The Lauren Conrad Book Deal (Because I HAD to Say Something!)

Even as I posted my last entry about the New York Magazine article and how the publishing business is fixing to change around, I had this in the back of my head. And I'm sure it also sticks in the craw of some of you other Questers.

About a week and a half ago, alleged celebrity Lauren Conrad, whose mere presence is endemic of what's truly wrong with television these days and who, to noone's knowledge, has ever wrote a story in her life, got a three-book deal from HarperCollins. This is an odd move by a publisher that, according the the New York Magazine article, is trying to reinvent itself with its HarperStudio imprint.

Her subject matter? The L.A. Candy series, as it's been dubbed, is loosely based on her "transition from regular gal to recognizable face."

Meh.

While I personally do not write in the particular genre, I feel badly for those Questers who were already going up against Gossip Girl and Clique books and other YA items of that ilk. And with a publishing industry already tightening up ship after a ton of bombs, was this really what YA Questers wanted to hear about?

If these books can be considered literary junk food, then that would make the upcoming Lauren Conrad series Hardee's (or Carl's Jr., depending on your location).

iSoap on NewFiction.com - The Future?

This is the textbook definition of early adoption, especially when Questers are hearing the worst of news.

While trolling around Twitter, I came across this gem from New York Magazine, openly wondering about the demise of publishing as we know it. As many Questers can attest to, the publishing business was already tough to break into. Now, if the pundits are right, the business will be dead and buried before long.

But it probably won't. Like the first rule of chemistry, matter is neither created nor destroyed, just changing form. With the advent of e-books and readers from Amazon, Sony and soon, Plastic Logic, those of us trying to get our writing out there will have just as many places to go as ever. And, as in the case of Amazon Digital Text Platform, with a little bit of tech savvy, we, as writers, can cut out the middleman altogether.

That's not all. While making my regular stop on LinkedIn, I can across a question in one of my groups from a gentleman named Tom Lopilato seeking fiction stories for his venture, NewFiction.com. Out of sheer curiosity, I took a look at the site.

What I saw could very well be the future of publishing. NewFiction is the creator of the iSoap, a publishing hybrid that marries the format of old-school weekly radio shows and the technology behind podcasting. Throw in a e-book PDF text format for good measure, and they really could be onto something.

Needless to say, I've already sent them Flagrant Foul. If ever there was a book to have in this format, this would be it.

Then again, perhaps I should have went with Dilemma...

The Twitterverse is Calling...

Finally, an instance where following people isn't considered stalking!

Microblogging, or micromedia (depending on you you ask) is spreading like wildfire. Forms of it have shown up on most of the social networking sites, such as MySpace, Facebook and LinkedIn. In the last couple of years, though, it's taken on a life of it's own.

Welcome to the Twitterverse.

Like most Questers, I, too, have been drawn to the ability to unveil a random stream of consciousness on a regular basis. While like most social media, it's a good place to keep in touch with your friends, it's also a pretty good tool to get the word out about your book.

Plus, if you look in the right place, you'll find a few sites to help you with your Quest.

Lulu's on there - http://twitter.com/Luludotcom

And a new one I found, and an excellent source for Quester, Blog Book Tours - http://twitter.com/blogbooktours (Oddly enough, Blogger thinks they're a spam blog, to which I do not concur!)

I can be followed, too - http://twitter.com/bobmcdonald

Early Adopters vs. Target Audience

You always wonder if you've made the right move.

With the advent of devices like the Amazon Kindle and the Sony Reader, and with news of another competitor, Plastic Logic. projected to come to market next year, it's no real secret that authors like myself are slowly but surely trying to latch on.

Amazon's made it the simplest by allowing authors to self-publish their work using their Digital Text Platform site or, in another end-around, using Mobipocket, which was snapped up by Amazon in 2005, most likely as a precursor the the development of the Kindle.

But the early adopters, are they really my demographic?

Amazon hopes so.

BusinessWeek had this story about Amazon prepping for the next version of the currently-bulky Kindle and how the company's gunning for the college crowd. They're banking on the same crowd who gobbled up iPods and iPhones like they were going out of style will find the new Kindle a viable alternative to the hundreds of dollars in books they're currently lugging around.

For me, however, this prospect, which may include a price drop from the current $359 down to as low as $249, doesn't necessarily benefit me now.

So what shall become of Flagrant Foul and Dilemma? Oh, they'll be there...

...and maybe a couple of additional Kindle Books along with them, perhaps?