Alexander M. Zoltai's Blog, page 206

Authors/Readers vs Publishers vs the U.S. Dept. of Justice

It appears that Apple plus five of the Big Six publishers are being threatened by a lawsuit.

It seems to be revolving around the "Agency Model" of pricing…

Personally, I have no rock-solid opinion, though I am leaning in a certain direction—which should be obvious when I include a few excerpts from the last reference-link below—in fact, even if you read all the referenced articles, I encourage you to read the last one first then go back and judge the others…

Let me introduce you to a few published opinions:

From The Atlantic: How Cheap Should Books Be?

From the independent publisher, Melville House: Authors Guild head (and attorney) Scott Turow warns DOJ about the effects of law suit.

From The Guardian: Ebooks: defending the agency model.

From The Christian Science Monitor: Right pricing e-books: Is the government actually discouraging competition?

From TechDirt: Author's Guild Boss On E-Book Price Fixing Allegations: But… But… Brick-And-Mortar!

And, From A Newbie's Guide To Publishing: Barry, Joe, & Scott Turow.

Just a few excerpts from that last one [italics are Scott Turow, Joe is Joe Konrath, Barry is Barry Eisler]:

"Yesterday's report that the Justice Department may be near filing an antitrust lawsuit against five large trade book publishers and Apple is grim news for everyone who cherishes a rich literary culture.

"Joe: Translation: It will be grim news for bestselling authors and billion-dollar publishers.

"Barry: I always wonder what people mean by these vague references to 'rich literary culture' (and when I see the same phrase crop up in more than one place, it really sets my bullshit detector tingling). Ordinarily, these buzzwords sound appealing in the abstract, but dissolve like an urban legend when subjected to a bit of thought."

"The Justice Department has been investigating whether those publishers colluded in adopting a new model, pioneered by Apple for its sale of iTunes and apps, for selling e-books. Under that model, Apple simply acts as the publisher's sales agent, with no authority to discount prices.

"Joe: Translation: Under the Apple model, publishers can set their own prices. That isn't Amazon's model, but if enough of us band together (i.e. collusion), publishers can force Amazon to accept the prices publishers set.

"Look, a retailer should be able to sell whatever they want to sell, for however much they want to charge.

"Imagine going to a car dealer and being told, 'We have to sell this Mazda for $19,999, and you can't bargain.' Imagine owning a store and not being able to put anything on sale."

"Amazon was using e-book discounting to destroy bookselling, making it uneconomic for physical bookstores to keep their doors open.

"Joe: Translation: Amazon was using free enterprise to gain market share, something that worries inferior competition.

"Barry: Oh, come on. Amazon's lower prices were intended to 'destroy bookselling'? Not to sell more books and gain market share? It's ipso facto evil to compete via lower prices?

"I really wish all companies would collude to charge higher prices. The world would be a better place.

"Joe: The Big Publishing Cartel monopolizes distribution for decades and that's fine, but some upstart comes in and starts treating authors and readers with consideration, and it is a call to arms.

"Barry: This argument is just bizarre. I mean, Amazon, which sells more books than anyone, is destroying bookselling? Amazon is destroying bookselling by selling tons of books?"

So, what do you think about all this?

Are Apple and the Big Five right?

Is the President of the Author's Guild in the pockets of the Big Five and Apple?

Is Amazon evil?

Are Joe and Barry crazy??

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Our Comment Link Is At The Top of The Post :-)

For Private Comments, Email: amzolt {at} gmail {dot} com

Tagged: Amazon, Apple, Author's Guild, Barry Eisler, J. A. Konrath, Joe Konrath, Publishers, Scott Turow

Little Libraries Spreading All Over :-)

Fairly small, up on a pole, books inside, and saying, "Take A Book – Leave A Book".

This phenomenon began in Hudson, Wisconsin, USA and has already spread to Europe and Africa.

From USA Today: "Todd Bol wanted to honor his mother, a former teacher and book lover who died a decade ago. So two years ago, Bol built a miniature model of a library, filled it with books for anyone to take, and placed it outside his home….From that idea, hundreds of similar Little Free Libraries are popping up on lawns across the country. They're tiny — no bigger than a dollhouse. Some look like miniature homes or barns. Others just look like a box on a post."

The Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Journal Sentinel has a lovely photo album of these Little Free Libraries :-)

You can buy Little Free Libraries, ready-made or get free tips and plans to build a Little Free Library yourself.

Todd contacted his friend Rick Brooks and they set up LittleFreeLibrary.Org, linked-to up in that excerpt from USA Today. Do read the whole article; there's lots more happening; even prisoners are getting into the act :-)

Here are just a few of the comments from the article:

"I thought it was a great way, in a small way, to spread the love of literature."

"I have no idea how many literally thousands of books have been in and out of there."

"I love it. I like the sense of community, I like the concept and the comfort level of sharing reading materials."

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Our Comment Link Is At The Top of The Post :-)

For Private Comments, Email: amzolt {at} gmail {dot} com

Tagged: books, Community Project, Libraries, library, Little Free Libraries, Little Free Library, Sharing Books, Wisconsin

Inside The Writer's Mind

So far, we've had 29 Author Interviews and this is certainly one way to attempt to get inside the mind of a writer.

We've explored the writer's mind in many ways here but one in particular stands out: Why Do Humans Write?

And, for any readers who want to get into my mind, the series of posts at, * What Are Words ? *, is a good start…

If you've read more than a few posts here, you've probably come across a mention or two of Book Island.

Book Island is a special place in the virtual world, Second Life, that lets me meet and interact with Readers, Writers, and Publishers on a regular basis.

We attend events with Open Mic readings, engage in discussion groups, and, often, just hang out at the Writer's Block Cafe :-)

One of the Book Island Regulars, who's also the Correspondent for the Island Newsletter, is writer Barbara Blackcinder.

She gave me permission to copy one of her blog posts here.

Get ready to enter the Mind of a Writer………

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Where Did My Writer Come From?

When I say my character walks in the darkened night, under branches that shine with the mist, dripping on me as I pass under them, it is because I have walked under that branch and wondered how I would say it when I would write it down later. I have always been a writer, whenever my mind wasn't occupied by taking care of some aspect of life. When my mind wandered, it wrote.

My life is one of scenarios occurring one after the other. Some were frightful, some became frightful as I wrote them in my head. Some threw boogie men at me left and right while I navigated a tunnel, dark, cluttered with garbage, and a box just large enough for someone to hide behind until the very second I passed by. But when I successfully passed through without such an attack, I was relieved, and had another eerie scene in my storage case, as well as one of success.  I may have had to clean my underwear when I returned home though.

My mind was inwardly facing since I knew that I was thinking instead of reacting. Although I thought about things that had to be thought about, it was always from the perspective of another eye deep inside my head. It was me, but I could see myself acting, reacting, scared and joyful. This dichotomy of thought was myself and my writer. They've been around for over fifty years and know they always will be together.

Until The End

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Visit Barbara Blackcinder's Blog

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Our Comment Link Is At The Top of The Post :-)

For Private Comments, Email: amzolt {at} gmail {dot} com

Tagged: Author Interviews, Mind of A Writer, What Are Words, writer, Writer Resources, Writers Mind, writing

All Kinds of Writing Prompts . . .

"Writing prompts" are anything that gets a writer writing.

Some writers find the idea strange since they never have situations or feelings block their writing.

Even though I'm in that group of writers who don't experience blocks, I've spent the last few Mondays at an event on Book Island in Second Life called Writers' Wave.

We all sit down to our typewriters or laptops, June Faramore gives us a one or two word Prompt, and we capture whatever we feel moved to write for twenty minutes.

Then, we share our creations and give each other a few comments.

Of course, there is the desire to go back and edit before sharing, but I'm always pleased to see so many coherent ideas developed in so little time :-)

Even though I'm an unblockable writer and don't need prompts to make my creative vehicle move, it's still enjoyable to see what I come up with on the spur of the moment.

Naturally, there is no dearth of places to find this kind of "writing prompt"—just put the words in Google.

However, there are different kinds of Prompt that operate in certain writers' work.

Prompting can come from more than a word or two. It may be a sentence heard or read, an article or essay, or even a complete book that Prompts the writer to take things in their own literary direction…

While I was at the Writers' Chat on Book Island yesterday, one of the participants gave two different links to the same WebSite when she wanted to give us resources to back-up what she was saying.

I got very intrigued with that site and went to visit.

Alan Bellows is the man behind this site and does the bulk of the writing.

It's essentially a collection of stories and articles that are damned interesting and could easily Prompt a writer to create…

The name of the Space clearly echoes its content: DamnInteresting.com :-)

As they say about themselves: "Damn Interesting is a growing collection of legitimately fascinating information culled from the past, present, and anticipated future. We tend to write about timeless topics, so we leave each article's discussion open indefinitely. New insights are always welcome."

Here are a couple of their Greatest Hits to get you going:

The Unfortunate Sex Life of the Banana

The Wrath of the Killdozer

Doctor Watson's Phobia Factory

BTW, if you have a message come up that says the site is unreachable, just click the link again and you'll more than likely succeed. Here's Alan's explanation :-)

"As you may have noticed, until about a week ago the Damn Interesting web server was about as sturdy as a pair of paper pajamas….After a week or so of testing I am happy to announce that the server is now approximately as sturdy as corrugated cardboard pajamas."

Do you use Writing Prompts?

What are your favorite kind?

Have any good places to find Prompts?

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Our Comment Link Is At The Top of The Post :-)

For Private Comments, Email: amzolt {at} gmail {dot} com

Tagged: Alan Bellows, DamnInteresting.com, writer, Writer Resources, Writer's Block, writing

Cleaning Out The Closet ~ for Readers, Writers, and Publishers

If you blog five days a week like I do, you have ways of storing blogging ideas for later use.

Sometimes, it's good to empty-out the list :-)

Back in January, I wrote Is A Book Ever Finished? but I only used one source to highlight issues about the ability to forever change a published book in a digital edition.

Another interesting article about the never-finished book is, Books That Are Never Done Being Written, from the Wall Street Journal.

Then there's Anonymous Was A Writer from the Los Angeles Times. You might be quite surprised to find out which famous authors chose to leave their names off certain books…

The last link I'll clean out of my blogging closet today is from ConsortiumInfo.org. There's a series called, Adventures In Self-Publishing, and Chapters 3, 4, and 5 are about Print-On-Demand Publishers.

The only thing missing from those articles is a mention of the P.O.D. publisher I use—FastPencil…

Stay tuned for another closet-cleaning, down the road a piece :-)

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Our Comment Link Is At The Top of The Post :-)

For Private Comments, Email: amzolt {at} gmail {dot} com

Tagged: blog, FastPencil, Los Angeles Times, POD, Print on demand, Readers, self-publish, Wall Street Journal

E-books & Libraries of The Future . . .

Most folks know what "going to the library" means.

Thing is, that phrase carries different meanings for different people.

Many go to the library to take out books; some to upload e-books, some to meet a sweetheart, some to find a quiet place to rest from the stress of homelessness…

I've looked at libraries a few different ways in previous posts. Here are a few:

Libraries Weathering The Storm In Publishing

Should We All Self-Publish A Book?

Been To Your Local Library Lately?

However, not all is well with the relationship between legacy publishers and libraries…

Take this recent excerpt from a post on DailyTech:

"Last month, Random House announced that it would be making some changes to the way it sells e-books to libraries, including price increases. But libraries didn't expect cost boosts as high as 300 percent, where no titles are offered under $25. Some even go as high as over $100 per title."

The piece goes on to say:

"…Hachette and Macmillan have only made part of their list of e-book titles available to libraries, HarperCollins puts a 26-use expiration on its library e-books, and others like Simon & Schuster and Penguin don't even let libraries lend out their e-books."

One particular institution, the Vancouver Public Library, has mounted a special campaign to deal with All  the changes happening in the publishing world, one which draws on the thoughts and feelings of their patrons—Free-For-All ~ Reimagining Your Library.

If you'd like an in-depth take on a modern's library's issues, check out this article in The Tyee, Libraries of the Future!

Do you still use a local library?

Do you have fond memories of a library?

Do you think libraries will be able to sustain their operations with all the current changes in the Book World?

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Our Comment Link Is At The Top of The Post :-)

For Private Comments, Email: amzolt {at} gmail {dot} com

Tagged: E-book, ebook, HarperCollins, Libraries, library, publishing, Random House, Vancouver Public Library

Can We "Make" Ourselves Happy?

Is being happy dependent on getting what we want?

Can we actually be happy about situations when we don't get what we want?

Even though this blog covers things of interest to Readers, Writers, and Publishers, this post should have value for nearly anyone.

I've dealt with writers being unhappy in the previous post, Must Writers Suffer Melancholy, Anguish, and Depression?, and the video in that post could certainly help anyone get more inspired about facing life's challenges…

What does it really mean to be happy when we get what we don't want?

Even more to the point, what does "Being Happy" really mean?

Shawn Achor was Head Teaching Fellow for Positive Psychology, one of the most popular courses at Harvard; and, he's written the book, The Happiness Advantage. You'll see more of him soon…

Harvard psychologist, Dan Gilbert, has written the book, Stumbling On Happiness, and you'll soon see more of him, too :-)

While both Shawn and Dan have remarkable ideas about happiness, how it can be gained, and why it's crucial to a productive life, there's a book from the Great Depression called Think And Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill.

This book is still a best-seller and, though the title sounds like it's a manual on amassing money, it contains solid, comprehensive principles on maintaining one's Happiness. You can download Think And Grow Rich free at this link…

So, if you don't have time to read the books of these three gentlemen, you can, at least, receive some remarkable insights about Happiness by watching the videos below—first, Shawn Achor, then, Dan Gilbert:

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Our Comment Link Is At The Top of The Post :-)

For Private Comments, Email: amzolt {at} gmail {dot} com

Tagged: Being Happy, Dan Gilbert, Napoleon Hill, Shawn Achor, Stumbling On Happiness, The Happiness Advantage, Think And Grow Rich, Unhappy

Author Interview ~ Haley Whitehall Debuts First Novel

I just love meeting writers when they're still in that wonderful/crazy world of working on a book.

But, It's much better to continue to get to know them until they've finished the book and hold its Debut :-)

It was March of 2011 when Haley Whitehall visited this blog for an author interview.

And now, we get to have another interview about the Historical Fiction Novel she's just published.

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Haley, what is the premise of your debut novel "Living Half Free"?

When Zachariah, a naïve mulatto slave, is sold to a Kentucky slave trader, and separated from his ma and sister, he realizes the true meaning of not having rights. Singled out for abuse by his new master's sadistic son, he dreams of only one thing: escape. He thinks he's found it when he falls in love with a Cherokee woman from a powerful family, under whose direction he learns to pass as white. But it's not long before he discovers that freedom that's based on a lie will only get him so far. While struggling to find his place in the world, he also wrestles within his heart to realize his faith. This faith is tested when his slave past catches up with him, and threatens everyone he cares for. He must decide whether slavery is the price he's willing to pay for his family's freedom.

Very powerful premise, Haley! How did you get your idea for "Living Half Free"?

This is going to sound cliche, but the idea came to me in a dream. However, I had just finished reading Puddinhead Wilson by Mark Twain. (A secret goal of mine is to read all of Mark Twain's books.) Puddinhead Wilson is Mark Twain's only tragedy and follows the lives of two boys who were switched at birth–one white and one a slave who was "imitation white." This was the first story I had read about a slave passing as white. In my dream a beautiful Native American woman stood next to Zachariah and that sparked my story in a new direction.

How much time did you spend researching before you wrote the book?

I've been reading about this time period since the 5th grade. There were three things that I needed to research: the transportation of a coffle of slaves to market, work on a Mississippi steamboat, and life on the Cherokee reservation after the Trail of Tears. Research took me about eight weeks. Some of that time was spent waiting for requested books from the library ;)

Haley, would you say you have anything in common with your protagonist, Zachariah?

Good question. I'm always wondering what part of myself I infuse into my characters. Until I get to know someone I am on the shy side. I think we have that in common. I also have a strong connection with my family and strong spirituality.

Why were you drawn to writing historical fiction?

I have a quote from James Baldwin on my homepage: "People are trapped in history, and history is trapped in them." I'm sure I was born with not only a pencil in my hand, but a love for history. I grew up on Little House on the Prairie books and John Wayne movies so that might have something to do with it. I do find facts comforting. Based on research, I can recreate the past instead of building a world from scratch.

Do you have any other projects in the works?

I can't leave the characters in Living Half Free. They are still in my head and have more stories to tell. I am currently writing a collection of short stories that take place on the steamboat the Princess. I am also editing the first book in my Civil War trilogy. If you know me, you will know that I've been working on this series for five years. It is finally reaching completion. The first book will be available this summer.

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Now is the time to click the Comment link at the top of this post and ask Haley a question :-)

Well, maybe you could comment after you see her picture and read her Bio with all her links—Whoot!

HALEY WHITEHALL has a B.A in history and has been fascinated with the Civil War era for as long as she can remember. She likes to write out of the box stories that feature an underdog. LIVING HALF FREE is her debut novel. Released February 29, the ebook can be found at Amazon, B&N, and Smashwords. Find out more about Haley through her website or connect with her on Twitter @HaleyWhitehall or Facebook.

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Our Comment Link Is At The Top of The Post :-)

For Private Comments, Email: amzolt {at} gmail {dot} com

Tagged: author interview, debut novel, Haley Whitehall, Historical fiction, James Baldwin, Living Half Free, Mark Twain, Trail of Tears

Setting A Few Things Straight About The Universe . . .

Writers do all kinds of research; especially, for their characters, plot, theme, and setting.

Some even create alternate universes so they can craft special situations.

But, what if we're stuck in this universe?

I've always tried to keep up with scientific findings but, over the last 15 years, I've taken the time to study an alternative approach to understanding our universe that bids fair to completely overturn the standard theories of mainstream science.

How would something like this affect me if all I wanted to do was write a love story, or a thrilling mystery?

One would think that if I stayed away from hard science, this new knowledge wouldn't much matter.

The thing is that my study of this new field of human understanding is also overturning most of what passes for knowledge about the vast treasure of Mythology.

So, if I'm writing something that goes deep into human motivation and I want it to strike the right chords in the reader, I should consider the new Paradigm…

Ultimately, because psychology shows that the deepest, not-conscious information and motivation have profound effects on conscious action, the closer I can get to the Truth about the Universe and my place in it, the better I should be able to write works that relate well with my readers.

Naturally, there are writers who skim the surface of life, write about it, and sell thousands of books to readers who gobble up the result…

I ain't built that way.

Also, I feel the most sensitive writers have already been tapping into this new Mythological, Scientific Paradigm.

Psychological sensitivity has a way of reaching deep into the soil of human understanding and bringing up what appears to others as amazingly powerful insights.

So, there could well be folks reading this post who don't need the rest of the information I want to share………

Apparently, humanity has three Main Stories:

First is the rich heritage of Myth which has powered some of the most profound philosophy and psychology.

Then came the Story that Science attempts to tell.

The Third Story is just now being written—a Story with More Honest Science which incorporates New Appreciations of Myth—a Story for Humanity's Future…

Let's be imaginative for a moment:

If you truly believed the Earth was the center of the Universe, the stories you wrote couldn't help but somehow reflect that belief, right?

By the way, some writers are still crafting stories in that universe…

I want to give you two resources to explore that might change your mind and feelings in profoundly deep ways.

The first is a Synopsis of the New Paradigm of Our Universe. It begins with a quote from H. P. Lovecraft:

"The most merciful thing in the world … is the inability of the human mind to correlate all its contents… The sciences, each straining in its own direction, have hitherto harmed us little; but someday the piecing together of dissociated knowledge will open up such terrifying vistas of reality… That we shall either go mad from the revelation or flee from the deadly light into the peace and safety of a new dark age."

Believe me, that quote was clearly used for Effect. The information at that link has little chance of driving you mad or back to a personal dark age :-)

The second resource is the following video.

Even if you think you have little stomach for science (or even mythology), if you're a serious writer, I urge you to watch it.

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Our Comment Link Is At The Top of The Post :-)

For Private Comments, Email: amzolt {at} gmail {dot} com

Tagged: Myth, Mythology, Philosophy, Plasma Cosmology, psychology, The Electric Universe, Universe, Writers Resources

Influential Writing? ~ Some of The Best Is Comedy :-)

It seems even the writers who claim their main responsibility is to entertain their readers have at least some desire to Influence those readers.

Then there are the writers, those trying to influence their readers, who might laugh at you for suggesting their writing is entertainment.

Of course, being entertaining in one's writing doesn't necessitate using bald comedy; but, what about subtle humor…?

The video below is a fascinating talk by Chris Bliss called, Comedy Is Translation.

I feel he shows quite clearly that a humorous presentation of information can greatly boost its Influence.

Chris mentions an influential study by the Pew Research Center that  states: "When Americans last year were asked to name the journalist they most admired, showing up at No. 4 on the list was a comedian.  Jon Stewart, host of The Daily Show on Comedy Central and former master of ceremonies at Academy Award shows, tied in the rankings with anchormen Brian Williams, Tom Brokaw, Dan Rather, and cable host Anderson Cooper."

Early in the video, Chris talks about Gabriel García Márquez and his Spanish-to-English translator, Gregory Rabassa, who is quoted as saying, "Every act of communication is, in some way, an act of translation".

This video is entertaining and quite Influential :-)

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Our Comment Link Is At The Top of The Post :-)

For Private Comments, Email: amzolt {at} gmail {dot} com

Tagged: Chris Bliss, Comedy Central, Comedy Writing, Daily Show, Gabriel García Márquez, Gregory Rabassa, Jon Stewart, Pew Research Center