Whither (or Wither) Publishing

A piece in recent New York Times Book Review provoked some letters to the editor. They and the author’s response, in turn, provoked response in my online writing group. The questions revolved around the role and virtues of traditional publishing in comparison to the world being formed by the digital onslaught. I too had some reactions. They slightly amended are below.

The letters and writer's response illustrate the complexity and crazy-making of the current techno disruption.

1. Amazon is not the Walmart of book publishing. It is Walmart. It's mission seems to be to sell everything to everybody, and a key tactic is to sell everything for less so as to own the market share. Ultimately, that can harm its suppliers.

2. I am grateful to Amazon for its Kindle and CreateSpace divisions. They’ve helped us publish a novel that otherwise would not be published. Now it's my job to see if I can find a market. Also, as a  reader,  I like having all my stuff in one lightweight, portable place.

3. The  sanguine view  of the finer glories of traditional publishing's value added ---"promotion and development"  is quaint.

4. A contention that the real climb in e-bookssales is due to "one-time conversion of great titles from publishers’ backlists. . .  reprints" is "illusory" misses the point. When Sony and Phillips introduced CDs (in '82 I think) the great majority of purchases were by boomers who could afford the equipment and were eager to rebuild and recreate their music libraries. It was a backlist experience. Equipment prices went down.CDs went universal.

5. The real battle being waged now is over who and what shapes standard business practices and thereby controls the market. With every shift and tumble in book publishing, authors have been the collateral damage. This period is no different, except. . .

6. The notion of what constitutes a brand represents a modicum of hope. Authors have a greater opportunity to be seen as brands than publishers. That's not to say, every author a Proctor &  Gamble. But with somewhat favorable payment arrangements, the current new publishing model could work work well.

7. Remenber when Barnes & Noble was the villain?

Back Home

So. How’ve you been?

I haven’t been up to much in the last year or so.

Except that I finally finished working on and reworking my novel, Out of Order. Topquark Press published it as a Kindle edition at the end of July. We then decided to do it as a trade paperback for, as Sally Tessio would say, “old times’ sake.” So naturally I got a chance to do more editing. The paperback was released this past March (The Kindle version was updated, as well.) The official publication date is given as January, 2012.

When first conceived (let’s just say a while back), the book’s title was The Co-op Murders. As lovely a tease as it was, the title was a tad misleading.

Yes, the story contains a couple of gruesome homicides, and a fair smattering of other antisocial actions. But the book really looks at the glories of human nature — especially when viewed through the prisms of those fabulous crazy-makers, co-op life and New York City. Out of Order takes place in a co-op apartment house, located in Brooklyn’s Prospect Heights neighborhood.

Oddly enough, I lived in a Prospect Heights co-op apartment house. And I even served on the Board for a while. I finally left board service when I realized the board could screw up as well without me as it could with me. (Actually, subsequent boards did quite well without me. I suppose I should be highly insulted but I’ll be all right.)

Co-op life is a splendid concept. It’s all about sharing and having control over how and where you live, and building something valuable for yourself and others. It’s just that the reality sometimes feels pettier and nastier. This can occur in a food co-op where some members are determined to exert influence over geo-political conundrums. It can occur in co-op apartment buildings where fights over lobby decorations can culminate in a touch of arson.

Such world-view clashes not only take place in co-ops; but in condo associations, as well. At the time of this writing, there is a struggle over whether it’s okay to grow your preferred flowers on the lawn in front of your home. There are questions as to whether it’s kosher to hang a mezuzah on your doorway. And there are other lofty incentives for blood feuds.

For that matter, you don’t have to be a co-op or condo resident to know that the term boardmember does not always invite veneration, respect or even safe conduct. There are opportunities for conflict among all sorts of boards. It’s really quite beautiful when you think about it. Whether ignoble or altruistic, life affirming or utterly crass, a board will find members clashing over the tiniest policy detail and go utterly bonkers in full view of the world.

Which brings us back to the title, Out of Order. Any of its three meanings are particularly apt. It refers to malfunctioning machinery (and/or people), inappropriate behavior, and the intricacies of parliamentary procedure.

Roberts' Rules of Order is all about the choreography of who gets to speak when and what reasons are sufficient to interrupt and what level of importance each reason has. I happen to believe —and I know I’m 100% wrong — that “Rules of Order” were codified so that a gentleman could finish his speech without having to engage in swordplay with some other gentleman who had an urgent need to make a point.

Still looking at board meetings today. . .

E Train Flashback

So there I was on the E train at rush hour. It was wall-to-wall, door to door people. A tall young man, slightly to my right, wearing a green army jacket had stamped his foot. "stomp, stomp, stomp."

He seemed angry. Never a good sign.

Oh Lord, I thought, I only have two stops. Let me get to them.

Somebody said, "one" in a clear definite voice. His prerogative I thought.

And then somebody else said, "one."

What a coincidence.

Then the word, "one" bounced around the car. Different voices, different intonations. Different people. But they were all one. Actually, they were all one–ing.

This wasn't just a subway ride. This was a journey through hell, accompanied by a flash mob. How hip! How tiring. How crowded!

"Actually," I confided to the flash mob woman next to the, as I departed, "the correct answer is two."

Robert Mondavi Brut launch at DBGB

I ventured to the Bowery the other day (specifically to DBGB Kitchen & Bar) as an esteemed member of the press. The occasion was the unveiling to NYC-based press of a new wine from Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi wines. The new Woodbridge entry (actually introduced on 28 April) is Woodbridge Brut Sparkling wine.

“Oh the Bowery, the Bowery, I don’t go there any more,” went a 1892 song. It reflected the one-time, long-time tawdry, carnie atmosphere of one of New York City’s oldest streets. Once, a last stop for derelicts and drunks, the Bowery now is a hipster haven. Hipsters? Derelicts? You be the judge.

One thing is certain. Lots of people go there anymore today. As New York Magazine put it in 2005, “The flophouses survive, but now they’re surrounded by celebrity lounges and multi-million-dollar lofts.” It’s a trendy 24/7 hive these days. The Bowery even has its own Whole Foods Market. (For a probably accurate history of the Bowery, check out its Wikipedia entry.)

DBGB was a perfect setting for the Mondavi Brut launch. I guess we can call the restaurant a gastropub; but it is the downtown outlet for master celebrity chef Daniel Bouloud; and it is informal, comfortable and buzzy. The Woodbridge people selected it, according to a spokesperson, as the place “to pair decadent versions of every day foods with the wine to showcase how easily this sparkling can be integrated as part of a day-to-day lifestyle.”

The presentations worked. The wine has a delightful taste (accompanying press release declares “green apple. bright pear and citrus notes with a toasty finish on the palette” and who am I to argue?) And it did go well with many foods and, oh yes, speaking of delightful;, the Woodbridge Brut is delightfully inexpensive (just under $10 for a 750 ml. bottle).

Ahh, the responsibilities of journalism.

Digital Asset Management -- What A Concept

So there I was a couple of weeks ago at the Henry Stewart Digital Asset Management Conference, a two-day event at the New York Hilton. Quite frankly, I was trolling for stories and information. I like to encounter new and strange (to me) disciplines, subcultures and obscure (to me) corners of the universe. It excites me to know people are thinking about and making lives based on stuff that never would have occurred to me, is foreign to me and has a poetry I can marvel at because it comes from an entirely different way of perceiving the world and vocabulary.

Digital Asset Management (DAM) is buereaucratese for getting a handle on your stuff. When you’re a multinational corporation, a broadcast media company, newspaper or a university, you’ve got lots of stuff to handle — pictures, videos, brochures, training information, and all kinds of text documents.

Over the years, every fiefdom in these organizations had its own bunch of stuff. Items other departments, divisions or kingdoms could use weren’t, often because nobody knew the3se items were around and available . And because of changing personnel and other factors, people didn’t even know that somewhere in the enterprise’s history, a document, photo or video was stored that would solve a current problem.

The aforementioned types of orgqanizations aren’t the only ones using DAM. They simply are most obvious beneficiaries of this techno-salvation . They store and continue to acquire massive amounts digital files; they need to know what they can or can’t use; they need to accelerate workflow, in a landscape of permissions and approvals; they need to protect their brands. Most of all, they’re like the rest of us. They prefer to earn money, save money and not waste money. Aside from new storage capabilities, DAM’s fundamental ingredients are taxonomy (how things are classified) and metadata (essential and descriptive information about the digital file). Armed with an agreed upon vocabulary and metadata that uses that vocabulary, anybody anywhere in the organization can find whist they need, if it exists.

I expect to write more about DAM in the future.

The iPad or the Gospel, According to Apple

The iPad is out and the verdict is in. Congratulations, Apple. You’ve produced a brand new whtatchamacallit. And ain’t It a beauty?
Like most of the world, I haven't had a chance to smudge one of these things with my fingerprints. So in true pundit tradition, I can comment freely. There are a number of questions worth asking.
What's it really for?
It seems to be a place to keep all your media in one cool, shiny basket. Descriptions suggest that it's a stay-at-home or perhaps pack this instead of your laptop device. We know that it's particularly good for visual things, such as photographs and YouTube downloads. We know it is hard to look at in direct sunlight despite its e-reader apps for books newspapers and magazines. We know that publishers are starting to line up to partner with Apple. (Perhaps there's more to launching the iPad on Easter than we thought.)
Will it be a Kindle killer or netbook killer or chiller theater killer?
In the words of Faust, go know. It depends upon what the market, you know consumers, the public, people really want in a media device. Those who recall the videotape wars might also remember Betamax turned out to be superior to VHS. A lot of good it did Sony. It seems the public preferred VHS because it consistently offered more recording and viewing time than Betamax. Speaking of VCRs, the public also prefer to rent rather than buy videos, despite some very strong arm tactics by the movie studios. So what traits will the public want in a media tablet? We won't know until they actually begin experiencing the ipad.
Will it be a skyrocket or a dud?
This is the old we love a success and hate a loser question. Beats the heck out of me. I'm guessing it will go to something not only cool and useful but I suspect the e-reader part will assume minor consequence of all the way. So, will it be Godfather 2 or Godfather 3? It may have all the right ingredients but do they thrill or do they smell? The answer lies not in the Gospel, according to Apple; but in the privacy of your own homes.

The Year of Living Haphazardly

Writers are expected to know things these days. It's unfortunate; but that's the way it is. This is just hunky-dory for specialists. But I’m a generalist. My specialty is ignorance -- -abundant ignorance- the finely honed ability to not know stuff. This is linked to a delightful, crazed fear of not wanting to be found out. I interview my sources so exquisitely that even I understand what they’re talking about. And, of course, then I have to express these newly-found nuggets with some degree of clarity.
Life, at its purest, has been one long string of "no kiddings” and "whatdoyaknows" and "oh shinys".
Now that publishing is in ruins, I'm thinking, golly gee this would be a fine time to write a book. I don’t have to fuss, fret or sweat about the perfect subject to pursue. I’m the serendipity guy, I know the idea will come when it will come — which means a good book idea is just like death and life's other surprises.
One genre that attracts writers who are avowed know-nothings is the "year of" category. The best known example probably is Julie and Julia , the story of one woman's determination to cook all the recipes in Julia child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking in one year and how this quest changed her (Julie’s) life. There's also The Year Of Living Biblically and The Know-It-All: One Man's Humble Quest to Become the Smartest Person in the World (a/k/a the year of reading Encyclopedia Britannica).
I like the ignorance part . . .very much; and the blog part. But sniffing around one little corner of arcana for a year feels like a journey through one’s own digestive system, using the exit as a starting point. But enough about publishing
There actually was a chance that I could do "My Life As Citibank." It seems that through some expert bit of data mining Zoom info concluded that my name addres. . phone . and fax numbers belonged to Citibank. I had been getting some strange hangups from odd sources. But I didn't really know why until a call came from a collection agency. The very name of this company on my caller ID freaked me out. But no.. The fellow on the other end of the phone was looking for someone in a suit. For a while I had to turn down some attractive business propositions, a few loan requests, and explain to someone else that no I wasn't the IT department. I alsowas able to bask in the description that follows:

Company Profile: Citibank Ltd
Website: www.citibank.com. Phone: (212) 751-6680. Fax: (603) 720-8453 ... Citibank is the world's biggest provider of private banking, and specializes in ...
www.zoominfo.com/Search/CompanyDetail.aspx?...cs..

.

Mildly annoying? Yes! But frankly this episode, although not quite over, offered little in the way of inconvenience. There were a few more hangups and an occasion or two where I administered disappointment counseling. Otherwise, nothing rose to the level of Julie and Julia. So there is no "year of" juicy subject matter for me. There's just this little matter of my living my life.

I am embarking on "The Year Of Living Haphazardly."
The good news is there’s no book potential in it whatsoever.
It will cover the people, events, ephemera, notions, trends, activities and assorted whatnots I encounter in the course of my writing life. As such, it will be a kind of laboratory. Or maybe not.