WRITING WITHOUT A NET

Words written since last post: 57,323 Words deleted since last post: 17,201 Words rewritten since last post:  way too many! Okay, back to a semi-regular schedule after tornado recovery, internet failure and yes, in the midst of all this, the completion and publication of my very first original e-book! On that subject, I am still getting e-mail from readers complaining about my decision to publish digital editions of my books.  Some of these are a little snippy.  Some are simply hurt and confused.  Have I abandoned books?  What will become of those who don't have, or want to have, e-readers?  Don't I care about my reading public? These letters are particularly disheartening when they begin by saying, "I just got your last three books from a used book store/book exchange/friend or relative..." since, as we surely all know by this point, neither authors or publishers receive money from these sources and a lack of money is precisely why ...

pages written since last post : 150 But no... getting a start on a new book is not all I've been doing since February. Like so many of my colleagues of late, I've been re-evaluating the publishing business and my place in it. (I've also been trying to get off sugar and processed foods,lower my resting heart rate and plant an organic garden, but that's another post altogether).  I've also been giving a lot of thought to books in general and the way we read them, and, frankly, how much all of these things have changed.  When I first started buying books, a paperback could be had for 2.99.  When I first started writing books, the average price of a paperback book was 4.99.  When the cost of a paperback book jumped to 7.99, and a hardcover to $20.00, some of the most dedicated readers I know swore they would never buy another book.  Well, now they're paying $35.00 for some titles, but guess what?  They're not doing it very often.  So here's the thing....

Pages written since last post : 145 If you’re not in The Industry, you may not be aware of the firestorm of controversy regarding the evil e-reader which is destined to destroy publishing as we know it forever (speaking strictly from the point of view of a writer, this may not be a bad thing). It has taken me a really long time to comprehend the significance of this, because I am pretty much at the bottom of the technological curve. I’ve never sent a text message in my life. Totally don‘t get Twitter. My big-city friends are shocked and appalled when they dial my cell phone and, like, no one answers (don’t they know the only use for cell phones is when your car breaks down on the side of the highway at midnight in an ice storm?) I don’t know anyone– yes, this is God’s honest truth– who owns a Kindle. I live in one of the 3% or so of America that is not covered by Whispernet. Yet.... Every time I open up the Amazon.com page that $259 Kindle flashes in my face like some kind of su...