Trina Boice's Blog: The Boice Box, page 16

Amazon Enters the Publishing Business

In publishing news today:

Amazon will soon be competing with the publishing houses that supply it.  The gigantic company is set to publish 122 books this fall in both physical and e-book form. Amazon has signed deals already with self-help author Tim Ferriss and film director Penny Marshall, and is said to be aggressively targeting top authors.



"Publishers are terrified and don't know what to do," says Dennis Loy Johnson of Melville House. Amazon has hired publishing veteran Laurence Kirshbaum to run the operation, which will publish both fiction and nonfiction.

PoetryTurned Into a Vegas Show

                                     

"Jabbawockeez is the best show I've seen in Vegas by far" was what my 16 year old son posted on his Facebook status last night, after seeing their fun show at the Monte Carlo Resort and Casino.  We live in Sin City and my son has seen quite a few shows, so that's really saying something. 

Even if you don't have a break-dancing teen in your family, you're sure to enjoy this world-famous dance crew's high energy show. (Old folks near the stage will want to wear ear plugs.) Picture comedic mimes doing some of the coolest hip hop dance moves you've seen, add some fly costumes designed by Kara Saun, the runner up on Bravo's "Project Runway" Season 1, and put it all on a hip stage set and you've got 90 minutes of good, CLEAN entertainment, perfect for families.

The Jabbawockeez first gained fame in their national television appearance on America's Got Talent in 2006, before winning the MTV hip-hop dance reality series, Randy Jackson Presents America's Best Dance Crew in March 2008. They're considered to be the ultimate dance crew these days and have inspired countless kids to get out there and bust a move.  Does anyone say "bust a move" anymore or did I just reveal my age?





While the target audience is most definitely the young club set, we were surrounded by an amused older crowd in the audience as well.  The dancing is accompanied by a spliced mixed tape of sorts that features musical fan favorites and movie audio clips that span several decades, causing the audience to cheer and clap in excited spurts.

The crew's signature look includes white masks and white gloves, but even without faces, the dancers' bodies gave effective expression, often communicating with hesitant volunteers from the audience for some delightful comedy sketches.  In fact, the performers don't take themselves too seriously at all and the show is almost a comedy routine mixed with some impressive flares, locking, popping and dime stopping.

Without a word from the dancers, they were able to weave a faint story throughout the show of how anyone can find their muse (the show's title "MUS.I.C" is read "Muse I See".  I've seen several Vegas shows start with a janitor sweeping the stage (get in your seat at least fifteen minutes early to enjoy his pre-show antics), but this blue collar Wockee maintains his faceless identity during the whole show and attempts to teach us that anyone can dream big by bringing "the colors of sound" to life.

One of my favorite sections of the show was a ninja showdown that featured some glow-in-the-dark antics that were fun with the lights off and hilarious when the lights came back on to reveal their secret tricks.  The Jabbawockeez know how to poke fun at Vegas too, dressing up as Elvis, Blue Man Group, Carrot Top, and a show girl.



The original crew consists of seven members: Kevin Brewer, Joe Larot, Phil Tayag, Chris Gatdula, Ryan Paguio, Jeff "Phi" Nguyen, and Ben Chung "B-Tek." Before being accepted as official members of Jabbawockeez, Jeff and Ben Chung had to participate in a dance battle with one of the three founders.  I did a head count during the Vegas show and soon learned that MTV's "America's Best Dance Crew" Season 2 winners Super Cr3w perform nightly with Jabbawockeez, adding some extra athleticism and acrobatics to the show.  In fact, at times there is so much going on the stage that it's hard to know which performer to focus on.

The name Jabbawockeez is derived from Lewis Carroll's poem Jabberwocky, briefly alluded to in the show when the janitor starts to read the book and then falls into a dream state.  By the way, don't sit in the first three rows if fog machines bother you. Although the show started off a little slowly, the packed audience was eager to award the crew with a standing ovation at the end.

And now a few bummers…I talked to several adoring audience members who had their wallets out, ready to buy merchandise before and after the show, but were quickly discouraged by the ridiculously steep prices, leaving the dope signature masks and t-shirts in the store.  I was surprised that the dance crew didn't take their masks off at the end of the performance like they so often do, and a bit disappointed that they didn't come outside the theater to greet the audience and take photos.  (I had my Flipcam ready to film them becoming best friends with my son.)

The crew's success in Vegas means that the show has been extended through spring 2012.  Performances are Thursday at 9:30 p.m., Friday at 9:30 p.m., Saturday at 7 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. and Sunday and Monday at 7:30 p.m.  Tickets start at $52 (plus tax and fees).    For more information, please visit www.jbwkz.com or www.montecarlo.com.

Writers Get New Support Online

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In writing news this week:



Writing can be a lonely task. It can be tricky to motivate yourself, and without proper feedback, it's hard to know how to improve. Several websites already exist to encourage writers, through classes, workshops, online forums and more. Tomorrow, a new site called LitReactor adds its name to the list.



Created by the team who built Chuck Palahniuk's website, which itself has hosted writing classes and more, LitReactor uses a combination of engaging content and smart gaming mechanics to encourage writers to gain both new skills and new trusted friends.  Check it out!

Bringing Authors and Readers Together

Imagine being able to talk to the author of a book at the very moment you are reading it. Unless the author is your uncle sitting next to you at Thanksgiving dinner, the scenario seems unlikely. With today's cool technology, however, now it's a reality!



Amazon's new feature @author, allows readers to ask questions directly from their Kindles which are sent to the author's Twitter account, as well as to the writer's home page at Amazon! Amazon's cool new technology is aimed at creating a reader community online, focusing on Kindle titles.



While publishers worry that they will be cut out of the connection, authors are cheering for a chance to improve their brand and build a stronger fan following. If you've ever tried to write to an author through the publisher's contact information, you know that messages and questions to authors rarely get passed on. Now the relationship can be more intimate and even instant. Some publishers are still furious that anyone can sell their independent books online and make a fortune without their help. Amazon is truly changing the publishing industry.



John Locke (not the bald guy from "Lost", but a businessman who started writing Kindle novels and is the first author to sell more than a million ebooks online), recently signed an unusual contract with Simon & Schuster, which allows him to continue selling his ebooks while the publisher handles marketing and sales of the print versions. This unique deal is a perfect example of how the balance of power in the traditional publishing world has shifted, creating a need for both authors and publishers to adapt to new changes.



The @author feature is an expansion of Amazon's social-networking-style program for Kindle which invites readers to "follow" other readers and see which books they like and have commented on. Amazon is hoping that readers will answer questions for the authors as well and create a virtual hang-out on their site. Technology continues to bring together readers and authors in new ways. Any time more people are reading and talking about books is always a good thing!

Are You Prepared?

Disasters can happen anytime, anywhere. We're seeing devastating catastrophes all over the world.  September is National Emergency Preparedness Month.  Now is the time to gather some emergency supplies and create 72 hour kits for each family member and each car.  After serious disasters, you may be on your own until help arrives.  In case of evacuation, you'll need food, clothing, camping equipment, cash, medicine and personal identification.  Supplies can simply be kept in a backpack near your garage door or closet for quick access.



FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate said "Iencourage everyone to take a few minutes and discuss what you would do in caseof an emergency or disaster. The public is the most important member of ournation's emergency response team and the more the public does to be prepared,the more successful this team will be."



We can livefor three weeks without food, but only three days without water.  Finding clean drinking water, therefore,becomes a top priority during a disaster.  Because city water may become contaminatedduring a disaster or completely cut off, you need to have a back-up plan.  Experts recommend storing at least threegallons of water per person per day for fourteen days.  Water can be stored in glass or durableplastic, refreshing the contents every year. Never store water in metal, vinylplastic or in containers previously used for chemicals or hazardous material.



You'll alsowant to store water treatment supplies, such as unscented bleach, tools forboiling water, and a water filter. Before drinking uncertain source water,you'll need to disinfect and filter it. History reveals that more people die AFTER a disaster from water-bornediseases than died because of the initial disaster.  The deathly spread of cholera in Haiti after their devastating earthquake is a perfect example of that.  Even a "Boil Water Alert" from your localcity after a simple water main break can feel like a disaster if you'reunprepared.



Thefollowing are some steps to treating water to make it more safe for drinking.

1.     Clarify: Remove debris.  If there are a lot of leaves, dirt or otherparticulate matter in the water source, run the water through a coffee filter, cheesecloth, or piece of fabric.



2.     Disinfect: Harmful bacteria canbe killed by boiling or by chemical disinfection, but both treatments may stillleave harmful contaminants, so filtering is required as the final step.  Bring water to a boil for five minutes (addone minute for every 1000 feet above sea level).  Another way to kill bacteria is to addhousehold bleach to the source water, about 1/8 teaspoon (10 drops) per gallon.Never use scented bleach, and double the amount if your bleach is older than ayear.  Allow the bleached water to standfor an hour or more before filtering it. Follow the manufacturer's guidelines if using Chlorine tablets instead.Iodine tablets are not recommended anymore.



3.     Filter: Once your water hasbeen clarified and disinfected, you'll need to filter it to remove harmfulhealth contaminants, as well as to remove the chlorine taste.  Purchase a good NSF certified solid-activatedcarbon filter.  The filter could be youreveryday filter or a portable one you could take with you during anevacuation.  



Beingprepared brings peace of mind for you and your loved ones.  Spend some time with your family talkingabout how to be better prepared for various emergency scenarios, as well aspracticing the actions you'll take. Print out the instructions above and keep them with your water treatmentsupplies.  For moreinformation, visit http://www.fema.gov/privatesectorpreparedness/