“We used to have an event in Glen Ellyn called BookFest involving local merchants and the library,” says Susan DeRonne, adult department director at Glen Ellyn Public Library (GEPL). “[It] had a tent where self-published authors could sell their works, and it became more and more popular in its last years.” GEPL is one of … Continue reading Solving the Self-Published Puzzle
Some aspects of the scholarly cycle have persisted for centuries: Scholars write to one another discussing their work, present findings at departmental colloquia or conferences, publish an article, and when there’s a body of research, revamp it into a book. In Scholarly Communications: A History from Content as King to Content as Kingmaker, John J. … Continue reading Scholarly Communication
Some of that anxiety has been over fear of being locked into terms that might prove economically unviable. That is, of course, a legitimate concern. We could argue, however, that earlier in the life of a technology is, in fact, the best time to experiment. There is much to be learned, and less to lose, … Continue reading The Ebook Pricing Wars
For practical purposes, the best-known definition of altmetrics, “the creation and study of new metrics based on the Social Web for analyzing and informing scholarship,” comes from altmetrics.org, a website set up by Priem and three of his colleagues. Since then, others have questioned the definition and the methods of calculating altmetrics in various scholarly … Continue reading Altmetrics, Bibliometrics
The surprising answer, argues Johnson, is that they are doing pretty well. Musicians are definitely not making as much from Spotify and Pandora as they made from CDs. On the other hand, they are making quite a bit more on live performances. There seem to be, in fact, more musicians making a living at it … Continue reading Creative Apocalypse: Canceled or Delayed?
American Libraries spoke with Sharp and Jonker to learn more about their creative process, the making of Sunny Side Up, and how educators and librarians can get involved with making podcasts. American Libraries: What was the inspiration to start The Yarn? Travis Jonker: Colby had the idea to try it. We kicked it around for … Continue reading Spinning The Yarn
“I really believe open access is not a passing fad,” Mary Ellen Davis, executive director of ALA’s Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) division, told an open-access panel at the American Historical Association’s 2014 annual meeting. “I believe open access is a durable feature of the landscape of scholarly communication.” ACRL made its scholarly … Continue reading Open Access Publishing
In brief, this three-way partnership between the New York Public Library (NYPL), DPLA, and First Book (with support from the Institute of Museum and Library Services) seeks to make free ebooks accessible to low-income children between the ages of 0 and 18. The books will be made available through the NYPL Library Simplified app (available in … Continue reading The Open Ebooks Initiative
But let’s focus on a new and better story. Disruption clears a path for pioneers, visionaries who see an opportunity where others see a threat. When it comes to ebooks, a few publishers are worthy of note. They not only experiment with technology in ways that significantly enhance the product, but they also reach out … Continue reading Digital publishing: In praise of pioneers
By contrast, the bookstore gets a 45% discount off the consumer price ($6.75) and makes $8.24. Having worked in bookstores myself, I know the margin is slim, and I have no quarrel with it. But I do have a quarrel with the library price. It is set, distributors assure me, by the publisher. But here’s … Continue reading DCL Ebook Report, July 2015
The four panelists, representing authors, editors, and publishers, emphasized the importance of timelines. “Time management and project management is a big deal,” said Brad Eden, dean of library services at Valparaiso (Ind.) University. A timeline for editing a book needs to factor in calls for proposals, giving authors deadlines, and establishing the editor’s own deadline … Continue reading Get Published
The following is a list of the titles they announced, with release dates, and in some cases, a blurb from the presentation. Adult The Hours Count By Jillian Cantor October 2015 The Gates of Evangeline By Hester Young September 2015 “A supernatural thriller.” Fates and Furies By Lauren Groff September 2015 “A story of a … Continue reading Penguin’s Book Buzz
