September 5, 2008
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Do you Know Why you Need Public Domain Fonts?

Bluntly, public domain (or open domain) fonts are fonts that you can use for commercial use. Public domain fonts are not the same thing as “free fonts.” Simply, “free fonts” mean that you don’t have to pay for the font; public domain fonts allow you to use the font for professional use. Just because you have a Mac or a Windows font library that comes with your software, doesn’t necessarily mean that you have the ability to incorporate those fonts into a professional project. Repercussions of using non-public domain fonts can include lawsuits, which will hurt your bottom line. Additionally, any web designer will tell you that using the appropriate font is vital to excellent readability on the web; incorporating open domain fonts is just another layer to protect your work.
Read More…

August 22, 2008
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