In August we received a request from an author to publish their book by Christmas. Next July we will receive a request from someone to publish their book before the November election. I mean, how long can it take to publish a book? You get it typeset and printed and you’re done. Right? A month? Two months maybe?
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Literary Death Scene
When a bookstore goes out of business, what do the books do? That is the penetrating questions asked by the folks at Loome Antiquarian Booksellers, where one of the employees is the son of IVP’s business manager, Jim Hagen. You can find the very literary and humorous answer here.
Save the Books!
Dear Santa
Dear Santa:
We have been a very good publisher this year. We have paid our bills on time. We have one of the highest “in stock” rates in the industry. We have published many valuable books. We got several awards for our book designs. We have played nice with our authors. We told the truth in our marketing (even if we did get a little “excited” now and then). So I hope you will keep that in mind as Christmas gets near.
I know your elves are working harder than ever this time of year. Maybe they would have time to squeeze in one or two of the following into your sleigh before you take off.
1. Lots and lots of shelf space in bookstores so people can see our award-winning covers, not just our award-winning spines.
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Publishing for Profit
The old joke defines a consultant as someone who borrows your watch and then proceeds to tell you the time. If a consultant writes a book, however, that is a different matter. And what more appropriate topic for a consultant to write a book on than publishing itself. That’s just what Tom Woll, president at Cross River Publishing Consultants, has done.
Over the years I’ve read a number of books on publishing, and in most I have found several helpful ideas I have been able to implement. Woll’s Publishing for Profit is no exception. Periodically over the next few weeks I’ll be summarizing one or more chapters of the book at a time, highlighting insights and commenting as I go.
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The Golden Compass
New Line Cinema’s The Golden Compass opens in theaters this week amid much debate and controversy. Based on Philip Pullman’s book, the first of a trilogy, it is set in another world like ours but not. Some are concerned that the book does (and that the movie will) represent Christianity in a false and unflattering light. Certainly Pullman has said, “My books are about killing God.” So he is not being guarded about his intentions.
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Getting on the Bus
My friend Steve worked as a school bus driver to help pay his way through seminary. His first year on the job was the horror story you would imagine–chaos, unruliness, insolence, anarchy. His second year on the job was a model of order, civility, respect and humanity. What made the difference?
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Kindle Aflame
Well, Amazon’s Kindle made it–just in time for Cyber Monday today. Amazon has a huge spread on the glories of Kindle, complete with video demonstration and words from Jeff Bezos and Toni Morrison. Already there are over 700 customer reviews with an average three-star rating out of five.
Today, Larry Magid wrote: “The first batch of Kindles sold out quickly and Amazon says it won’t have more in stock until Dec. 6. But my guess is that the Kindle will have modest success and won’t become a bestseller. But it does point the way to the future of reading. As paper and other natural resources get more expensive, this is the obvious way to go, especially for students and school districts who are now burdened with heavy, expensive and often outdated text books. But if I were Jeff Bezos, I’d worry about Steve Jobs. It wouldn’t take too many Apple programmers to turn an iPhone and an iPod into an iReader.”
The Dark Side of Platform
Be careful what you wish for.
Publishing is becoming like real estate. Only three things matter. Platform. Platform. Platform. It seems to be a requirement that to publish a book authors must be well-known or be on the speaking circuit or have a deep network of potential readers to tap into once the book is published. A high-platform author is the dream of every publisher. Or is it the nightmare?
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One Flew Over
It seems that everyone wants a say about the new book There Is a God: How the World’s Most Notorious Atheists Changed His Mind. It started with publication of the book last month by Harper One about Antony Flew, a British philosopher who wrote a pivotal essay in 1950 called “Theology and Falsification,” originally presented at the Oxford Socratic Club chaired by C. S. Lewis. Reprinted many times over, it has been a guide for atheists ever since.
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The Writer’s Dream
America is the land of infinite opportunities. We can all be whatever we want to be, shape our own identity, pursue any career path, even create our own gods. Certainly there is a great deal of opportunity and possibility in America, but as a recent Chicago Tribune article suggests, it is not infinite. There can come a time when we need to give up on a dream–if only, in true American style, to pursue a different dream.
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