E-books continue to impact the publishing world

Four posts/articles of interest:

Authors Feel Pinch in Age of E-Books from the Wall Street Journal. 


The Acquisition Editor via The Newbie's Guide to Publishing. Interesting "conversation" from the viewpoint of an author.

Two E-Books Cost More Than Amazon Hardcovers from The New York Times.


Special guest post by Neesha Meminger at The Rejectionist, on self-publishing and e-book publishing versus traditional publishing.

The world of publishing

Just gets more interesting every day. E-books are completely revolutionizing the publishing industry, and not just in the way books are produced. I'm not surprised at all that Wylie Agency wants to handle the e-book side of their titles exclusively; e-books are only becoming more popular (although I still don't believe Amazon's figures) and the market is huge. I am slightly surprised by Random House's reaction though. Refusing to do any future business with the Wylie Agency seems slightly drastic.

Externships

I've never before heard of an externship, although I think it's a great idea, especially for nontraditional jobs that don't end at 5 p.m. every day. Via The New York Times.

Side note: Carleton College is the college that Pamela Dean based her fictional college, Blackstock College, on in Tam Lin.

Justin Cronin, interviewed at the NYT

While being interviewed about his upcoming new novel, The Passage, Justin Cronin had this to say about the difference between literary fiction (what he's known for) and commercial fiction:

"I think literary is shorthand for appreciated, and commercial is shorthand for sells."

Hee. That's the best description of the two that I've seen in a long time.

The End of Publishing

via Moonrat, a video about the end of publishing.

Brilliant, just brilliant.

A light on the horizon

This story, about Harper Collins and Borders, is giving me a teensy bit of hope.  

Teensy. Bit. Of. Hope.