Online publishing refers to everything from running a set of blogs on the Web to publishing an illustrated encyclopedia available only online.
I went to my friend Mr. Google and asked him what's going on with online publishing these days. Here's what he told me. (Approximate quotes.) "Well, JG, there are lots of businesses out there who will publish anything you put in front of them. With electronic wizardry, that means for anything you want to publish, there's somebody out there who will do it for you."
"But Mr. Google," I protested. "I don't want to hire someone to do this for me. I want to do it myself. How do I publish my book online?"
Mr. Google wiggled his nose but said nothing.
So I'm still wondering. I can load my book on the Web in PDF style. Is that online publishing? I can put my book page by page in a series of blogs or web pages. But how does someone who wants to read my book open it with their pda?
My dream is to provide a way for my authors to sell their books online. I'll keep looking for tools I can offer them.
Sunday, December 9, 2007
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Changing Directions
Go ahead and throw that rubber ball at my head. It'll just bounce off the hard surface, no pain inflicted.
I am so curious about publishing good solid nonfiction books on the Web that I'm going to shift directions for this collection of writing tips and dedicate them to writing online books and the process of publishing online.
Good writing is, of course, good writing. The difference is that good writing in the 1600s isn't good writing in the 2000s, and good writing for The New York Times isn't good writing for the Web.
I would like to suggest that most but not all online writing is bad writing. Putting words on a screen doesn't make them more interesting, more informative, or more useful. It does make them more accessible. We need to learn and use effective ways of building text to accommodate shorter attention spans and making key points in powerful and effective ways.
Or, to put this in a style for the Web—
Writing good nonfiction e-books requires the ability to...
1. Write clearly
2. Say it in a few words
3. Make lists and bullets
4. Use illustrations
5. Organize points
6. Invite participation
That's it.
I am so curious about publishing good solid nonfiction books on the Web that I'm going to shift directions for this collection of writing tips and dedicate them to writing online books and the process of publishing online.
Good writing is, of course, good writing. The difference is that good writing in the 1600s isn't good writing in the 2000s, and good writing for The New York Times isn't good writing for the Web.
I would like to suggest that most but not all online writing is bad writing. Putting words on a screen doesn't make them more interesting, more informative, or more useful. It does make them more accessible. We need to learn and use effective ways of building text to accommodate shorter attention spans and making key points in powerful and effective ways.
Or, to put this in a style for the Web—
Writing good nonfiction e-books requires the ability to...
1. Write clearly
2. Say it in a few words
3. Make lists and bullets
4. Use illustrations
5. Organize points
6. Invite participation
That's it.
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