» Publisher Chronicle Books has signed a "mutual-referral" deal with self-publisher Blurb. Chronicle will refer rejected manuscripts to Blurb (where authors would pay to have their own work published), in exchange for which Blurb will pay Chronicle a commission on those books' sales. "We'd love to be the Sundance Film Festival of the book world." Blurb CEO Eileen Gittin.
I don't know, this sounds like a fine deal for both publishers but no deal at all for the authors. A 100 page 6x9 inch, black and white book, perfect bound paperback costs $6.53 at Lulu. At Blurb, you'll pay $21.95 for a 100 page paperback. However, Kevin Kelly does recommend Blurb for photobooks (and Lulu for everything else). [ 09/24/07 ]
» Q: Question: How do I start researching? Answer: Treat research as a lifestyle not an assignment. A great approach from what appears to be an academic librarian, including a new (to me) term: The Invisible College. [Wikipedia article] Bloggers will immediately see themselves in this role, so it's worth pointing out that anyone who limits themselves to blogs will miss many other communities of interest, online and off. / (1) Comments / [ 06/01/07 ]
» A Little Weekend Reading: The entertainment industry is known for its sleaziness, but I was genuinely shocked to read this expose on the Writer's Guild of America West (whom I have always thought of as the good guys). A class action suit charges that the Guild collects foreign monies for both members and non-members, diverts a 92.5% cut to Hollywood producers, studios, and itself, and then either refuses to track down the authors, or stonewalls them (and their widows!) for months before releasing the rest of the money. And that's just the start. In all, it's a compelling argument for completely avoiding the Hollywood establishment altogether. Fortunately, advances in consumer electronics and the Internet have now made that an actual possibility. (via dm) [ 05/04/07 ]
» Oh, wow. Writer's Rooms, including the studies of Antoina Frasier, JG Ballard, Sarah Waters, and Michael Frayn. "Something that has always surprised me about other people's work habits is how often they chose to have their desks by a window looking onto an agreeable view. For me that would be fatal. I can shut out some distractions when working, but not the temptation to watch what's going on out of doors." Diana Athill (via dm) [ 04/13/07 ]
» Eggcorn is the linguistic term for "spontaneous reshapings of known expressions. [...] Not every homophone substitution is an eggcorn. The crucial element is that the new form makes sense: for anyone except lexicographers or other people trained in etymology, more sense than the original form in many cases." My grandfather told me that when he was a child, he thought the term was "take it for granite" (for "take it for granted"). He knew that granite was one of the hardest rocks, and so it made sense to him that if you could "take it for granite", you could rely on it. I don't find this usage in the Eggcorn database. (via mlarson) / (2) Comments / [ 08/11/06 ]
» Leslie Harpold: How to Write a Thank-you Note. Read it, learn it, live it. (via rc3oi) / (5) Comments / [ 04/07/06 ]
» A Little Weekend Reading: The Writing Problems of Visual Thinkers, Gerald Grow.
Some people write badly as a result of applying visual thinking inappropriately to writing. The resulting mismatch between visual thinking and writing produces characteristic, recurring writing problems. Some who write this way are accomplished visual thinkers and successful professionals, others are visually-talented students struggling to survive "the verbal bias of schooling" (Olson, 1977b). If teachers recognize that certain writing problems result from a strength misapplied, they may be able to help train the visual thinkers who will be so important in the technologies of the near future.
[ 03/31/06 ]
» Harper Lee, famously reclusive, and (thanks to Capote) newly famous, has begun making one, quiet appearance a year: an awards ceremony for a high school essay contest on the subject of To Kill a Mockingbird. "They always see new things in it. And the way they relate it to their lives now is really quite incredible." Harper Lee. [ 01/30/06 ]
