Mick Sussman's essay "Attack of the Megalisters" appears in the Book Review section of Sunday's New York Times and brings to light the work of this new breed of online bookseller.Before I talk about the piece I want to give a tip of the hat to the book coverage at the New York Times. While the book sections of most newspapers are disappearing or crumbling the NYT has expanded their coverage of the book world. Yes, it is still mostly populated by reviews and the the inherent politics that surround them but they have opened the doors to coverage of...
Jeanette Winterson on the Bookshop
"I am keen to preserve what is good in life, and that is often at odds with what is most profitable in life. Leaving aside the price arguments about supermarkets, bookshops have, or should have, a special place in our culture. We need books, and books are best browsed in the energetic peace of a small store where the owner loves reading, just like we do."She goes on:"real books belong to the heart, not the pocket, and there has to be a way of letting that be. I know that the internet is great for ordering whatever it is you...
The Pyramid Collapses : BookWise Folds
BookWise the multi-level marketing (aka pyramid scheme) / book-club founded by Richard Paul Evans has failed.Once touted by Evans as "the most intelligent home-based business in the world" BookWise has now merged with another multi-level marketing company iLearningGlobal, "a revolutionary success mentoring company, utilizing the power of online learning with an incredible compensation plan, higher payout and international opportunities."In an email sent to BookWise members Evans says of the demise:A couple months ago I learned a life changing lesson. I asked a billionaire friend of mine how do you know when it's time to quit. His reply sent chills down...
Live, from the Santa Monica Book Fair!
I leave tomorrow for the Santa Monica Book Fair where I'll be exhibiting (Booth 712a) and thought I would try something a little different.Through the wonders of modern technology (read: my iPhone), I'll be posting nearly-live updates from the fair - from set-up to break-down and everything in between, maybe even a few from the road - via both Flickr and Twitter. If you'd like to follow along, here are the links:The Santa Monica Book Fair - A Flickr Set (also available in RSS flavor)Me on Twitter (or RSS)Booth shots, interesting books, behind-the-scenes info...The next best thing to being there....
FlatSigned follow-up : ‘The Cartel’ Responds
One of Tim Miller's claims in his now infamous shady marketing masterpiece, FlatSigned.com Celebrates Ten Year Anniversary, was that he "even went so far as to attend" the ABAA's California Antiquarian Book Fair, or "Convention" as he calls it, in San Francisco to try to resolve his differences with certain members of the organization with "but was escorted out of the convention by those known in inner-circles as 'The Cartel.'"Well, here's how ABAA member Peter Stern saw it:The cartel? That was mostly me. I had done very little business with Mr. Miller. As a matter of fact, I believe we...